Bucky Barnes | The Winter Soldier

James Buchanan Barnes was born on March 10, 1917. He and Steve Rogers became childhood best friends and on many occasions Barnes would protect Rogers from bullies. During World War II, Barnes is drafted in the U.S. Army, while Rogers is rejected from the service due to his numerous medical conditions. Barnes fights in Europe while Rogers is chosen for the Super Soldier Program by Dr. Abraham Erskine and becomes Captain America.

In 1943, while on tour in Italy performing for active servicemen, Rogers learns that Barnes' unit was MIA in a battle against the Nazi forces of Johann Schmidt. Refusing to believe that Barnes is dead, Rogers has Peggy Carter and engineer Howard Stark fly him behind enemy lines to mount a solo rescue attempt. Rogers infiltrates the fortress of Schmidt's Nazi science division, Hydra, freeing Barnes and the other prisoners, with Barnes having just been experimented on by Hydra. Barnes becomes part of an elite unit assembled by Rogers called the Howling Commandos, participating in numerous missions against Hydra and the Nazis. However, during one such mission, Barnes falls off of a train and is seemingly killed.

Hydra assassin edit Further information: Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War The scientific experimentation that Barnes endured allows him to survive his fall, but he is recaptured by Hydra and ends up being taken to their wing inside the Soviet Union. There he is tortured, brainwashed and has his memory of his former life as Bucky Barnes wiped, turning him into the Winter Soldier, a mind-controlled super soldier with a metal prosthetic arm of superhuman strength. As the Winter Soldier, the mind-controlled Barnes commits numerous assassinations and terrorist acts throughout the 20th century, such as the assassination of John F. Kennedy, as a means for Hydra to create a singular world government under their control. In between missions, Barnes has his memory wiped again and is put into cryogenic sleep.

During the Korean War, Barnes was confronted by the American super soldier Isaiah Bradley in Goyang and half of his cybernetic arm was destroyed during the skirmish.[a]

In 1991, Hydra uses Barnes to kill Howard and Maria Stark in an assassination made to look like a car accident, during which he steals a case of super soldier serum from their car.[b]

In 2009, Barnes was sent on a mission to assassinate a nuclear scientist in Odessa. S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Natasha Romanoff attempted to protect the scientist, but Barnes managed to kill the scientist by shooting a round through Romanoff's stomach while she covered him.[c]

In 2014, Barnes, still operating as the Winter Soldier, leads a group of assailants to ambush Nick Fury in Washington, D.C. Later, Barnes attacks Fury in Rogers' apartment, but escapes before Rogers can catch him. Rogers discovers a Hydra plot to use three Helicarriers to sweep the globe, using satellite-guided guns to eliminate every individual who is a threat to Hydra. Rogers, Romanoff, and Sam Wilson are ambushed on the highway by Barnes, who kills Jasper Sitwell. After a fight with Romanoff and Rogers, Barnes' mask is removed and Rogers recognizes him as Barnes. Barnes is taken back to the base by Brock Rumlow and other agents, remembering Rogers, but gets put back under mind control. Rogers and Wilson later storm two Helicarriers and replace their controller chips, but Barnes destroys Wilson's suit and fights Rogers on the third Helicarrier. Rogers fends him off and replaces the final chip. Rogers refuses to fight Barnes in an attempt to reach his friend, but as the ship collides with the Triskelion, Rogers is thrown out into the Potomac River. Barnes, freed from Hydra's mind control, rescues the unconscious Rogers before disappearing into the woods. Later, Barnes visits his own memorial in the Captain America exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution.

Dealing with brainwashing edit Further information: Captain America: Civil War and Black Panther (film) In 2016, Barnes has taken up residence in Bucharest, Romania. He learns that he has been framed by ex-Sokovian special forces soldier Helmut Zemo for a bombing in Vienna that kills King T'Chaka of Wakanda. Rogers and Wilson find Barnes and attempt to protect him from T'Chaka's vengeful son, T'Challa, but all four, including T'Challa, are apprehended by the police and James Rhodes. With Barnes in custody, Zemo impersonates a psychiatrist and recites the Hydra brainwashing words to make Barnes obey him. He sends Barnes on a rampage to cover his own escape. Rogers stops Barnes and hides him.[d] When Barnes regains his senses, he explains to Rogers and Wilson that Zemo is the real Vienna bomber and wanted the location of the Siberian Hydra base, where other brainwashed "Winter Soldiers" are kept in cryogenic stasis. Unwilling to wait for authorization to apprehend Zemo, Rogers and Wilson go rogue, and recruit Wanda Maximoff, Clint Barton, and Scott Lang to their cause. Tony Stark assembles a team composed of Romanoff, T'Challa, Rhodes, Vision, and Peter Parker to stop them. Stark's team intercepts Rogers' team at Leipzig/Halle Airport in Germany, where they fight until Romanoff allows Rogers and Barnes to escape. Rogers and Barnes go to the Siberian Hydra facility, when Stark arrives and strikes a truce with them. They find that the other super soldiers have been killed by Zemo, who then reveals himself and shows them footage of the 1991 car accident where Barnes killed Stark's parents as the Winter Soldier. Enraged that Rogers kept this from him, Stark turns on them both, leading to an intense fight in which Stark destroys Barnes' robotic arm and Rogers disables Stark's armor. Rogers departs with Barnes, leaving his shield behind. Later, Barnes, granted asylum in Wakanda, chooses to return to cryogenic sleep until a cure for his brainwashing is found.

