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Karli Morgenthau, also known as the Flag Smasher, was the leader of the anti-nationalist group, the Flag Smashers. In the wake of the Blip, the GRC reinstated world borders along with the careers and homes of those who had disappeared during the Snap, causing a surge of people to become displaced refugees, including Morgenthau. Relocating to Madripoor, where she worked for Sharon Carter, Morgenthau stole twenty Super Soldier Serum vials from Wilfred Nagel. Using it on herself and her friends, she founded the Flag Smashers with the goal to recreate a world without borders and provide resources to those in need. Morgenthau attempted to prevent the ratification of the Patch Act in New York City, but was ultimately killed by Carter. However, Captain America convinced the GRC to abandon the Patch Act, partially fulfilling Morgenthau's goals despite the Flag Smashers' defeat.
"I don't remember my mother, or my father, same goes for siblings, grandparents, cousins. What I do remember is being alone. Worse than being hungry or cold, or scared, I was alone, until Mama Donya. Like a lot of you here, she saved me, clothed me, fed me, loved me."
Karli Morgenthau lost her family at an early age and grew on the streets with other orphans, until Donya Madani took care of them. When Thanoskilled the half of Earth's population, Morgenthau witnessed how people made the decision to abandon the world's borders and unite together to support each other through hardships. However, when the Avengersundid the Snap and brought back the other half of humanity, the world was thrown into chaos, desperately trying to revert the world to its initial state. Morgenthau realized that the world's governments cared much more for people who were brought back, rather than people who lived through the Snap, as both she and Madani lost everything they had in the process, including their home.[6]
Becoming Super Soldiers
"How many vials did you make?" "Twenty. Karli Morgenthau stole those."
Desperate for opportunities, Morgenthau and her friends moved to Madripoor for job opportunities and ended up working for the Power Broker as muscle after being given a distilled version of the Super Soldier Serum, which Morgenthau and Dovich found to be incredibly painful, although it eventually proved successful. Due to both being unhappy with the job as muscle and Mama Donya being very ill, they would desert the Power Broker, steal the bag containing all twenty vials of the Super Soldier Serum and escape back to Latvia to care for Mama Donya.[3]
Upon seeing how bad was the situation with the refugees caused by the Blip, she and her friend would found the Flag Smashers as an anti-Global Repatriation Council and anti-nationalist Robin Hood-esque organization dedicated to helping the refugees by stealing medicine and food from the GRC and other government organizations. Her group would gain a dedicated following among refugees and people sympathetic to the plight of the refugees.[6] With Mama Donya's condition worsening, Morgenthau asked Wilfred Nagel for help, but he refused.[3]
In 2024, Morgenthau and the other Flag Smashers went to the Gasel Bank in Switzerland. There Morgenthau provided masks for her teammates and Joaquín Torres to attack and rob the bank. Morgenthau kept herself hidden while Dovich smashed through the window with the stolen money, before handing it over to Gigi and DeeDee, allowing them to escape and the cops to be unable to stop them. Following the robbery, Morgenthau disappeared into the crowd with the money.[7]
Morgenthau and the other Flag Smashers traveled to Munich, Germany to load up boxes of medicine and vaccines into transport trucks. While getting the boxes at the abandoned factory, they realized they were being spied upon by Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes and escaped onto the highway. Morgenthau hid in one of the trucks pretending to be a hostage, while Barnes broke inside the truck and tried to help her, only for her to kick him out with superhuman force. She then jumped on top of the truck and hit Barnes, who was being restrained by the other Flag Smashers.
Upon seeing the Redwing flying overhead, Morgenthau jumped with superhuman agility and snapped the drone in half. Seconds later, Wilson flew in and kicked her backwards. She then got back up to engage against Wilson. She and the other Flag Smashers then witnessed John Walker and Lemar Hoskins' arrival, who also joined the fight. However, after easily defeating them, Morgenthau and her team made their escape.[2]
"We're not playing no more. We can't let the same assholes who were put back in power after the Blip win. The GRC care more about the people who came back than the ones who never left. We got a glimpse of how things could be."
