dub@pur-phy.UUCP (Dwight U. Bartholomew) (04/11/84)
In one of the many recent articles about Marvel's treatment of
the Jewish people someone mentioned, about Captain America, that
the original Cap. is the modern one also, but the 50's Cap. is
a different one. I must admit to being a tiny bit comfused. I
don't read Cap. Amer. so is it possible for someone in the know to
clarify the mystery?
Dwight Bartholomew
UUCP: {decvax,ucbvax,harpo,allegra,inuxc,seismo,teklabs}!pur-ee!Physics:dub
INTERNET: dub @ pur-phy.UUCPciaraldi@rochester.UUCP (Mike Ciaraldi) (04/13/84)
OK, this is from memory, but here is what I think is the story of the Two Captains (not to be confused with "The Five Doctors") (Who?) The original Captain America was given the super-soldier formula and zapped with vita-rays in 1941. He was originally scrawny Steve Rogers, but became a perfectly-developed man with definitely above-average strength, speed, stamina, and agility. He later teamed up with Bucky Barnes, who had no super powers, but operated under the code-name "Bucky" (no one suspected his secret identity). In 1945, Cap and Bucky were fighting the Red Skull in England. A drone plane took off, loaded with explosives, and they tried to catch it. Cap fell into the icy waters of the English Channel, and Bucky was killed in the explosion (as seen in Avengers #4). Several years ago, it was revealed that Cap was briefly revived, had another fight, and was dropped back into the icy waters of the North Atlantic, off Newfoundland. He remained in suspended animation until he early '60's, when he was found frozen in a block of ice. The Sub-mariner, Prince Namor, threw him into the ocean, and he eventually thawed out and was rescued by the Avengers. So, the orignal Cap is also the current Cap, and still uses the secret identity, Steve Rogers. Back in 1945, (as revealed in an issue of WHat If?), someone else took over Cap's costumed identity. I think it was the guy who used to be the Spirit of '76, one of the Invaders. He was killed in action, and replaced by yet another Invader, the Patriot, who took over Cap's costume. He fought until the late '40's, then retired. During the Korean War, someone rediscovered the super-soldier formula. He had idolized Cap, and devoted his life to researching him. This man changed his face with plastic surgery, and his name to Steve Rogers. He gave the super-soldier formula to himself and a young associate, and they adopted the costumed identities of (who else?) Captain America and Bucky! So, they were really the fourth Cap, second Bucky. Most people never knew the difference. The new team NEVER saw combat in the Korean War. The war was already over by the time they were ready. This still leaves the question of how to explain the Cap and Bucky who appeared in comics during the '50's, fighting in Korea. Anyway, the new team did not use vita-rays, just the super-soldier formula. They eventually went insane. They staerted thinking that everyone around them was a Communist, and lashing out at them. The Federal government finally put them both in suspended animnation. In the middle '70's, in a series of stories written by Steve Englehart, we finally found out about these two. They were revived by someone who felt the Red threat was not being adequately fought, and they went wild, among other things beating up The Falcon, Cap's then-current partner. You could tell the original Cap from the other because he had red and white stripes all the way around his body, while the other had them only on the front of his shirt. Anyway, they fought, the original Cap won, the other one was killed, and the second Bucky was put back into deep-freeze until his insanity could be cured. Around that same time, Cap decided to give up his costumed idemtity. He stayed costumeless for several idssues, donning a ski mask once to foil a bank robbery, then adopted the new identity of (ta-daa) Nomad. He had a scene where he went through a bunch of names, and finally remarks, "I hope a bat doesn't fly through the window." Well, he decides that he is a man without a country, a nomad, because he has lost faith in the American Dream. Eventually, he gets his faith back, and his costume. That brings us up to last year, when the second Bucky, who was really Jack Monroe, was cured and released. His only contact in the outside world was Stve Rogers, so he showed up at Steve's door one day. Steve eventually gives him the Nomad costume (actually, Nick Fury gives it to him), and accepts Jack/Nomad as his new partner. And that's the story. Any additions,deletions, or corrections cheerfully accepted. Mike Ciaraldi ciaraldi@rochester