The Falcon and the Winter Soldier needs to show HYDRA’s space cult backstory. For all that HYDRA — an authoritarian organization with ambitions for world domination — has been central to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the films have barely scratched the surface with regards to the agency’s inner workings and alien-adjacent history. Over the course of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s seven-season run, HYDRA’s backstory was heavily explored, but the revelations from the show have yet to directly connect with the rest of the MCU. However, considering Bucky Barnes’ ties with the organization, the Disney+ series could play a crucial role in introducing one of its weirdest aspects.
HYDRA may have transformed into a Nazi organization, but its beginnings and long-term goals are firmly rooted in the worshipping of an Inhuman named Hive. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. delved into this history and tackled storylines that revolved around Hive, his powers, and how his followers founded the secret society that would become known as HYDRA. The story began thousands of years ago, when the Kree, an advanced alien species, genetically altered early humans. The aliens’ experimentation ultimately gave them, the Inhumans, enhanced abilities through a process called Terrigenesis. Hive, a powerful Inhuman with the ability to possess dead people and control others of his kind, was later banished from Earth. But, his followers plotted to bring him back so that he could take over the world and turn everyone into Inhumans. In fact, it was Phil Coulson’s killing of the treacherous S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Grant Ward on the planet Maveth that paved the way for Hive’s return to Earth.
That the MCU has ignored this pertinent aspect of HYDRA undermines the additional implications of the organization’s stance as a worldly threat. However, there’s no better avenue to bring back HYDRA and showcase this space cult backstory than in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. The MCU has already established that Bucky (aka, the Winter Soldier) was kidnapped and brainwashed by HYDRA. With the help of Captain America, Bucky has spent a lot of time unlearning the things he was taught. That said, his ties to the diabolical organization would be a good way to explore Hive, the cult, and how much Bucky may have known about it. Perhaps a flashback to Bucky’s time with HYDRA could offer further insight into their operations. There's also a chance Bucky himself engaged with the worship of Hive. After all, he was more than likely privy to this information and it's weird enough that it should be brought back.
Hive might be gone for now, but revisiting the parasite's history could set the stage for the future of the villain and the agency that bows down to him. Plus, Bucky’s past and the further exploration of his character in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier could be tackled by revealing this crucial story about HYDRA. It would certainly bring audiences who have never seen Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. up to speed with HYDRA’s story, re-centering the agency and its strange foundation. On one hand, including HYDRA's history with Hive might be unnecessary considering Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. went its own way. On the other, it's a cool backstory that would clue audiences into how the organization operates and perhaps develop them beyond being just Nazis. Being space cultists means their reach extends into deep space. With the MCU headed beyond Earth in the future, Hive could also be reintroduced as a major MCU player.
What's more, Coulson and his agents did rewrite the S.H.I.E.L.D. timeline to some extent, so it's possible The Falcon and the Winter Soldier will reveal Bucky did have interactions with the Inhuman. Either way, Hive's existence should still matter. In the comics, Hive is more of a group of parasites that can overtake someone's body and not an Inhuman like in S.H.I.E.L.D., but they both function in a similar way. It's even possible Bucky followed Hive's commands during his time with HYDRA. If so, now would be a good time to address his past and the organization's roots at once. This is an agency that has an immense amount of power and it would be pertinent to bring back what Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. managed to establish about HYDRA in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. At the very least, it would be illuminating.
https://ift.tt/3ePPysV
March 18, 2021 at 04:52AM
