The Anchor and Compass

In the12-issue series, Avengers Forever (1998-99, Kurt Busiek), Captain America and several fellow Avengers past, present, and future are drawn through time by perenial foe Kang the Conqueror to help him fight his own future self, Immortus. Brought from just after the “Secret Empire” storyline in 1975 (between #175-176), after which he gave up the CA role for a brief time, Cap is shown throughout the story to have lost the resolve and confidence that has made him such an iconic hero.

(cover art by Carlos Pacheco, Jesus Merino, Steve Oliff, Tony Kelly, John Roshell)

In the midst of an early battle (#1), the unusual assembly of Avengers “turn to Captain America for some sign, some decision . . .” only to find confusion and inaction. In this time-and-space spanning epic, Cap & Co. encounter alternate universes (and alternate versions of Avengers) in which the team’s “evolution” has had a negative impact on human history. These anomalous time streams are the result of Kang’s meddling, and a mysterious group of three “Time Keepers” are determined to eliminate them (and Kang). This group of Avengers has been assembled by Kang to help keep this from happening.

Among the alternate “versions” of Cap that appear in Avengers Forever are the “Shieldsmen” of the Galactic Avenger Battalion (#1); a shield-wielding Kilraven (#4, with Cap’s then-new photonic shield); and a great host of alternate Avengers who appear in the climactic battle of #12:

• Captain Assyria from Earth-9105, where Egypt rose to world dominance after Moses’ death, ultimately founding “The United States of Assyria.” (New Warriors #11-13, 1991)
• A Kree CA from the Avengers of Earth-31955, a future where the Kree and Brood have conquered Earth. (FF vol. 3 #16, April 1999)
• American Dream from Earth-982 (a.k.a. “MC2”; see more below)

Throughout the history of the Marvel Universe (and beyond), dozens of variant visions and versions of the Living Legend have appeared.  The following list is a work-in-progress; it does not include those from Earth-616 who have actually served as Captain America (William Naslund, Jeff Mace, William Burnside, Bucky Barnes, Sam Wilson); nor does it include others who have been transformed by the Super-Soldier Serum such as Isaiah Bradley and Clint McIntyre, since all have been subjects of previous posts.  More details (and visuals) of all these characters can be found at http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Marvel_Database

• Unnamed rebel leader on Earth-8862 modeled after Cap in CA Annual #6 (1982)
• Vance Astro/Major Victory of Earth-691’s 31^st C. Guardians of the Galaxy uses Cap’s surviving shield as a symbol to rally resistance to Badoon domination (GofG vol. 1, beginning in 1990). He ultimately adopts a Cap-esque costume in GofG #20 (1992).
• Commander America of Earth-90110, one of the “Cosmic Avengers” of a reality in which the Vision conquered Earth. (What If? vol. 2 #19, 1990 and #36, 1992)
• Earth-355’s CA from the Gatherers story in Avengers #355 (1992)
• Infinity War doppleganger from CA #408 (1992)
• On Earth-928 of the future (depicted in the “2099” series of comics), a cloned version of Captain America becomes president after Doom’s fall (Doom 2099 #33-35 and 2099 Apocalypse, both 1995). This reality’s “real” CA/Steve Rogers was discovered in suspended animation in 3099 and was given Thor’s hammer, turning him into something of a CA/Thor amalgam (2099 Manifest Destiny, 1998)
• “Super-Soldier,” a CA/Superman fusion, is featured in Almagam Comics Super-Soldier #1 (April 1996) and Super Soldier, Man of War #1 (June 1997), both published by DC in the aftermath of the famed 4-issue 1996 Marvel vs. DC crossover event.
• Young Peter Parker imagined himself as Cap on the cover of ASM -1 (1997)
• A “Nazi Cap” (and Bucky) appear in one panel in Ultraverse/Avengers #1 (1995)
• Captain America, Jr. appears in one panel of Unlimited Access #4 (1998)
• “Old Cap” from the Earth-X, Universe X, Pardise X series (1999-2002). In a future where all of humanity had been given super powers by a release of Terrigen Mists, “Old Cap” is on a quest to restore humanity. He wears a flag toga-style and is bald with creases (or scars) on his forehead that resemble the letter “A.” Ultimately he was transformed into a member of the Avenging Host, with feathered wings growing his back, his skin turned blue and white, and his face was marked with the letter “A.”
• Primax, or “Jaromel,” who takes the lead of a resistance movement initiated by Cap against the tyranny of Korvak in the 31^st Century (CA vol. 3 #18, 1999)
• Shannon Carter (niece of Sharon) is the CA of Earth-982 (MC2), where Marvel heroes emerged decades earlier than on Earth-616. The original Avengers (including this reality’s Cap) have all either died or retired by the mid-1990s and are being replaced by younger versions of the original members.  Shannon first appeared as American Dream in A-Next #4-12 (1999). Along with others of the “A-Next” team, she is transported into yet another alternate Earth, where she finds the original Captain America (see more below) of her world. He and his fellow Avengers had traveled there years before to stop an invasion, a mission that cost many team members’ lives. That Earth’s version of Cap has been killed, and Earth-982 Cap stayed behind to take his place. At the end of this story, Earth-982 Cap gives the shield of the deceased Cap of that world to Shannon, who takes it back with her to her own alternate Earth. American Dream appears in many subsequent “MC2” comics, including several issues of Spider-Girl, Avengers Next, and her own American Dream title (2008). She also appears in Captain America Corps (5 issues, 2011).

