Do you love a good shrink scene? I do, I really do.
It can be a great way to reveal character, especially in the case of someone like Bucky Barnes, who a) doesn't want to talk about anything, so that the reveals the scene is going to offer will feel earned, rather than like exposition; and b) we actually don't know that well.
Bucky has been in a bunch of Marvel movies, but even so he hasn't had too many personal moments. What exactly is his deal right now? We don't know, and as F&WS starts we don't have that many ways into finding out, either. With Steve gone there's only a couple characters that really know Bucky.
And so we get a shrink scene, which begins with the shrink asking Bucky about his most recent nightmare. And while he'll keep deflecting about that throughout the scene, the heart of her question really is exactly what we want need to know: My dude, what is going on inside of you?
At the very end, having dodged and woven and kidded around, he finally gives us that. And it's got great poignant bite to it: Other than a breather in Wakanda he's been doing nothing but fighting for 90 years.
The other thing about the scene is how smartly it gives us a whole structure and set of references by which to understand Bucky going forward. First of all, we find out he's got this project of reengaging with people he helped or hurt as Winter Soldier, trying to make amends. It's a nice engine for story itself, especially given the fact that the way Bucky is fixing his mistakes is the opposite of what he's agreed to.
Which leads to the other fun reference point set up here, The Three Rules he and his shrink have come up with: Nothing illegal. No one harmed. And a clear announcement to those involved that this is him trying to make amends.
Ground rules are always great. They have an in-built Chekov's gun quality: we know they're going to come back somehow, and so they create anticipation in us. It becomes a game for us to wait and watch.
Amy Aquino is so good as the tough but funny Dr. Raynor.
So a shrink scene: It gives us a way into the character. It builds out a bunch of reference points we in the audience having heard now look for.
And in this case it also it sets up Bucky's real quest on the show. The scene doesn't end with Bucky finally revealing something of what he's feeling, but goes on to have the shrink call Bucky to a bigger question: What do you want?
That's his mission in the series, to figure out what to do with this new life he's been given.
The scene is played with the classic Marvel combination of laughs and heart. He's the handsome rebel whose refusal to follow the rules is a source of delight.
But if we step back, the data we've been given is actually that Bucky is not following the program they've set up, and not coming clean about it either. These are pretty big warning signs about his mental health. We could very easily get to episode 5 or 6 and have Bucky completely meltdown. And yet if that happens it'll likely be a great surprise.
Comedy, it turns out, is like a redwood. It can hide so much in its shadow.
