Bucky Barnes

"This isn't a backyard, Steve, it's a war!"

- Bucky Barnes

James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes is the protégé and childhood friend of Captain America, and a member of an elite special unit of Allied soldiers formed in World War II known as the Howling Commandos. He was assumed dead after falling off of Zola's Train but somehow survived to return as The Winter Soldier.

The Avengers
Bucky Barnes' files is among the ones studied by Steve Rogers, awakened at the present days. Oddly enough, he's reported as "Missing in action", implying that S.H.I.E.L.D. thinks he may still be alive.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier
To be added

Character traits
Bucky Barnes is a loyal and brave man, a honest person and a good soldier. He firmly believes in the duty of protecting his Country, and is eager to test his own value. He's a very close friend of Steve Rogers, who he has always protected from bullies.

Barnes is a highly trained soldier, an expert fighter and a talented marksman. In battle, he uses canonical firearms.

Behind the scenes

 * Sebastian Stan was considered for the role of Captain America, but got the role of Bucky instead.
 * Bucky's uniform is based on his original and his codename The Winter Soilder.
 * About the role, Stan stated, "Steve Rogers and Bucky are both orphans and kind of like brothers. They kind of grow up together and look after each other. It's a very human, relatable thing.... I also wanted to look out for how their relationship changes once Steve Rogers becomes Captain America. There's always a competition and they're always one-upping each other. I paid attention to how Bucky is affected by Steve's change and suddenly Steve is this leader".
 * When Steve finds Bucky hooked up to machines in Arnim Zola's HYDRA Lab and Bucky is in a sort of trance, many fans assume Zola was experimenting on Bucky and brainwashing him with dormant Winter Soldier programming, thus possibly allowing him to survive the fall and appear in a a sequel (as Stan is contracted for more Marvel films).

Trivia

 * In the comics, Bucky is younger than Steve Rogers. In the initial stories by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, Bucky was a teenage mascot for Captain America's regiment. He was later adapted to having been older. In the Ultimate Universe, Bucky was a paratrooper/war photographer who was a childhood friend of Steve Rogers, often having defended him from bullies. Fifty seven years after Steve Rogers fell into the ocean and shortly after Rogers was revived, Bucky had become an aging, cancer-ridden veteran and he married Rogers' wartime girlfriend.
 * Bucky's codename is Winter Soldier, much like his older self in the comics.
 * Notice that Bucky does not wear a mask like in the comics, and his identity isn't a secret.
 * Bucky used Captain America's shield, in the comics Bucky becomes Captain America when Steve was supposedly dead.
 * In the comics, Bucky was a trainer and lover of Black Widow, and the two have rekindled their relationship and remained steady since Bucky's resurrection.