Link: http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=150886WARNING: MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR CAPTAIN AMERICA #36Captain America is one of the few comics that manages to melt my face on a monthly basis. Ed Brubaker has set such a high standard of quality in this title that anything less than a great issue would be disappointing. Luckily, "Disappointment" isn't part of Bru's vocabulary. This month, he delivers yet another excellent issue from the Steve-Rogers-less(?) comic. There are a myriad of reasons why Captain America is so good, but what stuck out the most for me this issue is the last few panels. I'll say it again, SPOILER ALERTS ON. First things first... Whatever is in that tank, Brubaker has already said that it's NOT A CLONE, and no it's also NOT A SKRULL. Capische? Good. Moving on... I may have overreacted the first time I saw these panels. But c'mon, it's Steve effin' Rogers! I never realized just how much I missed his presence in the title until I saw "him" in that tank. But when I got to think more about it, I realized that this could be bad. If it's not a clone or a Skrull, then what is it? I highly doubt that it's the real Steve Rogers... so what, is it a robot?? There's a possibility that Bru may have written himself into a corner here. But Ed has never given me reason to doubt his storytelling prowess before, so why should I start now? Oh well, at least one question that's been nagging in my mind is answered: 
Captain America #39 Cover. On Sale June 2008
READ ED BRUBAKER's INTERVIEW WITH NEWSARAMA
 | Steve. is. back.
wh00-h00!!!!!! =D |
 | Steve: You dare wear the stars and stripes while holding a gun?
Bucky: Oh, crap... um...uh... I missed you? |
 | the currently popular theory is that it's still not steve rogers. it's not a clone, it's not a skrull.
it's the 1950s captain america that's been brainwashed as a nazi. the reasons so far are,
1) the 1950s captain america underwent plastic surgery to look like steve rogers.
2) ed brubaker says in that interview that the story is going to reward longtime cap readers, and if anything, knowing who the 1950s captain america was is something only longtime cap readers would know.
3) the time machine that the red skull stole from doom has so far been unused.
4) ed brubaker says that his entire run on cap is one big storyline, so we should expect the time machine to be used in the future (likesay, getting 1950s cap back into this era)
that's it. for the record i am hoping that it is the real steve rogers, but the current fanboy theory still holds up. |
 | Omfg. I don't even read Captain America and I'm in awe. |
 | this explained why red skull was laughing so hard a few pages before that "ZOMG! it's Cap!!" scene. :D |
 | I don't think it's Steve Rogers. As Brubaker said, it's not a clone, or a skrull...and i'm pretty sure it's not Steve Rogers either.
Brubaker is too brillliant a writer to suddenly undo the icon's death and tear down the masterful job he's doing at the same time. People all over love the new Winter Soldier turned Cap (I'm one of them!! Winter Soldier/Cap is my ultimate fave hero!) and when you think about it, tossing a 'Steve Rogers' (whatever 'he' is) right at the new Captain is an attack on both fronts: it messes with Bucky's head psychologically about whether he deserves to carry the shield, and two, it gives the Skull an advantage and a distraction to exploit at the same time.
It's not Steve. Brubaker turned Steve into an AMAZING character, and while I miss him, I trust him to continue the fantastic job he's been doing every month, turning me into a die-hard Cap fan who's got every issue and trade. Steve was a legend...but he's got a great guy in James Barnes following through in upholding the legacy.
Whaever happes, you can BET this 'steve rogers' factors into the Red Skull's plans somehow. |
 | @jepster: LoL! Your lines amused my so much, I just had to use it. Thanks man!
@carbonink: Very good points, what you said made a lot of sense to me. This would be a good explanation as to why The Red Skull has A Steve Rogers in his freakin' basement in the first place.. I don't frequent the boards anymore, so this was a lot of help. Thanks man!
@obi1thejedi: Exactly. That's why he said that "It's almost too perfect" that Bucky's the new Cap. Assuming that the Steve Rogers in his basement IS Nazi-Cap, then it would cause a giant-ass monkey wrench in Bucky's transition as the new Captain America. Not to mention the devastating effect it will have on America's already crumbling economy... worsening the widespread panic that's been plaguing the nation. Touche Mr. Brubaker.
@thehumancomet: Yes, yes and yes! Agree on all points! Well maybe except the "People all over love the new Winter Soldier turned Cap" bit. There are still a lot of people against Bucky taking up the mantle.. and it's quite understandable. In some ways, he is a bastardization of a lot of things that Cap stands for. But for me, it doesn't matter. It was masterfully executed and I couldn't think of a better way to evolve Cap's already formidable legacy. Bucky-as-Cap, woohoo!
