Marvel’s Most Useless MCU Character Might Be Emily VanCamp’s Sharon Carter — For Now
MCU fans have a lot more time on their hands in the age of COVID19 quarantine to go back and analyze characters from past movies. While all the big Avenger names are still being talked about, some minor characters are also getting second looks.
One recently is Sharon Carter, the great-niece of Peggy Carter, the founder of SHIELD. As played by Emily VanCamp, she was in two Captain America movies, plus as a reference at the end of Endgame.
What made her character so interesting is she crossed paths with Steve Rogers in The Winter Soldier. A romance begins to bud between them, only halted due to her going on the run and eventual death.
The flirting between Sharon Carter and Steve Rogers was surprising
The scenario set up in having Peggy Carter’s great-niece become Steve Rogers’ nurse in the present time of The Winter Soldier was already complex. It was similar to a Back to the Future set up when Marty McFly’s mom ends up having a crush on her own future son.
In the Carter-Rogers scenario, there was definite fireworks between the two. However, Rogers had no idea he was flirting with Peggy Carter’s young great-niece. Conversely, though, Sharon Carter (sometimes known as Agent 13) did know who Steve Rogers was.
On Reddit, a lot of fans miss Sharon Carter since she and Steve had good chemistry. She also helped him and his fellow Avengers through more than a few predicaments.
All of this came to a head in Captain America: Civil War when she helped deliver equipment to Steve, Bucky Barnes, and Sam Wilson when the latter three were on the run. At this point, Sharon Carter worked for the CIA.
The famous kiss between Steve Rogers and Sharon Carter
Rogers and Carter managed a passionate kiss in a secret location when Carter brought Cap’s shield during Civil War. At this point, everyone thought a romance was about to blossom, if also very awkward.
After all, Rogers knew by now this was Peggy Carter’s great-niece, something Sharon revealed at her great aunt’s funeral. No doubt a few people felt uncomfortable knowing Steve Rogers might become romantically involved with a direct relative of Peggy Carter without worrying about how Peggy would feel about that.
Suits at Marvel and Disney also maybe worried a little about how this might be perceived, if mostly innocent from the outset. Perhaps this is why having Sharon go on the run and then die in the snap was for the best to keep Cap and her apart.
Of course, by the time Sharon Carter does come back to life at the end of Endgame, Cap goes back in time to be with Peggy Carter until an old man.
Will Sharon Carter make new appearances?
Most MCU fans would probably agree with Reddit users above how useless a character Sharon Carter became, if still useful in other ways. She was helpful and also a good fighter on her own thanks to her time in SHIELD and the CIA.
According to all reports, VanCamp will return as Sharon in Falcon and the Winter Soldier once it debuts on Disney+. This means a lot of interesting possibilities all over again, including revealing where she went into hiding all this time.
Also, allowing her to bump into the older Steve Rogers would become an even more complex scenario. Yes, old Steve is apparently still alive during the time of Falcon and the Winter Soldier. How would she react to seeing Steve now in his 90s?
Sharon Carter was arguably a useless character if arguably written out due to fear of romance repercussions. The fact she helped some of the Avengers before, though, means she likely will again as more challenges unfold.
