Few characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) endured more than Captain America. As the First Avenger, Rogers’ life was drastically changed when he was given the super soldier serum and thrust into the spotlight as Captain America, first as a propaganda tool and then as a soldier on the front lines, leading the charge against the Nazis and Red Skull.
Roger’s life was turned upside down for a second time when S.H.I.E.L.D pulled him out of the ice and defrosted him in the modern day, thrusting him into the spotlight as the leader of the Avengers. Everything he knew from his old life was gone, but he was still fighting and carrying a significant burden as the leader of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
8 The Bullying He Experienced Before The Serum Was Cruel
While it’s only a brief moment, audiences glimpse what Steve Rogers’ life was like before the super soldier serum. The scene of a man attacking him outside the movie theater is short, and it pales in comparison to other moments Rogers experiences, but it shows audiences what life must have been like for him. He wanted to be like Bucky and the other soldiers joining the war effort, but his small stature made it impossible, and it made standing up to people like the man at the theater very difficult.
7 Losing His Best Friend During The War Was Tragic for Steve Rogers
Bucky was Steve’s best friend and protector during their early years, and his transformation into the super soldier Captain America created an interesting dynamic.
Bucky was still his best friend and rock as Steve navigated being America’s hero, and when Steve learned Bucky was missing, he abandoned his role as a propaganda tool and went to war to save his best friend. He even created a unit with Bucky and other survivors, but bringing Bucky along ultimately cost him his life, or so Steve thought.
6 Captain America Blamed Himself For Failing To Stop Thanos’s Snap
Captain America endured a lot during his time as a superhero, but he never lost. In fact, the Avengers never lost – until Thanos came for the mind stone. Steve Rogers rallied the troops and was determined to protect Vision, but it all went south when Thanos appeared in Wakanda.
The Mad Titan defeated each member of the team without any effort, but Captain America gave him some trouble before he defeated him too and got the mind stone, allowing him to wipe out half of all living things in the universe. It only gets worse considering Rogers was one of the reasons the Avengers disbanded during Civil War, which left the team at half-strength.
5 All Of S.H.I.E.L.D/Hydra Turned Against Him
Captain America faced few challenges greater than the widespread and systemic corruption of S.H.I.E.L.D, which was taken over by Hydra Agents. An organization that influenced every facet of government and had nearly unlimited resources, Rogers and his team had to clear their names and stop Hydra before its new plan killed thousands of lives in an instant.
Against all odds, the first Avenger exposed the organization and defeated its leaders in one fell swoop. He saved the world one more time, but also lost faith in the system and the process meant to protect civilians.
4 Bucky Returning As His Enemy Crushed Steve Rogers
Losing Bucky was a genuinely shocking moment in the first Captain American film, and the character struggled to move on from it. However, World War II gave Rogers something to focus on and distract himself. At the point he’d finally moved on from his best friend’s death, a brainwashed Bucky returned as Steve’s foe. As Captain America raced to save the world once again, Bucky stood in his way, forcing him to choose between fighting his former friend or trying to save him.
3 Losing Peggy Carter Almost Broke Steve
As Steve Rogers was thrust into a different time and a different world, his one connection to his past was Peggy Carter. Despite the tragic end to their relationship when Steve disappeared, he visited Peggy when he returned; however, the reunion didn’t go as planned. Peggy was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and barely recognized the man she’d spent so much time with. She passed away a short time after Steve’s visit. Her death hit Rogers hard. His last connection to his past life was gone, and it fueled his desire to search for Bucky once more.
2 Captain America Sacrificed Himself To Save The World In The First Avenger
The transformation Steve Rogers goes through during Captain America: The First Avenger is one of the best character arcs in the MCU. To go from a mere propaganda figure to a genuine hero of the war, inspiring his troops and saving lives, was an excellent story to tell.
Rogers jumping on the grenade at the beginning of the film comes full circle when he takes control of the plane with the bombs and the Tesseract and decides to crash it into the sea, saving everyone in the U.S. but seemingly sacrificing his own life in the process.
1 Getting Frozen In The Ice Cost Him His Old Life
For all the villains and foes he’s faced, there was no greater challenge for Captain America than time. He lost almost 70 years of his life being frozen in the ice but was brought back and immediately sent into battle. The movies make their jokes about how he was a fish out of water; but the fact is, everyone he knew and everything he knew was gone. It’s almost impossible to overcome something like that or get used to it, which was made clear throughout Steve Rogers’ story in the MCU. However, it was never clearer than when he went back in time to the 1940s and stayed there.