The Marvel Cinematic Universe has thrilled and delighted comic book fans for many years and built up an incredible amount of hype. Particularly in the Infinity Saga, spanning Phases 1-3, the MCU delivered nonstop excitement and legendary movie moments, most of all with its core team of heroes. Few of the characters in its roster have benefited from the exposure, like Steve Rogers' Captain America, who has gone from a cheesy star-spangled comic hero to a true cinema icon thanks in part to a brilliant long-term performance from actor Chris Evans.

Captain America's story arc started fairly well with 2011's Captain America: The First Avenger and he has only gotten better from there. Captain America wasn't a costumed geek with a shield for long — he rose to prominence as the MCU's most inspiring and hyped hero of all, and his dialogue, action scenes, and stellar acting have all made him highly compelling. Looking back on the Infinity Saga, MCU fans can point out ten scenes among many that prove Steve Rogers is a true founding Avenger.

Updated on March 13 by Robert Vaux: Evans' performance as Steve Rogers is as iconic as Robert Downey, Jr.'s as Tony Stark, and remains a key part of the MCU's extraordinary first decade of success. His signature moments are still standouts amid a mega-franchise filled with them. The article has been updated with additional information on each scene, as well as new formatting to meet current CBR guidelines. Note that the list focuses on Steve Rogers' version of Captain America, and not Sam Wilson's.

10 Captain America Frees Allied POWs From A HYDRA Base

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In his first solo movie, Captain America underwent the incredible Super Soldier Serum treatment, only to be considered a failure. He was asked to become a performer to raise funds for World War II, and no one actually expected him to fight after all. Even before he became superhuman, all he wanted to do was fight. After playing it the way the system wanted, he realized that he was nothing more than a prop: even sketching a picture of a performing monkey in his Captain America costume. He proved them all wrong when he boldly launched a mission in Italy in 1943.

Captain America only had his costume, Peggy's help, and incredible courage on his side when he raided a HYDRA base to free all the prisoners of war there. Cap even came face to face with Red Skull himself before leading a violent escape, triumphantly leading his POW friends to the Allied camp, proving everyone wrong about him in the process. It was Captain America's first major victory: putting an end to the notion that Steve Rogers would ever sit on the sidelines.

9 Captain America Becomes "The Big Three's" Peacemaker

Captain America could not match the sheer combat strength of his ally Iron Man or the Asgardian prince Thor Odinson, but that didn't stop him from bravely interfering in their fight. Iron Man and Thor came to blows over Loki, and they wouldn't stop until someone knocked some sense into them, with that someone being Captain America. Cap broke up the fight without having to hurt anyone, which is a classic Captain America move. His shield forced the two proto-Avengers apart and protected him from Thor's final attack, proving to Thor that they needed much greater things than violence to deal with Loki's ambitions. Cooling Thor's hot temper isn't easy, but Cap managed it with only a defensive technique.

It was a big moment in the film because it firmly established who the team's leader was. The Avengers tells the story of six very individualistic heroes coming together as a single unit. In breaking up the fight between his two teammates-to-be, Steve Rogers demonstrates why he needs to be the one in charge: he thinks before he acts, and he looks for solutions rather than "winning." It's a telling piece of character development, wrapped up in a well-executed action sequence featuring three fan-favorite heroes.

8 Captain America Escapes SHIELD With Help From His Shield

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In his second solo movie, Captain America fought HYDRA once again, this time in the 21st century and in his homeland. Partway through the movie, HYDRA's leaders made their move, and they wanted Cap captured or dead at any cost. They even mobilized a high-tech jet to stop him, but Cap was ready for it. Without the benefit of Iron Man's technology or Doctor Strange's magic, Captain America took on a jet with just his motorcycle and iconic shield, which he wrecked with shocking ease.

Cap is the MCU's best example of doing more with less, which actually makes victories like that more impressive and exciting than blowing up aliens with flashy CGI attacks. He's a tactician first and foremost, which the sequence demonstrates beautifully: first in his legendary fight against HYDRA turncoats in the elevator, and then in his wild escape from the rest of SHIELD. His Super Soldier tenacity and shield help a good deal, but in the end, he just out-thinks his foes.

7 Captain America Defeats Iron Man With Bucky's Help

At the beginning of the MCU's Phase 3, the Avengers team was torn apart thanks to Baron Helmut Zemo's insidious plans. No matter who won the civil war, the Avengers as a whole would still lose. That proved disastrous when Thanos arrived in Avengers: Infinity War, finding a divided team that he could defeat far more swiftly than a unified one. However, the movie was about Captain America, and moviegoers knew he was right about Bucky, so fans were meant to cheer him on against Iron Man.

It was heartbreaking but still exciting to see Cap fight one of the strongest Avengers barehanded and win. Iron Man was a tough opponent, but with some help from Bucky, Cap defeated his high-tech rival and protected his innocent friend. Cap was saddened to have all that happen, but he knew his duty. That was as close to winning as he could get. Its ending punctuates the point, as Steve Rogers gives up his shield to a defeated Stark with a shrug. Iron Man 3 and Thor: Ragnarok both deprived their respective heroes of their power items and forced them to think on their feet. For Rogers, it was never about the shield, allowing him to let it go without looking back.

6 Captain America Resists Thanos Barehanded In Wakanda

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Captain America had to share the screen with lots of heroes in Infinity War, so he had comparatively few hype scenes to excite fans. He spent most of the movie protecting Wanda and Vision, then journeyed to Wakanda to help Vision rid himself of the Mind Stone. Even then, he worked largely in the shadows, still on the run after the events of Civil War. The MCU was saving his big moments for Endgame when he had to rally the surviving heroes to undo The Snap.

