After over 500 posts, I finally get to write about Captain America #1, thanks to the "Heroes Reborn" reboot that gave us new volumes of this title, Avengers, Iron Man, and Fantastic Four. (You'll no doubt remember that the first volume of Captain America began with #100 in April 1968, continuing the numbering of Tales... Continue Reading →
Marvel Fanfare #1 and Spider-Man Team-Up #4 (September 1996)
Although these two comics were published in the middle of the Onslaught Saga, both take place slightly earlier—although the cover of Marvel Fanfare, which hypes the story as Captain America and the Falcon's "final adventure", does not bode well for the conclusion of that massive crossover storyline! Note also the George Pérez cover to the... Continue Reading →
Avengers #399-400 (June-July 1996)
The big 400th issue of Avengers is a celebration of the team's history, written by Mark Waid and penciled by Mike Wieringo, who had collaborated on a well-received Flash run (1993-1994) and would later produce a legendary Fantastic Four run (2002-2005) before Wieringo's untimely death in 2007. The anniversary issue is preceded by the final page of... Continue Reading →
Captain America #452-453 (June-July 1996)
These two issues finish the "Man without a Country" storyline, in which Steve Rogers is stripped of the Captain America title and his American citizenship after President Bill Clinton accused him of conspiring with the Red Skull: specifically, trading secrets about an anti-aircraft weapon in exchange for the blood transfusion that saved his life (in... Continue Reading →
Captain America #450-451 (April-May 1996)
These two issues comprise the first half of the "Man without a Country" storyline, the first time in years that our hero has found himself on the wrong side of the United States government. At the end of the first "Secret Empire" storyline, Steve Rogers resigned the Captain America identity out of disgust with his... Continue Reading →
Prime/Captain America #1 (March 1996)
This team-up/crossover between the Marvel and Malibu Universes is a follow-up of sorts to the recent meeting between the Avengers and Ultraforce, and is notable for the interior and cover artwork by Norm Breyfogle, one of my favorite Batman artists. As well as Prime from the Ultraverse, this issue also introduces a new patriotic hero,... Continue Reading →
Captain America #449, Avengers #396, Iron Man #326, and Thor #496 (March 1996)
These four issues compromise the "First Sign" crossover that was meant to fully bring the "Avengers Prime" back into the team after they were all brought into the aftermath of "The Crossing." (Why is the Iron Man cover missing above? Cap ain't on it, of course!) Fair warning: Most of the interesting material with Captain... Continue Reading →
Captain America #447 and The Savage Hulk #1 (January 1996)
This issue continues "Operation Rebirth," the first full storyline in Mark Waid and Ron Garney's first run on Captain America, which finds our hero fighting alongside Sharon Carter—who has been alive this whole time, as explained in the last issue—and the Red Skull, who gave him a blood transfusion to save his life so he... Continue Reading →
Captain America #446 (December 1995)
This second issue of Mark Waid and Ron Garney's first extended storyline on Captain America finds our hero working very uncomfortably alongside his greatest foe, the Red Skull, and his former love, Sharon Carter, who he (and we) had believed dead since issue #237—and we learn exactly how she has been alive all this time... Continue Reading →
Skrull Kill Krew #2-3 (October-November 1995)
When I committed to covering all of Captain America's appearances in Marvel Comics, I did not see this coming: two issues of the first Skrull Kill Krew miniseries (not a typo with the spelling, and yes, there was a second miniseries). What's more, it's written by future superstars Grant Morrison and Mark Millar, who lend... Continue Reading →