Back in 2021, Sam “The Falcon” Wilson (Anthony Mackie) took on the role of Captain America. We see his further adventures as “new Cap” in 2025’s Captain America: Brave New World.

As Sam continues to adjust to his new superhero persona, he visits the White House to meet with new president – and former Hulk adversary - Thaddeus Ross (Harrison Ford). President Ross wants Sam to spearhead a new iteration of the Avengers.

Before this can happen, though, Sam’s pal Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly) – another “Super Soldier” ala former Cap Steve Rogers – loses control of his actions and tries to assassinate Ross. With Isaiah imprisoned, Sam attempts to exonerate his friend and figure out an insidious conspiracy, one that may lead Ross himself to act out of character.

Which anyone who saw the trailers will know. In one of the worst spoilers to hit ads in years, the promos for World told us what happens to Ross.

In the extremely unlikely event anyone who reads this doesn’t boast awareness of that twist, I’ll leave it hidden. Like most fans, I wish I’d gone into World without foreknowledge of this major development.

That said, World doesn’t revolve around the Ross reveal. Even with this spoiler, it becomes a pretty solid adventure.

The fourth Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) movie to specifically headline Cap, World hearkens back to the second in this sub-series: 2014’s Winter Soldier. Both that one and World share a vibe that hearkens back to the political thrillers of the 1970s.

Though World comes with an even stronger connection to 1962’s classic The Manchurian Candidate. More specific references might also act as spoilers, but the two share some extremely similar concepts.

This doesn’t mean I feel World rips off its cinematic predecessors, though. While it uses those as influences, it becomes its own tale.

And a pretty good one, too. The first three Cap movies all worked very well and World does nothing to break that string of success.

Fans who didn’t watch the Falcon and Winter Soldier series might need some time to adjust to “new Cap”, I suppose. We got awfully used to Chris Evans’ Steve Rogers so a different actor as the hero could feel odd.

Though not as off-putting as if the MCU brought back Steve with another actor in tow, of course. I don’t rule out the possibility the MCU will revive Steve at some point and do so without Evans, but the public so heavily associates him with the part that this feels like it would become a tough sell.

In any case, the fact MCU buffs already enjoy familiarity with Sam seems likely to make the transition smoother. Mackie’s Falcon first appeared in that 2014 Winter Soldier film, so audiences have seen him plenty over the prior 11 years.

As viewers of the Falcon series know, the MCU brought in a different “new Cap”: John Walker (Wyatt Russell). As depicted back in 2021 – and continued in 2025’s Thunderbolts, the next Marvel flick after World - he came with some flaws that kept him from fulfilling Steve’s legacy. Sam brings a more noble vibe to Cap versus the angry Walker.

Given that we already enjoy familiarity with Sam, this helps prevent the temptation to make “new Cap” just a riff on Steve Rogers. Inevitably, Sam’s race acts as a factor but that occurs more as subtext than anything overt.

Actually, Isaiah’s history delivers the more obvious links to US history, as his circumstances echo those of other Black Americans used and abused by authorities. Still, World doesn’t beat the viewer over the head with these domains.

Instead, it turns into a solid little adventure – with some emphasis on “little”. So many MCU movies focus on events that threaten folks all over the globe, but World pares down that scope.

And I appreciate that, as “worldwide calamity” gets tedious after a while. Not every superhero tale needs to focus on a potential mass extinction event.

World moves us to “new Cap” smoothly and becomes a solid action flick in its own right. I look forward to more with this iteration of Cap.

Footnote: you shouldn’t need me to tell you this, stick around until the conclusion of the end credits for a bonus scene.

Captain America: Brave New World appears in an aspect ratio of 2.39:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. Some photographic choices impacted the image but it largely looked very good.

Inspired by the political thrillers of the 1970s, World came with visuals that could look intentionally degraded to resemble a “period product”. This led to some softness, as the cinematography could lean toward a diffuse impression.

Nonetheless, most of the film appeared accurate, and I saw no jagged edges, shimmering or edge haloes. Print flaws remained absent, and the digitally-shot flick brought some artificial “grain” to advance that 1970s impression I mentioned.

Colors leaned toward a subtle palette with some of the usual amber and teal but not to a marked degree. The diffuse nature of the image left the hues more subdued than usual but the disc reproduced them as intended.

Blacks looked deep and dense, while shadows felt appropriate, albeit with contrast that leaned a little bright due to the photography. Though not as objectively impressive as I’d expect from a 4K blockbuster, the end result still worked fine.

In addition, the movie’s DTS-HD MA 7.1 audio added great dimensionality to the effort. With a mix of action scenes, the track used the various channels to create a lively, vivid soundscape.

This meant various vehicles and the heroes zipped around the room in a smooth, convincing manner, while other aspects of battles and mayhem brought out well-placed material that blended together in a nicely integrated way. The soundfield meshed together to deliver a well-rounded impression.

Audio quality also impressed, with speech that seemed natural and concise. Music appeared vivid and full, with dynamic tones.

Effects fared best of all, as those elements seemed accurate and tight, with crisp highs and deep lows. As I expect from a movie of this sort, the soundtrack worked well.

As we shift to extras, we find an audio commentary from co-writer/director Julius Onah and director of photography Kramer Morgenthau. Both sit together for a running, screen-specific look at story/characters, influences and inspirations, cast and performances, sets and locations, photography, music, stunts and action, and various effects.

Though we get a fairly good look at the movie – particularly related to the flick’s color scheme - this track never really takes flight, mainly due to a surprising number of lulls in the conversation. While the commentary still works pretty well, those gaps make it less consistent than I’d like.

Three Deleted Scenes occupy a total of four minutes, 45 seconds. The first two give us a little more of Secret Service Agent Leila Taylor while the third expands on the interactions between President Ross and Isaiah Bradley.

Both lean toward exposition and minor character beats. While both become moderately interesting to see, neither offers anything important.

A Gag Reel goes for two minutes, 12 seconds and provides a largely standard mix of goofs and giggles. However, we also get to see Harrison Ford dance on set and also make a reference to his infamous comment on George Lucas’s writing skills, so those moments make the reel worth a look.

Two featurettes fill out the disc, and Assuming the Mantle spans 11 minutes, eight seconds. It involves Onah, producers Nate Moore and Kevin Feige, co-producer Kyana F. Davidson, key costumer Alison Freer, property master Russell Bobbitt, and actors Anthony Mackie and Danny Ramirez.

We get notes on casting, characters and performances, the new Captain America costume and shield, stunts and action. Expect a few good facts along with a fair amount of fluff.

Old Scores, New Scars runs nine minutes, 46 seconds. It brings info from Moore, Onah, Feige, Davidson, and actors Tim Blake Nelson, Giancarlo Esposito and Harrison Ford.

Here we hear about connections to earlier films as well as more characters/cast/performances. It offers another mix of insights and happy talk.

As the series move into a new era, Captain America: Brave New World brings a good adventure with ‘new Cap’ Sam Wilson. It develops the role well and comes with plenty of action and intrigue. The Blu-ray offers positive picture and audio as well as a smattering of supplements. I look forward to more Cap efforts in the future.