This issue is an exciting, back-to-basics, done-in-one tale of Captain America versus Hydra, ending in a significant status change for our hero (who you’d think has had enough such changes over the last year or so).
I think it may be time for me to hang up my regular objections to Cap being shown throwing the shield vertically, because he does it a lot in this issue. I will admit it often makes for a striking image (no pun intended), despite the ersatz physics involved. Below, in the opening page to the issue, he uses it to set up a rather theatrical gag for a foe he considers hopefully predictable, and hardly a threat (although the hostage may not feel the same).
Who knew Cap wore a watch under his glove? (I trust it’s a classic model from the 40s, even though Tony keeps trying to give him one that has Tetris.)
After the Hydra agent blusters for a while, he notices the shield is gone, after which Cap starts his routine…
…and true to his word, the shield “came back.” When the former hostage admires the shield, Cap explains its make-up and how important it is to him (while referring to it as “her,” which is endearing but a little over-the-top for me).
Cap soon learns from the admiral that Hydra put a virus in a submarine’s computers that, once it has a chance to upload to a satellite, will cripple the Navy’s navigation systems and leave them open to Hydra attack. Cap is their only chance to avoid having to destroy the sub altogether, and he promises to wrap things up with a whole minute to spare.
Though it threatens to cross over into cockiness, I like the confidence Cap shows in this issue—he’s clearly in his zone, back in his familiar reality (after the Heroes Reborn period) and dealing with yet another typical Hydra plot. As much as I appreciate them, this is not the time for shows of humility, such as when civilians or soldiers say how much they admire him; this is the time to get the job done, and he knows he can do it.
The image below is clearly an homage to Jack Kirby’s opening splash to Cap’s first post-revival solo story in Tales of Suspense #59.
I like how the sub crew put aside any inter-service rivalry for the time being and eagerly join the fight, allowing Cap to head to the engine room…
…and tell them to go deeper, avoiding the coming bombers but also risking not being able to surface again—especially after Cap destroys the control panel to force Hydra’s hand (much like he locked the Japanese terrorist in the theater in the last issue).
Most of Hydra flees, with only several remaining to try to take Cap out later, while our hero hurries to evacuate the crew before enlisting the commanding officer to help go out with a bang.
The Hydra agents realize Cap shouldn’t be able to throw the shield vertically to nail them through the narrow crevice, but they must have studied real physics, not comic book physics.
He also heard them, apparently (despite how loud a submarine engine room must be).
If you think there’s a lot of emphasis in this issue on the shield and how much Cap relies on it… you may be on to something.
This is the point where Uncle Jimmy from The Bear would say:
As the sub continues to descend (unevenly), the single-minded Hydra agent finds Cap, who protects Bucky Becky with the shield…
…but cannot protect a guy who fires a high-powered gun at a metal shield in a tiny metal room.
Cap tells Lt. Commander Houston of his plan for them to play torpedo to escape the blast: when he says the shield will absorb the impact, I assume he actually means the shield will absorb some of it, but leave enough to push them out of the tube and away from the explosion.
The sub goes boom on the next page, sending Cap and Houston one way and the shield another.
When the waters settle down, we see the shield is not too far from them, but far enough for Cap to have to choose between reclaiming it and saving Houston—which is not really a choice for Cap, but even the next several silent pages, very poignantly illustrated by Ron Garney, Bob Wiacek, and Joe Rosas, show how torn he is.
After grabbing the lieutenant commander, Cap dives for the shield…
…getting so close before looking at Houston…
…and, seeing her struggling, he makes the only choice he can.
Cap gets Houston to the surface, and the rest of the crew just happens to be in exactly the same spot. After helping them up, Cap reaches instinctively for his shield—for shade, of all things—but quickly remembers what happened to it. And even if he didn’t, a crewman is there to remind him.
The shield is…
Does he quickly get it back in the next issue? You’ll have to come back to see, but he may have to make due for a while…
ISSUE DETAILS
Captain America (vol. 3) #2, February 1998: Mark Waid (writer), Ron Garney (pencils), Bob Wiacek (inks), Joe Rosas and Digital Chameleon (colors), John Costanza (letters). (More details at Marvel Database.)
Collected in: Captain America: To Serve and Protect and Captain America: Heroes Return–The Complete Collection Vol. 1.
PREVIOUS ISSUE: Captain America #1 (January 1998)
ALSO THIS MONTH: Avengers #1 (February 1998)
NEXT ISSUE: Captain America #3 (March 1998)
THE VIRTUES OF CAPTAIN AMERICA 
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