Sometime later, Barnes is cured by T'Challa's sister, Shuri and is given a new code name - White Wolf.

As proof that he is cured, Barnes is taken to a cave where the trigger words' effect is shown to be nullified by Ayo.[e]

Infinity War and resurrection edit Further information: Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame In 2018, Barnes, while still living on a farm in Wakanda, is given a new vibranium arm by T'Challa. He goes to the Golden City where he reunites with Rogers after he, Wilson, Romanoff, Maximoff, Vision, Rhodes, and Bruce Banner arrive. He then joins the battle against the Outriders and witnesses Thor, Rocket Raccoon, and Groot's arrival. When Thanos arrives, completes the Infinity Gauntlet, and snaps his fingers, Barnes becomes the first person in Wakanda who disintegrates in the Blip.

In 2023, Barnes is restored to life and brought via portal by the Masters of the Mystic Arts to the destroyed Avengers Compound to the battle against an alternate Thanos. A week later, he attends Stark's funeral and with Wilson and Banner, sees Rogers off, who returns the alternate Infinity Stones and Mjolnir to their timelines. When Banner is unable to bring Rogers back, Barnes points Wilson to a nearby park bench, and watches as an elderly Rogers passes his mantle to Wilson.

Partnering with Sam Wilson edit See also: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Further information: New World Order and The Star-Spangled Man In 2024, Barnes is living in Brooklyn, New York. He has been pardoned and attends government-mandated therapy, where he discusses his attempts to make amends for his time as the Winter Soldier. He has nightmares about his past, but is not forthcoming with his therapist about them. She notes that Barnes is isolating himself from his friends and has been ignoring texts from Wilson. Barnes tells her that he made amends, including confronting a formerly Hydra-affiliated U.S. senator whom he helps bring to justice. He also befriends an elderly Japanese man named Yori, the father of one of the Winter Soldier's victims, but doesn't tell him of their connection. Yori sets Barnes up on a date with a bartender named Leah, which ends quickly after she brings up Yori's deceased son and Barnes leaves.

Barnes watches the news and finds out that John Walker has been named the new Captain America by the U.S. government. He tracks Wilson down at a United States Air Force base, expressing his disapproval about Wilson's decision on having surrendered Rogers' shield. Barnes joins Wilson and his friend, Joaquin Torres, in tracking down the Flag Smashers in Munich where they intercept the group smuggling medicine and attempt to rescue a supposed hostage that ends up being their leader, Karli Morgenthau. Barnes and Wilson are overwhelmed by the Flag Smashers who are revealed to be super soldiers. Walker and his partner, Lemar Hoskins, come to their aid, although the Flag Smashers escape. Walker asks Barnes and Wilson to join him in aiding the Global Repatriation Council (GRC) to quash the ongoing violent post-Blip revolutions, but they refuse. Traveling to Baltimore, Barnes introduces Wilson to Isaiah Bradley, a veteran American super soldier Barnes fought during the Korean War, and his grandson Eli, but Isaiah refuses to help them uncover information about additional super soldier serums due to his disdain for Barnes and having been imprisoned and experimented on by the government for thirty years. After leaving the house, Barnes is arrested for missing a court-mandated therapy appointment, but is released when Walker intervenes. Refusing to work with Walker, Barnes suggests they visit Zemo.

Zemo and the Dora Milaje edit Further information: Power Broker and The Whole World Is Watching Barnes and Wilson travel to Berlin to meet Zemo to gather intelligence related to the super soldier Flag Smashers. Barnes orchestrates a prison riot to help Zemo escape, after Zemo agrees to help. Barnes and Wilson are taken by Zemo via Zemo's plane to Madripoor in an effort to locate the source of the new super soldier serum. In a bar, to avoid suspicion from the criminals there, Barnes pretends to once again be under mind control as the Winter Soldier, and dispatches numerous armed thugs. They are taken to high-ranking criminal, Selby, who reveals the Power Broker hired former Hydra scientist Dr. Wilfred Nagel to recreate the serum. When Wilson's disguise is compromised, Selby orders her men to attack them but she is killed. The three escape and get pursued by bounty hunters, but are rescued by Sharon Carter. She agrees to help them after Wilson offers to get her pardoned. They travel to Nagel's lab and confront him. He reveals that he made twenty vials of the serum and that Morgenthau stole them. Zemo unexpectedly kills Nagel and the lab is destroyed. Barnes, Wilson, and Carter fight more bounty hunters until Zemo acquires a getaway car and they escape. After Wilson receives a lead from Torres, Barnes, Wilson, and Zemo travel to Latvia. Barnes recognizes Wakandan Kimoyo Beads on the street and leaves the others to find Dora Milaje Ayo, who demands Zemo.