Morgenthau and the Flag Smashers fled to a secret facility owned by Rudy, who offered them temporary refuge. Expressing gratitude toward his generous gesture, Morgenthau and the others explored the facility and made it to the bedroom. While they discussed their actions, Nico hacked into the security cameras at the abandoned warehouse they gathered at in Germany to erase the video footage of them smuggling the supplies.[2]
Escape in Bratislava
Ultimately, Morgenthau and the Flag Smashers left and traveled to Bratislava, Slovakia, where they intended to take off via airplane to evade the capture. As the loaded the plane, Nico received a message warning him that the Power Broker's men had found them, and intended to kill them all for stealing the Super Soldier Serums in Madripoor.
In order to ensure that everybody else escaped, Matias volunteered to stay behind and hold them off, as Morgenthau hugged and thanked Matias for his sacrifice. The pilot had then forced Morgenthau onto the plane as they take off, and Morgenthau watched in horror as Matias was shot multiple times and killed.[2]
Morgenthau and Dovich traveled to Lithuania and reminisced together about life before the Blip caused their displacement and how they'd enjoyed those five years.
Later, Morgenthau and Dovich raid the Lithuanian GRC Supply Depot and steal materials in order to give to displaced children in other refugee camps. Morgenthau then set the GRC Supply Depot on fire and ran outside to the car, in which she told Dovich to close the car door, as the explosion went off. Dovich told Morgenthau that people were still inside, but she told him that those people didn't matter to their cause.[3]
"That shield is a monument to a bygone era. A reminder of all the people history just left out. If anything, that shield should be destroyed. This serum is how we make change. But first, we pay our respects to Mama Donya."
Following the last raid, Morgenthau and the Flag Smashers returned to Riga, Latvia. There she went to a graveyard and collected saved vials of Super Soldier Serum. At the graveyard, Nico talked with her about how he had been a fan of Captain America as a child in which Morgenthau scoffed at the idea. Morgenthau then prepared for Donya Madani's funeral, taking the vials with her to the building where the funeral was to be held.[6]
"So, you want me to stop because people are getting hurt, right? But, Sam, what if I'm making the world a better place?" "No, it's not a better place if you’re killing people. It's just different." "You're either brilliant or just hopelessly optimistic."
Morgenthau then went to Donya Madani's funeral and gave a speech to her followers about Madani's impact on their lives. During the funeral, Morgenthau noticed Sam Wilson standing on the next floor above them watching them. Once the funeral had ended and everyone had left, Morgenthau stayed and waited for Wilson to come down. After he did, she asked him what he was doing there.
Wilson sat on a nearby table and told her that he wanted to know why she was doing what she was doing being a Flag Smasher. Morgenthau explained to him what life was like during the Blip and how the nations of the world came together as a united front. She explained after the Blip, life before became normal again, causing many people to be displaced in communities. Wilson said he agreed with her motive, but not in the way she was trying to obtain it through violence. Morgenthau, however, didn't feel that violence was a huge problem.
Morgenthau then watched as John Walker walked inside the room, demanding her arrest. Thinking that Wilson had lied to her and set her up to get arrested, Morgenthau kicked Walker and Wilson back into a table and ran out of the room. She leaped over stairs and floors with Bucky Barnes following. However, she managed to escape capture and returned to the place where she had left the Super Soldier Serum vials. Upon entering the room, Helmut Zemo fired his gun at her, causing Morgenthau to run back. Trying to dodge the bullets, Morgenthau stumbled over a table in which the vials were on and they fell on the floor. Morgenthau then crawled behind something to shield herself with. When she peeked her head to look out, Zemo shot the gun again at close range, startling Morgenthau. She then listened as Zemo examined a vial and then to her displeasure, he destroyed the vials. As Zemo continued destroying the vials, Morgenthau saw Nico come in through a door, motioning for her. She then quickly ran out to escape with him.
