These two issues continue the storyline that started in issue #411, in which Captain America, Falcon, and Diamondback infiltrated an illegal weapons expo on AIM Island to find Rachel's old foe Snapdragon, whom Rachel eventually killed in the last issue (unbeknownst to Cap). The current issues take us around the world, first to Wakanda and... Continue Reading →
Thor #420-421 (August 1990)
These two issues of Thor are part of a larger story called "The Black Galaxy Saga," in which the God of Thunder is called to... well, you know... in response to the latest scheme of the High Evolutionary. The story began in issue #419, where a Replicoid was sent by the Celestials to gather Thor,... Continue Reading →
Avengers Annual #16 and West Coast Avengers Annual #2 (September-October 1987)
The final Avengers story featuring Captain America before the cataclysmic Captain America #332 is this crossover between the annuals of the two teams. These comics were actually published after Captain America #332, but for continuity reasons I'm letting them jump the line and be covered first. It's a fairly routine "split up and fight" story,... Continue Reading →
Captain America #329-330 (May-June 1987)
These two issues continue the build-up to the game-changing issue #332 as Captain America, accompanied by strength-augmented wrestler Dennis Dunphy, a.k.a. D-Man, continues to hunt for information about the Super-Patriot (John Walker) and the Buckies, as well as their enabler, the Power Broker, while the U.S. government steps its investigation into Cap behind the scenes.... Continue Reading →
Captain America #328 (April 1987)
This issue is the first of four issues featuring the greatest superhero sensation of 1987, D-Man, in which he helps Captain America search for the mysterious Power Broker, and building up to the game-changing issue #332. Our story opens at the Los Angeles headquarters of the Ultimate Class Wrestling Federation, where Cap hopes to find... Continue Reading →
Avengers Annual #15 and West Coast Avengers Annual #1 (October 1986)
The two parts of this crossover between the two Avengers teams in their 1986 annuals are very different, as reflected in the covers: The Avengers annual focuses more on the big fight with a team of apparent ne'er-do-wells, while the West Coast Avengers annual is much more character-based and tied closely to the mystery figure's... Continue Reading →
Captain America #307-308 and Secret Wars II #1 (July-August 1985)
These two issues of Captain America launch Mark Gruenwald's decade of writing the book, much of which sits among the very best Cap stories, but it gets off to a slow start: The first issue deals mainly with Cap's crime-fighting partner Nomad, and the second had to tie in with Secret Wars II, the first... Continue Reading →
Captain America #286-288 (October-December 1983)
These three issues are as much (if not more) about Deathlok, cyborg super-soldier from a dystopian near-future, as they are about Captain America, so we can discuss them as a group. As the best writers do, J.M. DeMatteis finds the humanity inside this sci-fi tale of cyborgs and time travel, and connects the events to... Continue Reading →
Captain America #270 (June 1982)
In this issue, we learn the identity of the man we saw briefly in issue #268, who actually represents a milestone in Marvel Comics history, and has a fascinating connection to Captain America. Also, we see Bernie Rosenthal being a hero in her own right (and in her own way). We begin with Steve and... Continue Reading →
Avengers #192-196 and Daredevil #164 (February-June 1980)
These six issues—only one of which even has Cap on the cover—have very little ethically interesting Captain America content, but they do include the Falcon leaving the Avengers, the new Ant-Man meeting the team for the first time, the introduction of the Taskmaster, a badly beaten Man without Fear, and Cap confronting a new and... Continue Reading →