Barnes is questioned by Ayo on why Zemo is free and gives him eight hours to use Zemo before the Wakandans take him. Barnes returns to Wilson and Zemo in Zemo's penthouse, and ask locals as to where Donya Madoni's funeral is, but find the locals to be Flag Smasher sympathizers. Barnes and Wilson follow Zemo after he gets a girl to provide them with the location and are met by Walker and Hoskins on the way. After Walker interrupts Wilson's attempts to talk to Morgenthau, Barnes chases her but loses her. Barnes, Wilson, and Zemo return to the penthouse but are followed by Walker and Hoskins. Ayo and the Dora Milaje arrive after for Zemo and after Walker refuses to hand him over, and Barnes intercedes, Ayo uses a failsafe that deactivates his vibranium arm. Once the Dora leave, Barnes puts his arm back on, to his and Wilson's surprise.

Defeating the Flag Smashers edit Further information: The Whole World Is Watching; Truth; and One World, One People Barnes and Wilson learn Zemo escaped and after Wilson receives a call from his sister, go to meet Morgenthau. However, after learning Walker's location, they leave to intercept him. Barnes and Wilson engage in a fight against the Flag Smashers at Walker's location, but Morgenthau accidentally kills Hoskins. Barnes and Wilson witness as Walker, having taken a supersoldier serum and enraged by Hoskins' death, uses his shield to kill one of the Flag Smashers in front of horrified bystanders, who film his actions.

Wilson and Barnes demand the shield from Walker, starting a fight in which Walker destroys Wilson's wingsuit. The fight ends with Wilson and Barnes taking the shield and breaking Walker's arm. Afterwards, Barnes and Wilson meet up with Torres at the GRC refugee camp. Barnes leaves and finds Zemo in Sokovia and hands him over to the Dora Milaje and asks Ayo for a favor. Later, Barnes arrives in Wilson's hometown in Louisiana and delivers a briefcase from the Wakandans to Wilson. He meets Wilson's sister, Sarah, and her two sons. After fixing the Wilson family's boat, Barnes and Wilson train with the shield and agree to move on from their pasts and work together. Barnes confesses that he was angry that Wilson gave away Captain America's shield because he feels like it is his last connection to the past, and apologizes for not considering the implications of giving the shield to a black man.

Barnes goes back to New York City and runs into Carter, who was called in by Wilson. He fights against the Flag Smashers and saves GRC hostages from arson. During a fight against Morgenthau, Barnes falls off the ledge to a riverbank. After Walker and the Flag Smashers do the same, Barnes helps Walker up and they join Wilson, who is in his new Captain America suit, to find the Flag Smashers after Georges Batroc helps them escape. Barnes and Walker ambush three of them and see them taken into custody. After the GRC members are rescued, Barnes listens to Wilson's speech, before leaving with an injured Carter to get medical help. He then goes to Yori's apartment and tells him that he, as the Winter Soldier, killed his son. He delivers his completed notebook to his therapist's office and sees Leah again, before leaving for Louisiana. There he joins Wilson, Sarah, her sons, and the community for a cookout and opts to remain there with Wilson.

In December 2025, Barnes is met by Nebula who takes his vibranium arm to give to Rocket as a Christmas present.[f]

Congressional campaign and joining a team edit Further information: Captain America: Brave New World and Thunderbolts* Some time later, Barnes decides to run for United States Congress, representing a Brooklyn constituency. In 2027, Barnes meets with Wilson at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to support him and Torres, who was in the center getting medical treatment.

Having won the election, Barnes attends a congressional impeachment trial for CIA director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine due to a series of illegal operations. Attending a charity gala thrown by de Fontaine, Barnes speaks with de Fontaine's assistant Mel about the evidence she is hiding and convinces her to become an informant. After being tipped off by Mel, Barnes tracks her phone to Utah and rescues Walker, Yelena Belova, Ava Starr, and Alexei Shostakov from de Fontaine's agents, capturing them to testify at the impeachment trial. Upon receiving a call from Mel, who explains that a man named Bob was the subject of one of de Fontaine's top-secret experiments, Barnes decides to take the group with him to stop her. They arrive at the Watchtower and discover that de Fontaine has transformed Bob into an immensely powerful superhuman known as the Sentry, who overpowers the team, causing them to retreat. Seeing that the Sentry has become the Void, which begins turning everyone around him into shadows and engulfing New York City in an unearthly darkness, Barnes and the team fight their way into the Void's dimension, searching for Belova and Bob's good counterpart, eventually leading them to Bob's initial experimentation. After being incapacitated, Barnes and the team break free to help Bob avoid being consumed by the darkness, reminding him that he is not alone, and managing to overcome the Void, restoring light and normalcy to the city. Barnes and the others plot to capture de Fontaine, who then manipulates public perception by staging a press conference in which she rebrands them as the New Avengers.

In 2028, Barnes talks to Wilson, but the conversation goes poorly since Wilson is upset with the new team's name as he already restarted the Avengers. Now with a new suit and headquartered at the Watchtower, Barnes and the New Avengers discuss how Wilson is filing for trademark infringement, until they receive a distress signal from space over satellite imagery revealing a massive extra-dimensional spaceship with a large "4" emblem entering their universe.

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