'The Falcon And The Winter Soldier': Why Bucky Barnes Should Never Reveal The Truth To Mr. Nakajima

Spoiler warning: This article reveals details regarding a pivotal plot point in the series premiere episode of 'The Falcon And The Winter Soldier.'

The Marvel Studios prestige television series The Falcon And The Winter Soldier has debuted and (so far) its fanfare and cinematic scope delivers.

The show is set to explore the high-octane exploits and personal lives of Captain America's best friend James "Bucky" Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and partner, Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) - whose alter-ego is the superhero codenamed "The Falcon."

The inaugural episode finds the two lead protagonists enmeshed in their own unique struggles to reacclimate into life as private citizens. For Bucky Barnes, this means he must find a way to come to terms with his past as a brainwashed assassin known as The Winter Soldier.

It is not going well.

Though Bucky has been pardoned for his past misdeeds and is free from the brainwashing, he is not spared the memories of his violent acts. In the series opening, he is experencing nightmares, with regret and guilt haunting his every step.

In an attempt to come to terms with his guilt, Bucky maintains an extensive list of his victims with whom he feels he must make amends.

One of the most notable victims is an elderly Japanese-American man named Yori Nakajima (Ken Takemoto). As shown in a flashback, Mr. Nakajima's son was an innocent bystander - at the wrong place and time - when he witnesses one of The Winter Soldier's brutal assasinations.

Tragically, he is killed by The Winter Soldier, who does not want to leave any witnesses alive. In the present, Mr. Nakajima is grieving the death of his son and is righteously enraged by the senselessness of it.

The old man seems to have found some temporary respite from his grief and pain through his friendship with a younger man who is struggling to find his place in life.

Unfortunately for both men, that friend is revealed to be Bucky, who in his former life is the assassin who murdered Mr. Nakajima's son.

Bucky is waging an internal battle with himself over whether or not to tell Mr. Nakajima the truth about his involvement in his son's death.

He should not. Telling Mr. Nakajima the truth would be an enormous mistake for the following reasons:

Bucky Has Bonded With His Victim's Father

It is apparaent during the course of the episode that Bucky and Mr. Nakajima have known each other for some time and have formed a bond.

Bucky prevents Mr. Nakajima from engaging in a futile, petty argument with a neighbor. Mr. Nakajima notices Bucky's attraction to a beautiful waitress at their favorite restaurant and plays wingman to secure his embarrassed young friend a date.

Now that Bucky has established a friendship with his victim's father, revealing the truth about his role in the death of his friend's son would be a staggering act of cruelty. Mr. Nakajima'a pain and rage would be compounded, knowing someone he considers a friend is the person directly responsible for killing his child.

Again, the feelings of grief, rage, hurt, and BETRAYAL at learning the awful truth would send the man reeling, leaving him to suffer yet another monumental loss.

If Bucky is intent on telling the truth, he should have confronted Mr. Nakajima with it as a stranger, when such news would be like ripping off a band-aid. The pain would be acute, but both men would be allowed to contend with it without the complicated emotional entaglement inherent in being friends.

Instead, Bucky sought the man out, made an effort to get to know him, and intentionally cultivated a friendship.

An act of cruelty indeed.

Revealing the truth will not assauge Bucky's guilt

For Bucky, telling Mr. Nakajima the truth would also be an act of selfishness. He would do this in an attempt to assauge his guilt. But here is the irony: it would not make him feel better at all. Instead, revealing the truth would only cause him to suffer another personal loss.

With the (assumed) death of his closest friend in the world, Steve Rogers, a.k.a. Captain America, Bucky has no personal ties and relationships to help anchor him to his humanity. At this point in the series, he and Sam are comrades-at-arms, but the men do not yet share an intimate friendship.

Mr. Nakajima is the one friendship he has sought out and nurtured. It is a relationship which helps Bucky remember his need to reconnect with fellow humans. Losing that friendship would further devastate him as well, adding to his already significant emotional turmoil.

Though Bucky and Mr. Nakajima's friendship is a source of poignancy in The Falcon And The Winter Soldier, the specter of Bucky's past is an ever-present threat. Should Bucky succumb to his guilt and reveal his tragic role in murder of his friend's son, not only would it be a cause of more pain and suffering for one of The Winter Soldier's victims, but Bucky himself will lose another battle in the war for his soul.

Here's hoping the weary soldier scores a much-needed win in his quest for redemption and absolution. But either way, The Falcon And The Winter Soldier promises to be a very compelling watch.