• The U.N. “Bannermen” that appear in Marvel Boy vol 2 #2 (2000) seem to be modeled on Captain America but augmented to display Hulk-like powers.
• A robotic version of Cap is depicted on the cover of The Ultron Imperative (2001), but it does not appear in the story.
• Steve Rogers of Earth-1610 became Captain America in 1942 and was lost on a mission in Iceland in 1945. In this universe Bucky, who was a childhood buddy of Steve’s, is a U.S. Army propaganda journalist who follows Cap on his missions to promote “the symbol.” Cap is found “on ice” in “the present” and integrated into SHIELD’s “Ultimates” team (along with Iron Man, Thor, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and later Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch; led by Nick Fury). At the time of Steve’s revival, Bruce Banner has been working recreating the super-soldier serum for 8 years, which resulted in his becoming the Hulk of this universe. Steve finds his parents have died (father in 1954, mother in 1967), as well as both of his brothers. Bucky, still alive, is married to Steve’s wartime sweetheart Gail. (Ultimates #1-6, 2002). This version of Cap will over time be a much rougher, darker version of the Living Legend (but he’s seen as such a resolute leader he is elected President during a time of national crisis!). Ironically, the “Ultimates” universe eventually became a major influence on the look and feel of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (particularly with its black Nick Fury), but Steve Rogers of the MCU is more like that of the original MU.
• Josiah X is the son of “Black Captain America” Isaiah Bradley. He is a minister of the Nation of Islam and is enhanced due his having been conceived after Isaiah received a version of the Super-Soldier Serum. He wears the top of Bradley’s stolen CA uniform under his clothes; the chain mail acts as a protective vest (Crew 1-6, 2003-04).
• Earth-982 CA returned to his home world in Spider-Girl #58 (May 2003) and also is featured prominently in Last Hero Standing (5 issues, 2005, DeFalco).   This reality’s Steve Rogers is in character very much like our own, but seems to have not experienced the same “lost years” in suspended animation after WWII (“a twist of fate transported him into the modern age of heroes”). He’s much older and is dealing with slowed reflexes and loss of stamina. Much of this series focuses on his reluctant acceptance of the inevitable need to stand down, but not, of course, until he himself is “the last hero standing.” Joining forces with the young Next Avengers and his old friend, Thor, to battle Loki’s attempt to destroy this Earth, he confesses before the final battle, “That’s why I have decided this will be my last mission.  I intend to surrender my shield and retire as soon as it’s over.” Instead, he falls in the final issue, and memorialized by Thor by being transformed into a new constellation with a familiar shield-shaped aura around the central star.
• Steve Rogers of Earth-460 is from an alternate future in which the Purple Man has become “President for Life” and has hunted down and killed most super-humans.       Unable to be killed, the captured Rogers is sent to late 16^th Virginia of Earth-616, where he assumes the guise of native-American “Rojhaz.” As such, he becomes the protector of the struggling Roanoke Colony and young Virginia Dare. He is sent back to his own future because his presence in the past is causing multiversal destruction (Marvel 1602, 2003-04).
• What If . . . Jessica Jones had joined the Avengers?  (Feb. 2005) diverges from a point when Nick Fury offered Jessica a job as Avengers liason to SHIELD (Alias 26, 2003, which she declined). In this alternate world, she accepted the offer and ultimately became romantically involved with and married that world’s Steve Rogers.
• “House of M” Steve Rogers became CA, survived WW II, gave up the uniform when Senate Hearings on Mutant Activity violated his commitment to civil rights. He became an astronaut (1^st man on the moon) and is an old man in H of M. (CA #10, Oct. 2005).
