Welcome back to another edition of Comic Relief! Where I
talk about all sorts of things in the realm of Geekdom!
In my first article post I made a promise to refrain from
political posts as much as possible, but this is just a disclaimer for all of
those reading that things will get a little political, but hopefully not in a
preachy way. Anyways, with the release of the All New All Different Marvel we
started with one Captain America title: Captain
America: Sam Wilson written by Nick Spencer, and eventually after a
crossover event called Pleasant Hill, Steve Rogers was seemingly returned to true form
and we eventually saw a dual Captain America title release: first being the
same Cap title from before focusing on Sam Wilson, second being Captain America: Steve Rogers both
scribed by Nick Spencer. While the first of these titles continued to garnish
acclaim, the second’s first issue was met with a bit of criticism to put it
lightly. The first issue of Captain
America: Steve Rogers ends in the final panels with Steve Rogers throwing a
comrade out of the ship he’s on, and him proclaiming “Hail Hydra.”
To say this event caused controversy is a HUGE
understatement. Hundreds of videos were put online of devout Cap fans burning
their first issues of Captain America: Steve Rogers. While I never had a first
issue to burn, I am fairly certain that at the moment it was released, I would
have done the same. Just to be clear, Captain America is my favorite super
hero, so to see the legacy of this amazing character be so tarnished was really
upsetting. I had even written a piece for movie pilot on it which I will
hyperlink below.
https://creators.co/posts/3941906
However, as the series has continued, and as I have gained a
lot of perspective from further reading and especially after the past election.
What I have come to realize is this, that whether or not it was intentional, Captain America: Sam Wilson and Captain America: Steve Rogers are
probably the most important comics in print right now for Marvel as they serve
as a harsh and realistic look at where we stand as a nation today.
Captain America: Sam
Wilson is a commentary on how society refuses to accept change and in particular
when that change comes with a color scheme change as far as skin is concerned.
Sam Wilson makes a very bold move in his first continuous run as Cap, in
that he announces a separation from government ties and sets up a website to be
his own free agent. This is met with a LOT of mixed response and the internet
blows up with campaigns like #notmycaptain, or #givebacktheshield. There are
even some great moments where Sam hears people describe his appointment to Cap
as some ridiculous part of the government’s PC campaign for “diversity.” It’s a
brilliant book that really taps into race relations in the country and has Sam
Wilson frequently deal with problems that the country has in skin deep prejudices.
However, while Sam’s title is more on the nose, Captain America: Steve Rogers’s title is
far more nuanced in its approach. Seeing Steve Rogers become Captain America
again should be something that instills hope in people. It should be
inspirational, and for people inside the comic world, it is. The crowds cheer when he
comes back, and while initially so did we, we know better now. That when Kobik, a girl that is a sentient cosmic cube created by Red Skull, restored Steve to his
super soldier state, his memories and past were altered so that he would believe he has
been a Hydra sleeper cell the entire time. Steve Rogers is supposed to stand
for the things that made this country great: Equality, integrity, truth,
justice, and to the comic's general public, that face is very much the same.
However, the fact is that his motives and actions behind the scene are in direct contrast. As I said Captain America is the symbol of these things that are supposed to make this
country great, they are ideals that Steve Rogers has believed in to the core of his
being and has built a reputation on. However, here he is being contrary to
their very nature. It kind of reminds you of the fact that we are a country of
immigrants growing increasingly isolationist, that despite promises of freedom
and equality in the eyes of the law we have various groups of people that are
profiled for their gender, race, or orientation. It’s a harsh read, and it’s
often painful because one moment it will seem like Steve is exactly who we want
him to be, but then the next he is furthering his own agenda as a Hydra agent
and it is an emotional roller coaster.
I cannot say for certain that Nick Spencer had intended for
this to be the case, but I would be willing to bet that is exactly what he
meant. Nick Spencer may go down in infamy as the man who destroyed Steve Rogers,
who knows how long this Hail Hydra arc will last. All I know is that his two
Captain America books may be some of the most important commentary on where we
stand as the American people. On an ending note, I really hope that Steve Returns soon
because we need our symbols right now.
See you guys again Next Week on Comic Relief! Hope you
enjoyed!
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