In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain America is a living legend. For decades he was universally respected by the public as a war hero who paid the ultimate price and was seen as the very idea of what a hero should be. And when Steve was found alive, after being defrosted, he once again became a symbol of heroism for the world to look up to. Sure, he spent some time on the run after saving his best friend Bucky from his brainwashed assassin persona; The Winter Soldier. But that tells you everything you need to know about Steve Rogers, if he believes doing something is morally right, he’ll go to the ends of the Earth to do so. It’s not the only time the star-spangled man has done something incredible, let’s look at some of his most legendary moments in the MCU.
Holding back Thanos
Ever since the clip was used in the trailers for Avengers: Infinity War, the moment where Steve holds Thanos back with his bare hands in the finale before the Snap proved just how powerful Cap is. By this point, Thanos already had several Infinity Stones and was making his way to rip the Mind Stone out of Vision’s head. Captain America can hold back the force of the Infinity Gauntlet and the Mad Titan, it’s not something to be taken lightly. Yes, he might get taken down by a big purple punch – but it’s the effort that counts here, right? Expect round two in Avengers: Endgame.
Saving the 107th Regiment
So Steve gets the super soldier serum back in The First Avenger, and transforms into a muscled hero who has superhuman strength, speed, and reflexes… What is he drafted into? Promoting war bonds for the Treasury Department. He can put on a good show, but his talents are wasted. That is until he’s doing a show in Italy in front of some weary soldiers and realizes he can be so much more. And when he discovers that Bucky’s unit has all gone missing behind enemy lines, he takes on a solo mission to rescue them. Not only does he break into the facility, save Bucky and free the rest of the 107th regiment, but he also blows up the weapons factory – throwing a spanner in the Red Skull’s plans and kick-starting his superheroic career as Captain America.
The Helicopter Bicep Curl
In Captain America: Civil War, Bucky Barnes is on the run after being framed for a crime he didn’t commit. But when his Winter Soldier persona is forced out of him and takes control, Cap and the Avengers do everything they can to stop his escape. For Steve, the stakes here aren’t just plot-centric. If he lets Bucky get away there’s a chance he’ll lose his best friend forever, and that simply can’t happen. Luckily for Cap, he’s got superhuman strength and muscles the size of Tony Stark’s ego, because he pulls off a feat that made us all go back to the gym. He grabs the rails of the helicopter that Bucky’s trying to escape in and does a bicep curl while holding onto the helipad to stop it from leaving. Excelsior.
Capcicle
Aside from punching Nazis square in the jaw, Captain America is also famous in the MCU for sacrificing himself at the end of The First Avenger. After the Red Skull harnessed the power of the Tesseract (A.K.A. the Space Stone) and forged weapons of mass destruction with it, he set his sights on destroying the planet to reshape it in his image. His new airship, the Valkyrie, was capable of dropping bombs on a number of major cities – and after Cap managed to defeat the Red Skull onboard he had to make a tough call. The only way to stop the attack was to plunge the ship into the Arctic. It was a moment of self-sacrifice that was only made more heartbreaking with Steve’s emotional goodbye to Peggy, as they arranged the dance they owed each other… We’re not crying, it’s just allergies, okay?
The Grenade Jump
Look, Captain America as a heroic symbol is great – the ideals he continues to fight for have become larger than the country he represents with the A on his forehead, he’s an icon for the rest of the MCU to strive to be like. But the real hero isn’t the star-spangled-man-with-the-plan, it’s Steve Rogers. Sure, the two are one and the same, but Steve had a heroic personality before he ever heard of Howard Stark or the super soldier serum. As he eloquently puts it himself, “I don’t like bullies”. The perfect moment that captures who Steve happens relatively early on during The First Avenger during his basic training. A grenade is thrown in the middle of the trainees mid-exercise, and every single one of them jumps out of the way… Except for Steve. He jumps on it, shouting for everyone else to get back. He’d rather himself get blown up than let others get hurt. That was before the serum, and his attitude never changed. Captain America might be super, but Steve Rogers is the hero.
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