Category: Captain America

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Revenge of the Living Monolith – Marvel Graphic Novel #17


By David Michelinie, Mark Silvestri, Geoff Isherwood & many various (Marvel)
ISBN: 0-87135-083-1

Marvel don’t generally publish original material graphic novel these days but once they were market leader in the field with a range of “big stories” told on larger pages emulating the long-established European Album (285 x 220mm rather than the standard 258 x 168mm of today’s books) featuring not only proprietary characters in out-of-the-ordinary adventures but also licensed assets like Conan, creator-owned properties like Alien Legion and new character debuts.

This extended experiment with big-ticket storytelling in the 1980s and 1990s produced some exciting results that the company has never come close to repeating since. Many of the stories still stand out today – or would if they were still in print.

Released in 1985, Revenge of the Living Monolith is a conventional but highly enjoyable Fights ‘n’ Tights thriller paying glorious homage to those long-gone blockbuster movies with colossal monsters stomping urban population centres into kindling, yet still finds room to add some impressive character gloss to one of Marvel’s most uninspired villains.

Conceived and concocted by Editor Jim Owsley, scripted by David Michelinie and illustrated by Mark Silvestri & Geoff Isherwood (with nearly 4 dozen additional last-minute contributors!) this bombastic yarn is delightfully accessible to all but the most green reader of comics delivering action, tension and winning character byplay to both the faithful readership which made Marvel the premier US comics publisher for such a long time and even the newest kid on the block….

The plot itself is simple and effective: when young Ahmet Abdol was growing up in Cairo, he was bullied and abused for his intellect and imagination. Only the love and devotion of the lovely Filene kept him sane during the years of struggle until he became Egypt’s most respected historian.

However his “sacrilegious” twin discoveries that the ancient Pharaohs were super-powered mutants and that he shared their ancient bloodline brought only scorn, mob violence and shattering tragedy to Abdol and especially to his beloved wife and baby daughter. When his own cosmic powers manifested in the wake of the bloody incident, Abdol was abducted and deified by an ancient cult who saw him as their Living Pharaoh.

After battling the X-Men, Thor and Spider-Man in his mountainous, monstrous incarnation of the Living Monolith the defeated Last God-King was imprisoned in Egypt where he festered and schemed…

After years in forgotten isolation Abdol finally frees himself and begins an incredible plot to remove all his enemies and transform himself into a Cosmic-powered God, beginning by capturing the Fantastic Four and making them his living batteries. Unfortunately even at the point of his apotheosis Abdol is not beyond further heartbreak and a tragedy of his own making provokes him into an agonising rampage of destruction through New York City, with only She-Hulk, Captain America and Spider-Man on hand to combat the swathe of destruction…

Including last-minute cameos from most of Marvel’s costumed pantheon, this spectacular superhero saga is a perfect, if brief, distraction from the world’s woes for every fan of mainstream comics mayhem.
™ & © 1985 Marvel Comics Group/Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Marvel Platinum: the Definitive Captain America


By Joe Simon, Jack Kirby, Stan Lee & various (Marvel/Panini UK)
ISBN: 978-1-84653-483-6

As a primer or introductory collection for readers unfamiliar with the immortal Sentinel of Liberty this book has a lot to recommend it. In the past I’ve berated previous editions of the “definitive” line from Marvel because of the editorial selections, but this volume, compiled to support the impending cinema release, has a sensible selection of pertinent classics balanced by a few generally forgotten gems, so well done this time, chaps.

Captain America was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby at the end of 1940, and launched in his own Timely Comics’ (Marvel’s earliest iteration) title. Captain America Comics, #1 was cover-dated March 1941 and was a monster smash-hit. Cap was the absolute and undisputed star of Timely’s  “Big Three” – the other two being the Human Torch and the Sub-Mariner – and one of very the first to fall from popularity at the end of the Golden Age.

When the Korean War and Communist aggression dominated the American psyche in the early 1950s Cap was briefly revived – as were his two fellow superstars – in 1953 before they all sank once more into obscurity until a resurgent Marvel Comics once more needed them. When the Stars and Stripes Centurion finally reappeared he finally managed to find a devoted following who stuck with him through thick and thin.

After taking over the Avengers he won his own series and, eventually, title. Cap waxed and waned through the most turbulent period of social change in US history but always struggled to find an ideological place and stable footing in the modern world, plagued by the trauma of his greatest failure: the death of his boy partner Bucky.

With another Captain America film about to launch around the world, Marvel has, quite understandably, released a batch of tie-in books and trade paperback collections to maximise exposure and cater for movie fans wanting to follow up with a comics experience. This celebratory compilation collects a selection of obvious and less well known epics under their Marvel Platinum/Definitive Editions umbrella, focusing on various versions of the Star-Spangled Avenger’s origin and first cases, combined with a canny collection of clashes against arch-foe and supreme villain the Red Skull.

This treasury of tales reprints the obvious landmarks from Captain America Comics #1, Avengers volume 1, #4, Tales of Suspense #80-81, Captain America volume 1, #143, 253-255, Marvel Fanfare volume 1, #18, Captain America volume 5, #25 and Captain America volume 1, #601 which, whilst not perhaps the absolute “definitive” sagas, come pretty damn close…

This career retrospective kicks off the only way it can: with two stories from the groundbreaking first issue of Captain America Comics (March 1941) by Simon & Kirby with inks by Al Liederman. Here we first see how scrawny, enfeebled young patriot Steven Rogers was continually rejected by the US Army until the Secret Service, desperate to counter a wave of Nazi-sympathizing espionage and sabotage, invited the passionate young man to become part of a clandestine experiment intended to create physically perfect super-soldiers.

When a Nazi agent infiltrated the project and murdered its key scientist, Rogers became the only successful graduate and America’s not-so-secret weapon. Sent undercover as a simple private he soon encountered James Buchanan Barnes: a headstrong, orphaned Army Brat who became his sidekick and costumed confidante “Bucky”. All of that was perfectly packaged into mere seven-and-a-half pages for ‘Meet Captain America’ whilst the Red, White and Blue Duo took a full 14 to first meet and defeat their greatest enemy whilst solving ‘The Riddle of the Red Skull’ – a thrill-packed, horror-drenched master-class in comics excitement.

During the Marvel Renaissance of the early 1960’s Stan Lee and Jack Kirby aped the tactic which had worked so tellingly for DC Comics, but with mixed results. Julie Schwartz had incredible success with revised and modernised versions of the company’s Golden Age greats, so it seemed natural to try and revive the characters that had dominated Timely/Atlas in those halcyon days.