• Elijah Bradley, grandson of “Black Captain America” Isaiah Bradley, follows in his grandfather’s footsteps as the Patriot (beginning in Young Avengers #1, 2005)
• Colonel America of Earth-2149 (throughout various Marvel Zombies titles, 2006-09)
• What If? (2007) Civil-War era Steve Rogers becomes a CA-type hero after being brought back from near death by a Native American healer (his look reflects native themes)
• In What If? Avengers Disassembled (2006), Captain America assisted the Scarlet Witch in the “disassembling” of the Avengers. Their love affair in the “real” world serves as a catalyst for their combining her power and his idealism to remake the world. It is also inferred that his time “on ice” left him mentally unstable.
• Captain America: the Chosen (6 issues, 2007, David Morrell) takes place in an alternate reality (Earth-7116), which in most respects is identical to Earth-616 continuity. But in this world, the super soldier serum has been breaking down in Cap’s system over the years since “Operation Rebirth,” bringing him “now” (sometime after the events of Sept. 11, 2001) near death. Cap volunteers for a secret project that allows him to psychically project his image into the field and connect with particular individuals to help them in time of great need.       A soldier in Afghanistan wonders how long he can sustain the strength, courage and determination needed . . . . Cap appears: “To fight the enemies of freedom? To fight hate? You want to know how long we can keep doing this? As long as we’re able to lift a finger. As long as we can draw breath.”
• In What If? Civil War (Feb. 2008) there are two alternate-world versions of CA. One revisioning has Cap leading the resistence to the Registration Act in opposition to Henry Gyrich, rather than Tony Stark, who had been killed by his Extremis injection. In this world, Cap wears a suit of armor crafted by his old friend.       A second story has Cap and Iron Man coming together to fight the Thor clone, which prevents the death of Bill Foster. Sobered, Stark asks Cap to lead an Avengers Initiative that will monitor and train registered super-humans.
• In What If? Fallen Son (Feb. 2009) Steve Rogers is not assassinated after the Civil War, is convicted of treason, and sent to the “Project 42” Prison in the negative zone.
• A Skrull imposter Cap appears in the Secret Invasion series (2008-09), as well as a Cap-themed Super-Skrull warrior.
• “Old Soldier” in Squadron Supreme #1-4 (2008, Ultimate Comics)
• Mark Millar’s Image Comics series, War Heroes (3 issues, 2008), echoes super-soldier themes in a “War on Terror” context where volunteers are given super-power through drug enhancement. Dialogue in this story makes reference to a volunteer being thought of as “Captain Fucking America” by his brother. Perhaps in this “world” there are fictional Captain America comics that lead to the reference?
• On Earth-9904 the Avengers were formed in the 1950s under the leadership of Jimmy Woo (What If? #9, June 1978). The five-issue Atlas series (2010) revisited this reality, uncovering a world in which the “Atlas” Avengers became the foundation of Avengers for decades to come (including a version of Cap, depicted in Atlas #4).
• In What If #200 (Siege, 2011) Norman Osborn’s forces prevail during the Siege of Asgard and the Sentry decapitates Captain America (Steve Rogers), leading the remaining heroes to lose hope and ultimately into a world that is consumed by the Void.
• A Red Skull imposter stopped by the “1959 Avengers” had created “his own Captain America” by combining versions of the Infinity Formula and S-S Serum (NAv 11-12, 2011); in the present, Nick Fury uses the same serum to save the life of Mockingbird
