Marvel’s new TV series, Wonder Man, just dropped yet another insult to Sam Wilson’s Captain America. Let’s face it, there’s a sense in which Sam Wilson has simply been unable to get a break; he had to step into Steve Rogers’ shoes, and the entire world struggled to accept him. President Ross gave pretty much the common view when he snapped at Sam that he is no Steve Rogers.
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In the real world, Sam Wilson feels like the Avenger with the worst rep. Captain America: Brave New World grossed just $415.1 million in the global box office, and this new Captain America has since felt increasingly sidelined in the marketing for Avengers: Doomsday (indeed, Doomsday‘s first trailer kicked off with confirmation of Steve Rogers’ return). Now, Marvel’s new TV show, Wonder Man, has just dropped another insult – this time from a very different source.
Wonder Man is no Fan of Captain America
There’s one blink-and-you’ll-miss-it scene in Wonder Man episode 3 where Simon Williams talks about superheroes with his cousin at a birthday party for his mother. He’s somewhat irritated when his cousin suggests Captain America is “the full package,” insisting he’s actually just a regular guy who throws a shield. Simon clearly isn’t talking about one of the MCU’s super-soldiers, but instead he’s referring to Sam Wilson. And he’s evidently not a fan.
There is, of course, a subtle reason for this. Sam Wilson and Simon Williams are very different people, even though they are technically part of the same world; specifically, the same world of gods and monsters, superhumans and mutants. Sam is an ordinary human who has dared to enter the realm of superhumans; we know Sam Wilson will even found an Avengers team by the time Doomsday comes. In contrast, Simon is an actual super-powered person who does not want to live in that particular world, because his powers threaten the career he has always dreamed of.
This is the brilliance of Wonder Man. It’s more of a character study than most Marvel TV shows, and even its smallest moments – such as Simon’s Captain America insult – have a greater depth of meaning. In this case, we’re seeing that Sam Wilson’s role as Captain America has stirred up deeper feelings than he would ever have expected, leading to a strange sort of resentment that burns within Simon. We can only hope that, given the positive reception Wonder Man has had, that we’ll eventually see what happens when Sam and Simon cross paths.
The interesting question, of course, is whether they’d even been on the same side. The end of Wonder Man saw Simon break a supposed terrorist, Trevor Slattery, out of a Damage Control Supermax prison. Given that’s the case, he and Sam Wilson are now on the opposite side of the law; an Avenger and a criminal. Doesn’t every superhero team-up begin with an obligatory fight between them?
Wonder Man is now streaming on Disney+.
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