We start 1994 with a flashback issue of Captain America written by Roy Thomas—breaking Mark Gruenwald's streak begun with issue #307—telling the story of our hero's first meeting with Namor the Sub-Mariner. Fittingly, this month also sees the debut of Marvels, the landmark miniseries by Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross, the first issue of which... Continue Reading →
This issue concludes the miniseries that brings Captain America and the Punisher together for the first time as partners, to combat a government conspiracy involving money, drugs, guns, and fascism abroad and at home. Just as the first issue ended with Frank (unsuccessfully) assassinating Cap, the second issue ended with General Navatilas, the dictator of... Continue Reading →
This amazing four-part miniseries—the first devoted solely to Captain America—is written by Fabian Nicieza and drawn by master of facial expressions Kevin Maguire, and elaborates significantly on Cap's earliest days, providing additional details and emotional weight to Steve Rogers' desire to serve his country, the Project Rebirth procedure and the training that preceded and followed... Continue Reading →
These two issues finish up Jack Monroe's first miniseries in style, after his actions in the first two issues, which involved intervening in the illegal drug trade—and interfering with a government undercover operation to the same end—attract the attention of the Super Powers Commission, who commission a psychiatrist to evaluate Monroe. In issue #3, they... Continue Reading →
More than most comics stories, this short tale from the anthology title Marvel Comics Presents is placed firmly within a particular point in history: the battle between the Sandinista party, which ruled Nicaragua throughout the 1980s, and the Contras, backed by the United States, who opposed the Sandinistas' communist ideology. (See more here.) This story... Continue Reading →
This seminal issue of Uncanny X-Men establishes that Captain America met a fella named Logan and a young girl named Natasha early in World War II—a story that would be elaborated upon in Wolverine Origins: Our War—and also that the Black Widow is much older than previously believed (which enabled her to meet a newly... Continue Reading →
In its first volume, the title Marvel Super-Heroes introduced Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell) and the Guardians of the Galaxy, and told Doctor Doom's first solo story, along with reprinting stories (which it did exclusively after it first twenty issues). In its second volume, it became a quarterly anthology title; its third issue features Captain America in... Continue Reading →
This issue of Daredevil—taking place in between scenes in Captain America #374—features a very critical and outspoken Sentinel of Liberty regarding problems he sees with contemporary America (circa 1990). As we know from the current "Streets of Poison" storyline in Captain America, Cap has not been himself since the explosion in the drug warehouse at... Continue Reading →
In this issue, Captain America searches (again) for Rachel Leighton, aka Diamondback, whom he dismissed at the beginning at issue #365 to work with the Avengers in dealing with all the Acts of Vengeance just starting up at the time. Now that he's done, and before the next line-wide crossover begins, it's time to find... Continue Reading →
These three issues of The Amazing Spider-Man comprise the second half of the storyline "The Assassin Nation Plot," describing political intrigue in the fictional nation of Symkaria, which borders Doctor Doom's Latveria and is the home of the mercenary Silver Sable. Captain America becomes involved when the CIA is implicated in a political assassination, and... Continue Reading →
THE VIRTUES OF CAPTAIN AMERICA 