• Mark Waid’s wonderful 5-issue limited series, CA: Man Out Of Time (2011) reinterprets the basic elements of Cap’s modern-day revival as if it happened in contemporary times.  After setting up the basic scenario of Cap & Bucky serving in WWII, seemingly dying near its end. The original Avengers (in their original uniforms!) discover Cap and bring him to NYC, where the same basic story as Avengers # 4 begins to unfold—until Cap is shot trying to stop a mugging. Hopes that Doom’s time machine (now in FF hands) can return him are dashed when President (Obama?) refuses to let Cap go back.       An encounter with Kang, who recognizes he’s from a different time, results in Cap’s being sent back anyway, only to discover he no longer fits in there, either. He ultimately returns to the “present” and makes peace with his situation.
• E-61112 Commander Rogers (and all other Assembled Avengers) exist in an alternate dystopian version of E-616 created by the Age of Ultron event (Avengers 12.1, 2011)
• Commander A (Kiyoshi Morales) is the CA of 25^th-C Earth-11831, where a Fascist state uses the CA legend to control the population. In this future, the “Anti-Cap” from the 2004-05 CA&F series has become “Major America.” (Captain America Corps, 5-issues, 2011)
• E-11051 CA is Elijah Bradley, who, along with many of the original Young Avengers, serves Kang as older adults in an alternate future Earth. He is apparently married to Samantha Wilson Bradley (Sam Wilson’s daughter?) who is now the Falcon. Their son, Steve Wilson Bradley, is now Bucky. (Av:ChildCru YA, 2011)
• E-11080 CA is Steve Rogers in an alternate near future where a pandemic infection has turned most humans into canibals. This reality has the same history and characters as E-616 but diverges at some point in the not-too-distant “contemporary past.” This CA leads the Avengers’ efforts to stop the infection’s spread, but when he “turns” himself, he is killed by the Punisher.  (Marvel Universe vs. the Punisher; MU vs. Wolverine; MU vs. The Avengers (2011-13).
• Earth-TRN193 Steve Rogers becomes a Cap-esque Deathlok (X-Factor 231, 2012)
• Major Liberty appears (and dies) in a memory of an WW II scene experienced by the Human Torch in All-New Invaders #1 (March 2014). The cover of #4 features a Kree warrior-styled version of Cap (not in the story; the image is yet to be given context).
• An alternate reality Frank Castle is convinced by that world’s Illuminati to don the suit in an “Age of Ultron” What If? story (WI? AofU #4, June 2014). In this world, Cap is dead when found by the original Avengers.  “The hero America expected to save it was officially gone. And those heroes they did have betrayed them. At a certain point, the American spirit was deflated. Who did they aspire toward with their heroes gone?” The final panel of this story depicts a post-Castle “Captain AmeriCorps” with an American Dream-styled leader and members who appear spider-manish, alien, and other variations.
• All-New Invaders #9 (Oct. 2014) features “every Deathlok in the MU” including one which is a version of CA
• General America of Earth-14235, which was destroyed by multiversal incursions. He was brought by A.I.M with his fellow Avengers to Earth-616 (Avengers #25, 2014), then later sent by A.I.M. (#28) to another Earth and presumably died in a subsequent incursion.
• Roberta Mendez is the CA of Battleworld’s 2099 domain. When subject to certain control words by her Alchemax handlers, she shifts from her civilian identity to CA without being aware of the distinction between personas (Secret Wars 2099, 2015)
• Samantha Wilson is the CA of Earth-65, an alternate world where Gwen Stacy was bitten by a radioactive spider instead of Peter Parker. Being an African-American woman, she was denied the chance to serve in WW II but became a pilot in the U.S. Civil Air Patrol. She was given her chance “to make a difference when Peggy Carter, an agent of the newly-formed SSR, offered her the opportunity as a Project: Rebirth candidate. During a battle with that Earth’s Baron Zemo, she was trapped in an alternate dimension for 75 years, finally returning to resume her career. (Spider-Gwen vol 2 #1-6, 2015-16)
• Danielle Cage, daughter of Jessica Drew and Luke Cage, is the CA of Earth-15061 (20XX; mid-21^st C) in the 3-issue Utron Forever Series (2015) and New Avengers vol. 4 #5-6 (2016)
• 

