The return of Captain America is imminent!

Start counting down, ladies and gents, because after more than two years, Steve Rogers is set to return to the Marvel 616 Universe (that's the regular Marvel Universe for those who aren't in the know)!

The American icon returns in issue #600...how can the numbering system jump from the #40s to #600 you wonder? Well, Marvel are going back to the original numbering system and the return issue would be Cap's 600th issue, if you add up all the issues from the various series.

Ed Brubaker's run on the current Captain America series has been hailed as one of the greatest ever and even though I don't buy the single issues of the regular series (I'm awaiting for the Omnibus instead...already have Volume One which reprints the first 25 issues of Brubaker's run on the title), I'll be sure to run out to grab Captain America #600!

The article about Steve Rogers' return is featured here on the Marvel.com website:

Reborn Revealed
http://marvel.com/news/comicstories.8368.Reborn_Revealed

[PREVIEW OF THE WEEK] Captain America #32

They still haven't brought back Captain America to the land of the living. But it's only a matter of time now...he's been dead what, seven months? Once again, my prediction is that he comes back next year, just in time for his movie (or the announcement of his movie). Just a couple more months. Stay tuned.

But in the meantime, here's what's happening in his comic. And I still haven't even opened up the Captain America Omnibus I purchased a while back, let alone read it! One comic at a time...have too many other things and hobbies on my plate at the moment.


[PREVIEW OF THE WEEK] CAPTAIN AMERICA #32
The epic ‘Death of Captain America’ story continues!

Posted November 15, 2007 9:45 AM

The Falcon and Black Widow hunt together! Can they save the Winter Soldier from becoming a tool of the Red Skull again? And if they do, will he just go kill Tony Stark? And what of Agent 13, Sharon Carter, who shot the final bullets into her true love, Steve Rogers, and has seen her life fall apart since then? Those answers, much action and more! From the Eisner Award-winning Best Writer Ed Brubaker and Fan-Favorite Artist Steve Epting, who brought you the biggest-selling comic of the year!

CAPTAIN AMERICA #32
Written by Ed Brubaker
Penciled by Steve Epting
Cover by Steve Epting
Rated T+…$2.99
On Sale—11/21/07

Capt A and...The Matrix?

The next script comes courtesy of Theo. I had no part in scripting it (except for a tiny little edit and giving additional suggestions). We were chatting over the phone about how we used to laugh at our little in-jokes that we'd create when watching movies and he came up with this:


Right, Ian and I were discussing our Lord of The Rings jokes quite a long time ago and how we'd have Hugo Weaving saying to Frodo: "Welcome to the Matrix, Frodo" and Gandalf proclaiming that he is Magneto... then in all the Captain A(sh) furore, I came up with this:

Agent Smith (asking gravely and pointing at Captain Ash's forehead): What's the A on your head stand for? Anderson?
Capt Ash: Who wants to know?
Agent Smith: I am Agent Smith. Agent of the Matrix, some time rebel leader of the elves, leader of the Decepticons and anarchist, V.
Ash: Well hello Mister Fancypants. Well, I've got news for you pal, you ain't leadin' but two things: Jack and shit... and Jack just left town.
*points double barreled shotgun under Smith's nose and shoots*

Ian: Just added that red bit there since Hugo Weaving also voiced Megatron in the live action Transformers movie!

Mary Jane you wench (a continuation)!

And here's a little bonus for you, just before I leave this blog for the weekend: part 2 of the story!

This was also scripted on the same day after Theo gave me a suggestion to use Superman since he was already in the background...nonchalantly thrown in by me in the first script as a sight gag. How it came back and paid dividends!


Panel Y (actually, let's just call this Panel 8) - As Captain Ash and Spider-man charge towards each other, Superman, who was a casual observer several panels ago (talk about foreshadowing!) all of a sudden flies down and swoops up Mary Jane in his arms.


Panel 9 - Captain Ash and Spider-man stop momentarily and look up to the sky. Spider-man points upwards.

Spider-man: "Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane!"

BC: "It's some schmuck in red undies with your girlfriend, you moron!"


Panel 10 - Up in the sky, Superman has Mary Jane in his arms. She doesn't look afraid though...she's embracing Superman with her arms around his neck!

Mary Jane: "So...are you really more powerful than a locomotive? I mean...everywhere?"


Panel 11 - Mary Jane looks down at Superman's...uh...package.

Mary Jane: "Please don't say you're faster than a speeding bullet."


Panel 12 - Superman nods and Mary Jane leans in and kisses him on the lips.


Panel 13 - Superman gives the reader a knowing wink.

Superman: "Hail to the SUPER king, baby!"

Mary Jane you wench!

I present to you: The further adventures of Captain Ash! As I said before, I was just on a roll and having a blast scripting Bruce Campbell as Captain America. There's just something so inherently WRONG (and hilarious) about someone in the red, white and blue costume spouting inane lines like "Yo, she-bitch!" and "Come get some", you know?

This one was a two parter. I originally couldn't think up a good ending for this script, so I left it at that and asked for suggestions from Theo. 5 July 2007 once again:


Panel 1 - Captain Ash has Mary Jane Watson in his arms and about to kiss her. MJ clearly has a disgusted look at her face and her hands are trying to push Ash back.

BC: "Gimme some sugar baby."


Panel 2 - All of a sudden, Spider-man swings out of nowhere and kicks Captain Ash in the face.

BC: "Oof!"


Panel 3 - Spider-man and Captain Ash face down each other. Spider-man shoots some web fluid at Captain Ash, who easily cuts it away with his chainsaw. You can clearly see Superman in the background, with red underwear on, flying past, watching the fight.

Dialogue box: "In the most astonishing crossover movie this summer: It's a fight to the death as Captain America and Spider-man fight for Mary Jane Watson's affections...TO THE DEATH!

Spider-man: "You stay away from her, freak!"

