In reply to Chuck.

Hrm. Re-reading the original post, I'm not sure I was that clear.

The moment: Bucky says to Sam that he understands why Sam turned down the shield. But he feels hurt, because the shield was this symbol he'd fought for for so long, and it was his only "family", and so Sam's rejection of it felt like a rejection of him.

My initial reaction: Bucky's talking about the shield and its relationship with his *friend* Steve, and their relationship, and so Sam rejecting the shield was a disservice to *Steve* and his ideals, which then felt like Bucky & Steve & the Shield lacked value in Sam's eyes. I don't know if that was the intended reaction - but Steve + Bucky is such a strong tie that instead of it being about the symbol of *America*, it's a symbol of their relationship and their friendship and what it stands for.

What I wish had happened, and maybe what was actually intended but didn't come across clearly to me: Bucky realizes that Sam's rejection of the shield is because his relationship with the America it stands for is complicated (this is clearly something that is intended and delivered clearly by the writers in many other areas of the series). But I wish that Bucky had more explicitly acknowledged that the symbol (the shield) was about *America* and its *reality*, and not Steve. And this would have been super obvious coming from anyone *but* Bucky, but because of Bucky + Steve, it's unclear whether he's talking about Steve, Shield, Bucky, or *America*, Shield, Bucky. So I just wish it had been *slightly* more specific, because I think it would have made a huge impact on how direct that point was delivered.