Captain America has never been my favourite Marvel superhero growing up with the comics. But Kevin Feige has given him arguably the best arc for any character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
On my first watch of Captain America: The First Avenger in 2011, directed by Joe Johnston, I was not too impressed. The story was good but the fight scenes were very modest and not flashy at all.
But The Avengers in 2012 solidified him as a bona fide leader of the assembled team that made up of a green monster and a Norse god, while Iron Man and Tony Stark was still the clear star of the movie.
Then came Captain America: The Winter Soldier in 2014 - the game changer. No one saw it coming as Feige placed two comedic directors - the Russo Brothers - at the helm. Their previous work were all in TV, like "Arrested Development", "Community" and "Carpoolers". Doubt was in every fans' mind whether or not the duo could deliver a big budget, action superhero movie.
Not only did they deliver, the sequel became one of the most beloved MCU movies that clearly stated the way Feige's vision going forward - creating subgenres inside these genre movies. Winter Soldier also introduced the team-up of Cap with Black Widow and Falcon, while bringing action sequences from the comic books to life. The way he threw his shield and the way it cut through the air brought tears to my eyes.
And it was also in this movie that we saw Steve Rogers learned the truth about the agency that he has dedicated himself to in this new era. Placing honour and friendship above all else, he brought down SHIELD without fear and with so much clarity in what must be done, even if it meant going up against an organisation whose corruption ran deep and all the way to the top. He would take each and every corrupted agent down.
Avengers: Age Of Ultron in 2015 introduced the first friction and fissure between the two leaders of the MCU - just like the way Steve split opened a piece of log with his bare hands - due to a difference in an important point of view of how they should be protecting the world.
And that led directly into 2016's Captain America: Civil War.
Again, operating and driven by his honour and what was right, Cap assembled a team to fight once again for his friend Bucky, as well as the right of every "enhanced" and the way they would operate in saving the world.
Even if it meant becoming a fugitive from the country he so proudly served and loved, that sense of righteousness was far stronger than any government and any accord that would want to tie him down. But the ultimate cost of that would be his friendship with Tony Stark. "...He's my friend." "So was I."
So what if Cap came out the winner in that brawl with Iron Man, he saw that the system and the country that he has risked his life for countless of times, has changed for the worse. That star spangled banner and that shield has lost all meaning now, and so he left the shield, tore away the star on his chest, and - as I'm sure we will find out soon enough in Avengers: Infinity War - he is reassessing his code and searching for meaning.
Now here comes the kicker, rewatch that first movie, The First Avenger, again today and it will mean so much more this time.
You will get the see that beautiful and modest beginnings of Captain America that Johnston got right! I never knew it but I subconsciously fell in love with this goody-two-shoes so many years ago. That malnourished kid from Brooklyn but with a heart of gold that want nothing more than to be able to help and serve his country in times of war. And he will stand up to any bully all day if he had to.
In an all-important conversation between him and Dr. Erskine before the supersoldier serum was injected, we understood why Steve always kept that boy from Brooklyn inside of him and his head screwed on tight later on in future movies.
"This is why you were chosen. Because the strong man who has known power all his life, may lose respect for that power. But a weak man knows the value of strength, and knows compassion. Whatever happens tomorrow, you must promise me one thing. That you will stay who you are, not a perfect soldier, but a good man."
Then we saw that Steve shining through in the end as the plane he was piloting went down into the ocean but not before asking Peggy Carter to save him a dance a week from then. Watch that scene again today and it will have an even stronger affect on you.
Today, as Avengers: Infinity War crawls nearer, Steve Rogers / Captain America, played by Chris Evans, has become my favourite MCU character. His character arc is the best one spanning across 5 movies so far. And the Captain America Trilogy is among the best trilogies in cinema history!
I told myself that I do not want to see any more trailers but I succumbed as images are shared all over social media.
But after watching it, right at the end when I have come to understand the character of Steve Rogers, after having fallen in love with the character over and over again while rewatching these MCU movies; to see him go from the nation's superhero to now a nomad, to see him standing toe-to-toe with big bad Thanos, to see him stop that punch with his bare hands, to see Thanos' confused disbelief, and then to see Steve's strength and determination.
Yes, I cried.
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