BC: "Looks who's talking, you effeminate screwhead! Who dresses up in their underwear to fight?"


Panel 4 - Spider-man puts himself between MJ and Captain Ash.

Spider-man: "To get to her, you've got to go through me!"


Panel 5 - Ash spits on the ground and pulls out his boomstick.

BC: "Yo, she-bitch! Let's go!"


Panels 6 onwards - As much of a fight scene as possible. Please take creative license here Theo...have Captain Ash fighting dirty and cram in as many cheesy "Wham! Bap! Pow!" bubbles like those on the Batman TV series.


Panel X - Spider-man and Captain Ash, clearly tired, their costumes torn and tattered and both men sweating and bleeding, hunch over and face each other for the final time.

BC: "You still want a piece of me? Huh? Come get some."



Alright. I was inspired by this seemingly crazy crossover, but now I can't seem to think of a proper ending that will do this justice. Suggestions, Theo? At this rate, we can have a weekly strip of just Bruce Campbell as Captain America!

When Captain America throws his mighty shiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeld...

More scripts featuring Captain Ash! At least, that was the name I coined since "Bruce Campbell as Captain America" just was too bloody long.

This one, once again, was on 5 July 2007:


By popular demand (from the one other person who actually comes to read the stuff we post here): More of Bruce Campbell's misadventures as the Star Spangled Centurion - Captain Ash!


Panel 1 - Captain Ash and Iron Man, standing some distance away, like one of those showdowns you see in Westerns. (Camera angle: Perhaps starting from Iron Man's waist, and you see Captain America in the background. To emphasise that it's a "Western" kind of showdown, you could have one of those dust balls blowing across the panel)

Dialogue box: "And now: Outtakes and deleted scenes from Bruce Campbell's Captain America audition tape!"

BC: "Buckle up ironhead, coz you're going for a ride!"


Panel 2 - Captain Ash throws his shield towards Iron Man, who easily evades it.

Dialogue box (musical lyrics, so if you could add a note or two beside the text to indicate it's music...): "When Captain America throws his mighty shiiiiiieeeeld....."

BC: "That's it, go ahead and run. Run home and cry to mama!"


Panel 3 - Iron Man sticks out his tongue at Captain Ash with the words "neener neener" surrounding his head. Don't ask how Iron Man can stick his tongue out through his helmet...

Iron Man: "That the best you can do? Haha, you're a jerk! You're a goody little two-shoes!"


Panel 4 - Close up on Captain Ash's face. He has a raised eyebrow, a la The Rock.

Off panel Iron Man voice balloon: "Goody little two-shoes!"


Panel 5 - Captain Ash's expression has changed to anger. He reaches for the boomstick strapped to his back.

Off panel Iron Man voice balloon: "Goody little two-shoes!"


Panel 6 - Captain Ash shoots Iron Man in the face...metallic helmet pieces fly everywhere and we can see part of Iron Man's brain exploding out! A big caption of "BANG!" can be placed somewhere in the panel.

Iron Man: "Goody lit..."


Panel 7 - Captain Ash stands over the body of Iron Man and kicks him in the nuts.

BC: "I'm not THAT good."

Bruce Campbell is Captain America!

Well, since I missed posting yesterday, thought I'd give my readers a bonus script to make up for the lack of one yesterday!

As I said in the previous entry, an avalanche of ideas of Bruce Campbell being Captain America flooded my head. I was getting a real kick out of writing Bruce Campbell in Cap's chainmail costume and was regurgitating ideas out of my brain faster than I could scribble them down on paper!

This one and the previous script were two of my favourite scripts to write. (Note that this script MUST come straight after the previous one, in the correct order, to lend some semblence of continuity and follow through) This was published, once again, on 5 July 2007. Enjoy.


Panel 1 - Bruce Campbell, in Captain America outfit (still with the chainsaw and the shield) posing, a la THIS image.

Dialogue box: "Exclusive! Secret tapes from Bruce Campbell's audition for the Captain America movie: revealed for the first time!"

Bruce Campbell (BC): Klaatu varada nik*coughcoughcough*to!


Panel 2 - Captain America slugging Iron Man (Theo: If you could make it such that it looks like the cover to Captain America #1, that'd be great! Perhaps show BC's chainsaw also ripping into Iron Man's armour)

Dialogue box: "See Captain America fighting for leadership of the Avengers!"

BC: "Well hello Mr Fancypants. Well, I've got news for you pal, you ain't leading but two things: Jack and shit. And Jack left town."


Panel 3 - Bruce Campbell throwing his shield into some A.I.M or Hydra agents.

Dialogue box: "Watch as Captain America protects our land from terrorists!"

BC: "Alright you primitive screwheads, listen up! You see this? This is my BOOMSTICK! Errr...shield. Sorry."


Panel 4 - Close up of Bruce Campbell pointing at the "A" on his forehead. (Theo: You MUST use this classic image right here!)


Dialogue box: "Witness Captain America's passion for the red, white and blue!"

Bruce Campbell (BC): "Surrender? SURRENDER?! You think this letter on my head stands for France?"


Panel 5 - Bruce Campbell puts his hand to the side of his mouth, as if he is whispering to the reader.

BC: "It actually stands for Ash. Ashley J. Williams. Who wants to know?"


Panel 6 - Bruce Campbell bends a hot chick backwards (think one of those trashy romance novel covers) and is just about to kiss her.

Dialogue box: "See Captain America save the day and then get the girl!"

BC: "Gimme some sugar baby."


Panel 7 - Captain America in a traditional "US Rules!" pose (Perhaps something like the background image here)

Dialogue box: "Come watch Captain America: the sure-to-be highest grossing blockbuster movie of 2008, coming soon to a cinema near you!"

BC: "Hail to the king, baby."


After this script was posted, Theo came up with this brilliant idea too!


Hey Ian, how about this image drawn as the panel before the one where he points to the "A" on his head? Imagine him going: "What's that? Surrender?"

