Product Description: Cap's up against the usual army of orders in AIM, Hydra and the schemes of the Skull - but could the most familiar enemy face be... Bucky's?! The Falcon becomes Cap's full-time crimefighting partner in the wake of this shocker! Gangsters and gorillas! A mysterious Stranger! Nazis, robots and Nazi robots! Featuring the friends and foes of Spider-Man, and the web-slinger himself! Guest-starring Daredevil and the Avengers! Plus: the secret of the 1950s Captain America and Bucky, foreshadowing the first appearance of the man called Nomad! Collects Captain America #127-156.
Cap gets relevant Hearken back three-and-a-half decades to the early 1970s. The 1960s may have been over, but they were still felt. Vietnam, the civil rights movement and the counterculture were all still fresh, and a man like Captain America - a walking version of the flag - seemed not only irrelevant but somehow ridiculous. In the Essential Captain America Volume 3, Cap realizes this and tries to remake himself.
It starts right off the bat, as Cap is forced to prove his loyalty to SHIELD; he does so, but feels betrayed in the process, leading him to take a leave and hit the road to find himself. Even then, he gets in tangles, particularly with the Red Skull. (The Skull is also a man of the wrong era, but unlike Cap, who tries to adapt to the new world, the Skull tries to remake the world to fit his own design.) Cap eventually comes home and teams up with the Falcon, who will soon share cover billing with the Star-Spangled Avenger (but make no mistake, this is still Cap's book).
The Falcon, one of the earlier black superheroes in the Marvel Universe, seems to be partnered with Cap to give the latter some street credibility. The Falcon is more interested in crime in his own neighborhood than in super villains, which creates a constant conflict between the two. As the Falcon fights for race equality, Cap's girlfriend, SHIELD agent Sharon Carter fights for equality of the sexes.
While this is all entertaining, this is also a period in Captain America's run that has a bad reputation. While it is awkward trying to watch a square guy trying to be hip, this is still a decent series of issues. Even if this is not Captain America at its best, it's still a lot of fun.
The legend lives on. Captain America really starts stepping up here. He gets a new sidekick in The Falcon, guest stars galore, the "return" of Bucky Barnes, and of course SHIELD shows up often. The weakness here however has to be the development of the Falcon. Perhaps the writers were unsure how to handle the character, and the years have definitely been kinder to Sam Wilson than his beginnings here, but it seems almost laughable at times. First, he fights hard to prove himself and become Captain America's new partner. Then he finally gets his name on the cover, and suddenly decides he doesn't want to be Cap's partner anymore. He wants to "stay and help the brothers in Harlem", so Cap says he understands and tries to leave him alone. Then Cap gets in trouble and SHIELD comes to get the Falcon's help, so he does then immediately quits Cap again after that mission. Then he tries to hunt down Spider-Man (remember, he was considered a menace by the press in the 70's), only to get beat down royally and helped by Cap again...before telling Cap he quit again. Then Cap needs help on a mission and Sam helps again...then quits again. Taken over a span of years as these monthly comics were originally published, this might not have been so obvious, but taken as a whole it really detracts from the story. Why would a hero like Cap keep coming back for help from the one man who doesn't want to give it when he has the entire Avengers roster to choose from? And why would Sam Wilson fight so hard to become a hero then decide "Ok, got that done, now leave me alone"?
But there are positive notes here. Cap's turn as Nomad is coming up in the next collection, but we see shadows of it turning up here. There are some nice SHIELD stories, and the return of Bucky was a cool storyline (though I think they really should have stretched it out a lot further before revealing his real origin). The issues starring Spidey worked well because they always made a good team back in the 70's. So the weaknesses are here, but the strong points help make them passable. Not the best of times for Cap, but these are still strong points and they lead up to what soon becomes Cap's better storylines of the decade.