A new Human Torch had premiered as part of the revolutionary Fantastic Four, and in the fourth issue of that title Sub-Mariner resurfaced after a twenty year amnesiac hiatus (everyone concerned had apparently forgotten the first abortive attempt to revive their superhero line in the mid 1950s).

The teenaged Torch was promptly given his own solo feature in Strange Tales (see Essential Human Torch vol.1) and in #114 the flaming teen fought an acrobat pretending to be Captain America; an unashamed test-run to see if the new readership had a taste for an old hero…

The real thing promptly resurfaced in Avengers #4 (March 1964): a true landmark of the genre as Marvel’s greatest Golden Age sensation was revived. ‘Captain America Joins the Avengers!’ has everything that made the company’s early tales so fresh and vital. The majesty of a legendary warrior (that most of the readers had never heard of!) returned in our time of greatest need, stark tragedy in the loss of his boon companion Bucky, aliens, gangsters, Sub-Mariner and even wry social commentary. This story by Stan Lee, Kirby & George Roussos just cannot get old.

Eight months later Cap started solo adventures in the split-book Tales of Suspense #59 (sharing with fellow Avenger Iron Man) and went from strength to strength in stories set both in the modern world and WWII. From Tales of Suspense #80-81 (August and September 1966), comes a spectacular saga as the resurrected embodiment of Nazism, aided by subversive technology group AIM, threatened the entire universe after purloining a reality-warping ultimate weapon in ‘He Who Holds the Cosmic Cube!’ (Lee, Kirby & Don Heck). Happily the valiant Cap saved the day in the astounding climax ‘The Red Skull Supreme!’(inked by Frank Giacoia).

Cap soldiered on in ToS until #99, after which the title was changed to Captain America with the 100th issue. Now an established hit of the Marvel universe the Star-Spangled Avenger went from strength to strength, but hit a shaky conceptual patch once the turbulent social changes wracking the country began to seep into and inform the comicbook stories.

By the time of Captain America volume 1, #143 (November 1971 by Gary Friedrich & John Romita Sr.) Steve Rogers had a love interest in the form of spy Sharon Carter, a new costumed partner in The Falcon, worked as a volunteer agent of Nick Fury’s S.H.I.E.L.D. agency and had a job as a New York City beat cop…

The Falcon, in his civilian identity of social worker Sam Wilson, had been trying to get friendly with “Black Power” activist Leila Taylor and at last a long-running subplot about racial tensions in Harlem boiled over… ‘Power to the People’ and ‘Burn, Whitey, Burn!’ (the issue was a giant-sized special) saw riots finally erupt with Cap and Falcon caught in the middle, but copped out in the final chapter by taking a painfully parochial and patronising stance and revealing that the unrest amongst the ghetto underclass was instigated by a rabble-rousing super-villain in ‘Red Skull in the Morning… Cap Take Warning!’

What a difference a decade makes. By the time of Captain America volume 1, #253-255 (January – March 1981 and part of an epochal run by Roger Stern, John Byrne & Joe Rubinstein collected in full in Captain America: War & Remembrance) the Sentinel of Liberty was once more a firmly entrenched establishment figure – almost running for president – concerned with saving the nation from extreme ulterior threats and sedition but not too concerned with social debate.

A grave peril from the past resurfaced in “Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot” wherein Cap was called to England and the deathbed of old comrade Lord Falsworth who battled Nazis as the legendary Union Jack in the WWII Allied superteam The Invaders. Steve found a brooding menace, family turmoil and an undying supernatural horror in the concluding “Blood on the Moors”, which saw the return of vampiric villain Baron Blood, the birth of a new patriotic hero and even now is still one of the very best handled Heroic Death stories in comics history. This sinister saga is followed by ‘The Living Legend’ from #255, as Stern, Byrne & Rubinstein reinterpret the Simon & Kirby origin tale with extra-added detail and enhanced drama…

Captain America has always been held up as a mirror of the American people and ‘Home Fires!’ by Stern, Frank Miller & Rubinstein (from Marvel Fanfare volume 1, #18, January 1985), tragically depicted how the hero’s faith and resolve could be turned against him when a devastating campaign of inner-city arson attacks led to the most unexpected of culprits with the vilest of motives, after which this chronicle leaps to the now classic ‘Death of the Dream’ by Ed Brubaker & Steve Epting from Captain America volume 5, #25 (April 2007).

This infamous issue depicted the startling events leading up to the murder of Steve Rogers after he surrendered to the US government at the conclusion of the Civil War which had tragically divided the country’s metahuman community. Interested parties requiring the full story should also track down Captain America: Reborn.

After years of killing and re-launching the series Captain America resumed its original numbering with volume 5, #50, being followed by volume 1, #600. From #601 (September 2009) comes one last impressive WWII yarn to close the comics part of this impressive tome as veteran Cap illustrator Gene Colan (assisted by colour artist Dean White), renders in his inimitable painting with pencil style, an eerie epic of the undead scripted by Brubaker wherein Captain America and Bucky stalk the bloody frontlines of Bastogne in 1945, stalking a bloodsucking assassin turning G.I.’s into vampires in ‘Red, White and Blue-Blood’…

The book is rounded out with a tribute to Gene Colan, cover reproductions, “technical secrets” and a comprehensive history of Cap’s seven-decade career and capabilities, ‘The True Origin of Captain America’ by historian Mike Conroy as well a fascinating postscript from Joe Simon’s Bulletin Board.

This book is one of the very best of these perennial supplements to cinema spectacle, but more importantly it is a supremely well-tailored device to turn curious movie-goers into fans of the comic incarnation too. If there’s a movie sequel, I’m sure Marvel has plans for much of the masterful material – by a vast range of creators – necessarily omitted here, but at least we have a superb selection to entice newcomers and charm the veteran American Dreamers.

™ and © 1941, 1964, 1966, 1971, 1981, 1985, 2007, 2009, 2011 Marvel Entertainment LCC and its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. A British edition released by Panini UK Ltd.

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Essential Captain America volume 4


By Steve Englehart, Sal Buscema, Frank Robbins & various (Marvel)
ISBN: 978-0-7851-2770-3

Created by Joe Simon & Jack Kirby in an era of frantic patriotic fervour, Captain America was a dynamic and highly visible response to the horrors of Nazism and the threat of Liberty’s loss. He faded during the post-war reconstruction but briefly reappeared after the Korean War: a harder, darker sentinel ferreting out monsters, subversives and the “commies” who lurked under every American bed. Then he vanished once more until the burgeoning Marvel Age resurrected him just in time to experience turbulent, culturally divisive 1960s.

