Steve Rogers: Captain America Appreciation 2021

[Huntsman Spider]

Really great issue and start to a great storyline. Liked seeing Steve and Sam together. Initially, I was suspect concerning Aaron. He looked a little scrawny. Seeing Steve tower over Aaron and seeing Aaron's dinky shield gave me pause. Could this guy be a Captain America? More like a cosplayer. But reading about him in action, seeing his heart, I'm impressed. He also highlights a serious issue. A lot of homeless youth in America are kids who were thrown out of their houses for their sexuality. Many are sexually abused. So good that there's a hero to stand up to that.

Aaron's presence ties into the other themes of the story, mainly Captain America's purpose in America. Does he unite or divide? Is he relevant or passe? Who gets to use him to further their own cause? He can be repurposed in many ways. Lots of great scenes in the book regarding Cap's concerns. The main thing that struck me was how Steve defined the American dream or rather dreams. His description of the "white picket fences" dream is reminiscent of Te-Nehisi Coates' definition. On the other hand, the dream of us all being together reminded me of President Biden's campaign rhetoric. The issue subtly snuck those aspects in there. Very clever.

I'm looking forward to the series. Surprisingly, I'm not that interested in who stole the shield, though it is interesting. Rather, I'm interested to see who are the others that Cap has inspired. I really proud of that. When I became a Cap fan, there were stories of people taking up causes and becoming Captain America by dressing in his garb. We've seen it with Superman and Batman. But with Cap, the idea wasn't popular. Outside of comics, how was Captain America influential? 20 odd years and several Avengers and Captain America films later, yeah, Captain America is that popular. That's a very cool thing .

Yeah, he's right up there with Spider-Man now, at least in real-world terms. That aside, it does sound very much like a good read, and food for thought as well.

[K7P5V]

I wish he'd just ditch that Falcon suit and go back to his old Falcon colors.

Agreed. Classic Falcon is an all-time fave (IMHO):

[Chris0013]

Agreed. Classic Falcon is an all-time fave (IMHO):

And that goes back to my comment about non-super strength/durability types showing so much skin. Cap's suit is body armor over vital areas for a reason...with that old Falcon suit a sniper just needs a clear shot at his chest and he is done.

[Digifiend]

Yeah, it's fine for bulletproof Luke Cage and self-healing Wolverine to have bare arms, but anyone who can't tank hits should be wearing protection. Falcon's classic suit with the bare arms and chest is outdated.

[Frontier]

Yeah, it's fine for bulletproof Luke Cage and self-healing Wolverine to have bare arms, but anyone who can't tank hits should be wearing protection. Falcon's classic suit with the bare arms and chest is outdated.

Sometimes a visual aesthetic is just a visual aesthetic .

[Tien Long]

Yeah, he's right up there with Spider-Man now, at least in real-world terms. That aside, it does sound very much like a good read, and food for thought as well.

Ha, thanks for the shout out bro. I find it pretty cool to see different individuals taking up Cap's garb. The different interpretations are pretty fun, both in the comics and real world. And yes, Cap talking about the American dream is always interesting. The issue started off with his premise, that's he's loyal to the dream. But what is the dream? And does the dream have to be negative? I think about Cap's talk about the "white picket fences" dream. It gave me pause. I grew up in a white picket fence area and had a great life. Now, I see where Cap and by extension someone like Coates' describes that dream as being exclusive and discriminatory. Aside from whites and Asians, there were very few anybody else there. Was that intentional? I know many people would say that.

At the same time, a comfortable, safe "white picket fence" dream? An American suburb life? Is it that bad? A lot of the towns that were around mine 20 odd years ago were predominantly white. However, I see that many of those towns today are becoming more diverse. Many more Blacks and Latinos are moving into those neighborhoods. These are individuals who have climbed up the social ladder and earning and achieving more than what was possible 20 years ago. More has to be done, absolutely. Financial stability does not always mean racial, ethnic, sexual, or gender equality. But these individuals certainly like their "white picket fence" neighborhood.

Just bringing it all back, Captain America can be a good way to look at these ideas. Yeah, maybe the white picket fences dream is not the best, but the "uplift everyone together" dream? That's a good dream.

In any case looking forward to Bucky and JOhn Walker coming on the scenes soon. I wonder if they'll be wearing any Captain America gear too.

