This issue of Amazing Spider-Man, by the then-regular creative team of J. Michael Straczynski, John Romita, Jr., and Scott Hanna, commemorated the horrible events of September 11, 2001 in our world as they were mirrored in the Marvel Universe. Although Captain America has no dialogue in this comic, he is seen occasionally throughout assisting and acknowledging the first responders, including firefighters, police, and medical professionals. These are the people in the real world who were, and will always be, the real superheroes, and to whom this post is dedicated.
The first image in the issue is the double-page splash below, showing Spider-Man in confused shock at what just happened.
After a frightened couple runs past him, asking where he was and how he could let this happen—which triggers his disproportionate sense of guilt and responsibility—he reflects on what kind of mind could do this.
Both in the image above (just to the left of Spidey’s head) and below, Cap is working alongside the New York City firefighters and police, helping to move wreckage and search for survivors. We can see the Thing, Daredevil, and Thor there too, the last accepting directions from a firefighter who apparently has a voice that could command a god.
One of the most controversial aspects of this issue was the inclusion of villains, some of whose hands have long been bloodied with countless deaths—all righteous or justified in their minds, no doubt—but who apparently draw the line at the wholesale slaughter of innocent civilians. (Note they’re just standing around, not helping the first responders, which may be a better indication of their true character than any remorse over the tragedy.)
Above all, this issue emphasizes that, as much as we look up to our costumed superheroes and their fantastic exploits, it is the people without special powers, abilities, or magic hammers that show us true heroism and bravery, whether professional rescuers…
…or just regular everyday folks, doing what they can for each other in their time of need…
…and, in the case of Flight 93, joining together to say “no” to those who hoped to see us suffer even more.
The comic also addresses what comes next, how we adjust to the new reality that Americans were unaccustomed to, but which many others around the world have known for years…
…and admits that the worst fictional catastrophes in comic books cannot compare to what can and does happen in the real world.
When we finally see Cap alone, he is raging silently, with Spidey imagining him remembering Pearl Harbor, or the subsequent horrors of World War II, which he had hoped he would never see again.
We will see more of Cap’s reaction to this tragedy when volume 4 of his eponymous series begins in June 2002.
After several pages of exceptional words and images about shared purpose, strength, and perseverance, the final page shows the heroes of the day, with the most super among them standing front and center, as it should be.
Alex Ross hit the same note, perhaps even better, in his art for the cover to DC Comics’ commemorative issue:
Wow indeed.
ISSUE DETAILS
Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 2) #36, December 2001: J. Michael Straczynski (writer), John Romita, Jr. (pencils), Scott Hanna, (inks), Dan Kemp and Avalon Studios (colors), Richard Starkings and Wes Abbott (letters). (More details at Marvel Database.)
Collected in Amazing Spider-Man Modern Era Epic Collection: Coming Home.
ALSO THIS MONTH: Captain America #48 and Fantastic Four: The World’s Greatest Comics Magazine #11 (December 2001)
THE VIRTUES OF CAPTAIN AMERICA 
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