By the time of this fourth Essential collection, reprinting issues #157-186 (January 1973-June 1975) of his monthly comicbook the once convinced and confirmed Sentinel of Liberty had become the unhappy, uncomfortable symbol of a divided nation, but was looking to make the best of things and carve himself a new place in the Land of the Free. Real world events were about to put paid to that American dream…

After meeting and defeating an ugly past in the form of the Captain America and Bucky of the 1950s, Steve Rogers hoped for less troublesome times when ‘Veni, Vidi, Vici: Viper!’ (written by Steve Englehart, Steve Gerber, Sal Buscema & John Verpoorten) began an epic, engrossing storyline by introducing a despicable advertising executive-turned snaky super-villain ostensibly working for a enigmatic boss named the Cowled Commander.

It transpired that corrupt connections at the Precinct where Rogers worked as a policeman had been stirred into murderous action by our hero’s presence, leading to good cops being framed, bombs in offices and the Viper taking out survivors with lethally poisonous darts…

When social worker Sam Wilson, in the guise of the Falcon, came to investigate both he and Cap succumbed to the deadly venom until ‘The Crime Wave Breaks!’ (Englehart, Buscema & Verpoorten) saw a last-second escape from death, a ramping up of criminal activity and Rogers’ abduction, leading to a ‘Turning Point!’ wherein super-scum-for-hire Porcupine, Scarecrow, Plantman and the Eel’s ill-conceived attack gave the game away and uncovered the hidden mastermind in their midst.

‘Enter: Solarr!’ (inked by Frank McLaughlin) presented an old-fashioned clash with a super-powered maniac as the main attraction, but the real meat was the start of twin sub-plots that would shape the next half-dozen adventures, as the Star-Spangled Avenger’s newfound super-strength increasingly made Falcon feel like a junior and inferior partner, whilst Steve’s long-time romantic interest Sharon Carter stole away in the night without leaving a word of explanation…

Captain America and the Falcon #161 saw the tension between Steve and Sam intensify as the heroes went searching for Sharon in ‘…If he Loseth His Soul!’, finding a connection to the girl Cap loved and lost in World War II and a deadly psycho-drama overseen by criminal shrink Dr. Faustus, culminating in a singular lesson in extreme therapy which only proved ‘This Way Lies Madness!’

‘Beware of Serpents!’ saw the returning Viper and Eel combine with the Cobra to form a Serpent Squad as the vengeful ad-man began a campaign to destroy the Sentinel of Liberty with the “Big Lie” weapons and tactics of Madison Avenue. Although the instigator quickly fell, the scheme rumbled on with slow but certain consequences…

Issue #164 was a stunningly scary episode illustrated by Alan Lee Weiss, introducing minx-ish mad scientist Deadly Nightshade, a ‘Queen of the Werewolves!’ who infected Falcon with her chemical lycanthropy as an audition to enlist with one of the planet’s greatest menaces…

The full horror of the situation was revealed when ‘The Yellow Claw Strikes’ (Englehart, Buscema & McLaughlin), renewing a campaign of terror begun in the 1950s, but this time attacking his former Chinese Communist sponsors and the USA indiscriminately. Giant bugs, deadly slave assassins and reanimated mummies were bad enough, but when the Arcane Oriental’s formidable mind-control duped Cap into almost beating S.H.I.E.L.D. supremo Nick Fury to death during the ‘Night of the Lurking Dead!’ the blistering final battle could only result in further tragedy when an old ally perished in the Frank Giacoia inked ‘Ashes to Ashes’.

One of the Star-Spangled Avengers most durable enemies sort-of resurfaced in the tense thriller ‘…And a Phoenix Shall Arise!’ (inked by John Tartaglione & George Roussos) before the Viper’s long-laid plans began to finally bear bitter fruit in #169’s ‘When a Legend Dies!’ (additional scripting from Mike Friedrich) as anti Captain America TV spots made people doubt the honesty and sanity of the nation’s greatest hero. As the Falcon and his “Black Power” activist girlfriend Leila Taylor left for the super-scientific African nation of Wakanda in search of increased powers, Cap battled third-rate villain the Tumbler.

In the heat of battle the Sentinel of Liberty seemed to go too far and the thug died…

‘J’Accuse!’ (Englehart, Friedrich, Buscema & Vince Colletta) saw Cap beaten and arrested by too-good-to-be-true neophyte crusader Moonstone, whilst in Africa Leila was kidnapped by Harlem hood Stone-Face: far from home and hungry for some familiar foxy friendship… ‘Bust-Out!’ in #171 found Cap forcibly sprung from jail by a mysterious pack of “supporters” as Black Panther and the newly flying Falcon crushed Stone-Face preparatory to a quick dash back to America and a reunion with Cap.

‘Believe it or Not: The Banshee!’ began with Captain America and the Falcon beaten by but narrowly escaping Moonstone and his obscurely occluded masters, after which the hard-luck heroes followed a lead to Nashville, encountered the fugitive mutant Master of Sound, and stumbled into a secret pogrom.

For long months mutants had been disappearing unnoticed, but now the last remaining X-Men – Cyclops, Marvel Girl and Professor X – had tracked them down only to discover that Captain America’s problems also stemmed from ‘The Sins of the Secret Empire!’ whose ultimate goal was the conquest of the USA.

Eluding capture by S.H.I.E.L.D. Steve and Sam infiltrate the clandestine Empire, only to be exposed and confined in ‘It’s Always Darkest!’ before turning the tables and saving the day in #175’s ‘…Before the Dawn!’ wherein the grand plan is revealed, the mutants liberated and the culprits captured. In a shocking final scene the ultimate instigator is unmasked and shockingly dispatched within the Whitehouse itself…

At this time America was a nation reeling from a loss of idealism caused by Vietnam, Watergate and the partial exposure of President Nixon’s crimes. The general loss of idealism and painful public revelations that politicians are generally unpleasant – and even possibly ruthless, wicked exploiters – kicked the props out of most Americans who had an incomprehensibly rosy view of their leaders, so a conspiracy that reached into the halls and backrooms of government was extremely controversial yet oddly attractive in those distant, simpler days…

Shocked and stunned, Steve Rogers searched his soul and realised he could not be the symbol of such a country. Despite the arguments and advice of his Avenging allies he decided that ‘Captain America Must Die!’ Unable to convince him otherwise Sam Wilson carried on alone, tackling an invasion by a body-snatching old X-Men foe in ‘Lucifer be thy Name’ and wrapping up the threat in ‘If the Falcon Should Fall…!’ Meanwhile, as Steve Rogers settled into an uncomfortable retirement, a few painfully unqualified civilians began trying to fill the crimson boots of Captain America with dire results…

Captain America and the Falcon #179 saw Rogers hunted by a mysterious Golden Archer whose ‘Slings and Arrows!’ convinced the ex-hero that even if he couldn’t be Captain America, neither could he abandon the role of do-gooder; leading to a life-changing decision and ‘The Coming of the Nomad!’ in #180. The Serpent Squad turned up again with Princess Python in tow and maniac nihilist Madame Hydra assuming the suddenly vacant role of the Viper.

