Falcon and winter solider

[Paul Farquhar]

That would mean Natasha Romanov, an adult in the movie, would now be in her 60s. The Black Widow movie is set between Civil War and Infinity War./

Maybe she is in her 60s, but looks younger because of the Russian supersoldier serum (or because she is a skrull). I'm pretty sure the Black Widow movie at least features flashbacks to the 80s.

Captain America is created in 1942/43.

Just rewatched the movie. It's 43.

Zola got captured by Cap and the Howling Commandos, but Bucky falls from the train in that same operation. Zola is in Allied hands from that point forward, while the Russians have Bucky.

Zola probably wouldn't have a chance to be involved until much later, if at all, after the creation of SHIELD, and its infiltration by HYRDA. And even then, it probably wasn't Zola personally experimenting on Bucky - HYDRA infiltrated SHIELD, but I doubt that went so far as an American asset (Zola) actually going to work in Russia. Even in the modern day, HYDRA had to work at keeping itself secret. That would have been rather blatant.

Zola was Americanised under (real life) Operation Paperclip (TWS), which would mean he was working for the American government from 1946 onwards. That's before the foundation of SHIELD.
Also in TWS, Rogers concludes that Zola had been experimenting on Bucky when he rescued him, and that is what enabled him to survive the fall. Bucky has flashbacks that seem to imply Zola was involved after he became the Winter Soldier, although this could just be his addled memories. Zola died in the 1970s.

Isaiah says he was imprisoned for 30 years. That's 50s to 80s, or 60s to 90s. The Blip is 2010s.

Sure, but they continued to experiment on his blood after the freed him. Nagel says as much.

 

[Stalker0]

Maybe she is in her 60s, but looks younger because of the Russian supersoldier serum (or because she is a skrull). I'm pretty sure the Black Widow movie at least features flashbacks to the 80s.

The MCU version of Natasha has never implied she had super solider serum like in some versions of the comics, just extreme training.

That said her background is still a mystery, so maybe they will go that route in her movie

 

[Rabulias]

Also, after seeing Zemo in this episode, it came to mind that there is an opportunity to do a Thunderbolts story during the Blip. Unfortunately there is not enough of a catalog of established villains still alive in the MCU to use, but the situation with the missing heroes seems perfect. It might be a harder sell with MCU Zemo's stance on superheroes (they could use someone else, I suppose), but what better way to undermine public trust in heroes than to gather a group of "heroes" who then betray everything they are supposed to stand for? And, as in the comics, Zemo's plan goes awry when some of the villains truly want to reform. A TV series might be a better format than a film for this.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

My only real complaint about the episode was the lack of SE Asian cast in the Madripoor scenes, its called out as an Island in the Indonesian Archipelago but apparently its entirely inhabited by white gangsters and black bar staff. It might not have been as much of an issue if race wasnt an important theme in the show...

That bit bothered me too. And my family. I paused when they mentioned Madripoor and explained to my wife and kids what Madripoor was - then we kept going and my daughter said right away, "Why are they all white, then?" The way I imagine Madripoor anyway, it should be at least 80% SE Asians. I don't have a problem with an Aussie crime boss, but the club-goers and streets should have been both more, and less diverse at the same time.

 

[Enevhar Aldarion]

That bit bothered me too. And my family. I paused when they mentioned Madripoor and explained to my wife and kids what Madripoor was - then we kept going and my daughter said right away, "Why are they all white, then?" The way I imagine Madripoor anyway, it should be at least 80% SE Asians. I don't have a problem with an Aussie crime boss, but the club-goers and streets should have been both more, and less diverse at the same time.

All the SE-Asian people are in Hightown controlling everything? They would have been the people already there before the refugees from the return Snap started flooding the island. And we only saw a small part of Lowtown, a part controlled by non-Asians. Do you go to NYC and go into Chinatown or Harlem and wonder where the white folks are? Or into the parts controlled by the Mob and wonder why there are no non-white folks? Giant cities self-segregate, so could be just another subtle look at real-world race issues as represented in the show. Criminal elements can be also very insular and tend to not mix races, so even a mix of black and white people could be seen as odd. Also, we do not know if the five years of missing people pushed groups closer together or pulled them further apart.

 

[Umbran]

Maybe she is in her 60s, but looks younger because of the Russian supersoldier serum

That she was so enhanced is, to my understanding, speculation. I think her movie does have someone enhanced (Red Guardian, played by David Harbour), but I don't believe we have evidence she is.