(cover by Oscar Jimenez)

Before we move on to beginning of Steve Rogers’ career as Captain America, let’s take a  brief aside to consider the consequences of Prof. Erskine’s demise.  The presumption that the serum, if it could be recreated, would work on anyone has led to a number of attempts to recover Erskine’s lost process (including one that was used to explain the “Commie-smashing Captain America” of the mid-1950s; more on that to come). A 2000 story arc revealed the story of an effort to test the serum even before Rogers was chosen for the procedure.  An impatient U.S. military officer grew tired of Erskine’s determination to perfect the serum and process before using it on a human subject. He stole a sample and administered it to a disgruntled soldier, Clint McIntyre, in exchange for arranging his release from military prison.^[1]

Cover by Dan Jurgens, Art Thibert, Chris Sotomayor

More famously, in the Truth: Red, White, and Black series, one black soldier involved in a secret government program, Isaiah Bradley, survived the process and served one mission as a fabled “Black Captain America.” In Roy Thomas’s Invaders series, a popular Golden-Age hero called the Destroyer was revived and said to have received a “derivative of the super-soldier serum” recreated by one of Erskine’s original assistants when the men were together in a Nazi prison camp. Later in his modern career, Cap found himself at times facing “enhanced” enemies who owed their superior abilities to procedures that attempted to duplicate Erskine’s formula.^[2]

Each of these attempts to recreate the original super-soldier serum managed to replicate the physical enhancements of the original, but in every case, the recipient developed mental and eventual physical dysfunctions, leading to erratic, unpredictable behavior. Isaiah Bradley was court-martialed by the Army for acting on his on initiative (and stealing a costume meant for Steve Rogers) and sent to prison, where he languished for 17 years while reverting to the mental capacity of a child. A couple of different storylines have men identified as the Destroyer either becoming a revenge-obsessed Nazi hunter who thinks himself above moral judgment or an outright, murderous sociopath. Clint McIntyre (as well as later “enhanced” soldiers such as “Nuke”) became an uncontrollable berserker whose body simply gave out under the extreme physical stress. In these instances, at least, it seems the idea finally given voice in the recent Captain America film—that the super-soldier serum somehow amplifies its recipient’s inner nature—is valid.[3]

The film version emphasizes the importance of Steve Rogers’ moral sensibilities and strength of character in creating the only successful super-soldier. Dr. Erskine knows that the super-soldier serum, in some mysterious way, enhances the natural traits of the recipient. Erskine carefully measures Rogers’ motivations, then probes more deeply into the nature of the man himself. Pop culture critic Anthony R Mills notes,

         Erskine also has moral and philosophical reasons for preferring Steve. He is not looking for a killer or even an expert soldier . . . .   Instead, Erskine is drawn to Steve because he is selfless, determined, honest, courageous, and considerate of the weak. When Steve asks before the procedure why Erskine chose him, he responds, ‘Because the strong man who has known power all his life may lose respect for that power, but a weak man knows the value of strength and knows compassion. Whatever happens tomorrow you must promise me one thing: that you will stay who you are, not a perfect soldier, but a good man.’^[4]

Only Isaiah Bradley was a match for Steve Rogers’ character, and even in his case the rushed and incomplete process, along with his own rage and bitterness at having been the victim of racism and manipulation, resulted in physical and mental disability.[5]

The Captain America Comics 70^th Anniversary Special features a story that sums all this up. Cap’s WW II teen sidekick, Bucky Barnes, recalls a story Steve has told him about the days leading up to his volunteering for the procedure. In this story, frail, despondent Steve Rogers finds himself thrust into an unexpected crises in which he’s shown to inherently possess many of the character qualities—and even nascent skills—that later define Captain America. “The thing that makes Captain America great,” Bucky reflects, “is Steve Rogers.”^[6]

[1] The Clint McIntyre story appears in CA vol. 3, 33-39 (2000) and the CA 2000 Annual.  He was later revived and manipulated into thinking Rogers had taken his rightful place as America’s super-soldier and set out to kill him (more on that story later).

[2] Isaiah Bradley appeared as “the Black Captain America” in Truth: Red, White & Black 4-5 (2003). The Destroyer character originally appeared in a number of Timely’s Golden Age publications, but the story of his having received a variant of the super-soldier serum was retconned in Marvel’s Invaders (1975-79), Citizen V and the V-Batallion (2001-02), Destroyer (2009), and The Marvels Project series. Cap had encounters with two of these “enhanced” government agents—“Nuke” in Daredevil #233 and “G.I. Max” in CA #331. John Walker, who would take over as Captain America when Rogers resigned in the 1970s and Cap’s long-time friend and some-times partner Dennis Dunphy (D-Man) were also products of human enhancement programs.