When “the Man Without a Country” tackled the ophidian villains he came off second best but did stumble across a sinister scheme by the Squad and Sub-Mariner’s arch-nemesis Warlord Krang to raise a sunken continent and restore an ancient civilisation in ‘The Mark of Madness!’ At the same time Falcon was ignoring his better judgement and agreeing to train a determined young man as the next celebrated Captain America…

An era ended when Sal Buscema surrendered Captain America and newspaper-strip creator Frank Robbins came aboard for a controversial run beginning with ‘Inferno!’ (inked by Joe Giella). Whilst Nomad successfully mopped up the Serpent Squad despite well-meaning police interference, Sam and Captain America’s substitute had encountered the Sentinel of Liberty’s greatest enemy with fatal consequences…

‘Nomad: No More!’ (inked by Giacoia) found the grief-stricken Steve Rogers once more take up his stars and stripes as the murderous Red Skull began simultaneously attacking the hero’s loved ones and destroying America’s economy by defiling the banks and slaughtering the financial wizards who ran them, beginning in the chillingly evocative ‘Cap’s Back!’ (Herb Trimpe, Giacoia & Mike Esposito), rampaging through the utterly shocking ‘Scream of the Scarlet Skull!’ (art by Buscema, Robbins & Giacoia) and climaxing in ‘Mindcage!’ (with additional scripting from John Warner and art by Robbins & Esposito) wherein our titular hero’s greatest friend was apparently revealed as the Skull’s stooge and slave.

And on that staggering cliffhanger note this epic collection concludes…

Despite the odd cringe-worthy moment (I specifically omitted the part where Cap battles three chicken-themed villains, for example, and still wince at some of the dialogue from this era of “blacksploitation” and ethnic awareness) these tales of matchless courage and indomitable heroism are fast-paced, action-packed, totally engrossing fights ‘n’ tights that no comics fan will care to miss, and joking aside, the cultural significance of these tales were crucial in informing the political consciences of the youngest members of post-Watergate generation…

Above all else ‘though, these are fabulously fun tales of a true American Dream…

© 1972, 1973, 1984, 1975, 2005 Marvel Characters, Inc. All rights reserved.

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Ultimate Comics Captain America


By Jason Aaron & Ron Garney (Marvel/Panini UK)
ISBN: 978-1-84653-489-8

In 2000, when Marvel hived off portions of their established continuity into a separate, darker, grittier universe more relevant to the video game-playing, movie-watching 21st century readers than the 1960s Lee/Kirby/Ditko ongoing monolith, they started with the most popular characters – Spider-Man and the X-Men – only gradually adding analogues for the remaining characters and trademarks.

Even when the Mighty Avengers finally appeared, renamed the Ultimates in 2002, readers were only sparingly brought up to speed on the assorted back-stories of the alternative heroes and villains – including a remarkably familiar yet staggeringly different “Living Legend of World War II”.

Frail Steve Rogers still underwent radical experimentation to become America’s first super-soldier and after a brief stellar career as the living symbol of his war-beleaguered nation, disappeared in a blazing explosion. He was resurrected from a block of ice in modern times and re-assumed his place at the forefront of masked heroes. However, this Sentinel of Liberty was no costumed boy-scout, but rather a deadly and remorseless warrior: a master strategist and supremely skilled street-fighter always ready to apply the ultimate sanction. In short: a conscienceless killer.

In Ultimate Comics Captain America the eternal soldier is on the trail of rogue states seeking to duplicate the super-soldier serum which created him at the behest of his new government masters, when he is captured and subjected to horrendous torture and indoctrination by a living ghost…

Whilst Steve Rogers slept in the ice, America continued its march to global dominance and when the Vietnam conflict escalated the Military sought to recreate Captain America by transforming starry-eyed patriotic kid Frank Simpson into a living embodiment of the American war machine…

Tragically Vietnam was a different kind of war and Simpson (an iteration of the deeply troubled villain Nuke created by Frank Miller & David Mazzucchelli in Daredevil: Born Again) broke under the weight of the dirty jobs and corrupt missions he was assigned to carry out. One day he walked into the jungle and was never seen again…

Now Simpson is back and has clearly discovered how to duplicate the serum that empowers him; selling it to North Korea, Iran and anybody else dedicated to the downfall of the “the Land of the Free”…

Ignoring official orders to stand down, Steve Rogers hunts his successor – who has already thoroughly defeated him once – only to stumble on the USA’s greatest nightmare. Overmatched, outfought and easily captured by Simpson, Rogers is subjected to a terrifying re-education program that opens his eyes to what his country became whilst he slept and the kind of nation Captain America now stands for…

The stark, savage and nihilistically modern Ultimates Comic universe is well-stocked with dark-and-gritty doppelgangers of the gleaming pantheon crafted by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko, but since its inception at the turn of the century, the imprint has resolved into something which can easily stand on its own merits, as seen in this wonderful tale (originally published as Ultimate Comics Captain America #1-4).

With the impending imminent release of the latest Captain America movie, a large number of graphic novel collections starring the Sentinel of Liberty have been commissioned and this brutal, beautiful fable of frustrated idealism and corrupted patriotism is one of the very best of recent vintage, in this, that or any other universe.

Written by Jason (Scalped) Aaron, revisiting the source material of his Vertigo classic The Other Side and stunningly illustrated by Ron Garney, whose art on the mainstream hero (see Captain America: Operation Rebirth) returned the Star-Spangled Avenger to dizzying heights of popularity after decades in the doldrums, Ultimate Comics Captain America is a breathtaking, thought-provoking examination of duty and honour and a fabulously entertaining rollercoaster ride of action and adventure for older readers. It’s also a gloriously accessible tale for anybody approaching the character for the very first time…

Tense, compelling, morally challenging and explosively cathartic, this saga of conjoined yet eternally antagonistic ideologies in savage confrontation is absolute comics gold of the very highest quality: challenging, compelling and wildly satisfying.

™ and © 2011 Marvel Entertainment LCC and its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. A British edition released by Panini UK Ltd.

