Captain America

Originaly posted on helium under the topic Reactions To Captain America's Death and on Associated Content.



Lets get one thing straight right off the bat. Captain America isn't dead. Steve Rogers is dead.

Captain America cannot die. Not as long as America still stands.

Captain America has long stood as a symbol of America, fighting for truth, justice, and the American way. He has always fought to defend the oppressed and to defend the freedom afforded to all Americans. While not always popular in the eyes of some, this has lead to Cap siding against the United States government on several occasions, the last of which lead to his arrest and ultimately his assassination following the recent Civil War.

The legend of Captain America started in the early 40’s. A young illustrator named Steve Rogers, upset by the rise of the Third Reich, attempted to enlist in the army, but due to his small size and frail nature, he was rejected. He was then offered a change to take part in a top-secret project called Operation: Rebirth. As part of the project he was injected with the Super Soldier serum and bombarded with Vita-rays, which would activate and stabilize the serum. The project was a success, turning the weak, frail Steve Rogers into Captain America.

Cap, carrying a bulletproof shield and wearing a uniform designed by Rogers himself, went off to war, fighting against the Nazis and serving as a symbol of patriotism. Eventually he would be given the indestructible shield that the hero still uses to this day and developed a fighting style that allowed him to throw it for ranged attacks, allowing him to fight with out a gun.

Near the end of World War 2, both Cap and his sidekick Bucky were believed to have been killed after an explosion over the northern Atlantic Ocean. No bodies were found for either, but the legend of Captain America lived on.

A short time after Cap disappeared, William Nasland, who fought along side Rogers as Spirit Of ’76, was given the identity of Captain America, as well as a new shield since the original had been lost with Rogers. Nasland continued as Cap until an android named Adam II attempted to kill a young congressional candidate named John F Kennedy. Nasland, along with his team the All Winner squad, saved JFK, but Adam II killed Nasland before the squad could arrive.

As Nasland was dieing, Jeffery Mace, a member of the all Winner squad codenamed Patriot. He grabbed a spare Cap costume and went off to fight Adam II the squad won, and Mace continued to serve as Captain America until 1950, when he retired.
In 1953, a man calling himself Steve Rogers found papers containing the Super Soldier serum. He gave it to the US government on the condition that they use it on him in order to serve as Captain America during the Korean War. He even had his name legally changed and had plastic surgery to alter his appearance and vocal cords so that he looked and sounded like the original Rogers.

Unfortunately the war ended before he was ready, so he took a job teaching American History in a small privet school, where he met Jack Monroe, who shared his fascination with Captain America. When a new Red Skull took the UN hostage, they injected themselves with the Super Soldier serum and fought him as Captain America and Bucky, respectively. They continued to serve in those roles for almost a year, battling communists and a few remaining Nazis, but since they did not have exposure to the Vita-rays to stabilize the serum, it slowly drove them insane. They were captured by the FBI and placed in suspended animation. Monroe would eventually be released and serve for a time as the original Captain America’s partner, Nomad (a name cap used for a time as well.) Rogers would be released, brainwashed Doctor Faustus, and become the Grand Dictator, the leader of a Neo-Nazi group. The original Captain and Daredevil would eventually defeat him. He was killed when he activated a self-destruct device in his costume, killing himself.

The original Steve Rogers was found frozen in the Northern Atlantic Ocean. He was thawed out and joined the Avengers, serving as the team’s leader for much of its history. Following the death of the Grand Dictator and the Watergate scandal, Rogers abandoned the role of Captain America and became the first Nomad. He eventually returned to the role, but would resign again when the US military ordered him to resume his duty as a government operative. He became the captain, even going so far as handing his shield to John Walker, who had been chosen as his replacement.
Walker was much more violent then Rogers, going so far as to kill an enemy group called the watchdogs after they murdered his mother. The two responsible for the murders were tied to explosives that he detonated, leaving them both horribly scared and in comas. Roger eventually defeated Walker, and they joined forces against the original Red Skull. He was defeated and Walker was deemed unworthy of the title of Captain America. Walker would return to action as U.S. Agent and served as a member of the West Coast Avengers, as well as other teams before fighting alongside Ironman during the Civil War and becoming an official liaison to Canada afterwards, stopping several villains and heroes who were crossing the border to avoid the Superhuman Registration Act.

Rogers once again resume duty as Captain America and continued to fight along \side the Avengers until they disbanded following the mental breakdown of the Scarlet Witch, which resulted in the deaths of several members. He would eventually help form a new team of Avengers following a jailbreak from the Raft, a super villian prison.

During this time, the original Bucky returned with amnesia as a KGB agent called the Winter Soldier. After killing Jack Monroe, cap helped Winter Soldier regain his memories.

When the Superhuman Registration Act was implemented, Rogers refused to enforce it and sided against the government, believing that the act violated the civil rights of superheroes. He lead the Secret Avengers against the pro-registration forces, even going so far as joining forces with Punisher and the Kingpin in the hopes of winning the Civil War. During a final battle against Tony Stark, whose armor had been damaged, several civilians arrived to support Stark. Realizing that his actions could endanger the very people he had sworn to protect, Rogers removed his mask and surrendered. He was indicted on several criminal charges and was to be tried in federal court, but before his trial could start, Red Skull struck, hiring Crossbones as a sniper to shoot Rogers in the back. In the confusion, Sharon Carter, Rogers’ long time lover who had been hypnotized by Doctor Faustus, shot him three more times in the stomach. Rogers died at a nearby hospital a short time later. A body was laid to rest in Arlington, but Tony Stark, as well as a few other heroes, escorted his body to a location near where they had found him years ago.

Following Rogers' assassination Frank Castle, the Punisher, who had picked up Rogers’ discarded mask, began wearing a uniform similar to Rogers’, but never took the name of Captain America. Realizing that the world needed Captain America and that he wasn’t the man for the job, he gave the mask to Winter Shoulder, who had stolen Rogers’ shield and recently began fighting as the newest Captain America.

As you can see, Captain America had died several times through the years, but there is always someone willing to carry the shield. As Rogers himself realized during his time as Nomad the identity could be a symbol of American ideals and not its government. Because of this, regardless of who is serving as president, Captain America will always have a purpose.



While I have tried to write this as if someone in the Marvel Universe wrote it, this last part is real world. I don’t remember at Marvel said it, but as soon as news of Cap’s death was announced he said that Steve Rogers was dead, ensuring that someone would eventually take up the shield. In addition long time comic fans know that Rogers will be back some how. The long held rule that only Bucky, Jason Todd, and Uncle Ben stayed dead has been broken, with only Ben remaining dead. Captain America can be compared to Superman, Steve Rogers to Hal Jordan. None of them can stay dead for very long, and with a Captain America movie due out sometime in 2009, it is only a matter of time before Steve Rogers returns.