Morgenthau, wanting to know if Wilson would be an issue for her going forward, called his sister Sarah Wilson. Morgenthau asked Sarah if she needed to kill Wilson and if he'd be a problem for them. She then told Sarah to ask Wilson to meet with her alone so that she can see if he is truly genuine in wanting to talk to her. Morgenthau said that if Sarah failed to do this, then she told her that she, AJ Wilson, and Cass Wilson may be visited by Morgenthau on the docks. Following this, she texted Wilson the coordinates of where to meet.[6]
"I don't wanna hurt you. You're a tool in the regimes I want to destroy. You’re not hiding behind a shield. If I were to kill you, it'd be meaningless. I was gonna ask you to join me. Or do the world a favor and let me go."
Morgenthau waited at an abandoned building until Sam Wilson arrived to talk with her. She then noticed that Wilson had brought Bucky Barnes with him and commented that he didn’t come alone as she had asked. Wilson chastised her for calling his sister, but she said she would never hurt her and only wanted to know more about him. She then said that killing Wilson would be meaningless. After Wilson received word that John Walker had found the rest of the Flag Smashers, he and Barnes jumped down only for Barnes to get knocked down by Morgenthau who did the same. Morgenthau then ran to the camp with Barnes following.
Morgenthau immediately joined the fight upon entering the camp, and prepared to punch Walker, only to get thrown back by Lemar Hoskins. When Hoskins got back up to fight, Morgenthau fiercely punched him in the chest sending him flying into a column, which killed him instantly.
Upon seeing Walker’s anger, Morgenthau, now concerned, ran away to the public square. Mixing in with the onlookers, Morgenthau watched as Walker brutally murdered Nico in front of the public.[6]
Making her Next Plan
Morgenthau bitter about the world
Following Nico's death, Morgenthau and her teammates met up at the now-abandoned resettlement camp. Morgenthau told them how angry she was about how their missions had gone and how they had lost members they loved, such as Donya Madani, Matias, and Nico. Before leaving the abandoned camp, she threw a teddy bear to the ground, signaling how bitter she had become.
Morgenthau talks of her new plan
Traveling to the United States of America, Morgenthau and her teammates met in a park in New York City to make their plans. She told them they were growing in numbers throughout the world and how followers of their movement were everywhere. She also told them how determined she was to stop the Global Repatriation Council meeting committee from voting for the Patch Act.
As she and Dovich talked, they were shortly met by Georges Batroc who walked up to them. Morgenthau then introduced Batroc to her teammates and told them he had agreed to ally with them. She also told her team that Batroc had weaponry that they needed to enact their plans, with Dovich questioning if they were really working with criminals like Batroc now, to which Morgenthau claimed that they were all criminals. When Batroc declared that he was also there to kill the Falcon, Morgenthau ensured him that he would get his chance.[8]
That night, Morgenthau infiltrated the GRC New York Headquarters and gave instructions to her teammates and other allies of what to do. After the GRC members were forced out of the meeting room, Morgenthau told her allies to send them down to the parking garage where they'd be loaded into armored Humvees and taken to an undisclosed location in order for them to negotiate.
After realizing that Bucky Barnes was there in the building, Morgenthau called one of her supporters' phone asking to speak with Barnes. While talking on the phone to Barnes, Morgenthau bought her team some time to escape. Half heartedly listening to Barnes' advice, Morgenthau then thanked him and hung up.
Morgenthau admits if she dies the movement will continue
Meeting with Dovich, DeeDee, and Gigi outside, Morgenthau explained how if the plan doesn't work out, they may have to kill the GRC hostages. However, DeeDee challenged her saying that the plan was only to negotiate with the GRC members, not kill anyone. Morgenthau dismissed that and went on to say that if any of them died, the Flag Smasher movement would continue as the following was so great. Morgenthau then told her teammates "one world", only for there to be silence. She said it again, louder and sounding somewhat worried, and her teammates finished their motto.
