Marginally better than the first.

Rating: 8/10 (6 April 2014)

I liked Captain America: The Winter Soldier more than the first film but only marginally. While I thought it had more action and "badassery" it felt like it was a bit void of the developmental elements that made the first film strong. I also thought there was a bit too much humor early on. The Falcon character is where the lack of development hurt the most as he felt forced on us. It felt like he existed only to make certain scenes and plot points possible. To me, that's lazy writing. Either develop him more and add a bit more time to the film or leave him out entirely and find different ways to make things happen. I also thought Scar Jo's character still lacked much development. She had more screen time than in any of the previous movies but I think her and Cobie Smulder's character, agent Hill, continue to be the most underutilized characters in the series. Nonetheless, the action and special effects were amazing and the acting was good enough.