Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?
Emily VanCamp reprised her role as Agent Sharon Carter in the latest episode of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier , returning as an ally to Sam Wilson, Bucky Barnes, and a fresh-start Baron Zemo. However, similar to her tricking Steve Rogers into thinking she was his neighbor, rather than a SHIELD Agent, it appears there may once again be more than meets the eye.
WHO IS THE POWER BROKER?
In Episode 3, titled "Power Broker" audiences see an unconventional trio of The Winter Soldier, Falcon, and Zemo team up to find answers at the island nation of Madripoor. Madripoor is well known in the X-Men comics and is another indication that mutants are eventually coming to the MCU.
On Madripoor, everyone answers to the Power Broker, Zemo says he only knows them by reputation, and they're "judge, jury, and executioner" in Madripoor.
The one operation the audience know the Power Broker funded was scientist Wilfred Nagel's super-serum project. More on that later.
WHAT IS SHARON CARTER DOING IN MADRIPOOR?
Sharon claims that she went to Madripoor to get off the grid since being wanted by the US government. She explains that she didn't have the Avengers to rely on and is still on the run, unlike Sam and Bucky who have been pardoned. Sharon has been wanted since 2016 since she stole back Captain America's shield and Falcons' wings in Civil War .
She hilariously caught everyone back up to speed with this line, "I stole Steve's shield, remember? I also took the wings for your ass so that you could save his ass from his ass. Unlike you, I didn't have the Avengers to back me up, so I'm off the grid in Madripoor."
Additionally, Sharon seems to have done well for herself in Madripoor, living in a fancy house in High Town filled with expensive artwork. She mentions that she has clients and sells "to some pretty connected people." It is unclear exactly what she does exactly, but there is one explanation for all of it.
With all this evidence it is not hard to draw the conclusion that Sharon Carter is the Power Broker.
WHY SHARON CARTER IS THE POWER BROKER
EPISODE TITLE
The third episode's title may be the biggest clue indicating Sharon Carter has been the Power Broker all along. "Power Broker" is the first time we see Sharon in the series and while the Power Broker is alluded to, they don't play a significant role in the episode. However, if Sharon is the Power Broker, this episode could be looked back as the origin for what Madripoor's criminal overlord really represents if the show reveals it to be Sharon.
WHO SHOT SELBY
Right as Selby caught on to Sam Wilson being an imposter, she was shot and killed by a mysterious figure. Later, a "guardian angel" was seen picking off enemies around Bucky, Sam, and Zemo that was revealed to be Sharon. It is not confirmed, but alluded to that Sharon was also the gunman who killed Selby. The Power Broker may have wanted the trio to not have a bounty on their head. Sharon also fights off numerous bounty-hunters later in the episode while they met with Nagel.
SUPER-SERUM CONNECTION
Doctor Wilfred Nagel was a scientist for HYDRA that sought to remake the super soldier serum that gave Steve Rogers his abilities. He was working on The Winter Soldier project after the five failed subjects in Siberia. This is a reference to the soldiers Zemo had killed at the Siberian HYDRA base in Captain America: Civil War. However, before Civil War when HYDRA fell in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, he was recruited to the CIA to continue his work. The scientist mentions blood samples from a test subject, possibly Isaiah Bradley, and was able to recreate the serum.
Nagel further explained that he had dusted away from Thanos' snap five years ago and when he returned the program had been abandoned by the CIA. However, he was able to continue his work and make 20 vials of serum because "the power broker was more than happy to fund the recreation of my work."
CIA MISSION
Nagel said, "When HYDRA fell, I was recruited by the CIA." Why the CIA? Why would they be interested in recreating the super-serum?
Those answers remain unclear, but fans will remember that after SHIELD fell, Carter's latest job was with the CIA. Sharon could've learned about the project and been interested in the progress. If she is actually an enemy of the state after the events of Civil War maybe she fled to Madripoor in an effort to escape and found Nagel's work to be a quick way of gaining power.
Alternatively, Sharon's presence in Madripoor is still as a CIA agent and this is all a part of her mission. She may not be the physical embodiment of the Power Broker because maybe the Power Broker isn't a person. The idea of the Power Broker seems to keep a lot of the island under control and not in mass chaos. Was this planted there by the CIA years ago and Sharon is now just an agent there working the case?
HIGH TOWN HOUSE
Sharon's house in High Town indicates she has made a lavish life for herself in the fictional Marvel city. For someone who takes every chance she can get to remind Sam and Bucky that she is on the run, she seems pretty comfortable. This is the type of house you would assume the ruler of Madripoor would call home.
"WE'VE GOT A BIG PROBLEM"
One of the biggest clues that made fans question what Sharon Carter is doing in Madripoor is her final lines of dialogue in the episode. After Sam, Bucky, and Zemo leave to head back to the Flag Smashers, Sharon heads to a woman waiting beside and car and says, "We've got a big problem. Actually, a couple of them I'll tell you in the car. Let's go." It's important to note that the musical theme shifts to be a bit more ominous with Carter seeming to be in a rush. Sharon gets in the backseat of the car and looks distressed as they drive off.
Are the "couple" of problems representing Bucky and Sam? Is Sharon a turncoat? Or working undercover from the inside?
Sharon Carter as the Power Broker would be another interesting twist in this series. Halfway Into the season, it seems like she could pose more of a threat than Zemo. John Walker, The Flag Smashers, Zemo, and Sharon Carter are all wild cards in this journey with Stever Rogers' best friends.
More will be revealed when Episode 4 of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier premieres on April 9, 2021.
