Captain America: Brave New World has introduced many heroes and villains to the silver screen for the first time, but there’s a clear disparity in threat level between them all. The fourth entry in the Captain America series brought the hero back to a more grounded political thriller similar in tone to Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Between new faces, returning characters from The Incredible Hulk, and characters that only previously existed in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, there are a lot of new players in the film with varying degrees of strength.
It’s worth noting that a character’s threat level can result from political power as well as their actual prowess in a fight, especially considering the themes of Captain America: Brave New World specifically. The film might not have as many costumed heroes in the traditional sense, more apt to fall into the trap of turning comic characters into more realistic figures like spies or soldiers bearing only a slight resemblance to their original selves. But with the sheer number of players involved in Captain America: Brave New World, there’s a wide gulf in power between them to consider.
10
Copperhead
A one-note roadbump of a villain
By far the lowest threat in Captain America: Brave New World is the villainous mercenary Copperhead. As indicated by his name, Copperhead is a member of the criminal organization SERPENT. Not much is known about Copperhead other than his sadism and long-standing desire to kill Captain America, though he expresses disappointment that Sam isn’t as big as the Captain America he always wished for. With his pair of adamantium daggers and possible combat experience, Copperhead is seemingly more than an ordinary soldier.
That being said, the one time Copperhead is seen fighting, he loses to Captain America, though he is briefly able to overpower him at first. In the end, Copperhead is little more than a warm-up for Sam early in the film before moving on to bigger threats. Now in the custody of the United States government, it remains to be seen if Copperhead will ever gain a boost in power that places him closer to his comic incarnation.
9
Leila Taylor
A capable, but normal secret service agent
Less a superhero and more of a typical government figure, Leila Taylor is nevertheless a valuable ᴀsset to Captain America during the hectic events of Captain America: Brave New World. Taylor is introduced as having some sort of history with Sam Wilson, possibly even as an old romantic flame or possible love interest, though this only makes up a small part of her screentime. More importantly, Leila Taylor is shown to be a member of the Secret Service tasked with protecting the U.S. president while also acting as a sort of liason between Captain America and the government.
Leila Taylor clearly has enough combat training to be trusted to protect one of the most powerful people on the planet, and seems comfortable enough handling a firearm and diving feet-first into combat scenarios. Her influence as a high-ranking official in the U.S. government is also not something to be taken lightly when ᴀssessing her threat level. However, at the end of the day, she is just a normal human agent with no particularly special powers or training. It’s a bit of a shame how Captain America: Brave New World introduced Taylor.
8
Sidewinder
The ruthless leader of a dangerous criminal organization
While people like Copperhead might make up the ranks of SERPENT, it takes a true master criminal like Sidewinder to actually provide leadership to the merry band of cutthroats-for-hire. Played by the villainously typecast Giancarlo Esposito, Sidewinder eventually gets dragged into the action himself when his initial plans to steal the valuable adamantium mined from Tiamut’s corpse are disrupted by Captain America. Even if he is SERPENT’s leader, he clearly isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty.
Between his tactical acumen, skill with a revolver, and valuable adamantium tomahawk, Sidewinder is no slouch in a fight, giving Sam more trouble than Copperhead. His leadership of SERPENT is where his true threat lies, able to command legions of experienced soldiers willing to do anything for a quick buck. However, Sidewinder is still ultimately well under Captain America’s weight class, depite how chilling his threats to kill him in the future may be.
7
Ruth Bat-Seraph
A former Black Widow operative
As capable as Leila Taylor is, Ruth Bat-Seraph is designated as President Ross’ security advisor for good reason. A victim of General Dreykov’s Black Widow program, Ruth Bat-Seraph quickly proves to be an invaluable ᴀsset to General Ross. In the comics, Ruth Bat-Seraph as a mutant and the Israeli superhero Sabra. This aspect of her character was edited out of Captain America: Brave New World due to the controversy of Ruth Bat-Seraph’s inclusion in the first place.
Even if she isn’t a mutant costumed hero like in the comics, Ruth Bat-Seraph is still no joke in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. As a former Black Widow agent, she presumably has all the same skills and training as capable fighters and espionage agents like Natasha Romanoff and Yelena Belova, making her a potent ᴀssᴀssin and spy perhaps capable of crumbling entire governments on her own. Still, she isn’t quite a high-flying superhero that can keep up with the likes of the Avengers.
6
Joaquin Torres
The New Falcon
With Sam Wilson taking up the mantle of Captain America after Steve Rogers bequeathed the shield to him in his retirement, the idenтιтy of the superhero The Falcon was now up for grabs. Enter Joaquin Torres, a former soldier who steps up to the plate as the new Falcon to fill Wilson’s old shoes as his new sidekick. A former Air Force intelligence officer, Torres was crucial in helping Sam Wilson take down the Flag Smashers in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, earning his place as the new Falcon.