P.S. The Nazi-Cap-in-the-basement theory fits perfectly with the storyline.. So as far as I'm concerned the question of who's in that tank has already been answered ^_^ |
 | Okay... let's review the parameters that this Man in the Tank has set:
1. It's NOT a clone. (Rule out the Jackal and Ben Reilly, thank God!)
2. It's not a Skrull or any similar shape-shifting creature, like those Cthullu-like creatures from the Infinity War.
3. It's definitely Steve Rogers, the original Captain America from yonder World War 2.
Ergo, my hypothesis is this:
The Captain America that we have previously known as the leader of the Avengers was NOT Steve Rogers!
dum dum dum DUM!!! |
 | FTW - fuck the world? or for the win? |
 | if this were the DCU, he'd simply be cap from one of the infinite dimensions. but this is marvel, so he must be... ugly rob leifield-drawn heroes reborn cap! *shudder* |
 | I wonder how this would tie in to the upcoming Avengers/Invaders.... Wala kasing set time frame ang comics e! |
 | Brubaker won't bring Steve Rogers who died back alive at this point in time. It's too soon. At least not after around 5-20 years give or take just like OMD and the Ben Reilly disaster.
Every replacement of an icon has to go through some training or baptism of fire with retro reminders of the origin of that icon. Just like in DCU when Tim Drake assumed the mantle of Robin, out came another Dick Grayson his age to spar with him. Like Kyle Rayner when he was supposedly THE last Green Lantern, a similar aged Hal Jordan pops up to stir things up. And so on and so forth.
Well, that's just in the DCU. But it doesn't exempt Marvel from doing the same old redundant formula.
If there's gonna be a return of the real Steve Rogers or some clone from the dead or comatose or time travel mumbo-jumbo, it'll have to be after a few more years in real time. |
| I'll stick with the Bucky-turned-Cap shtick for the moment... The Winter Soldier as Cap shows a Captain America that gets hurt and fucks up.... This is way more interesting than the return of Steve Rogers....
If their going to bring him back, why kill him in the first place. Sabi nga nila, if it ain't broke don't fix it...
But lets just put our faith in ol' Brubaker since he has been dishing out good stuff... (Even in the X-books)... |
 | Okay, we all know that Steve Rogers is going to be revived eventually, but I'm pretty sure that Brubaker's not going to do that so soon after killing him and building up Bucky as Cap (also, there's the whole Fallen Son thing; it'd be like Marvel slapping every fan's face - oh wait, One More Day).
The issue didn't have the same effect on me as with other people though, since I got spoiled (through wizarduniverse.com). Still a great issue regardless |
| somehow, i don't think Ed Brubaker's a big fan of Liefield's Heroes Reborn run...that was like the pre-Ultimate Marvel Universe before they finally got it right with the REAL Ultimate Marvel U. Heroes Reborn had its moments, but for the most part, it was eeeeehhhh. |
 | It could be that the Red Skull planned getting the body, reviving Steve and then transfering his mind to it.
Isn't World War 2 Steve already coming back? Avengers/Invaders right? |
| I actually just finished rereading my run of Cap from #25 to #34 and there's a panel where the Skull asks Fautus, "Is the BODY ready?" Then there's another part where Arnim Zola tells the Skull that "Anything Doom can build, I can reverse-engineer."
I'm not sure what those two are building or if they're even connected at all, but I'm sure the Skull has his own plans for the 'Steve Rogers' in his basement. And I bet they're not good.
Brubaker said in the interview link above that this Steve Rogers has nothing to do with Avengers/Invaders and I think he's telling the truth. He's established the Cap-verse well enough to let it stand on its own....
Funny how I once thought the Skull was one of the silliest and boring villains. Under Brubaker, he's really risen to astonishingly interesting levels of menace. |
| yes its Avengers/Invaders with covers from Alex Ross |
 | Guys, look at the text bubble. Is he a zombie? |
 | i'll stick with my theory that the cap who died was the skrull (the body didn't turn back into a skrull due to... super soldier serum,maybe? it just withered instead...) and this guy in the tank is the real thing... plucked out of time by the skull using doom's machine then replaced with the skrull... hehe |
| |
The Captain America that we have previously known as the leader of the Avengers was NOT Steve Rogers! 
