On the surface, this issue seems like an editorially-mandated lead-in to a series based on a toy line—which it most certainly is—but there is still plenty to talk about in terms of Captain America's ethics, thanks to masterful writing on the part of J.M. DeMatteis (complementing the beautiful line-work of Mike Zeck). We start our... Continue Reading →
This issue is one of my favorite from J.M. DeMatteis's several years as the writer of the title, in which he address Captain America's understanding of and relationship with the American dream. This story represents another epiphany for Cap, similar to Stan Lee's later stories (such as issue #122) and the end of Steve Englehart's... Continue Reading →
This issue contains a fascinating done-in-one story*, based on a mystery that gradually builds, with an important message at its conclusion. Before we start: Lest the presence of the Falcon's name is the cover logo get his many fans excited, this is unfortunately a one-time thing. Also, the old-timey X-Men costumes will be explained! *... Continue Reading →
This issue of Captain America is a thematic one-shot, a story that fits within, but doesn't contribute to, the status quo of Steve Rogers living in Brooklyn and working as a freelance artist, while focusing on a central idea, specifically personal liberty, autonomy, or self-determination. What's more, it features Captain America facing off against a... Continue Reading →
These six issues contain minimal Captain American content for our purposes, so I'm bundling them all together for your convenience—and value! As I do in these cases, there will be less story synopsis than stories in which Cap is the focus, though I encourage you to seek out the full stories in the links at... Continue Reading →
This well-timed anniversary issue, published just several months before the 1980 United States presidential election, deals with an obvious hypothetical: Should Captain America be president? I actually dealt with this issue years ago when the Ultimate Universe version of Cap actually did become president in his world, but in a very different political context—there, the... Continue Reading →
In this issue—a fill-in before the legendary run by Roger Stern and John Byrne begins in the next issue—Captain America once again encounters a villain with more to his story than he initially appreciates, emphasizing the theme of mercy made at the end of the last issue. The issue opens with a NYC school board... Continue Reading →
These two issues contain a battle against the Grey Gargoyle, primarily a foe of Thor who also faced Captain America and the Falcon in Captain America #139-142, which is bookended by a more interesting story—at least for the purposes of this blog—featuring a Senate hearing on the issues of the Avengers' security clearance, which anticipates... Continue Reading →
These three issues are three separate stories, the first of which is most interesting from our point of view, but all with something to offer fans of this blog. As with most of the recent issues, the relevant underlying story threads are Cap's leadership of the team (in Iron Man's absence, as explained in the... Continue Reading →
These two issues of Avengers continue the storyline about Wanda and Pietro's past, while our interest is mainly in Captain America's leadership of the Avengers in Iron Man's absence—about which more in the Iron Man issue that precedes them—as well as continued tensions with government liaison Henry Gyrich. Although the Cap content in the two... Continue Reading →