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Captain America: Hail Hydra


By Jonathan Maberry, Sergio Cariello, Tom Scioli, Phil Winslade, Kyle Hotz & Graham Nolan (Marvel/Panini UK)
ISBN: 978-1-84653-488-1

Everything changed for a little company called Marvel when, in issue #4 of the Avengers, the assembled heroes recovered the body of US Army Private Steve Rogers floating in a block of ice and consequently resurrected World War II hero Captain America. With this act bridging the years to Timely and Atlas Comics (which had in fact begun with the revival of Sub-Mariner in Fantastic Four #4), Marvel instantly acquired a comforting longevity and potential-packed pre-history: lending an enticing sense of mythic continuance to the fledgling company that instantly gave it the same cachet and enduring grandeur of market leader National/DC.

In 2010, after years of conflicting continuity (and with a movie in the offing), Marvel updated those pivotal events and early future-shocked days in the contemporary world with the stunning re-interpretation Captain America: Man Out of Time before repeating the operation with another generational miniseries: this time following the returned Sentinel of Liberty as he fought an extended campaign against a fearsome and undying foe.

Captain America: Hail Hydra! focuses on five crucial skirmishes fought over the Red, White and true Blue hero’s long years of valiant service wherein the he continually clashed with an organisation of insidious evil and astounding ambition,  with each issue illustrated by a different artist in a pastiche of the relevant time.

The action, illustrated Sergio Cariello, begins in 1944 as Captain America and teen partner Bucky helped German anti-Nazi freedom fighter Trude Lohn smash a plot by the baroquely bonkers, certifiably mad Doctor Geist, who had discovered how to reanimate the dead. During the apocalyptic struggle Cap was injected with the unholy serum and although the triumphant trio succeeded in depriving Hitler of an undead army they had no idea of the sinister scientist’s greater scheme, the ancient society he belonged to or what effect his devil drugs would have on America’s greatest warrior…

Tom Scioli pictured the second instalment in tribute to Jack Kirby, wherein more hints into the history of the cult that would become Hydra were interspersed with Cap’s first days as an Avenger following his half-century enforced hibernation. After reuniting with the now geriatric Trude, he and his new comrades clashed with ex-Nazi Baron Strucker and Geist’s unliving army only to be thoroughly overmatched and outmanoeuvred. The deranged doctor seemed more interested in gathering blood samples from Cap and Thor than winning the battle he had instigated…

A few years later the plan becomes clearer when the Sentinel of Liberty, partner in crime-fighting the Falcon, and African Avenger Black Panther were attacked by an army of zombies attempting to steal the fabled Elixir of Life from a hidden Wakandan repository of knowledge called the Grotto of Solomon. Lavishly rendered by Phil Winslade, the spectacular clash was also lightly dusted with further glimpses of the order’s historic attempts to gather arcane knowledge and artefacts pertaining to their mysterious millennial goal…

For a brief period the US government replaced the Star-Spangled Avenger with a less independent agent and Steve Rogers took the identity of “The Captain”. Kyle Hotz delineates an adventure from those turbulent times as the unencumbered hero tackled Geist’s latest monstrosity and worked with Nick Fury of S.H.I.E.L.D. to get one step ahead of Hydra.

After thwarting a terrifying attack on the heart and soul of America Rogers is forced to consider not only what Geist is truly after but also what his devilish serum might have made of Captain America that fateful night in 1944…

Graham Nolan closes the saga in captivating style as Rogers, now Director of the Avengers, and old partner Bucky (the current Captain America) enlist a garrison of guest stars as they home in on Strucker and Geist just as their incredible seven-thousand year scheme comes to a shocking culmination. Even the World’s Mightiest Heroes would be hard-pressed to overcome the incredible beings Hydra has finally birthed…

This book does have a few niggling plot flaws but nothing so flagrant that it disrupts the overall flow of action and delicious flavour of nostalgia; so unless you’re a dedicated, nit-picking devotee the striking art and rollicking rollercoaster thrills and chills should carry the day nicely, providing a solid dose of immortal, enticing entertainment

Fast-paced, full-on spectacle and clever infilling of the established canon makes Captain America: Hail Hydra! a striking saga that should serve to make many fresh fans for Marvel’s eternally evergreen old soldier.

™ and © 2011 Marvel Entertainment LCC and its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. A British edition released by Panini UK Ltd.

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Captain America: Man out of Time


By Mark Waid, Jorge Molina, Karl Kesel & Scott Hanna (Marvel/Panini UK)
ISBN: 978-1-84653-487-4

One of the pivotal moments in Marvel Comics history occurred when the Mighty Avengers recovered a tattered body floating in a block of ice (issue #4, March 1964) and resurrected the World War II hero Captain America. With this act bridging the years to Timely and Atlas Comics begun with the return of the Sub-Mariner in Fantastic Four #4, Marvel confirmed and consolidated a solid, concrete, potential-packed history and created an enticing sense of mythic continuance for the fledgling company that instantly gave it the same cachet and enduring grandeur of market leader National/DC

In 2010, after years of conflicting continuity (and with a movie in the offing) Marvel tasked fan-favourite writer Mark Waid (see Captain America: Operation Rebirth) with updating those pivotal events and early future-shocked days in the contemporary world. Of course that modern milieu is the year 2000, not 1964…

This captivating re-interpretation and updating (collecting the 5 issue miniseries Captain America: Man Out of Time from November 2010-April 2011) opens in the dying days of the war as Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes are sent from the European frontline to England and an appointment with doom-laden destiny, before seamlessly segueing into the Sentinel of Liberty’s stunned awakening in tomorrow’s world and a meeting with the World’s Mightiest Heroes.

Waid, perfectly complimented by artists Jorge Molina, Karl Kesel & Scott Hanna, wisely leaves the classic adventures largely unchanged, to concentrate on the missing, contemplative moments and personal crises confronting the uncomprehending Steve Rogers, which means that readers completely unaware of the character’s history and exploits might experience a little confusion in places. However, the narrative, although superficially disjointed, is clear-cut enough to counter this and interested new fans can easily fill in the gaps by perusing one of the many available reprint collections, such as Essential Avengers volume 1, which covers the entire period featured here…

In chapter 2 the reeling hero meets ex- Hulk sidekick Rick Jones (an absurdly close double for the departed Bucky), gets a rapid reality check on his new home and finally accepts that there’s no way home for this Old Soldier…

But that’s not strictly true…

Among the many technological miracles his new allies introduce him to is the embryonic science of time-travel and even while battling such threats as the Lava Men and Masters of Evil the unhappy warrior can only think of returning to his proper place and saving his best friend from death…

The old adage “be careful what you wish for” never proved more true than when the time-ravaging Kang the Conqueror attacks: utterly overwhelming the 21st century heroes and casually dispatching Captain America back to 1945. However, his sense of duty, the threat to his new allies and the unpalatable things he had forgotten about “the Good Old Days” prompt Cap into brilliantly escaping his honeyed time-trap and returning to the place where he is most needed before once more saving the day…

Resolved and ready to tackle his Brave New World Captain America is now ready to carve out a whole new legend…

I’m generally less than sanguine about updates and reboots of classic comics material but I will admit that such things are a necessary evil as the years go by, so when the deed is done with sensitivity and imagination (not to mention dynamic, bravura flamboyance) I can only applaud and commend the effort.

