Captain America #2 (SPOILERS)

[Somecrazyaussie]

Same here. I really dug this issue.

I wouldn't mind if the pace started to pick up just a tad but that's a very minor point with me.

What I'm crazy about here is the strong characterization and the promise of a very serious-minded run.

I think the political intrigue is going to get very thick, very fast, with Ross and his machinations along with Steve and T'Challa collaborating.

And oh yeah, Yu draws a totally killer Cap. That panel where he's on the motorcycle is just perfection.

Also, thumbs up for how Coates is handling Sharon and her relationship with Steve.

I agree with all of this. Although I like the pace just fine. It is a slow burn. The minor kinks Coates showed over on Black Panther have been ironed out here. Plus the covers are gorgeous. This book really pops on the shelf. Some of the best character study since Brubaker.

I wish to highlight that the only thing that soured me with regards to this issue is the small, albeit very vocal, fans upset with Marvel shoving Wakanda down their throats. Some were very annoyed that T'challa showed up here and are suddenly condemning Marvel for pushing a "Pro-Black" agenda. How on earth they came to this conclusion, I have no idea.

[Prof. Warren]

I wish to highlight that the only thing that soured me with regards to this issue is the small, albeit very vocal, fans upset with Marvel shoving Wakanda down their throats. Some were very annoyed that T'challa showed up here and are suddenly condemning Marvel for pushing a "Pro-Black" agenda. How on earth they came to this conclusion, I have no idea.

I think the kind of people who would come to that kind of ridiculous conclusion - and the kind that actually worry about a "Pro-Black agenda" - are the kind that you just have to shake your head at and walk away.

[Prof. Warren]

of course it was Kobik. was it supposed to be a mystery?

...Speaking of Kobik, I see that CBR has an article on the front page now asking "did Steve Rogers really strike a bargain with a sentient Cosmic Cube that would return him to life stronger than ever?" and I have to roll my eyes. I honestly don't think Coates was being very cryptic in this issue. Certainly not so much so that there'd be reason to think that there's some hidden meaning to the Kobik references here.

When we see Kobik in this issue, it's about Steve remembering his desire to get back in the game and not sit on the sidelines as an old man. Had nothing to do with making him stronger than he previously was, or some special deal past restoring his youth that we don't know about. He equates his acceptance of Kobik's offer to the deal he made with the government to become Captain America in the first place and the current bargain he's making with T'Challa but it's just about the various deals he's made to be the man he is and keeping fighting the battles that he wants to fight - not "Oh, there's something more we don't know about!"

[Dthirds3]

I'm just wondering how Ross got back into any position of authority after the crap he pulled as Red Hulk with the Intelligencia. Then again, I suppose as long as the general public doesn't know the connection between Ross and Red Hulk, just like they probably didn't know about the shady crap Henry Peter Gyrich was pulling for years on end . . .

I was stated he fought against hydra and that got him a pardon in issue 1/ he's aligned himself with alexa and selina.

[MindofShadow]

calling this the "best character work since brubaker" after two issues seems like extreme hyperbole

[Winterboy]

Two issues with Black Panther and I am out...

[responsarbre]

I don't think so. I think it's pretty clear that it's meant to be Kobik but the OP expressed some doubt about the character's identity as there might not have been a previous panel that showed Kobik saying the exact words she does in Steve's memories here. But I think we're simply seeing things from a different angle than we have before.

About my confusion over whether that was Kobik, it was also that Yu's artwork doesn't do a great job of making it seem like that was a little girl, with the figure not even having the pigtails that Kobik tends to wear more often than not. That, in addition to the fact that she echoed the lines that Alexa was saying in the FCBD issue, and the reference to a bargain made me a little confused.

I'll give it another read later, but I couldn't exactly tell whether or not it was just a literary framing of what happened with Steve in Cosmic Cube World during Secret Empire, especially since you can describe what happens there as "Steve running around with Kobik until he just kind of falls back into reality."

calling this the "best character work since brubaker" after two issues seems like extreme hyperbole

I don't know if anyone has gone quite so far, there have just been comparisons to BruCap's tone and saying that it's in that league.

If you're asking me whether I'm enjoying this more than Remender or Spencer's Cap? The answer is yes, for me. If the question is on whether this Sharon is better than Remender or Spencer's Sharon? I would say yes on both counts. And is this some of the better character work on Steve since Brubaker? Considering the competition is mostly Remender (whose character work mostly consisted of weird parenting retcons) or Spencer (who's work with Steve was ... well I don't think you could exactly say he did much with Steve), I would also say yes.

Two issues with Black Panther and I am out...

I think it's just the one team-up issue and the cameo at the end of this issue.