Joaquin evidently is another one of the rare few capable of piloting the experimental EXO-7 Falcon wingsuit Sam Wilson is an aerial ace in, even if he can’t keep up with Sam’s dogfighting moves. In or out of the EXO-7, Torres is also a skilled martial artist and sharpshooter, but his experience as an intelligence officer is arguably his best ᴀsset. While coming into his own as a trusted hero, Joaquin Torres still has a lot of experience to catch up on as the new Falcon.
5
Isaiah Bradley
A disgruntled ex-supersoldier
With talented protectors like Leila Taylor and Ruth Bat-Seraph, it takes a truly threatening individual to be able to make a frighteningly close attempt on President Ross’ life in Captain America: Brave New World. Yet that’s exactly what Isaiah Bradley is able to do, creating an entire security crisis that kicks off the events of the film. A veteran of the Korean War, Bradley was cruelly experimented on by the U.S. government in one of the MCU’s many attempts at a super soldier serum.
Even if it may not be as potent as the serum Steve Rogers got, Isaiah Bradley’s serum certainly did work, granting him enhanced reflexes, strength, stamina, durability, and longevity, aging him far more slowly than the average person. He was able to use these superpowers to great effect in the Korean War, even ripping off The Winter Soldier’s metal arm. However, his advanced age is still a limiting factor, even if he’s nowhere near as physically hampered as someone his age should be.
4
Red Hulk
President Ross’ furious side
Even worse, Red Hulk’s transformation comes with a tremendous output of heat, scorching the environment around him as he outputs absurdly high levels of gamma radiation. The only thing keeping Red Hulk from being one of the biggest threats in the MCU is President Ross’ own waking fear of his transformation, resigning as President and confining himself to the Raft to avoid future incidents. Red Hulk is also capable of being calmed down by the likes of Sam, minimizing the damage he can cause.
3
The Leader
The mastermind behind the chaos
Of course, President Ross would never have turned into the Red Hulk in the first place if it weren’t for the machinations of Dr. Samuel Sterns, a.k.a. The Leader. Once a gamma researcher tasked with making super soldiers for the U.S. government, a horrific accident involving the villain Abomination turned Dr. Samuel Sterns into a gamma-mutated supervillain himself, eventually becoming known as The Leader. The Leader was imprisoned and abused for his mental prowess by Ross, causing him to seek revenge.
Even in captivity, The Leader was valuable enough to be kept on retainer indefinitely, finding a way to save Ross’ life in exchange for his freedom, which was eventually denied. It was his plans that caused President Ross to transform into the Red Hulk, irrevocably changing the course of events for the MCU’s political landscape. The Leader’s mental prowess might allow him to out-think any opponent, but he’s still spent the majority of his villain career in captivity, owing to his lack of allies and normal physical strength.
2
Captain America
A worthy successor to Steve Rogers
Even if he never took a super soldier serum of his own, Sam Wilson has quickly become one of the most successful superheroes in the MCU. Originally the hero Falcon, helping Steve Rogers flush out corruption in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Sam Wilson was entrusted with taking up the shield of Captain America after Steve’s retirement. So far, he’s more than managed to live up to the lofty expectations the тιтle comes with.
Between his wings, drones, guns, and the vibranium shield itself, Captain America is perhaps the single most well-equipped MCU hero ever after Iron Man. On his own, Sam can take out entire squadrons of attack helicopters and even intercept missiles, coming out on top against both Red Hulk, The Leader, and the Flag Smashers. Still, it has to be said the he doesn’t have any actual superpowers, however impressive his skills and record may be.
1
Bucky Barnes
Still a frightening agent of change
Even if he only has a brief cameo in Captain America: Brave New World, The Winter Soldier is still arguably the most threatening character in the cast. Once a special forces soldier, Bucky Barnes was turned into the insidious Winter Soldier by HYDRA, granting him a powerful super serum and a cybernetic arm that increases his strength even more. As The Winter Soldier, Bucky was responsible for shaping the course of human history at HYDRA’s demands, ᴀssᴀssinating important figures wherever they saw fit.
After breaking free of his programming, Bucky Barnes is still one of the most threatening humans in the MCU, a terror in combat thanks to his serum and vibranium arm. Now that Bucky is a member of the U.S. Congress, he has incredible political influence to add to his potential as well, making him both a formidable combatant, hauntingly effective espionage agent, and a powerful leader. It’s hard to argue against Barnes as the most dangerous figure featured in Captain America: Brave New World.
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