Thrilling, superbly entertaining, compelling and genuinely moving Captain America: Man out of Time is a wonderful confection that will delight old aficionados, impress new readers and should serve to make many fresh fans for the immortal Star-Spangled Avenger.

™ and © 2011 Marvel Entertainment LCC and its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. A British edition released by Panini UK Ltd.

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Avengers Prime


By Brian Michael Bendis, Alan Davis & Mark Farmer (Marvel/Panini UK)
ISBN: 978-1-84653-480-5

There’s a wealth of Marvel material around starring Thor at the moment and this impressive fantasy fable (originally released as a 5 part miniseries) is one of the very best modern contributions, featuring as it does two of his most popular companions and a full-on foray to the fabled land of Asgard for the founding fathers of the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes…

The story begins just seconds after the conclusion of Siege wherein Norman Osborn, America’s Security Czar, instigated a deadly war against the Norse gods currently trapped on Earth (see also Thor and Secret Invasion: Thor) in Broxton, Oklahoma. The incident served to reunite heroes divided by the Civil War orchestrated by Osborn when he was working to become the nation’ s Chief of Homeland Security.

Now in the aftermath of the colossal battle old friends on opposite sides of the political divide are counting their losses and almost rekindling old animosities amidst the ruins of Asgard – now lying scattered across the Oklahoma landscape when a magical vortex sucks Cap, Shellhead and Thor into a magical wonderland in crisis…

In cosmological terms Asgard was the centre of Nine mystical and conjoined Realms and its displacement and fall has destabilised the whole. Now the Sentinel of Liberty has fallen among hostile Elves, Thor has been drawn into empty Vanaheim to battle the Enchantress and her army of brutal trolls, whilst Iron Man has been dumped amidst dragons and Giants with his super-scientific armour barely able to generate a spark…

Moreover Hela, Goddess of Death believes the time has finally come for her to end all Life forever…

The fractured friendship of these primal heroes is re-forged in a spectacular, bombastic and wildly entertaining Saves-The-Day-Saga by Brian Michael Bendis, Alan Davis & Mark Farmer, packed with action, suspense and fabulous frantic fantasy that will equally delight new readers and faithful fuddy-duddies of my ilk.

Frantic, fast-paced fun to enchant every Fights ‘n’ Tights aficionado, and a graphic novel must-have item…

™ and © 2010 & 2011 Marvel Entertainment LCC and its subsidiaries. All rights reserved. A British edition released by Panini UK Ltd.

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Essential Captain America volume 3


By Stan Lee, Gary Friedrich, Steve Englehart, Gene Colan, John Romita, Gil Kane, Sal Buscema & various (Marvel)
ISBN: 978-0-7851-2166-8

Created by Joe Simon & Jack Kirby in an era of frantic patriotic fervour, Captain America was a dynamic and highly visible response to the horrors of Nazism and the threat of Liberty’s loss. He faded during the post-war reconstruction and briefly reappeared after the Korean War – a harder, darker sentinel ferreting out monsters, subversives and the “commies” who lurked under every brave American kid’s bed. Then he vanished once more until the burgeoning Marvel Age resurrected him just in time for the turbulent, culturally divisive 1960s.

By the time of this third Essential chronicle, gathering issues #127-156 of his monthly comicbook and reprinting the covers to the first two Annuals, the Star-Spangled Avenger had become a uncomfortable symbol of a troubled, divided society, split along age lines and with many of the hero’s fans apparently rooting for the wrong side…

Nevertheless the action begins here with the Sentinel of Liberty still working for super-scientific government spy-agency S.H.I.E.L.D. (which back then stood for Supreme Headquarters International Espionage Law-enforcement Division) in ‘Who Calls Me Traitor?’ (#127, July 1970, by Stan Lee, Gene Colan & Wally Wood), which saw the veteran hero framed and manipulated by friend and foe alike in the search for a double agent in the ranks, after which the embittered avenger dropped out and decided to “discover America” – as so many kids were doing – on the back of a freewheeling motorcycle.

‘Mission: Stamp Out Satan’s Angels!’ (inked by Dick Ayers) saw him barely clear the city limits before encountering a nasty gang of bikers terrorising a small-town rock festival, after which his oldest enemy resurfaced to exact ‘The Vengeance of… the Red Skull’ as a by-product of attempting to begin a Middle East war.

Issue #130 found Cap ‘Up Against the Wall!’ as old foe Batroc the Leaper led Porcupine and Whirlwind in an fully paid-for ambush whilst the Sentinel of Liberty was busy defusing a college riot. The mysterious contractor then resorted to a far subtler tactic: launching a psychological assault in ‘Bucky Reborn!’

With the mystery villain revealed, the tragic true story behind the resurrected sidekick came out in ‘The Fearful Secret of Bucky Barnes!’ – a powerful, complex drama involving ruthless science brokers A.I.M., their murderous master Modok and even Doctor Doom.

Back in New York Advanced Idea Mechanics promptly returned in #133 as Modok attempted to stir racial unrest by sending a killer cyborg to create ‘Madness in the Slums!’ allowing Cap to reunite with his protégé The Falcon – whose name even began appearing in the title from the next issue.

Now a full-fledged partnership Captain America and the Falcon #134 found the pair battling ghetto gangsters in ‘They Call Him… Stone-Face!’, before the Avenger introduced his new main man to S.H.I.E.L.D. in the chilling ‘More Monster than Man!’ (inked by Tom Palmer) wherein a love-struck scientist turned himself into an awesome anthropoid to steal riches, only to end up in ‘The World Below’ (with the legendary Bill Everett applying his brilliant inks to Colan’s moody pencils) as a collateral casualty of the Mole Man’s battle with Cap.