[3] Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), directed by Joe Johnston.

[4] Anthony R. Mills, American Theology, Superhero Comics, and the Cinema: The Marvel of Stan Lee and the Revolution of a Genre (Routledge, 2014), p. 183-84 (quoting the CA film).

[5] Revealed in Truth: Red, White, & Black #7 (July 2003), Morales. In this story, “present day” Steve Rogers visits the still-living Bradley, giving him back the stolen WW II costume that led to all of his troubles.

[6] CAC 70^th Anniversary Special (2009), written by James Robinson.

This narrative attempts to bring together in a seamless account all the diverse elements depicted in the comics listed in Part 1.  The base story line is that of CAC #1 (March 1941), with later additions and embellishments as documented.

After watching a newsreel of Hitler’s advances in Europe, Steve Rogers immediately attempts to enlist but designated 4-F: “You’re much too frail for military duty!” A distraught Rogers protests, “But there must be something I can do—a place for me!” His plea is overhead by an officer (“General Phillips” in ToS #63, but addressed as “Colonel” in CA #109). “If you’re really serious about wanting to play a part in all this,” the officer says, “Would you become a human guinea pig—in a deadly experiment?” (CA #176, #255, AdvCA #1; in the latter, General Phillips is accompanied by an Erskine-like doctor who repeats, “perfect, absolutely perfect,” while sizing up the frail young man).

Rogers is taken by young, dark-haired woman (Lt. Cynthia Glass) to secret training center in Washington, D. C. area. He and three other potential Rebirth candidates undergo weeks of intensive training prior to the Rebirth procedure.[1] Rogers’ training is overseen by Lt. Col. James Fletcher, a.k.a. “The American Eagle” (perhaps the “Colonel” in CA #109?). The project leader (identified only as “Abraham” at first) is a German scientist. Rogers, selected by a process of elimination as the best candidate, writes a letter that night dated Jan. 13, 1941. Fletcher and “Abe” meet on Jan. 28 to discuss fears of infiltration; Abe relates the importance of “vita-rays” to the process and gives his “formula” to Fletcher for safekeeping (all AdvCA #1)

Dressed in civilian attire, two military officers and Rogers drive to a “sinister looking curio shop” in “a shabby tenement district” of Washington, D.C. The “old shop keeper” at first draws a hidden gun, then, satisfied with their identities, leads them “up a musty stairway” (depicted in new panel) to a secret room. The old woman pulls off a mask, revealing herself to be a young woman (dark hair; Lt. Glass?) whom “Grover” identifies as “Agent X-13” (CAC #1, agent not identified in ToS #63; in CA #109, Rogers makes the same trip to the curio shop, but meets “Reinstein, the world’s greatest physicist” upon entering the shop.  Describing the moment years later, Rogers recalls, “that day in 1941 when a skinny youth heard a voice behind a sliding door and walked with nervous steps through it to face a famous scientist the whole world thought was dead!” (CA #215).
Rogers follows the Professor upstairs, while the undisguised young woman remains downstairs “on guard.” Confusion over Reinstein/Erskine is resolved (CA #255), when Rogers meets “Dr. Anderson, Director of Projects” and “Head Scientist, Professor Reinstein.” Rogers exclaims, “Reinstein? Why, that’s Dr. Abraham Erskine, the famous biochemist. But I thought he’d died last spring in an auto crash!” “That’s what we wanted the world to believe, my boy,” Erskine replies, noting “Reinstein” was a code name.

The military officers (and Dr. Anderson) are seated in an observation room with others already there. In a laboratory outside a large glass window, they see a frail young man. “It has taken us months to find the proper 4F specimen whose body will react properly to our new tissue-building chemical!” The scientist in the room (as yet unidentified here and in the original story) says, “Step forward, Rogers.” Next panel elaborates, “Steve Rogers! Too puny, too sickly to be accepted by the Army! Steve Rogers! Chosen from hundreds of similar volunteers because of his courage, his intelligence, and his willingness to risk death for his country if the experiment should fail!” (ToS #63). In the original 1941 story, the as-yet unidentified young man is injected with a “strange seething liquid.” In ToS #62, Rogers is handed a large vial of “chemicals” and drinks.

