series in 2008 was an excellent example of this. 
In which Iron Man was somehow made likeable!
In the first volume, Tony Stark was still in his then-current role as commander of S.H.I.E.L.D., and had a somewhat hostile interaction with Spider-Man, which was in character based on what had gone down between the two of them. At the same time the story was also about Ezekial Stane, son of Obidiah Stane (the film's main villain) abusing Tony's technology for destructive purposes, as was a theme in the film. So, boom. Fans are happy, new readers aren't confused, the series goes on to win an award. Why do I bring this up now? This is why:
Little known fact: Time portals are always star shaped.
In case you're totally clueless, this is Steve Rogers, better known as Captain America. The Sentinel of Liberty. The First Avenger, as the new film calls him. I love Captain America. I think he's a great character, and the series for the past few years
under Ed Brubaker has consistently been one of Marvel's best ongoing titles. The characters are phenomenal, and the development has been great. The characters all go through experiences that cause them to grow and change. The best example is the character of Bucky Barnes, Cap's former sidekick from World War II.
Off in the distance are the other two amigos.
Bucky had long been thought dead since the end of the war, but as it turns out he was a brainwashed Soviet assassin known as the Winter Soldier.
Kids grow up so fast.
Rogers managed to free Bucky from the brainwashing and he started getting his head on straight and pulling jobs for former S.H.I.E.L.D. head honcho, Nick Fury. Not too long after this, Steve Rogers, Captain America, is assassinated
, and pronounced DEAD.
He died as he lived... with a mouth full of Starburst.
Following this, Bucky takes up the shield and becomes the new Captain America. He unravels the mystery behind Steve's death
, forms bonds with Steve's former supporting cast
, becomes an Avenger
, and strikes up a relationship with old flame, the Black Widow
. Bucky really comes into his own as a character, and isn't just a carbon copy of the original Cap. He doesn't have any sort of super soldier serum in him as Steve did, so Bucky relies on his own natural ability. His only unnatural physical advantage (besides his sidearm and Rogers' shield) is a bionic arm, making most of his feats more impressive than the steroid enhanced Rogers. 
America! F*ck yeah!
Ultimately, its revealed that Steve Rogers is alive, and unstuck in time. Eventually, he is rescued
and returned to the present. Steve witnessed a grim vision of the future however, and believes that in order for Bucky to stay alive, Bucky should remain Captain America. Bucky reluctantly agrees
, and following a big crossover event
, Steve becomes the new head of S.H.I.E.L.D., which I feel was the most sensible role for him. After the manipulative Nick Fury, the bureaucratic Tony Stark, and the flat out evil Norman Osborn, it made sense to finally have Marvel's golden boy in charge of the heroes and the country's best interests.
He was the STAR of his own series. Thank you! Try the veal!
So for the past year, Bucky has been Captain America
, while Steve has been Captain Steve Rogers
. But of course this is coming out next week:
Who is he avenging exactly? The Jews? Pearl Harbor? I guess the Jew Avenger might have trouble with international marketing...
, he was flying around in a giant computer, it was feasible that he'd be able to take national security conference calls or make important split decisions on the fly. How is this going to run a global peacekeeping organization?
I HAVE A BUDGET MEETING AT 3, LET'S WRAP THIS UP!
when Classic Cap needed to be rolled out for the movie. *Spoiler Alert* Bucky was recently killed off in this summer's crossover series Fear Itself
, leading to Steve donning the uniform again prior to the new series relaunch. Wow, does that feel like a slap in the face. Not only does it slap anyone in the face whose been reading the book for the past 4 years or so, but this major character death doesn't even happen in the pages of the series that has had this ongoing character development for years? When Steve "died", it didn't happen in Civil War
, it happened in CAPTAIN FREAKING AMERICA
! I really hope Brubaker pulls some amazing writing out of his bag of tricks to save this turkey. Otherwise this book is going from the top of my stack to the bottom.
Yes, below the Jane Austen comics.
When Steve "died", it didn't HAPPEN IT Civil War, it happened in CAPTAIN FREAKING AMERICA!
ReplyDeleteOtherwise, pretty good. But for this mistake you must suffer.
First of all, the Bucky version of Cap sounds interesting to me (person who has never read the comics). I much prefer a hero with very limited or no super powers to speak of, who has to rely heavily on his or her own awesomeness. That's why Batman works for me, his fighting is all martial arts (oh, and impossible but cool gadgets).
ReplyDeleteSecondly, let me say that Joe Popcorn is a lazy moron. From the perspective of a novel reader: Game of Thrones is coming out as an HBO show right? Well, the book series is like 4 or 5 books long by now, and I would never expect to be able to pick up book 5 to "see what's going on these days" after watching a few episodes of the show. Why not? Because there have been 4 books worth of development and people will have died and characters replaced. No, clearly I'd have to seek out book one. I think with comic books it should be the same. I understand that with comics continuity can be far more complex and extensive, and poor stupid Joe Popcorn will probably never figure out which trade he needs to pick up to begin the story, but oh well. No big loss to the reading community.
And third, hey don't be so mean to poor Jane Austen. She's not alive to defend herself. Or is she? O.o