With the Falcon coming to the rescue the Star-Spangled Avenger was on hand when his new partner opted ‘To Stalk the Spider-Man’ – a typical all-action Marvel misunderstanding that was forestalled just in time for Stone-Face to return in #138’s ‘It Happens in Harlem!’ as John Romita the elder returned to the art chores for the beginning of a lengthy and direction-changing saga…

For years Captain America had been the only expression of Steve Rogers’ life, but with this issue the man went undercover as a police officer to solve a series of disappearances and subsequently regained a personal life which would have long-term repercussions. After Spidey, Falcon and Cap trounced Stone-Face, the Red, White and Blue was subsumed by plain Rookie Blues in ‘The Badge and the Betrayal!’ as Steve found himself on a Manhattan beat as the latest raw recruit to be bawled out by veteran cop Sergeant Muldoon…

Meanwhile police officers were still disappearing and Rogers was getting into more fights on the beat than in costume… Issue #140 revealed the plot’s perpetrator ‘In the Grip of Gargoyle!’ as the tale took a frankly bizarre turn with moody urban mystery inexplicably becoming super-spy fantasy as the Grey Gargoyle stole a mega-explosive from S.H.I.E.L.D. in ‘The Unholy Alliance!’ (with Joe Sinnott inks).

Spectacular but painfully confusing until now, the epic was dumped on new writer Gary Friedrich to wrap up, beginning with ‘And in the End…’ (Captain America and the Falcon #142) wherein Cap, renewed love interest Sharon Carter, Falcon and Nick Fury attempted to save the world from the Gargoyle and ultimate explosive Element X…

All this time the Falcon, in his civilian identity of social worker Sam Wilson, had been trying to get friendly with “Black Power” activist Leila Taylor and, with the sci fi shenanigans over, a long-running subplot about racial tensions in Harlem boiled over…

‘Power to the People’ and ‘Burn, Whitey, Burn!’ (both from giant-sized #143 with Romita inking his own pencils) saw the riots finally erupt with Cap and Falcon caught in the middle, but copped out with the final chapter by taking a painfully parochial and patronising stance and revealing that the unrest amongst the ghetto underclass was instigated by a rabble-rousing super-villain in ‘Red Skull in the Morning… Cap Take Warning!’

Nevertheless Friedrich had made some telling and relevant points – and continued to do so in #144’s first story ‘Hydra Over All!’ (illustrated by Romita) with the creation of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s all-woman attack squad Femme Force One (stop squirming – at least they were trying to be egalitarian and inclusive…).

The issue also featured a solo back-up tale ‘The Falcon Fights Alone!’ (drawn by the great Gray Morrow) wherein the street vigilante got a new uniform and rededicated himself to tackling the real problems on his turf; drug-dealers and thugs endangering the weakest, poorest members of society…

Captain America and the Falcon #145 continued the hydra storyline with ‘Skyjacked’ (stunningly illustrated by Gil Kane & Romita) as the terrorists kidnapped Cap’s new team in mid-air, after which Sal Buscema began his long tenure on the series with ‘Mission: Destroy the Femme Force!’ and ‘Holocaust in the Halls of Hydra!’ (inked by John Verpoorten) wherein the devious dealings are uncovered before Falcon comes to the rescue of the severely embattled and outgunned heroes, culminating in the unmasking of the power behind the villainous throne in #147’s ‘And Behind the Hordes of Hydra…’ and a staggering battle royale in Las Vegas as the power behind the power reveals himself in Friedrich’s swansong ‘The Big Sleep!’

Gerry Conway assumed the writing chores for issues #149-152, an uncharacteristically uninspired run that began with ‘All the Colors… of Evil!’ (inked by Jim Mooney) wherein Gallic mercenary Batroc resurfaced, kidnapping ghetto kids for an unidentified client who turned out to be the alien Stranger (or at least his parallel universe incarnation) who intervened personally in ‘Mirror, Mirror…!’ (Verpoorten inks) but was still defeated far too easily.

‘Panic on Park Avenue’ (Buscema & Vince Colletta) pitted Cap against pale imitations of Cobra, Mr. Hyde and the Scorpion as Conway sought to retroactively include Captain America in his ambitious Mr. Kline Saga (for which see Essential Iron Man and Essential Daredevil volumes 4) climaxing with ‘Terror in the Night!’ (inked by Frank Giacoia) featuring  bombastic battles and new plot-complications for officer Steve Rogers and Sgt. Muldoon…

Captain America and the Falcon #153 heralded a renaissance and magical return to form for the Star-Spangled Avenger as writer Steve Englehart came aboard and hit the ground running with a landmark epic which rewrote Marvel history and captivated the die-hard fans simultaneously.

The wonderment began with ‘Captain America… Hero or Hoax?‘ (inked by Mooney) as Falcon, Sharon and Cap had an acrimonious confrontation with Nick Fury and decided to take a break from S.H.I.E.L.D.

Sam Wilson went back to Harlem whilst Steve and Sharon booked a holiday in the Bahamas, but it wasn’t long before the Falcon caught Captain America committing racist attacks in New York. Enraged, Falcon tracked him down but was easily beaten since the Sentinel of Liberty had somehow acquired super-strength and a resurrected Bucky Barnes…

In ‘The Falcon Fights Alone!’ (Verpoorten inks) the maniac impostors claimed to be “real” American heroes and revealed what they wanted – a confrontation with the lily-livered, pinko wannabe who had replaced and disgraced them. Even after torturing their captive they were frustrated in their plans until the faux Cap tricked the information out of the Avengers.

Battered and bruised, Falcon headed to the holiday refuge but was too late to prevent an ambush wherein Steve Rogers learned ‘The Incredible Origin of the Other Captain America!’ (Frank McLaughlin inks) – a brilliant piece of literary sleight-of-hand that tied up the Golden Age, fifties revival and Silver Age iterations of the character in a clear, simple, devilishly clever manner and led to an unbelievably affecting conclusion, which perfectly wraps up this glorious black and white compendium in the fabulously gratifying ‘Two into One Won’t Go!’

Any retrospective or historical re-reading is going to turn up a few cringe-worthy moments, but these tales of matchless courage and indomitable heroism are fast-paced, action-packed and illustrated by some of the greatest artists and storytellers American comics has ever produced. Captain America was finally discovering his proper place in a new era and would once more become unmissable, controversial comicbook reading, as we shall see when I get around to reviewing the next volume…

© 1970, 1971, 1972, 2006, 2010 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Captain America: the Man with No Face


By Ed Brubaker, Luke Ross, Steve Epting, Butch Guice & various (Marvel)
ISBN: 978-0-7851-3163-2

Captain America was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby at the end of 1940, and launched in his own title (Captain America Comics, #1 cover-dated March 1941) with overwhelming success. He was the absolute and undisputed star of Timely (Marvel’s early predecessor) Comics’ “Big Three” – the other two being the Human Torch and the Sub-Mariner – and one of the first to fall from popularity at the end of the Golden Age.

