WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Episode 3, "Power Broker," now streaming on Disney+.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is a masterclass of how to use in-jokes and clever throwbacks to past gags, and the new episode of Falcon and the Winter Soldier is no exception. Sam and Bucky need to get out of Madripoor fast after their meeting with the Power Broker's pet scientist goes haywire, and it's Helmut Zemo who comes to the rescue in a stolen convertible. Wordlessly, Bucky takes shotgun, putting Sam in the back of the classic luxury vehicle. It sets up the perfect callback to Captain America: Civil War, with the two frenemies uncomfortably sharing a tiny car.
Civil War's frenetic tension and theme of broken alliances kept audiences on edge, making its heartwarming, sometimes funny moments a necessary release valve for fans. One of the best moments was when Steve, Bucky and Sam are on the run. As Bucky recovered from Zemo using his trigger words to reactivate the Winter Soldier, the trio were trying to stay out of sight. Because of this, Rogers had stolen a tiny Volkswagen Beetle as their getaway car, which was already funny enough.
Meeting up with Sharon Carter to get their stolen gear left Sam and Bucky alone together in tight quarters. After spending most of Captain America: The Winter Soldier fighting each other, Bucky's dialogue was somewhat unexpected. "Can you move your seat up?" he asked Sam. "No," was the terse response. While clearly not happy about it, Bucky silently slid to the other side of the car rather than fighting Sam on the issue.
It was a small moment that defined the pair's relationship from that moment on. This week in Falcon and Winter Soldier, the absurdity of Zemo rolling up to his two new "friends" in his stolen ride doesn't give the audience time to realize what's been set up. It's a wind-up to a knockout punch when Sam Wilson takes a beat, just long enough for fans to begin to realize what this looks like. Then the hit lands. "You're not gonna move your seat up, are you?" Sam asks Bucky. The aura off of Bucky is nearly joyful when he makes it clear that, no, that's not going to happen.
It's small moments like this one that keep the MCU so tightly woven together. It's a cute throwaway, but it's also born of that same spirit of fun that lets audiences both laugh and feel for a fictional world like this one. And it's also the sort of joke that only works when the characters themselves have been built up so well that fans think of them as real people. Instead of feeling like a jokey fan-service set-up, it seems more like an organic moment between two guys who are still deciding whether they're going to be friends or enemies today based which side of the bed they woke up on.
Sam and Bucky's strained friendship is guaranteed to build to more moments like this one, and with it will come more prickly testing of each other's boundaries. It isn't necessarily character growth, but it's still an important part of their relationship. At some point, they might even realize they're not trying to be each other's friend or enemy. Jokes like this one point towards the coming realization that, really, they're brothers. Brothers in arms, of course, but anyone with a sibling knows that they can show their love in weird, seemingly unfriendly ways.
Directed by Kari Skogland, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier stars Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan, Emily VanCamp, Wyatt Russell, Noah Mills, Carl Lumbly and Daniel Brühl. A new episode debuts each Friday on Disney+.