And then the next panel is the classic Capt A one. Hehehe.. :oD


Funny funny stuff! Our love for Bruce Campbell (and not in a gay way, not that there's anything wrong with that) knows no bounds!

Captain America: Groovy

Alrighty...the next couple of scripts I wrote were just an exploration of an idea Theo had. He posted up this entry:

Bruce Campbell auditioning for The Comedian

Hey Ian! Remember how I said BC looks perfect for the role of The Comedian in the coming Watchmen movie? How about a script of BC auditioning for the character, but still very much in his Ash mentality?

E.g. saying "Groovy." when given a form to fill in, or "Come get some." when it's his turn. And maybe one of the last few panels or something where one of the staff (a woman for our purposes) says he can't get the part. BC (Ash) then gets mad and says "Yo, she-bitch, let's go!!!" and then there's a full shot of BC in Ash mode complete with buzzing chainsaw and classic crazy Ash grin on his face.

OH!!! AND LEST I FORGET!! The reason why he's probably rejected is because he forgets his part!! Like you know how he forgets the magic word in the movie? Like "Clatto Verata Niii *cough cough*" Haha, get what I mean? :oD

Maybe a scene of him and the director of Watchmen could go like this too:

Zach Snyder: You're not one of my actors... who are you?
Ash: Who wants to know?
Zach Snyder: I am Zach Snyder. Director of 300 and Watchmen, Lord of the box office in early 2007 and leader of its fans.
Ash: Well hello Mister Fancypants. Well, I've got news for you pal, you ain't leadin' but two things right now: Jack and shit... and Jack just left town.


That's a pretty funny script in his own. I had Marvel Comics on my mind at the time, since I'd just written the Wolverine script, and I thought: what a great idea, BC auditioning for roles, now that he's sort of a has-been actor!

And then it hit me. Captain America recently died in comics and I really wanted to do something to honour him in memorium. And since Theo was talking about Bruce Campbell, and idea just clicked in my head.

So on 5 July 2007, this script was born:


Panel 1 - Image of Captain America surrendering to Iron Man (check out pages of Civil War #7 for a shot). Perhaps he could have his arms together, stretched out, as if presenting himself to be handcuffed. (It'd be funny if someone threw something at Iron Man's head and it bounced off...or splashed like a tomato)

Dialogue box: "In 2007, Captain America voluntarily surrendered to S.H.I.E.L.D and the forces led by Iron Man to end the Marvel Civil War."


Panel 2 - Image of Captain America being handcuffed and led away.

Dialogue box: "Captain America was arrested and put on a very public trial."


Panel 3 - Captain America, lying on the ground bleeding to death. (Check out this picture for reference)

Dialogue box: "But a single bullet from an assassin's rifle ended his legacy."


Panel 4 - completely black, with only the text in white.

Text going across the middle of the panel as large as possible: "Or did it?"


Panel 5 - Ash mimicking his pose from Army of Darkness but in a Captain America costume. The "wench" by his side is wearing a S.H.I.E.L.D uniform - Sharon Carter perhaps? (Theo: Perhaps for this, it'd be great to recreate the ENTIRE movie poster of Army of Darkness - click to see - but dress Ash up in a Captain America costume. His chainsaw MUST be seen though. Please put Captain America's shield in Ash's left hand though)

Dialogue box at the top of the panel: "Coming in 2008: Bruce Campbell auditions for the Captain America live action movie!"

Bruce Campbell: "Groovy.


That was just the start of the avalanche of ideas featuring Bruce Campbell as Captain America. Stay tuned for more of that in the next couple of days!

Heaps of new comics purchased yesterday!

Bought my comics yesterday! I used the 25% voucher at Classic Comics so I got a nice big fat discount. Or, the way I looked at it was like this: I didn't get a discount. I paid full price for my comics, but I received a free TPB thanks to that voucher. :D

Picked up quite a bit of stuff:

Y - The Last Man Vols.1-3 TPB (yes, I'm trying to recreate my collection here a la Preacher! It's such a great read after all)
Exiles Vols.13-15 TPB - have the first 12 volumes in Singapore and I love this series
Grimm Fairy Tales Vol.2 TPB - the first TPB is out of print! So I can't even ORDER it! NOOO...where can I get it from? Comics R Us hopefully? Amazon a last resort?
Mighty Avengers #5 - review to come soon
Marvel Zombies 2 #1 - YESSSSSSSSS! More brains for everyone!
Friendly Neighbourhood Spider-man #whatever - part two of One More Day
Captain America: The Chosen #3

Would have been a bit more, had I been able to order Grimm Fairy Tales Vol.1 and if they had New Avengers/Transformers #4 in stock. Ah well...I have another 25% coupon to be used sometime over the next two weeks! I AM running out of TPBs to buy though...only the expensive HCs I'm sort of after nowadays. :(

Read all the single issues yesterday night. All really good reads! My one gripe with the Captain America: The Chosen storyline is that it's just moving so SO slow. The penciller, Mitch Breitweiser looks like he's going to be Marvel's next breakout star penciller. His pencilling reminds me of Bryan Hitch's super detailed pencils, but with a bit more grit to give his characters that rugged look. He seems to draw all the individual links in Cap's chainmail armour as well!

I'm still trying to figure out where The Chosen fits into Marvel continuity. They have Captain America half dead in some facility somewhere...is this straight after events in Civil War and Captain America #25 when he was shot? Or is this some separate incident? It's hard to tell.

And writer David Morrell has revealed that Captain America has some sort of additional powers! He is some sort of pseudo-telepath! What the !?!?!?

The story goes as such:

As we all know, the super soldier serum that Captain America took increased his physical ability immensely. What we DIDN'T know (and what David Morrell has suggested in The Chosen) is that his BRAIN was also affected by the super soldier serum.