(or because she is a skrull). I'm pretty sure the Black Widow movie at least features flashbacks to the 80s.

When she's a child being raised to be an assassin, perhaps.

Also in TWS, Rogers concludes that Zola had been experimenting on Bucky when he rescued him, and that is what enabled him to survive the fall.

Rogers wasn't exactly a trained scientist. And Bucky showed no other signs of enhancement at that time - 'cuz, really, if he was enhanced, he wouldn't have fallen like that. So, I took that to be his speculation, not a timeline truth.

Sure, but they continued to experiment on his blood after the freed him. Nagel says as much.

Sure. Your wording just implied Isaiah had been captive for rather longer.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

All the SE-Asian people are in Hightown controlling everything? They would have been the people already there before the refugees from the return Snap started flooding the island. And we only saw a small part of Lowtown, a part controlled by non-Asians.

Sure, that's possible, I guess. Still strange.

Do you go to NYC and go into Chinatown or Harlem and wonder where the white folks are? Or into the parts controlled by the Mob and wonder why there are no non-white folks?

What a strange thing to ask someone. I find this question both dumb, and a little offensive, and also to not have anything to do with the show (or my comments about the show) at all. Was there some kind of big sign that said "Yankee-town" that I missed when they said they were going to Madripoor?

Giant cities self-segregate, so could be just another subtle look at real-world race issues as represented in the show. Criminal elements can be also very insular and tend to not mix races, so even a mix of black and white people could be seen as odd. Also, we do not know if the five years of missing people pushed groups closer together or pulled them further apart.

They segregate a little. I LIVE in a PacRim city with a Chinatown, a Japantown, a Little Italy, a Little India, etc etc. You still find people of every "race" in all of those places. In PARTICULAR at a nightclub. (And again, there was nothing to suggest that Lowtown Madripoor is some kind of Yankeetown, other than that it looked like it was).

Anyway, it was just an observation - where Madripoor is situated in the world there ought to be an majority of SE Asians there. It was strange to not really see... any? Or nearly none? It was unexpected. It doesn't need to be a bigger deal than that.

 

[Morrus]

I'm not enjoying this show nearly as much as Wandvision. It's fine -- I'm not hating it or anything, and I'll watch to the end -- but it's a bit too formulaic for me. I find it slightly boring. I think Loki will be more to my taste.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

I'm not enjoying this show nearly as much as Wandvision. It's fine -- I'm not hating it or anything, and I'll watch to the end -- but it's a bit too formulaic for me. I think Loki will be more to my taste.

I didn't expect to like it as much as WandaVision when I saw the trailer (After WV it seemed a bit to DudeBro masculine and RahRah US militant for my taste) but I loved episode 1.

...Now I'm starting to cool on it, so I know what you mean. Maybe it'll surprise when it gets to its point. I AM looking forward to Loki, though!

 

[Tonguez]

That bit bothered me too. And my family. I paused when they mentioned Madripoor and explained to my wife and kids what Madripoor was - then we kept going and my daughter said right away, "Why are they all white, then?" The way I imagine Madripoor anyway, it should be at least 80% SE Asians. I don't have a problem with an Aussie crime boss, but the club-goers and streets should have been both more, and less diverse at the same time.

I would have been happy with just one just a wee nod, but the MCU still seems to have a problem with Asian representation.

Also, after seeing Zemo in this episode, it came to mind that there is an opportunity to do a Thunderbolts story during the Blip. Unfortunately there is not enough of a catalog of established villains still alive in the MCU to use, but the situation with the missing heroes seems perfect. It might be a harder sell with MCU Zemo's stance on superheroes (they could use someone else, I suppose), but what better way to undermine public trust in heroes than to gather a group of "heroes" who then betray everything they are supposed to stand for? And, as in the comics, Zemo's plan goes awry when some of the villains truly want to reform. A TV series might be a better format than a film for this.

With just MCU movie villains they could have a Thunderbolts comprised of Zemo, Abomination, Batroc, Vulture, Scorpion, Shocker, possibly Ghost (?). Justin Hammer is still around and Black Widow was in the Thunderbolts
dip into Marvel TV to get Bullseye and Bushmaster (hell bring DD and Luke Cage in for the ride too)

Also the Leader is still out there technically