[Winterboy]

About my confusion over whether that was Kobik, it was also that Yu's artwork doesn't do a great job of making it seem like that was a little girl, with the figure not even having the pigtails that Kobik tends to wear more often than not. That, in addition to the fact that she echoed the lines that Alexa was saying in the FCBD issue, and the reference to a bargain made me a little confused.

I'll give it another read later, but I couldn't exactly tell whether or not it was just a literary framing of what happened with Steve in Cosmic Cube World during Secret Empire, especially since you can describe what happens there as "Steve running around with Kobik until he just kind of falls back into reality."



I don't know if anyone has gone quite so far, there's just been comparisons to the tone and saying that it's in that league.

If you're asking me whether I'm enjoying this more than Remender or Spencer's Cap? The answer is yes, for me. If the question is on whether this Sharon is better than Remender or Spencer's Sharon? I would say yes on both counts. And is this some of the better character work on Steve since Brubaker? Considering the competition is mostly Remender (whose character work mostly consisted of weird parenting retcons) or Spencer (who's work with Steve was ... well I don't think you could exactly say he did much with Steve), I would also say yes.



I think it's just the one team-up issue and the cameo at the end of this issue.

I really really hope so.

I dropped Coates Black Panther after three issues.

[Winterboy]

Double post.

Sorry,

[Coal Tiger]

calling this the "best character work since brubaker" after two issues seems like extreme hyperbole

Who wrote Cap since Brubaker? Just Remender and Spencer. Spencer never really wrote "our" Cap, and I hated Remender's run, so the "hyperbole" isn't that far off.

[Prof. Warren]

Who wrote Cap since Brubaker? Just Remender and Spencer. Spencer never really wrote "our" Cap, and I hated Remender's run, so the "hyperbole" isn't that far off.

Yeah, I loved Spencer's run but it was definitely not about the real Steve. It was about Sam and Stevil and while I thought Remender had some cool stuff going on, so far this seems much more of what I'm personally looking for in a Cap run and is shaping up to be the meatiest, most dramatic Cap run featuring classic Steve since Brubaker. Doesn't seem like it's overstating things to say so.

[tliscord]

Yeah, I loved Spencer's run but it was definitely not about the real Steve. It was about Sam and Stevil and while I thought Remender had some cool stuff going on, so far this seems much more of what I'm personally looking for in a Cap run and is shaping up to be the meatiest, most dramatic Cap run featuring classic Steve since Brubaker. Doesn't seem like it's overstating things to say so.

I share your sentiments. I wonder too if this current run will strengthen Spencer’s Secret Empire ...which not only left me disappointment but disoriented. It just didn’t feel complete. Remender said he wanted to put Cap through his paces and see how he responded ... in that case it was Dimension Z. I’m not sure Spencer described Cap struggles so much as everyone elses. Waid disappointingly ignored Secret Empire in general. Despite the compressed but nice Omega issue, we really haven’t seen Cap’s response ... until now. And now I’m excited again.

I agree Sharon is written well ... and I think she’ll have her own agenda too, her own bargain as it were to finally address Dimension Z, which also seemed incomplete and a bit hollow.

[responsarbre]

Oh, I feel dumb. I get why I thought that it might not have been Kobik in those flashbacks. I was thinking of it as Steve talking to her during Secret Empire, and not Steve talking to her during Pleasant Hill. The line "I can make you strong again" sounded like it made a lot more sense during Pleasant Hill (when Steve was old and not strong), so I read back to Sam Wilson: Captain America #7, and what do you know, she says those exact words.

So, Steve is saying he regrets making that bargain with Kobik because he unintentionally unleashed HydraCap. That's gotta feel bad, for sure. Also confirms that Steve's memory goes right up to when Kobik swapped him out/turned him into Stevil.

[tliscord]

Oh, I feel dumb. I get why I thought that it might not have been Kobik in those flashbacks. I was thinking of it as Steve talking to her during Secret Empire, and not Steve talking to her during Pleasant Hill. The line "I can make you strong again" sounded like it made a lot more sense during Pleasant Hill (when Steve was old and not strong), so I read back to Sam Wilson: Captain America #7, and what do you know, she says those exact words.

So, Steve is saying he regrets making that bargain with Kobik because he unintentionally unleashed HydraCap. That's gotta feel bad, for sure. Also confirms that Steve's memory goes right up to when Kobik swapped him out/turned him into Stevil.

Well said.
He bargained to be the super soldier in WW2, not to be left behind, to be the man, the hero. He bargained with Kobik for the same reasons ... unfortunately it was a different outcome and he’s now left with that realization and guilt. Coates is a pretty smart writer weaving this together. And now we have another bargain with T’Challa. How much you want to bet this won’t work out well either.

[Michael Watkins]

Sharon's got a point. he could have asked for her to be rejuvenated, as well. Kobik, on her own, quickly fixed Sin's face. it was well within the scope of her abilities.