There was a time when Captain America's body had broken down and he couldn't fight anymore. But Cap's brain was still functioning at peak capacity. Cap discovered he could visualise certain parts of the world...enemy bunkers and territory...just like a satellite could, but in more vivid detail! And Cap was a commercial artist, so he could draw up those "maps" he envisioned in his mind.

The US government conducted some experiments on Cap (with his approval) and they basically linked his brain with some computer or whatever...and it was discovered that Cap could ALSO project his likeness in certain places in the world! Cap could "telepathically" project his likeness in, say, an enemy base, and make people think that he was there.

Ugh. I'm still interested in how this series goes (because I think they might choose a NEW Captain America), but I'm hoping Marvel doesn't tinker too much with Cap's powers. It's one thing that he's a super soldier, but to give him mental abilities too? Hmmm. :(

I really enjoy Joe Quesada's pencils on this One More Day arc in the Spider-man titles. The weblines he draws are amazing...very Todd McFarlane-esque! The story seems to be really awesome as well, tugging at the core elements of Spidey-lore: things like "Spider-man does not kill" are tested and examined and how Aunt May is a centric character to Peter's world and what happens when she's taken away from him.

Unfortunately, I was really tired when reading it and I kept nodding off, so I don't quite remember what I read anymore. I think I'll have to read it again tonight.

Strangely enough, after finishing the second part of One More Day, I was awake enough again to read finish the other two issues! Mighty Avengers was brilliant again...can't get enough of Frank Cho's cheesecake art. The way he draws Ms Marvel...rrrrrrooowwwwwwwwr.

Mighty Avengers featured a knock-down drag-out fight between Sentry and the female Ultron. But the man with the power of a million exploding suns just could not put Ultron away...his punches wrecked half of Ultron's face...and all Ultron did was to reform it again, a la the T-1000 liquid metal regeneration in Terminator 2! It was revealed that Ultron was just trying to distract the Avengers while achieving the REAL goal of hacking into the computers of nuclear installations over the world.

Ares has really been elevated to being a major player in the Marvel pantheon. He devised this plan all on his own to get Hank Pym to shrink Ares down to a microscopic level, and then Ares could enter the body of Ultron and hit her with a virus. Hmmm...someone's been watching Independence Day too many times I think. When Hank Pym suggests that his ex-wife, the Wasp, would be the ideal person to plant the virus, Ares insists he be the one to do it, because Ultron has no idea what to expect from him and because Ares has the self-confidence in his own abilities to layeth the smacketh down.

Marvel Zombies 2 was last, and boy, was I really anticipating this. It's 40 years later and the core team of Hulk, Iron Man, Spider-man, Captain America, Luke Cage and Giant Man, who were imbued with the power cosmic after they defeated (and ingested) Galactus, have joined up with some other cosmic characters in Gladiator, Dark Phoenix, Thanos and Firelord. They have scoured the entire universe...and found there is nothing left to eat! They decide to head back to Earth, because Giant Man vaguely remembers a dimension-hopping device that Reed Richards and Iron Man were working on could send them to another dimension...with a lot more food.

While they're on their way back to Earth, Hulk punches Thanos' head clean off and the Marvel Zombies discover Ego, the Living Planet! It's pretty funny the way they start chomping down on Ego and when someone remarks: "A living planet! Why didn't we find this earlier?"

Back on Earth, Black Panther and his Acolytes have rebuilt some semblence of civilisation. They have not been able to repopulate the world, but they have, at least, birthed the new generation of Acolytes...who aren't too keen to adhere to Black Panther's rule as they see him as an archaic, no-action leader. The Acolytes plan to assassinate Black Panther and take over his rule.

Meanwhile, Black Panther's sun finds the head of Hawkeye and brings him back to the Panther's kingdom. It is revealed that while the Wasp is still a zombie, she no longer feels "the hunger" and it is further revealed that without eating flesh, the Marvel Zombies go through some sort of "zombie detoxification" and can live as normal again.

Black Panther gets stabbed when he sleeps and to save him from a certain death, the Wasp chomps down on his neck...rebooting "the hunger" in her and changing Black Panther into a Marvel Zombie! The two of them greedily devour the Panther's assailant and intestines, livers and spleens all fly across the room and get digested.

Oh man, I can't wait for the next issue! Are the rest of the Acolytes dead, since they're just food for Black Panther and the Wasp? What's going to happen when the power cosmic-imbued Marvel Zombies return to Earth?

Only a month's wait to find out!

Cover of the Week: Oct. 18, 2007

The cover of the week this week is a doozy: the Winter Soldier (that's Bucky for all those who DON'T read Captain America) lying lifeless on the ground clutching Cap's shield while the Red Skull's face adorns the entire backdrop a la 28 Days Later.

COVER OF THE WEEK: OCT. 18, 2007
The comic art that stands apart from the rest

Posted October 18, 2007 1:45 PM

When the new crop of weekly comics arrives at Wizard HQ, Wizard Creative Director and head designer Steve Blackwell reviews the most compelling covers of the bunch.

COVER OF THE WEEK: OCT. 18, 2007
Captain America #31
Cover by Steve Epting
Marvel



“Maybe I’m biased, since I’m a huge Cap fan, but Epting has really elevated his craft. The composition on this piece is uncomplicated, yet it has power. The Red Skull’s eyes convey pure evil. There’s no mistaking his malevolence. The all-important eye contact grabs the viewer. The prone figure of Cap’s onetime sidekick lying next to the fallen hero’s shield establishes the title of the book without depicting the lead character, and sets the tone for the story within. Overall a simple, powerful and effective cover image.”


That's a pretty haunting image. One of the runner-up covers is pretty nifty too, featuring a very sexy Zatanna...by Dave Hughes, master of cheesecake pin-ups no less!

---

Catwoman #72
Cover by Adam Hughes
DC
“Even with a high degree of visual complexity, Hughes delivers a cover that challenges the viewer not to look. The two sides of Catwoman—the happy-go-lucky thief and the tortured soul—are represented as posters in the hands of Zatanna. The expressions he manages to capture are amazing. Anchoring the piece is the ridiculously sexy image of Zatanna. As a female superhero costume, a top hat, tuxedo jacket and fishnets are quite the statement. Ooph.”