Captain America teams up with the Falcon in the early 1970s With the recent "death" of Captain America in the epilogue to the Civil War that has rocked the Marvel Universe I decided to go back and read again the Silver Age adventures of ol' wing head. "Essential Captain America, Volume 3," reprints "Captain America" issues #127-56, which were originally published between 1970 and 1972. Captain America was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby back in March of 1941 in Timely Comics' "Captain America Comics" #1. Cap entered the Marvel Universe in "Avengers" #4 in March 1964 after spending decades literally frozen in suspended animation, quickly becoming the leader of the group of superheroes. But by the start of the 1970s, Captain America was no longer a member of the Avengers' active roster, which had the Black Panther leading Goliath, the Vision, Quicksilver, and the Scarlet Witch. I mention this T'Challa being the leader of the current Avengers roster compliments the major development in Captain America's own comic book during this period, which was nakedly teaming up with the Falcon (despite the image above, the cover of this collection does not show the duo but just Cap taking on the Red Skull and what looks like the Hulk shooting flame out of his wrists).
The symbolism of Captain America, the embodiment of the American spirit, teaming up with an African-American superhero was certainly worth of note at the time. The Falcon (a.k.a. Sam Wilson), first appeared in "Captain America" #117, created by writer Stan Lee and artist Gene Colan (who had replaced Jack Kirby as the book's main artist). "Snap" Wilson had been a hoodlum in Harlem, but on his way to Rio de Janeiro he crashes on Exile Island and ended up fighting alongside Captain America against the Red Skull. But when we start this particular run of stories Cap is still working closely with Nick Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D., as befitting a friendship that goes back to World War II and Fury's Howling Commando days (hey, when do we get the Essential treatment for those guys? They were the first Marvel comics I ever read). But Fury uses Cap to bait a trap for a traitor (#127), and our hero takes to the road on a motorcycle so that Steve Rogers can find himself (#128). That is right: Captain America as "Easy Rider." Of course, he immediately finds the Red Skull (#129) and then Baron Strucker (#130-31), who apparently has found Bucky Barnes (#132), Cap's partner from WWII. Of course, he is not, which means Modok and AIM must pay for the deception (#133). This is where Cap decides that he has finally found a partner in the Falcon.
Captain America and the Falcon set up shop in Harlem taking on Stone Face (#134), a giant gorilla (#135) and the Mole Man (#136), and then Spider-Man (#137), who joins the duo in a rematch against Stone Face (#138) in the issue where John Romita (Sr.) becomes the artist (For a couple of issues Colan's artwork was inked by Tom Palmer, foreshadowing what we would see through almost the entire run of "Tomb of Dracula"). Steve Rogers then gets a job as a cop walking a beat (#139), where he encounters the Grey Gargoyle (#140) and works with S.H.I.E.L.D. again to bring him down (#141-42). By this time Lee had given the scripting chores for "Captain America" over to Gary Friedrich, who starts quoting John Lennon and getting Cap and the Falcon involved in a potential race riot in Harlem (#143), and providing Sam Wilson with a very angry black woman named Leila as his romantic interest, before temporarily splitting the pair up. While Cap fights Hydra, the Falcon walks the streets of Harlem in new threads (#144). Hydra makes the mistake of shooting Cap's girl friend Sharon Carter (#145) and he goes after the Supreme Hydra to make them pay (#146-47, with Sal Buscema now the artist). This leads to going up against not only the Kingpin but also the Red Skull and his Fifth Sleeper (#148).
Gerry Conway becomes the writer with #149, which features Batroc's Brigade, followed by the Stranger (#150), Mr. Hyde and the Scorpion (#151-52), and a fight with Nick Fury (#153), when Steve Englehart becomes the scripter. This collection has a big finish as the "real" Captain America and Bucky show up to fight Cap and the Falcon (#154-56), with the middle issue in the trilogy explaining "The Incredible Origin of the Other Captain America" before the two shield slingers get down to the climatic big fight. In these issues "Captain America" makes a concerted effort to become more socially relevant, with Cap out among the people as often as he is fighting old Nazis. Keep in mind that Watergate is right around the cover, in reaction to which Steve Rogers will abandon the identity of Captain America to become Nomad in #180. All things considered the comic book suffers a bit during this period from trying to be both socially relevant when Cap and the Falcon are fighting crime in Harlem, while still playing up "The Living Legend of World War II" bit and his work with S.H.I.E.L.D. Both are valid approaches, but jumping back and forth certainly disrupts the flow of the title during this time (having four writers and four artists during this period could not help). But teaming up our hero with the Falcon is definitely a landmark moment in the distinguished history of the character, who I do not believe for a moment is really dead, let alone really most sincerely dead.
Anything Goes Trivia
Trevor
Megaton Man
