Marvel has already been killing its heroes. This time it fell on one of the most famous, i.e. Steve Rogers, better known as Captain America. Is the world ready for his departure? And who will now stand up for law and order? This is what Ed Brubaker tells us in the comic book The Death of Captain America .
Spoiler alert?
Captain America’s death begins while the Civil War is still going on. Steve Rogers is at the forefront of superheroes who oppose the registration of masked heroes. At the same time, Bucky Barnes infiltrates SHIELD to infiltrate the systems of the organization with Nick Fury’s support and control its movements. Apparently, the protection of the institution is not working very well, as Red Skull’s man is also at work there. When Captain America gives up and is about to stand trial, someone shoots him and our hero dies. How will his friends cope in this situation? Who will take over the shield? And what do the villains say? One thing is for sure – the world is not ready to lose one of its defenders.
Two in one
The Death of Captain America is the third volume of Steve Rogers’ adventures. It is of course related to the events that took place in the Winter Soldier and the Red Wretch , but there is also a significant time shift here. Volume II ended with an attack on the seat of Kronas. This, in turn, throws us into events related to the War of Heroes. The Captain is now being pursued by SHIELD and has no time to deal with General Lukin. Bucky, on the other hand, is strongly involved in this matter. At this point, you should thank the Polish publisher, Egmont, for including excerpts from another comic book, Winter Soldier: Winter Kills.. It is a complement to the whole without which the reader would not quite know what is related to the case not only by Barnes, but also by Nick Fury. Everything would be a guesswork, and so we get the full story.
Brubaker in the form
Ed Brubaker, a man known to all comic fans, is responsible for the script for The Death of Captain America . Once again, it does not disappoint its readers. We get our hands on a suspenseful detective story that differs significantly from standard superheroes stories. Although there are a lot of leotards in it, with stars such as the Winter Soldier, Black Widow or Iron Man at the forefront, the plot is not related to action scenes and saving the world. Yes, a few people get bruised, but these are just threads, tying everything together. Everything, however, revolves around the death of the main character. I expected this moment to come somewhere near the end of the notebook, while Rogers dies after a dozen or so pages. The rest is an unusual plot, in which it becomes clear who pulled the trigger and what is the relationship of Red Skull with everything. His plan is really masterful and you can be full of appreciation for this bad guy. From that moment on, our main character becomes Bucky Barnes, who wants revenge for the death of his friend. He blames Tony Stark for everything, who has to be careful. The author also devotes a lot of space to Falcon and Sharon Carter, following the perpetrators of the attack. And although the viewer knows much earlier who pulled the trigger, it does not change the fact that the situation is tense until the very end. In addition, not everything is explained.The death of Captain America ends at such a point that I will be eagerly awaiting the sequel.
Capture the atmosphere
The main cartoonists of the comic are Steve Epting and Mike Perkins. Both gentlemen were also responsible for the paintings in the two previous volumes. And it is already visible on the first pages. As before, the gentlemen pay the most attention to the characters’ faces, their facial expressions and showing their emotions. That bothered me the most about the Red Scoundreland I was afraid it would be the same now. Fortunately, over time, artists have to focus on the entire body and the surroundings. And it must be admitted that they do well. The scenes of chases, stealth or shootings and explosions may not turn out spectacularly, but certainly good. The biggest drawback here are fights. When the fists are moving and the teeth are flying around, everything looks unnatural. As if cartoonists didn’t quite know how to approach the subject. Fortunately, such moments are few and you can get through them quickly.
As already mentioned, in the comic you can also find fragments of another, complementing the entire story. Lee Weeks and Stefano Gaudiano are responsible for the images in The Winter Soldier: Winter Kills . Personally, I like their works more than those created by Epting and Perkins. More expressive in them and more attracting attention. Not only the battle scenes are better here, but also the everyday life of the characters. Bucky’s memories of World War II are perfectly captured, when he goes to a Christmas party with Rogers, Namor and Thomas Raymond. It is a pity that there are so few of their drawings in the notebook.
Death is not over yet!
The Death of Captain America is a comic book that had a huge impact on the entire Marvel universe. I’m glad that Ed Brubaker told us the story of such an important event. I don’t know if any writers would have done better. We are dealing with a dark detective story that keeps us in suspense even when the title character is already dead, and we know who is behind it. Thus, the writer equaled his other – very important – title, the Winter Soldier.On the other hand, the drawings in the notebook fare a bit worse. The artists may capture all the emotions of the heroes, but they did not fully capture the moments when the action accelerates and the investigation turns into a fight. Nevertheless, it is still a must-have notebook in your collection. There are not only historical moments that affect the fate of other heroes created by the House of Ideas, but also a unique atmosphere. Before that, however, you should read the previous two volumes in order to understand the whole situation, and also have at least a general idea of what the War of Heroes was. Without it, some passages may not make sense to us. However, when we deal with Steve Rogers’ past and read the latest part of his adventures, we will feel unsatisfied. Fortunately, Egmont has already announced the next part that will beCaptain America: The Man Who Bought America . I think it will be worth the wait.
