Power Broker was just mentioned once in the second episode of the canon series,The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, and yet, his character is just as already powerful as it seems that the Flag Smashers are afraid of him or running away from him which begs the question, who is the Power Breaker and why are the Flag Smashers threatened of him?
Warning! This portion may contain spoilers for The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. Read at your own risk!
In the last few minutes of Episode 2 of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, the Flag Smashers are already loading on the plane their contraband or smuggled goods when one of the members alerted everyone that they were found – by the men of Power Broker.
All of them immediately had some surge of panic in their faces when one brave Flag-Smasher said he'll be holding them off so the others could proceed. The leader of the pack, Karli Morgenthau, had no choice but to agree. The men of Power Broker arrived in a convoy of cars and they are heavily equipped as they got loads of guns.
The plan of the Flag Smashers worked but at the expense of losing one of their members who had to face the gunned men all by himself. One man appeared as if he has to call someone and said, "They got away," seemingly reporting to their boss that the Flag Smashers made it through.
This brought up a lot of questions as to why a group of enhanced individuals would be afraid of someone or something as if it was Thanos returning to Earth. It was hinted somewhere between the episode that a threat, other than the government and Sam and Bucky, is posed against the Flag Smashers when Karli received a text that says, "You took what was mine. I'm going to find you and kill you."
Power Broker in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Credits
The credits sequence of the Marvel series is Pandora's box of easter eggs and various information can be drawn from there. This has been proven in the previous Marvel series, WandaVision, and is carried on into The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.
In a blink-or-miss moment in the credits, the name of the Power Broker appears along with a blue vial of what seems to be the super-soldier serum used on super soldiers.
The split-second appearance of the Power Broker in the credits scene makes him a candidate for an important element of the show other than being a threat to the Flag Smashers as you know, Marvel makes it sure that even the tiniest detail means something. The words "Where do we go, now that they're gone?" completes the frame with the word "they're" having a strikethrough.
Eagle-eyed fans theorized that the words pertain to what happened in the first snap of Thanos where half of the universe was blipped out of existence including the titular roles in this weekly series of Marvel. Other theories speculate that this pertains to the retirement of Captain America and the loss of Tony Stark putting up the question of whether the Avengers would band back up, whether there would be heroes again or whether the world needs a new set of super-powered individuals coming together.
If so, then the words of Rhodey would make sense in the first episode when he was talking to Sam after he surrendered the shield to the museum which was used in the opening scene of the second episode. Rhodes said that the world "needs new heroes, ones suited for the times we're in."
Who is the Power Broker?
In Marvel Comics, the Power Broker is Curtiss Jackson, the owner of the Power Broker Inc. which "recruits" individuals and sell them as villains, with profit as the main goal as he is a businessman who will not let anything get in his way to score clients and sell them the deals that the company has to offer. He first appeared in the comics in the issue of MACHINE MAN (1978) #7.
Over the comics, he has powered individuals such as Ms. Marvel of Sharon Ventura, and two of the known characters in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier series, John Walker, the guy who currently dons the title of Captain America in the series, and his right-hand man, Lemar Hoskins a.k.a. Battlestar.
He also has powers. He tried the augmentation process on himself but things went sideways and he became musclebound. This means that he wouldn't be able to move without a hover harness to help him become mobile. He recovered from this, though. Other than that, he also has the ability to manipulate energy producing it through his hands such as fire and lightning.
More so, he is also an expert in manipulation in business negotiations and he is an intelligent businessman who offers powers through a mobile app he created, Hench X. This is how he "recruits" villains who would have to undergo a process in application wherein once they pass, they would be given "powers" and a costume to complete the look.
The Power Broker of Curtiss Jackson died in the hands of Frank Castle aka The Punisher. Someone else took over the helm of being the Power Broker and his name is yet to be revealed. He continues the business of the Hench where the subscribers could select and hire villains for whatever reason they may please and for a hefty price.
Why are the Flag Smashers threatened by the Power Broker?
The answer is simple, the boxes the Flag Smashers smuggled in the warehouse in the outskirts of Munich where Sam and Bucky followed them belongs to the Power Broker. That means the Flag Smashers are carrying a heap of stolen vials containing the serum of the powers that are used in the business of the Power Broker.
This would mean that the Flag Smashers may have encountered him already before. It is possible that they were his former "recruits" or that they stole from the Power Broker the super-soldier serum and administered it to themselves making them extremely strong individuals which would be helpful for their cause to create a new world order, one without borders: one world, one people.
The Power Broker is expected to appear in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier which is released every Friday at 3 AM on Disney+.
Related: Falcon Actor Anthony Mackie Believes the US is Ready for a Black Captain America
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