And yet when Thanos' army attacked, Cap did his part until Thanos himself arrived to finish the job. Thanos easily brushed aside the strongest Avengers, but amazingly, even without his shield, Captain America defied Thanos to the bitter end. It was futile but still inspiring for Cap to resist Thanos with his bare hands, shouting in desperation to protect Vision from doom. It was a stark reminder that an idealistic, brave hero like Cap would take on any odds to do the right thing, even if it meant certain death. He's still the same skinny guy who dove on the grenade in boot camp during Captain America: The First Avenger. This time, it means the horror of The Snap, and yet his resolve is no less strong in both occurrences.

5 Captain America Gets The Scepter By Playing The Villain

Captain America returned to prominence as a great MCU hero in Endgame, and he and Iron Man had countless hype scenes as the co-leads. Captain America's first big move during the Time Heist in NYC was to trick some HYDRA agents who had secured Loki's scepter. At the time, no one was even supposed to know they were HYDRA agents operating in S.H.I.E.L.D., but Cap knew.

Captain America totally reversed his elevator fight scene from The Winter Soldier when he used tricks alone to get what he wanted. He asked for the scepter, then falsely proclaimed "hail HYDRA" into Jasper Sitwell's ear to get the scepter, which is a clear reference to Captain America's infamous "Hail HYDRA" in the Secret Empire comic. More importantly, it's a sign of Cap's tactical skills again: seeking a swift and easy solution to the issue by pretending to be the villain at a moment in time when he could pull it off. That kind of gamesmanship has nothing to do with superpowers and everything to do with why Steve Rogers is a hero.

4 Captain America Defeats Himself In Stark Tower

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Even if Captain America's victory over his 2012 self was a brief and largely unnecessary fight, it was still a fun moment in Endgame and actually meant a lot. For one thing, Captain America's performance proved that even though he was weary from war, he was still a capable fighter and could take on his younger self, who was in his prime.

The scene's dialogue and emotional impact made it truly hype, since once again, Captain America used future knowledge to trick someone in 2012 — in this case, telling his younger self that Bucky was still alive. Finally, Captain America showed some much-needed humor by repeating Ant-Man's words about his posterior. It all struck the perfect note: humorous and self-deprecating without taking anything away from the very serious stakes

3 Captain America Confirms What Everyone Suspected About Mjolnir

When the supervillain Thanos used Pym Particles to travel to the future and fight the Avengers on Earth, he launched a devastating attack. Only Captain America, Thor, and Iron Man were prepared to fight back at first, and that trio struggled against Thanos even with Mjolnir's aid. Thor dropped that mighty weapon in his fight, and all hope seemed lost. However, to fans' excitement and astonishment, they saw Mjolnir getting picked up, and then, it returned to Captain America's hand.

Thor proudly stated he always knew Cap was worthy, and then Captain America went on to pummel Thanos with the hammer until Thanos finally regained the upper hand. The moment acted as a payoff to an earlier scene in Age of Ultron, in which the various Avengers unsuccessfully attempt to pick up Thor's hammer. Rogers appears to move it a bit — something Thor picks up on — but chooses to feign failure. Wielding the hammer in Endgame confirms what Thor suspected, and gives the audience one of the greatest payoffs in the entire franchise.

2 Captain America Calls The Ultimate "Avengers Assemble!"

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The Avengers team was torn apart in Civil War, and in Infinity War the team was still fractured as new heroes like the Guardians of the Galaxy joined the fight. No single hero or squad could stop Thanos, not even Iron Man's improvised team on Titan, but when the Snap's victims returned, all that changed. And naturally, it came just at the moment when the forces of light were at their most vulnerable. Steve Rogers stood alone — obviously injured and wielding a broken chunk of his shattered shield — against Thanos's entire army. Nevertheless, he was prepared to die in defense of the planet rather than give an inch.

And then the cavalry arrived, to Captain America's shock and relief. Everyone gathered on the battlefield through Doctor Strange's portals or emerged from Avengers HQ's ruins. Absolutely every living MCU hero had formed a united front and was ready to fight beside him. Captain America made it official when he took his place at the army's fore, recalled Mjolnir to his hand, and declared "Avengers, assemble!" as the ultimate battle cry.

1 Captain America Gets His Happily Ever After With Peggy Carter

Throughout the MCU, Steve Rogers/Captain America was the most selfless hero, who gave everything he had to make sure everyone was safe and happy. He endured many personal losses, such as Peggy's death in Civil War. Peggy herself suffered from their separation as well, and never entirely got over his loss. When time travel became an option, Cap finally did something for the two of them.

After Thanos' defeat and the return of the six Infinity Stones, Captain America made one last time jump to the 1940s. He resumed his original life with his lover Peggy Carter — keeping their long-ago promise to share a dance together — a heartwarming way for Cap to finally retire from his Avengers adventures. He and Peggy both deserved that, and it ended Endgame on a positive, intimate note that the MCU really needed by that point.

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Created by Marvel Studios, the Marvel Cinematic Universe follows heroes across the galaxy and across realities as they defend the universe from evil.

First Film

Iron Man

Latest Film

The Marvels

First TV Show

WandaVision

Latest TV Show

Loki

Character(s)

Iron Man , Captain America , The Hulk , Ms. Marvel , Hawkeye , Black Widow , Thor , Loki , Captain Marvel , Falcon , Black Panther , Monica Rambeau , Scarlet Witch