When the Korean War and Communist aggression dominated the American psyche in the early 1950s he was briefly revived – as were the Torch and Sub-Mariner – in 1953 before sinking once more into obscurity until a resurgent Marvel Comics once more brought him back in Avengers #4.

This time he stuck around, first taking over the Avengers, then winning his own series and title. He waxed and waned through the most turbulent period of social change in US history but always struggled to find an ideological place and stable footing in the modern world, plagued by the trauma of his greatest failure: the death of his boy partner Bucky.

Eventually, whilst another morally suspect war raged in the real world, during the publishing event Civil War became a rebel and was assassinated on the steps of a Federal Courthouse.

He was replaced by that dead sidekick. Bucky had been captured by the Soviets and used as their own super-soldier assassin – The Winter Soldier. There’s no truer maxim than “nobody stays dead in comics”…

This thoroughly readable and exceedingly pretty romp explores the shady past of the Winter Soldier as well as the World War II experiences of James Buchanan Barnes as one of the troubled hero’s worst enemies and biggest mistakes comes back to haunt him…

Collecting issues #43-48 of Captain America volume 5 (from 2008 if you’re as confused as I usually am… are, is) and written by Ed Brubaker the action kicks off with the three part ‘Time’s Arrow’ (drawn by Luke Ross with inks from Fabio Laguna, Rick Magyar, Mark Pennington & Butch Guice) as the substitute Star Spangled Avenger battles Batroc the Leaper and fails to prevent the theft of a highly contentious package from the United Nations. His face exposed during the fracas, Bucky had inadvertently drawn the attention of someone with a long-standing grudge against his previous persona…

Interspersed with revelatory flashbacks to his wartime career in the Invaders and his Russian Black-Ops missions the story of Chinese mad scientist Professor Zhang Chin and his monstrous associate “The Man with No Face” grimly unfolds and the new Cap is forced to finally confront the atrocities he committed in his previous life…

The drama and horror intensifies with ‘Old Friends and Enemies’ (illustrated by Steve Epting and Guice) as Zhang Chins’s plans are revealed.

The mysterious package contained the remains of the original Human Torch which the aged scientist has now weaponized into an incendiary virus, and it takes the combined might of the new Captain America, Black Widow and old Invaders comrade the Sub-Mariner to overcome the professor’s invincible faceless man, save the world from flaming contagion and rescue their dead ally’s remains from even greater desecration…

This is a dark, gripping extravaganza that depends far too much upon a working knowledge of Marvel continuity but, for those willing to eschew subtext or able to ignore seeming incongruities and go with the flow, this sinister super-spy saga is genuinely enthralling and well worth the effort. This tale leads into the long-awaited return of the original Sentinel of Liberty (see Captain America Reborn) and if you a full-on fan of the fights ‘n’ tights crowd you’re assured of a thoroughly grand time.

© 2008, 2009 Marvel Characters Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Captain America Reborn


By Ed Brubaker, Bryan Hitch, Alex Ross, Paul Dini & various (Marvel/Panini UK)

ISBN: 978-1-84653-440-9
Captain America was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby at the end of 1940, and launched in his own title (Captain America Comics, #1 cover-dated March 1941) with overwhelming success. He was the absolute and undisputed star of Timely (Marvel’s early predecessor) Comics’ “Big Three” – the other two being the Human Torch and the Sub-Mariner – and one of the first to fall from popularity at the end of the Golden Age.

When the Korean War and Communist aggression dominated the American psyche in the early 1950s he was briefly revived – as were the Torch and Sub-Mariner – in 1953 before sinking once more into obscurity until a resurgent Marvel Comics once more brought him back in Avengers #4. It was March 1964 and the Vietnam conflict was just beginning to pervade the minds of the American public…

This time he stuck around, first taking over the Avengers, then winning his own series and title. He waxed and waned through the most turbulent period of social change in US history but always struggled to find an ideological place and stable footing in the modern world. Eventually, whilst another morally suspect war raged in the real world, during the Marvel event known as Civil War he became a rebel and was assassinated on the steps of a Federal Courthouse.

Nobody really believed he was dead.

Marvel’s extended publicity stunt came to a dramatic close with the inevitable return of the original Star-Spangled Avenger in an impressive and highly readable – if necessarily convoluted – tale from Ed Brubaker, Bryan Hitch and Butch Guice, released as the six-issue miniseries Captain America Reborn, but before that, years of cross-company plot threads and side-stories came to a formidable close in the anniversary issue Captain America #600. All those wide-ranging, far-flung bits and bobs are gathered together for your convenience in this classy tome.

The action starts with an impressive potted biography ‘Origin’ by Alex Ross, Paul Dini and Todd Klein (which first appeared in Captain America: Red, White and Blue, September 2002) after which Brubaker, scripts ‘One Year Later’ (Captain America #600) for Guice, Howard Chaykin, Rafael Albuquerque, David Aja and Mitch Breitweiser to illustrate, summing up the heroes origins, career and impact on the world up to his “death”, whereupon his long-dead sidekick Bucky (surprise, surprise!) took over the role…

With all the dominoes in place the moment is ripe for the true hero’s return – and since his mind and body have been lost in time all the while there’s a glorious opportunity to examine some key moments in the old soldier’s decades-long history as the Avengers, Nick Fury, Dr. Doom, Sub-Mariner, Norman (Green Goblin) Osborn and the undying Red Skull all seek to manipulate his return for their own ends. Incisive, clever, all-encompassing and beautifully realised by Hitch and Guice Captain America Reborn is a grand example of the Deus ex Machina revival as only comics can produce it.

Overcoming all odds Cap is back: but now that he is what’s to become of him?

This impressive and entertaining book also includes a fan’s dream of added value inducements: an article by surviving original creator Joe Simon, a “Reborn” variant cover gallery (20 different covers for six issues!) and a far-too small but incredibly impressive complete reproduction of every Cap cover since March 1941, as well as a few surprise extras.

If you are a fan of the superhero genre this is a thoroughly enjoyable recap and reboot that proves that new and old can work together; let’s hope the new old Captain America can find enough of an audience to keep him occupied…
™ and © 2010 Marvel Entertainment LCC and its subsidiaries. All Rights Reserved. A British edition released by Panini UK Ltd.