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Note: This article might contain spoilers for The Falcon and The Winter Soldier Episode 5.
After a riveting four episodes, the penultimate episode of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier has finally arrived, replete with curveballs and monumental reveals.
Over the course of the last four episodes of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, viewers were taken along on an absolute thrill ride by Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson and Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes.
From dealing with the ever-present threat of Karli Morgenthau's Flag-Smashers to going up against an unstable and formidable opponent in John Walker, aka the new Captain America, Steve Rogers' closest friends found themselves facing unprecedented danger like never before.
Episode 4 of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier concluded on an absolute cliffhanger of a reveal. After the death of Lamar Hoskins' Battlestar, Wyatt Russell's John Walker brutally killed Karli's partner in a manner that was eerily Homelander-esque.
With the bloody climax officially heralding the dawn of John Walker's rogue turn, the narrative had a dark twist which perfectly paved the way for a colossal showdown between the lead trio.
While Episode 5 clearly delivers on that front, what has taken scores of fans by surprise is the introduction of an all-new character in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. The new character is Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, who is played by none other than "Veep" star Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Episode 5: Julia -Louis Dreyfus steals the show as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine, with Sam Wilson taking up the shield
Episode 5 of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier begins with John Walker on the run as he ends up in an abandoned warehouse.
Sam and Bucky arrive at the scene and try their best to talk him into giving up the shield, but to no avail. Things soon turn chaotic as a brutal battle between the trio ensues.
Reminiscent of the climactic battle sequence in Captain America: Civil War, Sam and Bucky are pushed to their limits, as they barely survive the onslaught of a rampaging Captain America.
They were eventually able to overpower him in a combined effort as the shield fell into the hands of Sam, a perfect symbolic shot of what's to come in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.
John Walker then goes on trial and is stripped of his duties as Captain America in the aftermath of the Latvia incident, as Wyatt Russell continues to raise the bar with a virtuoso performance in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
His compelling monologue in court portrays a rare humanized side to his disgruntled and seething John Walker.
Episode 5 of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier also sees the return of Carl Lumbly's Isaiah Bradley, Danny Ramirez's Torres and Georges St-Pierre's Batroc.
With regards to Isaiah, he plays a vital role in helping Sam understand the profound weightage of the Shield and what it means to be a "Black Captain America" amid tumultuous times.
The fate of Daniel Bruhl's Baron Zemo in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is seemingly sealed in Sokovia, which is waylaid by Bucky and the Wakandans, who escort him to the maximum-security prison, The Raft.
However, the post-credit scene of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is where the creators absolutely knocked it out of the park, as fans were treated to the highly-anticipated birth of US agent John Walker's brutish alter-ego.
With De Fontaine's introduction thrown into the mix, it seems like Bucky and Sam could have a lot on their plate in the finale.
Here are some of the reactions online as fans gushed over all that transpired in the action-packed Episode 5 of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier:
With Sam Wilson officially taking up the mantle of Captain America and Torres set to be the new Falcon, fans seem to be in for an absolute cracker of a finale, featuring an unhinged John Walker in his US Agent avatar.