“Gentlemen,” the scientist informs the observers, “This distinguished young volunteer has already been injected with my secret serum. Next you shall see how I speed up its process—and how it will affect his body cells.” To complete the process, Rogers is “bombarded . . . potent, invisible vita-rays” (CA #109).

Rogers changes before their eyes into a perfect human specimen, to be “The first of a corps of super-agents whose mental and physical ability will make them a terror to spies and saboteurs.” “We shall call you Captain America, son!” the scientist proclaims. “Because, like you—America shall gain the strength and the will to safeguard our shores” (CAC #1; CA #176). “Project Rebirth is a resounding success! Through biochemical and radioacteeve means, ve haff created ze next step in human evolution . . . . I give you ze American Super-Soldier!” (AdvCA #1).

BUT . . . one of the army observers (not seemingly one of the men who came with “Grover”) “is in the pay of Hitler’s Gestapo!” The infiltrator, later identified as “Heinz Kruger, who was smuggled ashore from a submarine by “loyal Fifth Columnists” (CA #109), pulls a gun and shoots the scientist. A vial of serum (not a syringe) is also shattered, and “Grover” (Col. Fletcher in AdvCa #1) is shot as well. Rogers reaches through the observation window, pulls the gunman through it, and dispatches him with two punches. In his “frantic effort to escape” the spy becomes entangled in equipment and is electrocuted. Recalling the event later, Cap admits to more aggressive response than intended: “I didn’t mean to hit him so hard—but I didn’t know my own strength! And I wasn’t sorry! Nothing left of him but charred ashes . . . a fate he well deserved!” (CA #176).

Afterward, in a brief scene switch to “the Wermacht headquarters of Third Reich in Berlin,” where “evil forces have received word of Project: Rebirth’s initial success,” the Red Skull makes a cryptic appearance and is identified as the mastermind behind the plot (AdvCA #1).

[1] The Super-Soldier program is variously referred to in stories as “Operation Rebirth” or “Project Rebirth.” The Marvels Project #4 (Feb. 2010, Brubaker and Epting) also depicts Rogers going through two months of extensive testing in preparation to become “America’s first Super-Soldier.” As he does so, Heinz Kruger, under his alias of Frederick Clemson, Special Agent for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, prepares to attend “the big day—the Game Changer.”

Captain America’s initial origin story is told in his first published appearance in Captain America Comics #1 (March 1941; hereafter CAC). Over the years numerous Timely/Marvel writers have enhanced, embellished (and sometimes confused!) his story. Two significant “modern” story arcs have added additional depth and context to the background behind “Operation Rebirth,” the program that created Captain America.  Truth:  Red, White and Black (7 issues, 2003) linked the program to a joint German-American eugenics venture initiated after WW I.  Then during Marvel’s 70th Anniversary year, Ed Brubaker (who was also writing Captain America at the time) introduced the idea of a “Race for the Super-Human,” with Germany and the U. S. turning earlier eugenics findings toward more advanced “meta-human” experimentation (see The Marvels Project, 8 issues, 2009-10).

Following is a brief overview of the most significant interpretations of how Steve Rogers became America’s first Super-Soldier (with events unique to each rendition noted in bold type).  In our next post, we’ll try to piece together a more cohesive narrative.[1]

CAC #1 (March 1941) “Meet Captain America,” Joe Simon and Jack Kirby

Cover shows Cap punching Hitler; splash page text reads, “1941–As the ruthless war-mongers of Europe focus their eyes on a peace-loving America . . . the youth of our country heed the call to arm for defense. But great as the dangers of foreign attack is the threat of invasion from within–the dreaded fifth column.” President Roosevelt meets with two “high-ranking military officials” (he refers to one as, “General”) in the White House. “What would you suggest, gentlemen . . . a character out of the comic books? Perhaps the Human Torch in the Army would solve our problem!” (this is an interesting early reference that indicates Cap not only will inhabit the same “universe” at the Original Human Torch, but that this “universe” also has its own version of “Marvel Comics”!).  FDR then introduces J. Arthur Grover, “head of the FBI, who has a plan.”