She ran out to the street and forcibly pulled a NYPD officer out of a NYPD armored truck and hopped inside. She then put her Flag Smasher mask on, but then watched as Bucky Barnes arrived on a motorcycle and tackled Dovich. Morgenthau, frustrated, jumped out of the truck and told her teammates to make Barnes have to rescue someone. After one of her teammates started a fire close to one of the NYPD truck's, Barnes left the fight to save the hostages.
Morgenthau prepared to jump back into the vehicle, but was stopped again when John Walker walked up and yelled out her last name. She told Walker that his friend didn’t matter to her cause so it wasn’t an issue that he died, causing Walker to grow more enraged. He angrily threw his shield at her, only for Morgenthau to kick the shield away with ease. She and her teammates then fought Walker, and eventually knocked him to the ground. As he used his shield to defend himself, they kicked at it. Morgenthau and her teammates were then confronted by Barnes, who had rescued the hostages, and now had returned to his fight. After Barnes knocked Dovich out, Morgenthau fought him, tearing a parking meter out of the ground and swung it at him, only for him to dodge it. However, after Barnes used a heavy chain in an attempt to hit Morgenthau, she kicked him, causing him to fall off the ledge to the riverbank below.
Morgenthau then found herself engaged in a fight against John Walker. Walker fiercely fought her throughout the construction site, using his shield to slam Morgenthau into the steel bars. However, Morgenthau eventually got the upper hand, by kicking Walker in the back of his helmet, knocking him out. Not thinking clearly, Morgenthau then jumped into the NYPD Swat Armored Humvee full of GRC hostages and drove through the barriers towards the edge. Keeping the Humvee in drive mode, Morgenthau jumped out of the driver’s seat and tumbled onto the ground. She then watched as the vehicle nearly fell off. She then watched as Walker returned and decided to help the hostages, rather than fight. Morgenthau and her teammates then rushed at Walker, stopping him from saving the hostages, and pushed him and themselves off the ledge to the riverbed below.
After landing, Morgenthau threw a pole at Barnes and Walker, but Barnes caught it. Before she could fight them, she and her teammates were knocked to the ground after getting hit by Captain America’s shield. Upon seeing Sam Wilson in his new Captain America suit, Morgenthau took off her Flag Smasher mask and asked angrily why he would ever want to become Captain America. Before they could finish talking, Georges Batroc filled the construction site with smoke grenades in an attempt to cause more chaos and allow for Morgenthau's escape.[4]
Escaping off deeper into the construction site, Morgenthau heard the Flag Smashers' whistle. Thinking it was Dovich, she walked towards the sound only to run into Sharon Carter. Carter held her at gunpoint, to which she did the same. Carter then told Morgenthau that she felt disappointed in her for leaving and betraying her, which she said she felt the same towards Carter. Morgenthau told Carter that she only wanted them because they had Super Soldier Serum and that even though she was the Power Broker, they were still more powerful than her. Carter disagreed, telling Morgenthau she was more powerful, and then watched as Georges Batroc walked up to them. Upon hearing that Carter was the Power Broker, Batroc demanded more money from her or he would blackmail her, but she shot and killed him instead. Morgenthau then shot Carter, causing Carter to fall to the ground, clutching her side.
Morgenthau continued to keep her gun aimed at Carter, ready to kill her off. However, the first gunshot had alerted Captain America to their location and after he arrived, Morgenthau, in a fit of rage about the whole situation tried to fight him. She was angry that he had taken up the role of Captain America, feeling as if he did not share any common ground now. She slammed Captain America to the ground, causing him to become separated from his shield, and after she realized that he would not stop, decided that he was in her way of moving forwards. She then aimed her gun at him and pressed the trigger, ready to kill him.
Before Morgenthau could follow through, she was then shot by Carter in the back repeatedly. She then instantly crumpled to the ground, with Captain America laying her into his arms. As she succumbed to the gunshot wounds, she told Captain America that she was sorry, before then dying.[4]
Legacy
"I mean, this girl died trying to stop you, and no one has stopped to ask why. You gotta do better, Senator! You gotta step up! Because if you don't, the next Karli will, and you don't wanna see 2.0."
