This one-shot, like last month’s Tales of Suspense #1, sees Captain America team up with an old friend to confront the state of geopolitics following the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, this story in particular taking place soon after that event (according to an editorial note on the first page) and involving some particularly morally ambiguous situations.
The story begins in Paris with SHIELD agent Dum Dum Dugan trying to recruit a former KGB interrogator, Dmitri Panshin, when Agent Orange (a man named Donovan Goshaw, in armor based on Stark technology, of course) tries to abduct Panshin. Boris Bullski, aka the Titanium Man, makes it a party when he intervenes to try to stop the abduction, and in the confusion Panshin runs away.
When we eventually see Captain America, it is in a very specific location above Brooklyn, and Nick gives an appreciated nod to the blue-eyed ever-lovin’ Thing before greeting another old WWII pal, after which they rib each other regarding their age (as folks of a certain age are wont to do… I’ve heard).
Nick introduces Cap to a couple newbies (Chekhov’s two guns, if you will)…
…after which the grown-ups discuss recent events, with Cap expressing his discomfort with welcoming Panshin to their side, as well as what it says about their side.
The “nuts” above is from Dum Dum, who is happy to see Cap (and even happier to follow his word, much to Nick’s chagrin).
After we see Thurman and Gittes conspiring in the SHIELD cafeteria, eager to keep Panshin out and hinting at some involvement with Agent Orange, we go to Prague, where Cap adopts his old trench coat “disguise,” now with the addition of a matching hat. He finds Panchin (and his son Sergei), but unfortunately Agent Orange does too.
So much for the hat: Cap engages with Agent Orange, whose question below probably hits Cap harder than he lets on, given his own feelings about the man he’s been tasked with bringing in.
History teachers groan as Agent Orange tries to argue with Cap, who prepares a roundhouse kick while sizing up his opponent’s technological capabilities.
Cap leapfrogs after Panshin’s car…
…only to have the Titanium Man show up (again).
Cap shows why you must never skip leg day as he asserts jurisdiction over Panshin, which Bullski contests, while young Sergei shows that everyone knows what Captain America stands for.
When Agent Orange catches up, we learn that Cap has some respect for the Titanium Man (who has had an ambiguous relationship with heroism, to say the least), but clearly none for his other armored foe.
After Panshin flees, Titanium Man carries Sergei to safety; Cap pursues him in a SHIELD plane, and when Agent Orange latches onto the plane, Bullski shoots at both of them to boost his chances of getting away with Sergei. Agent Orange has no concern for anyone’s safety, though, which alarms Cap…
…although Titanium Man manages to convince Agent Orange to save him, if only as a lure for his father. After Bullski falls into the SHIELD plane, Cap asks why the KGB wants Panshin back, but the Russian reveals he works not for the KGB but AIM.
Back in the SHIELD helicarrier over Brooklyn, Cap and Titanium Man meet with U.S. army representatives, AIM, and several SHIELD agents, including Nick, Dum Dum, Thurman… and a familiar cat burglar far from Gotham City!
After pointing fingers at each other, the assembled forces agree to work together to find Panshin and Sergei, and Cap and Bullski get the final word.
It turns out that no one has to search for Panshin, because he finds his way to a “secret” SHIELD office in New York, after which Agent Orange calls in, offering to trade Sergei for his father on behalf of HYDRA (but in actuality it’s part of Gittes’ plan, with which Thurman is growing uncomfortable).
En route to make the trade, Cap is uncomfortable himself, and when Panshin asks, our hero is more than happy to say what’s on his mind, accusing the Russian not just of killing for his country but of doing it for distinctly personal reasons, which Panshin acknowledges…
…before silently remembering an incident ten years when he and his pregnant wife was shot by undercover SHIELD agents after making a deal with the American embassy, after which she and his second child died.
As they prepare to make the exchange in East Germany—before the formal reunification on October 3, 1990, I guess—Cap admits to a certain amount of respect for Panshin’s sacrifice for his son, despite everything else.
Agent Orange flies Panshin to the SHIELD helicarrier, which has been taken over by Gittes, Thurman, and their mutinous allies in order to put the Russian “on trial” for conspiring against the U.S. and killing Thurman’s father, a CIA officer. Meanwhile, Cap, Bullski, and Nick leap from a helicopter above and confront the renegade SHIELD agents, one of whom accuses Cap of siding with the Russians, which only feeds his determination.
Cap lands another great kick to Agent Orange’s head…
…before Orange accuses him of being out of touch with the common folk and participating in corrupt government plans. Of course, Cap looks at it as serving his country, with all the complications that involves, rather than throwing it with a select few with a simplistic, black-and-white view of the world (which is ironic, given Cap’s reputation among those who don’t know better).
Cap switches to a reverse kick for the final blow, accompanied by equally conclusive words regarding Orange’s values (or lack thereof).
The action seemingly over, Cap and Nick hope that they’ll maintain the upper hand over young upstarts for a while longer before Cap leaves to find Panshin.
When Cap finds him, Panchin asks about his son and thanks Cap for keeping him safe, but Gittes has an opinion of his own.
Cap refuses to let Gittes’ men shoot Panchin, citing the U.S. government’s orders as justification—which is odd, given Cap’s legendary refusal to “just follow orders,” but we can hope that he has judged those orders to be appropriate, despite his issues with the man he’s protecting.
On the other hand, Gittes’ colleague Goldman is questioning his orders, knowing that Cap would sooner take a bullet than let someone else be shot, so Gittes decided to do it himself… only to be incapacitated by Thurman.
The final page serves as an epilogue, with Cap and Nick anticipating some fireworks at the next congressional hearings for SHIELD appropriations given recent events. Once again Cap gets the final word, recognizing the one clear bit of good they achieved in this tale.
ISSUE DETAILS
Captain America/Nick Fury: Blood Truce #1, February 1995: Howard Chaykin and Ben Schwartz (writers), Andrew Currie (pencils), Tom Palmer (inks), Joe Rosas (colors), John Costanza (letters). (More details at Marvel Database.)
Collected in: Captain America Epic Collection: Fighting Chance.
ALSO THIS MONTH: Captain America #436, Force Works #8, and Fantastic Force #4 (February 1995)
THE VIRTUES OF CAPTAIN AMERICA 
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