By the new Ross costume's early light

As posted last week, Captain America is going to have a new costume! But with a twist...and one I do not enjoy.

BY THE NEW ROSS COSTUME’S EARLY LIGHT
5 burning questions with writer Ed Brubaker about Captain America’s new threads

By Brian Warmoth

Posted October 12, 2007 11:30 AM

Yesterday, Marvel premiered Captain America’s new, shinier Alex Ross design for the coming year, and the American hero looks like he’ll be entering 2008 with guns a-blazing. Writer Ed Brubaker talked about the gun and a few other key points about the design and the future of his blockbuster series’ lead character.

WIZARD: What do you like the most about Alex’s design work?

BRUBAKER: He’s got a classic sense of heroic costume design. His design work reminds me in some ways of the work John Romita did on new designs in the ’70s.

Who’s behind the mask?

BRUBAKER: Like I’m going to tell you. It’s Gwen Stacy’s clone.

Is this the first time since Dick Purcell in 1944 that Captain America has wielded a gun?

BRUBAKER: No. In the late ’60s there was a Cap novel called The Great Gold Steal where he carried a gun, I believe, and I think he’s used a gun a small number of times since then. But this is the first time it’s been part of his uniform.

What does this image say about the story you’re writing?

BRUBAKER: It’s a costume design. It doesn’t say anything. Hopefully it tells you to read the comics, if anything.

Did you have any input on this costume?

BRUBAKER: Yeah, I was there the whole way through, giving input, as was Steve Epting. Ultimately, though, the original and final designs came down to Alex’s handiwork: taking his original concept sketches, incorporating the ideas we all could agree on and just making it look good.

I wanted a belt buckle, but everyone else shot me down.


A GUN!? A fricking gun!? Ugh, no!

Captain America should be like Batman: he don't need no stinking guns to get the job done. In fact, I'm a bit perturbed about the whole black colour element added to the costume. Why black? What is he mourning? What is he symbolising? Is the black for added stealth, and if so, why continue having the blue, red and white then?

Ugh, no guns please. :( I realise that Captain America is a soldier and he probably has been trained in the use of firearms (and possibly used some against the Nazis in World War II), but this is Captain frickin' America! He doesn't need a gun! All he needs is his trusty shield and he'll mow down enemies faster than any gatling gun could ever hope to achieve without jamming!

A Cap suit re-cap

Captain America. Alex Ross. Put them together and what do you get?

No, not a balding Captain America who can draw/paint better than he did when he was drawing his own Captain America comic in the comic books. It was a rhetorical question.

You actually get Alex Ross designing the classic red, white and blue of Captain America's costume. Hot damn, this should be good!

A CAP SUIT RE-CAP
Alex Ross’ new Captain America design is only the latest outfit in the hero’s long line of flag-waving fashion

By Matt Powell and Brian Warmoth

Posted October 11, 2007 2:50 PM

Throughout his 67-year history, Captain America has never gone without a striking ensemble to match the force of his fist. This week, Marvel unveiled Cap’s suit du jour, a fully armored homage to Steve Rogers’ classic look by the inimitable Alex Ross. Here are the suits that have built one of the longest costume traditions in comics and made Ross’ possible.

THE COSTUME THAT STARTED IT ALL



Rogers’ original shield could have stabbed a hole through someone, and his headwear didn’t offer much in the way of neck protection, but as the decades rolled on, the stars and stripes stayed right where they began.

TRADITIONAL COSTUME



The longest-running Captain America uniform, accompanied by the classic discus shield, is equal parts inspiring to friends and haunting to foes, and proves you can’t beat a classic.

NOMAD

When Rogers rebelled against a government he couldn’t agree with in 1974, he temporarily dropped his red, white and blue duds and slipped into some spandex and a cape whose blue and gold color scheme might have better suited a national hero of Sweden.

THE CAPTAIN



Before John Walker inherited the suit as USAgent, Rogers briefly opted to wear black, keeping his classic red boots and gloves, but becoming significantly less visible against the night sky.

ARMORED COSTUME



When Cap’s super-soldier serum mutated and paralyzed his body, Tony Stark designed an armored exoskeleton to protect the hero in his crusade against injustice.

EX-PATRIOT



Following an accusation of treason and his subsequent exile from the United States, Steve Rogers donned the stars-and-stripes-less garb of the Ex-Patriot.

TRADITIONAL COSTUME WITH POUCHES



Expanding his arsenal beyond his shield, Captain America modified his traditional costume with mounted pouches on his belt, housing tools to keep him prepared for any possible encounter.

Alex Ross talks about Captain America and Kingdom Come

The latest Alex Ross interview from Wizard Universe:

CAP IS BACK!
…or is he? Ross dishes on Avengers/Invaders and his return to Kingdom Come in ‘JSA’

By Danny Spiegel

Posted September 30, 2007 10:40 AM

WIZARD: When Avengers/Invaders was unveiled the initial reaction was that the real Captain America was coming back, but obviously that’s not the case.

ROSS: It was all just a big tease that was entirely my fault. I had this last-minute idea of a teaser illustration of Cap with a “hinting” of the other silhouetted Invaders figures, but focusing on the idea of Cap and the word “Return” in a dramatic haunting. And everybody bit into it. We loved the idea of teasing people for a short time that this was actually the return of Steve Rogers. Not a dream, not a hoax. But of course it would turn out to be, “Oh, it’s time travel and that’s him from the past!” Does that make it unsatisfying? I don’t know. Hopefully it makes it interesting for people just to see where it goes.

Did you even know back then that Captain America would be dead by this point?