Captain America picked up Morgenthau's body and flew outside back to the street where an ambulance was. He then put her on a patient cot and the medical staff took her away. Wilson told the GRC leaders to do better in their mission by treating everyone fairly, hence if they don't another group that is just like the Flag Smashers will rise up. Following this, the GRC members disbanded the Patch Act.[4]
Personality
"You're killing innocent people." "They're not innocent. They're roadblocks in my journey and I'd kill them again if I had to."
Morgenthau exerted a level of strength beyond a normal human, being strong enough to send Bucky Barnes flying several meters with a hit, defeat both Sam Wilson and John Walker, and easily destroy Redwing. She also managed to kill Lemar Hoskins with a single punch that led to an impact with enough blunt trauma for him to die almost instantly.
Enhanced Durability: Morgenthau was more resilient to trauma than normal humans, able to withstand blunt force trauma such as blows from similarly enhanced individuals, and highly trained combatants like Sam Wilson and John Walker. Morgenthau was also able to survive gunshot wounds from Helmut Zemo.
Enhanced Speed: Morgenthau was capable of running and moving at faster speeds than an average human. In Latvia, after the funeral for Donya Madani, Morgenthau was able to evade capture by John Walker and keep ahead of the similarly enhanced Bucky Barnes in a chase, albeit with a brief head-start.
Enhanced Agility:
Morgenthau leaping onto a truck
Morgenthau possessed superior agility than normal humans; during her fight with John Walker in New York she was able to perform advanced acrobatic manoeuvres to avoid his attacks; affording Morgenthau the opportunity to knock Walker out. Morgenthau was also able to leap higher, further and with greater accuracy; this allowed Morgenthau to evade capture by Bucky Barnes in Latvia.
Enhanced Stamina: The serum also increased Morgenthau's stamina and endurance; Morgenthau was able to contend with highly trained combatants and combat similarly enhanced individuals without showing signs of fatigues. Morgenthau was also able to perform superhuman feats with ease; exerting great strength, running faster than any human and performing advanced acrobatic manoeuvres without showing signs of fatigue.
Morgenthau possessed reflexes that were superior to the average human. Morgenthau's reflexes were fast enough to catch Redwing in mid-air, as well as keep up in combat with highly trained combatants and enhanced individuals such as John Walker and Bucky Barnes.
Regenerative Healing Factor: Morgenthau was able to heal from wounds at a much quicker rate than that of a normal human. Despite being shot by Helmut Zemo at least once, she quickly recovered and showed no signs of weakness during her fight with John Walker, Falcon, Battlestar, and Bucky Barnes. However, it was not enough to save her after she was shot twice by Sharon Carter.
Morgenthau was a skilled fighter, which, combined with her enhanced physical attributes, allowed her to defeat both Falcon and John Walker, as well as handle herself against fellow super soldier Bucky Barnes.
Marksman: Morgenthau had shown some knowledge of using firearms when she wounded Carter with a handgun. This also extends to using her super strength to throw a metal pole at Bucky Barnes with deadly force, which would have hit him if not for the latter's enhanced reflexes.
Expert Acrobat: She was shown to possess great acrobatic skills in many environments.
"She's got people helping her from all over the world, on all platforms. She's really, really good at this thing."
Expert Tactician: Morgenthau was a competent leader and strategist, having gathered many followers for her cause.
Bilingualism: Morgenthau was fluent in her native English, as well as French, this had shown when communicating with Georges Batroc.
Equipment
Weapons
Combat Knife: Morgenthau used a combat knife when attempting to kill John Walker.
Parking Meter: During her New York fight against Barnes, Karli used her super strength to rip a parking meter from the ground which she used as a melee weapon.
CZ P-09: Karli used this handgun during a confrontation with Sharon Carter, managing to wound her with it.
Other Equipment
"Do you remember how scared we were when we took the serum? Felt like my veins were on fire. Prayed it'd kill me. But it was worth it."
In the comics, Karl Morgenthau was the son of a wealthy Swiss diplomat who becomes the anti-nationalist supervillain named Flag-Smasher and an enemy of Captain America.
