The Revolution

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In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, could Bucky Barnes, who has been known by various aliases, take on a new nickname in “Thunderbolts”? After a long journey towards redemption, from being Steve Rogers’ comrade in “Captain America: The First Avenger” to becoming a Hydra operative in “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” Bucky has managed to regain his heroic essence with the aid of Wakandans and rehabilitation. In “Thunderbolts,” Bucky is a prominent character, marking the next phase of his development. With some recent comic book plot twists in mind, it’s intriguing to speculate if Bucky’s narrative in “Thunderbolts” will include him abandoning the “Winter Soldier” moniker for something more radical or transformative.

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), viewers know that Bucky Barnes has utilized two distinct aliases: Winter Soldier and White Wolf. The moniker “Winter Soldier” was assigned to Bucky when he was a Hydra-controlled assassin, asleep for years to perform missions across decades. Conversely, the nation of Wakanda bestowed the name “White Wolf” upon him once he managed to shake off Hydra’s control. The term “White Wolf” has been seldom employed; in fact, Marvel Studios opted to call their Disney+ series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier using his former alias.

As Bucky progresses further and further away from his “Winter Soldier” past, the title has become less common, replaced instead by using his first name. However, every hero requires a nickname, so why not have Thunderbolts draw inspiration from contemporary comics by referring to Bucky as “The Revolution“?

Bucky Barnes graduates from Winter Soldier to The Revolution

In the year 2022, Marvel introduced two consecutive series centered around Captain America. One focused on Steve Rogers, while the other highlighted Sam Wilson. The series starring Steve Rogers, titled “Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty“, was penned by Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing, and illustrated by Carmen Carnero. This storyline introduced a clandestine organization known as the Outer Circle, which had been manipulating events in Steve Rogers’ and Bucky Barnes’ lives unbeknownst to them. In response, Bucky decided to take down this organization, leading to him eliminating one of its members — the Revolution.

Revolution presented Bucky Barnes with a challenging proposition: either eliminate him and assume the role in the Century Game, or remain under the control of the Outer Circle. Given his circumstances, the Winter Soldier chose to eliminate The Revolution, unintentionally hitting Steve Rogers as collateral damage. This act placed Bucky at odds with Captain America, as he came to believe that joining the Outer Circle and participating in their game was the best way to dismantle them. A significant part of Bucky’s transformation from Winter Soldier to The Revolution involved acquiring a new uniform.

Initially, Steve and Bucky collaborated to bring down the Outer Circle, but Bucky continued using the name Revolution and even founded a new group of Thunderbolts, focusing on eliminating some of the most perilous villains in the Marvel Universe such as Red Skull. Furthermore, a fresh volume of Thunderbolts is currently being published under Marvel’s “One World Under Doom” event.

Thunderbolts* is the perfect movie to introduce Bucky’s new codename

In the trailers for Thunderbolts*, Sebastian Stan’s character is identified as “Bucky Barnes” instead of Winter Soldier or White Wolf. However, it’s notable that some members of the team in the Super Bowl Big Game trailer don’t have codenames, like Yelena Belova, John Walker, and Bucky Barnes himself. In contrast, Red Guardian, Ghost, and Taskmaster are referred to by their code names.

Could it be possible that the upcoming Thunderbolts series might assign a new alias to Bucky Barnes? It’s tricky to predict, given that there often is a parallel between the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and comic book characters. For instance, Sam Wilson transitioned from Falcon to Captain America in the comics. Similarly, Bucky leads the Thunderbolts in the comics and plays a significant role in the movies. However, the “Revolution” name for Bucky in the MCU would require a compelling origin story, but the creators have shown they can work with limited resources.

At least it’s reassuring to know that most of the Thunderbolts crew have made it through and will be joining the already large ensemble in Avengers: Doomsday.

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2025-03-27 17:40