In the past few years, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has brought forth from comic book lore deliciously likable villains, intensely loathsome villains, and a great deal of rather mediocre villains. The Thor franchise, for example, gave us Loki, a scene-stealing, silver-tongued, angst-ridden antagonist who, in his own way, captured the hearts of fans in The Avengers as much as any Captain America or Iron Man did. For every Loki, though, weve been given numerous Malekiths or Aldrich Killians in recent films: the MCU, it seemed, had lost the sacred, special art of the compelling antagonist - that is, up until last week. Some have called the titular character of the Captain America sequel bland, even boring, due, in fairness, to the brainwashed, robot-assassin-on-a-deadly-mission nature of the Winter Soldier. (This begs the question, however: in what world should robot assassin on a deadly mission ever be classified as boring?) In all seriousness, though, the Winter Soldier could very well be the best antagonist that the MCU has produced so far. Despite his minimal presence, nearly non-existent dialogue, and smudged eyeliner (sorry, thats black camouflage war paint) in the film, the former Bucky Barnes has worlds of character potential stored somewhere in that wiped brain, that metal arm, and that mysterious past. Though his storyline is likely going to be explored in greater depth in later installments, Captain America: The Winter Soldier has given fans plenty to think about in regards to the Winter Soldier's promise as a villain, as a character, and, ultimately, as a tragic hero. Beware of many Captain America: The Winter Soldier spoilers ahead...
Canadian student. Spends probably an unhealthy amount of time enthusing over musicals, unpopular TV shows, and Harry Potter. Main life goal: to become fluent in Elvish.