No, I didn’t know that Cap was dead until he was dead. I heard a hint of somebody asking me about it, like, a couple of weeks before. “Did you hear about this whole thing that they’re gonna kill Cap?” And I thought, “No, they’re not gonna do that!” And then...bada bing!

Which characters are definitely coming back when this comes out in February?

The original five Invaders, who, technically, were the only ones who actually existed in the ’40s: Captain America, Bucky, Human Torch, Toro and Sub-Mariner. Characters like Union Jack and Spitfire will appear in the series but they actually didn’t exist until the 1970s.

Will the two Buckys interact with each other?

Well, that’s something I’d like to see.

“... He said, coyly.”

[Laughs] That’s enough of a tease, right? After all, it’s not like I can say “He’s gonna meet him in issue #4 and they’re gonna go out and have scones.”

I love cinnamon scones. What about you?

It’s the breakfast of champions.

I think that’s Wheaties, actually. On a more serious note, can you comment on your affinity for characters from the ’40s?

I was always intrigued with these characters from a bygone age that by comparison with a modern art style seemed more like cave paintings. When you look at the earliest style of art given to characters like Superman and so many others, it’s a bizarre origin that was absolutely entrancing to me as a young boy.

Do you ever play, like, big band music to get yourself into the ’40s mode?

No, not at all.

So what type of music do you listen to then?

Uh, Queen doesn’t sound very ’40s-ish, do they? But I do like them as well as the Beatles, the Monkees and Badfinger.


You’re co-plotting Justice Society of America, but whose idea was it to bring in the Kingdom Come Superman?

That was mine. The thing that I miss about the Justice Society that I loved when I was a kid is the fact that they had an older Superman in the group. That was something that was really cool. Not just the idea that he was the first Superman but that here you have him as truly the patriarchal hero. And I made the recommendation that instead of the Earth-2 Superman who I had no idea was going to be revived in Infinite Crisis—

Geoff Johns didn’t tell you?

He did not tell me, no, because he is a sly bastard. [Laughs] I said we—he—should take the Kingdom Come Superman from that story, and then I immediately concocted a way in which we could do this. He’s taken from the middle of the story before the end of Kingdom Come when he’s still wearing the costume and everything.

How does that happen?

I can say that Starman is pivotally responsible for bringing him into the DC Universe.

How long will this Superman be hanging around?

We’ve yet to put a limit on that. I certainly wouldn’t have a grand objection to him being around a year or more. Then again, I don’t control Geoff. And he is a sly bastard. [Laughs]

Five for Friday: Patriot Week

This week's Five For Friday is about the top five patriots in comic book land!

FIVE FOR FRIDAY: PATRIOT WEEK
In the star-spangled tradition of Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters and Captain America, who have books hitting this week, we take a moment to remember our 5 favorite comic book patriots

By Brian Warmoth

Posted September 28, 2007 12:35 PM

America gave the world comic books, jazz, baseball and microwaveable popcorn, which countless heroes in red, white and blue have stood up to defend (along with freedom, liberty and other such things on occasion, of course). With Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti launching their new Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters series this week, alongside the release of Captain America: The Chosen #2, we felt a little bit of the American spirit bubbling up and decided to count off our five favorite heroes to stand up for the American Dream.

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5. The Star-Spangled Kid
Among the many heroes to pick up some red, white and blue spandex in response to Nazism was Sylvester Pemberton, whose legacy stretches nearly across the entire history of DC Comics. Dreamed up by Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel and Hal Sherman, the Kid fought injustice alongside Stripesy, aka Pat Dugan, whose stepdaughter Courtney Whitmore eventually picked up his equipment as Stargirl.

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4. The Shield
This MLJ and Archie Comics icon is notable because he beat Captain America’s debut by more than a year. The original man behind the mask was Joe Higgins, an FBI agent who completed his deceased father’s quest for a super-strength-giving chemical formula. Scattered others over the past 60 years have picked up his mantle, including Lancelot Strong, who rebooted the hero’s story under Cap creators Joe Simon and Jack Kirby.

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3. Liberty Belle
Journalist Libby Lawrence wore a replica of the American emblem that resonated whenever the Philadelphia landmark rang, granting her temporary super-strength. She led the All Star Squadron and eventually married fellow member Johnny Quick. Her daughter Jesse now uses the Liberty Belle name as a member of the Justice Society of America, where her husband Rick Tyler also fights as Hourman.

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2. Uncle Sam
One of the most fearsome pairs of fists in all of comics belongs to this legend, who first came to comics from wunderkind creator Will Eisner at Quality Comics when he rose to action as the spirit of a dead patriot. Since then, the character came to DC and in addition to starring in an epic must-read Alex Ross miniseries, now leads a newly formed team of post-Infinite Crisis Freedom Fighters in his second miniseries from Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti.

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1. Captain America
Some superheroes become legends, and a few transcend comics altogether to become indispensable pieces of history—Captain America has been there ever since Steve Rogers took the super-soldier serum and punched Hitler in the face in 1941. In another Five for Friday, we could easily fill this list with the likes of USAgent, Ultimate Captain America, Bucky and others who have spun out of his pages, but they all rightfully belong in this No. 1 slot, a fact that’s more than corroborated by the widespread media reaction that erupted when he was shot earlier this year.


A bit surprised Wonder Woman wasn't there. Maybe it's because she doesn't really eschew "truth, justice and the American way" and she's just wearing a costume that resembles the American flag.

Actually, Superman eschews "truth, justice and the American way" and though he's as American as apple pie, I suppose he isn't quite a patriot either...or else he'd be wearing as costume that resembles the American flag. Plus he's an alien. Dirty stinking aliens.

New stuff purchased 24 Sep 2007

Headed to Classic Comics yesterday after work to pick up The Complete Bite Club TPB. I read the collected TPB of the series some time ago and it was pretty fantastic, so this was something I was really looking forward to read. Haven't had the time to do so yet, of course.

