**Possible spoilers for Marvel and Disney+’s Falcon and the Winter Soldier.**
Marvel Studios has confirmed Emily VanCamp will reprise her role as Sharon Carter in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, but what exactly she will be doing in the series is still largely shrouded in mystery. The trailer from Disney’s Investor Day back in December mainly focused on Sam Wilson and the Captain America shield, with only brief glimpses at some of the other characters and none of Sharon at all.
Fortunately, possibly thanks to merchandise timing being completely thrown off by pandemic release date changes, a new t-shirt design for the show not only provides some insight as to what the late Peggy Carter’s niece and onetime fling of Steve Rogers has been up to since we last caught up with her in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, it also gives us a look at how the politics of the world are operating after the Blip that saw the return of the “snapped” half of the universe. We still don’t know whether Sharon disappeared like our two leads or survived the five years between the Decimation and the Blip, but it looks like she’s been in trouble for quite a while either way.
The black-and-white image on the shirt depicts Carter wearing a hooded jacket on a WANTED poster, with her name underneath the photo. (It’s not the only one that depicts her as “wanted,” either.) The description underneath reads: “Wanted for breaking the Sokovia Accords” and says she is “trained by S.H.I.E.L.D.” and “presumed dangerous.” It then instructs people to contact authorities if they spot her, finishing with “Do not attempt to apprehend.”
This is almost certainly referring to her role in helping Captain America and some of the other heroes escape from the authorities after using their superpowers outside of the U.N.’s direction (they were on the run for a couple of years too before the events of Avengers: Infinity War calling them back to fight in a more public manner).
As much as the Sokovia Accords were treated like a big deal in Civil War, they never really came up afterwards. There was a brief reference to them in Infinity War, but it wasn’t direct and came and went pretty quickly. So, it’s nice to see that we’ll be getting a look at what their effect has been and the status of them in a post-Blip world.
What’s weird is that it appears the Accords are still in effect, but we haven’t heard anything about Sam or Bucky—who also acted against them in Civil War—being in any trouble with the United Nations. Perhaps this is why the Captain America mantle appears to initially be going to U.S. Agent instead of Sam, or maybe the charges were dropped against everyone who was involved in saving the world in Avengers: Endgame.
The latter would explain why Bucky is seemingly allowed to do battle or even just set foot in the United States, since he was also a wanted figure back in Civil War due to his Winter Soldier past.
It’s possible the recently-confirmed appearance of War Machine in the series will tie into this Accords business, since he was shown to be in communication with the U.N. in Avengers: Infinity War (and, potentially notably, was on Team Iron Man in Civil War). He may prove to be able to help negotiate Sharon’s freedom (and maybe that of some of the other characters, too).
We’ll find out how all this will play into the plot of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier when the series premieres March 19. (But hopefully we’ll get to see some footage of Sharon Carter in a trailer or TV spot before that!)
(featured image: Marvel Entertainment)
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