CAPTAIN AMERICA #31
© Marvel Comics
Mania Grade: A-
Issue: 31
Authors: Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting, Frank D'Armata
Publisher: Marvel
Price: $2.99
Issue: 31
Authors: Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting, Frank D'Armata
Publisher: Marvel
Price: $2.99
CAPTAIN AMERICA #31
By: Kurt AmackerReview Date: Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Much has passed since Steve Rogers died on the steps of a New York courthouse in Captain America #25. Bucky Barnes – his old partner and the Winter Soldier – has resolved to kill Tony Stark for his role in the superhero war that led to Cap’s death. He has already stolen Captain America’s shield and confronted the killers – or some of them, at least. As he prepared to take out the Red-Skull-posing-as-Aleksander-Lukin, the Skull used an old shutdown code from Barnes’s days as an operative for the Soviet Union. Now, criminal psychologist Doctor Faustus talks the Winter Soldier through a series of mental scenarios in which Captain America betrays the young man. At the same time, Faustus’s mind control of ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Sharon Carter – the unwitting second shooter in Cap’s murder – has been completed, forcing her to shoot – but only wound – both the Falcon and the Black Widow before joining the Skull’s terrorist organization. S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Tony Stark has learned of Carter’s defection and Faustus’s mind control over so many of his agents. And, the Winter Soldier’s ability to withstand the Doctor’s psychological assault may be waning.
That’s a lot to take in, but writer Ed Brubaker keeps it coherent and interesting. Lesser writers might struggle with the number of storylines and the – on their face – campy, unashamedly super-heroic tone. But, Brubaker lends the material gravity by treating it with a straight face and nary a wink or a nudge. It sometimes sounds like a rejected plot from Metal Gear Solid, but Brubaker makes you care by spending as much time with his characters’ internal dilemmas as with their external conflicts. Carter’s defection to the Skull has built over several issues, as she struggles with a vision of Doctor Faustus that taunts her and amplifies her guilt over her role in Captain America’s death. But Brubaker works this in degrees, rather than surprising the reader. Similarly, he allows Barnes to reflect on his relationship to Cap, as Faustus finds lingering insecurities and exploits them. Whether he succeeds or not remains for next issue, though the cliffhanger ending has “fake out” written all over it.
Artist Steve Epting and colorist Frank D’Armata effortlessly transition between war-torn Germany in flashback to the streets of New York, with their shadowy, Tom-Clancy-meets-gumshoe-noir art. Their bleak, inky art enhances the series’s moody tone. They never remove the reader from the story with flashy, colorful figures amid silver cityscapes.
Even without its title character Captain America continues to impress. This is the first part of the second arc following the death of Captain America six issues ago. If you can grab the last few issues in trade, this is worth getting.
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