Greetings shippers welcome back and it's time to take a look at a pairing who's shippers
feel it is finally getting it's time in the sun.
We're going to be taking a look at winter falcon.
The pairing of falcon Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes the winter soldier.
These two had an interesting genesis.
Before we get started if you haven't already please follow on social media to stay up to
date know when we're streaming and just come on over and chit chat about fandom it's a
good time I swear.
Now let’s talk about winter falcon and answer that pressing question, can you move your
seat up.
When it comes to shipping Winter Falcon like many ships at the time of this recording the
first thing to come to the minds of many are their characters in the MCU.
Falcon and Bucky both have a rich history with Captain America in the comics Bucky being
there from the 40s though not in the form most fans recognize him in today.
In fact The Winter Soldier story arc which reintroduced Bucky as an adult during the
Ed Bruebaker run only occurred in 2005 which in comic terms is very recent.
Which means at the time of this recording he’s only had 14 yars to build up a rapport
with other characters which he has managed to do.
One of those is Falcon both have taken on the mantle of Cap and have a mutual respect
for the other however when it came to shipping the two the majority of shippers were galvanized
by the MCU and not exactly by a film either.
In terms of these characters introduction to each other they first cross path in 2014s
Captain america the Winter soldier a film which sets up each characters importance to
Cap though Bucky would leave the more lasting impression with the fandom, and the film would
catapult the pairing of Stucky Steve and Bucky into the limelight and ultimately some would
come to feel that Sam Wilson was being erased or just not being given his due.
Some did begin to ship Winter Falcon from this point a lot of it pre slash style works
the two feeling each out trying to get used to each other since Cap is so fond of the
other and finding they actually like each other.
However where these two would find themselves gathering shippers was in the lead up to Captain
America Civil War on the press tour which would influence how some saw the film itself.
We have talked about MArvel ships on this channel for years and one factor that has
made MCU shipping unique is the amount of influence the press tour, interviews and extra
non source based material surrounding actor interaction have on the fandom and it’s
transformative works.
The chemistry between actors and how they riff off of each on tours has boosted ships
been used as inspiration for fics, as have pictures been used for fan art.
And in the case of Winter Falcon the excellent fremistry between Anthony Mackie and Sebastian
Stan managed to launch a ship.
These two work quite well together in interviews with jokes, banter and good natured ribbing
present throughout.
These interactions alongside some leaked set photos of the two in costume during a chase
scene worked together to help certain fans form a headcanon for what these two’s relationship
would be like and to further extrapolate upon their romantic dynamics.
The conclusion these two would snipe at each other but have each others backs through thick
and thin and woe onto the person who tried to mess with or bring down one of them in
the other’s presence.
These interactions allowed people to begin to build a fanon bridge with these characters
aided by avengers 2 age of ultron’s post credit sequence that established Steve Sam
and Bucky as occupying the same space.
Fans began to create domestic avengers style fare bringing Sam and Bucky into the fold,
in many of these fics these two would find each other as Bucky healed.
The release of the winter soldier affirmed what fans had been expecting these two came
off as put upon friends who actually underneath it all could grow to be quite close.
The can you move your seat up scene is remembered fondly by many winter falcon shippers (clip)
it was also a catalyst for many fics about these two pining and finding solace in each
other or realizing they were what the other was looking for all along.
Both classic tropes.
This being because of the much maligned Steve Sharon kiss.
The funeral flirting has gone down in infamy (clip)
Civil War was a marker in the MCU in many ways as it was in fandom as it shifted the
landscape which in 2016 when the film was released was already subtly shifting.
Civil War divided many fans into camps team cap or team iron man.
Stucky or Stony etc There was much character bashing and many elaborate fix its.
However some wanted to steer clear of all of that and certain smaller ships had a bit
of a boost because of it one being Winter Falcon though the tone shifted slightly from
the more light hearted domestic fare of the press tour.
Though some would maintain that element and this pairing for some was the last bastion
of a simpler time.
So what drew people to these two outside of the circumstances, first let us quickly meet
the players.
First up Sam Wilson loyal and focused, Sam is a steadfast friend and an asset on any
mission.
Once attached to someone he sticks with them no matter what and is determined to get to
the bottom of mysteries.
Despite his dedication to whatever mission he is on he has a zeal for life and an affinity
for pop culture and can laugh at himself, and has a hidden snarky sense of humour.
His great regrets are harming others and not being able to help.