Oh, and I got the Captain America Omnibus HC yesterday too! I saw that it was on sale and since it was really cheap (as far as 25+ issues worth of a collected edition...hardcover no less!) I decided it would be worth it there and then to buy it on the spot while it was still available. It'd be too difficult (and perhaps expensive if the price went up!) to obtain a copy later...especially since I'm expecting it to be sold out as interest in Captain America picks up when the movie is about to be released...or when Marvel decides to resurrect the character.

Got and read The Pro yesterday...it's hilarious! I couldn't find it on the TPB racks under "R" and I asked the sales assistant, who said they had put it with all the other Garth Ennis stuff. Ennis is such a brilliant writer...I often find myself laughing out loud at his dark, sick and twisted humour. Some of my favourite comics and series have been penned by the Irish master scribe: Preacher, the reboot of the Marvel Knights imprint Punisher series ("Welcome Back Frank"), his Marvel Max imprint Punisher series, among others.

Slowly, but surely, I'll catch up on reading all the stuff that I've bought. Gotta find something to do in the evenings when waiting for Aeris to return home, and at night before I go to bed!

Who should be the next Captain America?

Who do YOU think should be the next Captain America? This poll on Wizard Universe:

[POLL] WHO SHOULD BE THE NEXT CAPTAIN AMERICA?
With Marvel’s Sentinel of Liberty currently dead, we need a replacement Star-Spangled Avenger ASAP!

Posted September 9, 2007 11:20 AM

With Marvel’s Sentinel of Liberty currently dead, we need a replacement Star-Spangled Avenger ASAP! So we ask YOU Marvel Zombies:

WHO SHOULD BE THE NEXT CAPTAIN AMERICA?
A. Hawkeye
B. Falcon
C. USAgent
D. The Punisher
E. Winter Soldier

I personally would love Clint Barton (Hawkeye) to be the next Cap, but he's already said in Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America series that he wouldn't want to be Cap because he thinks that by doing so, he's not honouring the legend of Steve Rogers.

I think the next logical person who would be Cap is the Winter Soldier. After all, Bucky, who IS the Winter Soldier, was Cap's long-time partner and he's got the guts, gusto and skills to wield the star spangled shield.

I want want want (but can't have all at once)!

Back this week for more comics and pop culture shenanigans! Aeris and I went to Classic Comics on Friday, so I could see whether my ordered copy of The Complete Bite Club was in yet, but the stupid Connex train and Yarra Trams tram services conspired to get me there AFTER 7pm, when the shop was closed.

I think I also want to purchase the entire run of Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon's Preacher, which has been one of the most awesome series I have ever read. Nine books in total, so it will cost a fair bit...I really need to work out my budget over the next couple of months, because I also want to get Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting's Captain America Omnibus which collects, in HC, the first 25 issues of their run, plus two other related comics. And then we've got the move as well, which has eaten into my finances...need to prioritise what I want to get.

And the Marvel Zombies Vs Army of Darkness HC will be released sometime next week too, which is something I want to get as well! So many choices. Not enough money. Grah.

Captain America: To Serve and Protect TPB

I finished reading the Captain America: To Serve and Protect TPB this morning. Man was it awesome!


I got it cheaply too for just $15 bucks at the Gifts for the Geek shop in the Geelong CBD. They've got a huge stock of old comics and TPBs that are for sale and this was one of the gems I uncovered. Not bad for seven issues worth of comics reprinted into one handy TPB! And what's more important is that this was the second of Mark Waid and Ron Garney's famous run on Captain America, after Cap, the Avengers and the Fantastic Four returned from the Heroes Reborn universe.

So why am I blogging about a comic TPB that's nearly ten years old? Well, this comic has the potential to blow out of the water and rise up in value quickly.

Waid introduced some plot points in this trade that have been either developed or re-used by current writers in the Marvel Universe now. The first mention of a civil war was in these issues, though it was more of a civil war between humans who were paranoid and led to believe that one in every twenty human beings on the planet were not humans but of alien origins ready to take over the world.

But more importantly, the MAJOR plot line from this trade that has been reintroduced into the Marvel Universe of late: a Skrull has captured Captain America and is impersonating him!

In the current Marvel Universe, Psylocke killed Elektra, revealing that she was a Skrull in Brian Michael Bendis' New Avengers. That led to several questions being asked: If Elektra was impersonated for such a long period of time, who else has been impersonated? Which of our heroes is a Skrull? How long have they been living among us and using their influence to change the course of history?

Could the deceased Captain America (who was killed in Captain America #25) be a Skrull? If so, where is the REAL Steve Rogers? Could Tony Stark aka Iron Man be a Skrull? After all, he was the one who engineered the Civil War. At least a dozen other characters who've had some sort of dodgy behaviour over the last couple of years could also be revealed as Skrulls...would Spider-man willingly reveal his secret identity to the world? Why would Scarlet Witch just go bonkers all of a sudden and kill her friends and family in The Avengers? Are we so sure that Daredevil hasn't "exposed" himself to the media deliberately because he was a Skrull impersonator?

Stay tuned.

Preview: Captain America: The Chosen

The Captain America uniform has been not filled since Steve Rogers death. Who will be the new Captain America? A new series is about to answer that very question:

[PREVIEW] CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE CHOSEN #1
This fall, prepare to experience a Captain America story like no other—and learn just who Steve Rogers chooses to carry on his legacy!

Posted August 18, 2007 9:30 AM

Written by David Morrell
Pencils & Cover by Mitch Breitweiser
Variant Cover by TRAVIS CHAREST
Rated T+ …$3.99
FOC—8/16/07, On-Sale—9/05/07

Who Will Be Captain America’s “Chosen” Successor?

David Morrell, New York Times best-selling novelist, creator of Rambo and winner of the 2007 Inkpot Award, takes on the Sentinel of Liberty in Captain America: The Chosen #1 (of 6). Following in the tradition of the sold-out and critically acclaimed Spider-Man: Reign and Silver Surfer: Requiem, this brand new Marvel Knights series chronicles the final days of Captain America as he searches for a successor. Illustrated by fan favorite Mitch Breitweiser (Drax), Captain America: The Chosen offers a unique look at just how the world is affected by Captain America’s existence.