Tales of Suspense #63 (Mar. 1965; hereafter ToS), “The Origin of Captain America,” by Stan Lee (cover art by Jack Kirby & Syd Shores):

Large 1941 on opening splash w/caption: “Out of the dark, dramatic danger-packed years of World War II . . . out of the still-smoldering ashes of the fateful past . . . the Mighty Marvel Comics Group dares to revive, with glowing passion, and pride!” The artwork is very similar to original 1941 panels; some almost identical. Roosevelt speaks of “Operation Rebirth” (first reference) with the military officials. “Grover” is now “Dr. Anderson,” no longer with FBI. Most significantly, “Reinstein” is now identified as Prof. Erskine.  Rogers is handed a large vial of “chemicals” and drinks the “Super-Soldier Serum.”

Captain America #109 (Jan. 1969; hereafter CA) “The Hero Who Was,” Stan Lee (cover art by Jack Kirby, Frank Giacoia, Don Heck, Dick Ayers)

Cover banner proclaims, “The Origin of Captain America.” Cap recalls his origin story for Nick Fury. It follows the ToS #63 story with some elaborations and different perspectives. Rogers is shown for the first time volunteering for service but being turned away after his physical.  After he is injected with  secret serum. Next you shall see how I speed up its process—and how it will affect his body cells.” To complete the process, Rogers is “bombarded . . . potent, invisible vita-rays” (1st reference).

CA #176 (Aug. 1974) “Captain America Must Die” by Steve Englehart (cover art by John Romita)

Opens with a multi-page review of Cap’s origin story. “Once I was a boy, a skinny, gawky kid, just out of high school—born and raised in Manhattan, so I know all about the world. Went to the movies a lot, and never missed the newsreel. I knew the Nazis were rotten, from the minute I set eyes on them . . . . I knew where my duty lay! Steve Rogers, all of 18 (first age reference) had to become a soldier! I hit Whitehall Street the next morning, but . . . .” From there the now-familiar “Operation Rebirth” story is reviewed.

CA #215 (Nov. 1977) “The Way it Really Was” by Roy Thomas” summarizes the same “rebirth” story from ToS #63 over several panels (cover art by Gil Kane, Joe Sinnott, John Costanza, Gaspar Saladino).

CA #255 (Mar. 1981)— 40th anniversary, “The Living Legend,” by Roger Stern & John Byrne (cover art by Frank Miller, Joe Rubenstein, Rick Parker).

Pres. Roosevelt reviews the file on “Operation Rebirth.” This is the first published story that shows Rogers viewing the newsreel of “the Nazi war machine in its relentless march across a war-torn Europe!” “It’s as if half the world has gone mad,” Steve reflects as he leaves the theater. “If the Nazis aren’t stopped soon, there won’t be a free man left alive anywhere!”
CA Annual #10 (May 1991) opens with a 2-page “The Origin of Captain America” by D.G. Chichester. Basic “Rebirth” elements are shown with single-panel summaries of Cap’s WWII career, death, and “modern” recovery by the Avengers. Earlier confusion about how the super-soldier serum was administered is resolved: “Carefully screened and chosen as an ideal subject for the highly experimental process, Rogers underwent a grueling battery of oral, intravenous, and radiation treatments.”

The Adventures of Captain America, Sentinel of Liberty (4 issues, 1991-92) by Fabian Nicieza (cover art by Kevin Maguire & Joe Rubenstein).

This is the most extensive retelling of Cap’s origin ever, developing a much more elaborate pre-rebirth scenario and recounting early adventures not depicted anywhere else. It also provides more “back story for the young Rogers.”[2]

[1] The Official Index to the Marvel Universe, Avengers, Thor, and Captain America #1 (2010) notes that although many vesions of the “Operation Rebirth” story highlight the 1941 date, “subsequent chronological analysis places its events from Fall 1940 to March 1941.”

[2] While this is an ambitious, creative, and quite entertaining version of the story, the Official Index to the Marvel Universe asserts, “much of its telling is not in continuity.” Yet the 2010 limited series Steve Rogers, Super-Soldier has a direct tie-in with this series, featuring Lt. Cynthia Glass from this series, referring to her as Rogers’ first love. And flashbacks in She-Hulk #10 (Jan. 2015) depict young Steve’s encounter with the German villain Saurespritze, who also appears in Adventures #1-3.

Next up:  Crafting a cohesive origin story . . .