[Huntsman Spider]

Ha, thanks for the shout out bro. I find it pretty cool to see different individuals taking up Cap's garb. The different interpretations are pretty fun, both in the comics and real world. And yes, Cap talking about the American dream is always interesting. The issue started off with his premise, that's he's loyal to the dream. But what is the dream? And does the dream have to be negative? I think about Cap's talk about the "white picket fences" dream. It gave me pause. I grew up in a white picket fence area and had a great life. Now, I see where Cap and by extension someone like Coates' describes that dream as being exclusive and discriminatory. Aside from whites and Asians, there were very few anybody else there. Was that intentional? I know many people would say that.

At the same time, a comfortable, safe "white picket fence" dream? An American suburb life? Is it that bad? A lot of the towns that were around mine 20 odd years ago were predominantly white. However, I see that many of those towns today are becoming more diverse. Many more Blacks and Latinos are moving into those neighborhoods. These are individuals who have climbed up the social ladder and earning and achieving more than what was possible 20 years ago. More has to be done, absolutely. Financial stability does not always mean racial, ethnic, sexual, or gender equality. But these individuals certainly like their "white picket fence" neighborhood.

Just bringing it all back, Captain America can be a good way to look at these ideas. Yeah, maybe the white picket fences dream is not the best, but the "uplift everyone together" dream? That's a good dream.

In any case looking forward to Bucky and JOhn Walker coming on the scenes soon. I wonder if they'll be wearing any Captain America gear too.

You're welcome, and that would be nice. All four 616 Captains America together. As for the larger and heavier ideas expressed in this issue, I don't think Steve (or Christopher Cantwell) was necessarily trying to say anything entirely bad about the "white picket fences" version of the American Dream in and of itself, just pointing out that the aspirations embodied and tied up in that have all too often represented opportunities long denied to others, so there is a certain understandable "sour grapes" feeling about it.

[Frontier]

So Coates' run hasn't finished yet, right? I feel like this mini was going to lead to the new Cap book, but maybe not.

[Huntsman Spider]

So Coates' run hasn't finished yet, right? I feel like this mini was going to lead to the new Cap book, but maybe not.

The last issue was supposed to come out next week, last I heard.

[Digifiend]

Yes, it was delayed and should've been out before USOCA started.

[Mike]

Agreed. Classic Falcon is an all-time fave (IMHO):

One of my favorites.

[Huntsman Spider]

The right-wing punditocracy is after Captain America again, this time with The Daily Caller complaining about how Steve Rogers in The United States of Captain America #1 referred to the American Dream as a lie, deliberately twisting his words --- actually making the point about social and structural inequities making the traditional American Dream impossible to achieve for too many people, which sparks resentment and anger that then gets exploited by demagogues to turn people against each other --- to sound like he/the writer/Marvel was bashing America and "being unpatriotic." Not gonna link the article, because I'd rather not give The Daily Caller more traffic than it merits, but it just viscerally infuriates me that there are people out there who seem to genuinely believe that the only way to express love for your country is to never, ever criticize or question it when it is (or might be) wrong, like they never heard the saying, "My country, right or wrong --- if right, to be kept right, and if wrong, to be set right." Of course, all this is really just dragging fictional superheroes into real-life culture wars, which also reflects Steve's other lament, that it's become all too easy for people to appropriate him and his iconography to make it align with their beliefs and ideologies, with no regard or respect for what and how he actually thinks and feels and believes. A lot like what The Daily Caller is trying to do here, in my opinion.

[Marvell2100]

So Coates' run hasn't finished yet, right? I feel like this mini was going to lead to the new Cap book, but maybe not.

Same thing with his BP.

[Huntsman Spider]

Same thing with his BP.

The delays?

[Tien Long]

You're welcome, and that would be nice. All four 616 Captains America together. As for the larger and heavier ideas expressed in this issue, I don't think Steve (or Christopher Cantwell) was necessarily trying to say anything entirely bad about the "white picket fences" version of the American Dream in and of itself, just pointing out that the aspirations embodied and tied up in that have all too often represented opportunities long denied to others, so there is a certain understandable "sour grapes" feeling about it.

Thanks bro. Yeah, the negative aspects are there. Depends on just what you choose to focus on, retain, and change.

Some other random Cap thoughts:

- Watched Winter Soldier with my mom for the first time yesterday. Watching Captain America on July 4th is quite an appropriate way to celebrate! It had been years since I had seen the movie in it's entirety. I kinda forget that there are other scenes besides the elevator fight . Seeing my mom enjoy the film was great too. She enjoyed all of the twists and turns. Definitely was surprised at how the Winter Soldier was Bucky (we had watched First Avenger the night before). Mom enjoyed the insight and ideas I brought to the film.

- Yeah, Coates' run is coming to an end. I need to read it in it's entirety to really digest it. Just wonder who the next writer will be.