WARNING: The following contains spoilers for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Episode 3, "Power Broker," now streaming on Disney+.
The halfway point of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier reintroduced many Marvel Cinematic Universe elements, including Helmut Zemo and Sharon Carter. One surprise appearance came in the form of Ayo, a member of the Wakandan Dora Milaje, who is out for blood with Zemo. With Wakanda now in the equation of the Disney+ series, there's a chance that Bucky's may have an ulterior motive for working with his former enemy.
In "Power Broker," Bucky convinces Sam to visit Zemo in Germany, where the baron was imprisoned at the end of Captain America: Civil War. He wants to utilize Zemo and his previous HYDRA connections to find out more about how the Flag Smashers were able to get their hands on Super Soldier serum. it comes as a surprise for both Sam Wilson and the audience. After all, one of the last times the two saw each other, Zemo triggered Bucky to go into Winter Soldier mode, which he admits in this episode was simply a "means to an end." To say there's bad blood between them is a huge understatement.
Despite that, Bucky wants to use Zemo's resourcefulness to its fullest extent. He even helps bust the criminal mastermind out of prison, something Sam immediately blanches at. For now, it seems like the baron is on the side of the Falcon and the Winter Soldier. Zemo helps bring them into the criminal underworld of Madripoor, finding out about the repurposed serum and the Flag Smashers' theft of it. It seems the trio is united in the goal of bringing them down and preventing this new batch of Super Soldiers from taking over the world.
But Bucky may have another rationale in mind, as seen at the end of this episode. He strays away from Sam and Zemo, following a trail of Kimoyo Beads to an empty alley. There, he surprisingly meets up with Ayo, though he doesn't seem surprised at her arrival. "I was wondering when you were going to show up," he says bluntly. She responds in Wakandan, "I'm here for Zemo."
Zemo and Bucky both have complex respective histories with the prolific African nation. A key stage of Zemo's plan to sow chaos in Captain America: Civil War was to bomb the Vienna International Centre, killing Wakandan King T'Chaka in the process. It was a ruse to frame Bucky for the crime, sending a schism through the Avengers. Though T'Chaka's son, T'Challa, was given a chance to seek revenge at the end of the film, he instead turned him in, even preventing Zemo from killing himself so he could be brought to justice.
After Zemo was put behind bars, Bucky was entrusted to T'Challa and the Wakandan people so he could undergo a rehabilitation process from the brainwashing he endured as the Winter Soldier. He later talks about this time as the bit of calm among the various conflicts he was thrown into. And in becoming the "White Wolf," he became more like his old self, closely tying Bucky to the people who helped him get his mind back.
Though ultimately successful in getting Zemo in the fold, Bucky's plan to release him was still incredibly risky. The baron had previously controlled him, and Bucky himself was on thin ice legally speaking after missing his court-mandated therapy appointments. But Bucky's true intention in releasing Zemo from prison might not just have been to get his help with the Flag Smashers, but also to ultimately turn him over to the Dora Milaje.
The way Bucky greeted Ayo seemed incredibly nonchalant. He seemed to have a keen eye for the Kimoyo Beads, almost like he was looking out for them. It could be that Ayo was not spying on Bucky, but actually sending him a signal. Bucky took the cue and went off in private to confirm that he will continue to play his role in the larger scheme to imprison Zemo in Wakanda. That makes this less of a surprise meeting and more of an undercover agent meeting with his agency about the plan at hand.
Bucky becoming an agent of Wakanda could also connect back to his overarching theme of "making amends." Though he doesn't appear to have taken out any Wakandans during his time as the Winter Soldier, the nation was instrumental to his recovery, helping give him a necessary calm in the storm of his life. To repay that favor and show his loyalty, he could be working to bring in the king's assassin on their behalf, crossing an entire country off his list of amends.
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+.