With the re-envisioned Marvel Knights imprint red hot on the sales charts and a hit with critics, Marvel urges retailers to check their orders on Captain America: The Chosen #1. This fall, prepare to experience a Captain America story like no other—and learn just who Steve Rogers chooses to carry on his legacy!

Great looking art by Travis Charest, who used to be the artist for Wildcats back in the 90s, after Jim Lee.

I think the logical choice would be Bucky, who's currently running around the Marvel Universe as The Winter Soldier. After all, Bucky's got the fighting prowess, plus it'd just be natural progression for a character that served as Cap's sidekick during WWII.

I'm guessing the Falcon could potentially don the costume as well, even though he really doesn't have Cap's fighting skills. It'd be nice to have a black Captain America though, and it'd tie in nicely with Truth: Red, White and Black, the Captain America mini-series that showed that the first Captain America was actually black when the US Army did trial experiments on the Tuskugee black men.

On that subject, Patriot from Young Avengers would make a pretty good Captain America too. Not only is he the grandson of the first Captain America, he'd have the fighting prowess and instincts to boot.

But I like Jeph Loeb's take the best. In the Fallen Son mini-series which mourned the death of Captain America, Loeb suggested that a familiar face could possibly don the red, white and blue costume. And what a great choice it was too: Hawkeye! Yes, Clint Barton, the master archer who was trained by Captain America himself. He could fight, he could even throw the shield with deadly accuracy, thanks to his skills as a master archer. But Loeb wrote that even though Hawkeye was offered the costume, he turned it down because he didn't want to cheapen the legacy of Steve Rogers.

Still: Hawkeye as Captain America! That would have been so awesome.

As long as they don't make U.S.Agent Captain America again.

Alex Ross returns to Marvel!

Well, if you've read the article I posted up two days ago, you'd already know that Alex Ross is coming back to Marvel Comics. What we DIDN'T know though was what title he was going to be on, specifically.

We now know:



ALEX ROSS RETURNS TO MARVEL!
The superstar painter talks about his upcoming 12-issue ‘Avengers-Invaders’ and other dream collaborations within the House of Ideas

By Andy Serwin

Posted August 14, 2007 12:15 PM

The House of Ideas gets a new coat of paint with its latest blockbuster announcement, and none other than superstar painter Alex Ross will be holding the brush.

Marvel announced today at Marvel.com that Ross, along with Marvels and Justice collaborator Jim Krueger and penciler Steven Sadowski (JSA), will be the creative team on Avengers-Invaders, a 12-issue miniseries kicking off sometime in 2008 that features Earth’s Mightiest Heroes meeting up with their World War II predecessors, led by the original Captain America, Steve Rogers. Ross will paint covers and co-plot with Krueger, while Sadowski provides penciled art for the interiors.

Marvel Comics teased fans mercilessly at Wizard World Chicago last weekend with a painted promo image of Captain America with the enigmatic catchphrase “The Return” across the Sentinel of Liberty’s chest, prompting the fanboy nation to speculate that the Star-Spangled Avenger—killed by an assassin in Captain America #25—was returning from the grave. However, it was in fact a tease of Ross’ return to Marvel, as his last work for the publisher was nearly four years ago with the completion of Paradise X. Wizarduniverse.com talked to Ross to get his take on this titanic team-up, his return to Marvel and making the Sub-Mariner a redhead!

I know you’re a big comics history buff; do you have a favorite issue or memory of the Invaders?

ROSS: What I’d say the best adventure involving crossing over a team with the Invaders before was Fantastic Four Annual #11. It was drawn by John Buscema back in the 1970s, where the Fantastic Four found themselves teamed up with the Invaders when they all invaded a castle where Baron Zemo was working. That’s actually the event that led to Baron Zemo’s mask being covered with the adhesive that secured it to his face forever. I had that as a kid, and I always remembered that as an awesome use of those characters. There was something very dated to the 1940s that was captured by Buscema. The way they were shown, the way they behaved, is very different from what our modern perceptions of Namor and Captain America were. Keep in mind that the Invaders only have one survivor now in modern day, in current continuity, and that’s Namor.

You’ve painted and drawn most of the characters before, but this will be a whole new setting; anyone in particular you’re looking forward to tackling?

ROSS: The fact that I’ve started my history with comics and Marvel with the Human Torch, it makes me want to get back to not just that, but particularly Toro is somebody I barely ever touched on. The idea of a flaming little kid is something I think is hysterical and awesome. How can that not be cool? The kid is on fire, that’s awesome—as all children should be. [Laughs] Graphically, I look forward to that. I look forward to trying to approximate the old Bill Everett version of Sub-Mariner. Every illustration I did in Marvels of Sub-Mariner, you could look at and see I actually made him have red hair. That’s one of the early things of the character that has been wiped out, and I’d like to try and bring in as much of that as I can. [Laughs]

This clearly opens up some doors for you to do future stuff at Marvel; any thought to what you might do beyond this? Anything you’d like to do?

ROSS: As it is with this stuff related to Captain America and the Invaders, I may be getting the chance to talk with Ed Brubaker soon. Whether or not I’d ever work with him in the future, I don’t know, but I’m just a big fan. I’m a big fan of the lot of the stuff I’ve read at Marvel over the last few years, particularly what guys like Brian Michael Bendis and Brubaker have done. I just have admiration for the solid writing that I’ve read from these guys.


Ah. So Steve Rogers really IS returning...just now to the regular real-time Marvel Universe, as originally suspected. :( I'm sure they'll find some way to bring him back sometime soon though.

And although Ross only does the cover art, it'd still be worth getting this series for me, as Steve Sadowski has proven his artistic chops on JSA. Looking forward to this one!