Falcon didn’t quite take off as a character the way the MCU seemed to have planned with
some finding him ineffectual particularly after he was taken out by ant man.
Others felt it was no fault of his own he simply was overshadowed by more charismatic
characters with more dramatic arcs one of those being Bucky.
The Winter Soldier is troubled once Steve Roger’s best friend, Bucky has been taken
apart by hydra transformed into a killing machine brian washed to near insanity, Bucky
is only just beginning to remember his past but still struggles to form a full connection
to it.
He strives to atone for what he has done and find peace with himself and the world, at
times the sardonic firm friend he was dominates his personality at other times his traumas
take hold.
For shippers these two matched well and they felt Sam would have the patience to help Bucky
recover but without the burden of expectation some fans felt steve would place on bucky
to be exactly who he was before.
They felt that Sam could help get Bucky up to date and provide him with a safe fun non
judgmental partner.
That the two had matching sense of humour and would pull, fun pranks on the other.
That bucky would be loyal and protective and look out for Sam in ways that no other person
had before and would appreciate him more than others did too.
Seeing the potential in him just as he had seen in Steve.
That these two could form their own identities and lives outside of Steve and learn hidden
secrets and quirks about the other that may surprise people.
A ship built on support and a love of normalcy with some action and adventure thrown in.
And of course there were ways to make it dark for those who preferred that style of fare.
Now some accomplished all of this by creating aus that just didn’t deal with civil war
events at all, and the bouncing off of a crush from Steve angle was ever prominent.
Also the two having to team up to save Cap was a popular getting together mechanism as
well.
This ship is a small one gaining less traction even than what some would consider more perplexing
ships such as winter iron the pairing of tony stark and bucky barnes which even managed
to survive civil war.
So what was it that didn’t appeal about these two to certain shippers.
Well Bucky was firmly attached to mega ship that is Stucky to the point where certain
shippers had blinders on in therms of considering other pairings or simply felt that was the
best pairing some were even convinced it was going to be canon.
Though others were content to live in fanon knowing the canon comic ships would ultimately
be the ones depicted.
For others as mentioned it was a sam wilson thing.
For a time and even at the time of this recording though it is easing and some are more apt
to come to Sam’s defense it was quite popular to make fun of falcon or dislike the character
as a result some didn’t consider pairing him with any let alone with bucky.
Others missed this ships genesis which as mentioned occurred largely outside of canon
so some never saw the potential or the chemistry people were talking about and found the two’s
canon interactions to be bitter and tinged with jealousy.
Some felt it was potentially because these two are an interracial pairing which trend
towards being less shipped, and indeed may be a factor for a subset of shippers.
However others pointed to Bucky’s other pairings with characters such as T’challa
and countered that these two simply hadn’t connected as much as other characters and
didn’t share the same history in canon or comics as Bucky with some of the other characters.
That couples with the general apathy towards Sam guaranteed this pairs lack popularity.
These two also passed each other quite quickly canonically at least at the time with Bucky
whisked to Wakanda so some shippers felt the pairing was a lot of effort and involved removing
both plot and character obstacles.
However for shippers this ship may be due for a huge spike thanks to some new developments
new at the time of this recording in the MCU.
Post Endgame the canonical tables have shifted and left Sam and Bucky alone together in the
present.
There is some confusion between writers and directors as to whether old cap is a permanent
fixture in the mcu universe but either way that dynamic has changed and Bucky and Sam
are slated to have a tv series together on Disney’s streaming service Disney plus.
Some feel that this will be Winter Falcon’s time to shine and the fics about Sam mending
Bucky’s broken heart or the two moving on together have already begun.
Plus these two continue to interview well together.
For those who enjoy these two characters the future looks ready to have more moments and
with appreciation for Sam growing or those who always appreciated him more willing to
speak out it could prove to be this new caps time to shine.
Though of course time will tell.
And whether or not Winter Falcon becomes a huge ship or not it is still very appreciated
by those who enjoy it there to discover for those who are curious.
Multishippers ahoy.
Are you a Winter Falcon shipper if so when did you jump on board the Endgame push these
two together for you?
Just in general how have you felt about these two’s character growth and how fans treat
sam wilson.
Answer as much as you can numbered if possible cause you know I love a good essay comment.
As always thanks so much for taking some time out of your day to spend it discussing shipping
with me I always appreciate it.
It’s cathartic doing all these marvel ships I feel like I’m crossing things off my list.
My never ending list of ships ever growing.
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I will see you all again when I can and until then let’s get to that outro buh bye.