“Captain America: Reborn” #1 Review

“Reborn“, Part 1

Writer: Ed Brubaker

Pencils: Butch Guice

Colors: Paul Mounts

Covers: Bryan Hitch, Butch Guice  & Paul Mounts; John Cassady & Laura Martin; Alex Ross; Joe Quesada, Danny Miki & Richard Isanove

I’m not ready for Steve Rogers to come back

There, I said it.  I got it out of the way.  I’ve enjoyed Bucky!Cap, and I think Steve’s death has been a poignant moment in Marvel history that deserved a bit more.  He was doing fantastic as a presence in the Marvel Universe.  He’s been dead just over 2 years now, a lot longer than it seems  But I’m just not ready for Steve Rogers to come back

That said, Captain America: Reborn?  Might just change my mind.  Spoilers within!

Two years ago, Sharon Carter and a handful of SHIELD agents were brainwashed.  Crossbones fired a shot at Captain America to create chaos, and the brainwashed Carter pulled the trigger and killed Captain America.  Sharon was held captive for about a year by The Red Skull and his associate Arnim Zola, during which time she lost the child she was carrying (Caps) and saw numerous things that caught her off guard, but the trauma of the events left Sharon with no memory.  In the meantime, Cap’s long thought dead partner Bucky Barnes took over the role of Captain America.  Now, some two years later, Sharon Carter has begun to remember what she saw that fateful day, and has come to the realization that there is still hope: they can save Steve Rogers.

Its an exciting premise.  The gun wasn’t a normal gun, but a specialized weapon that locked Steve Rogers in time and space.  The mystery light from the Red Skull’s fortress that Sharon saw was a time platform, which was used to pluck Steve from the timestream.  Or rather, would have, if Sharon hasn’t instinctively reacted and destroyed the platform.  But now, the pieces of the platform are on the former SHIELD Helicarrier, now the HAMMER Helicarrier run by Norman Osborn.  And Steve Rogers?  He’s displaced in time, randomly popping around in his lifetime like an obscenely patriot Sam Beckett.

Seriously, I’ve fought this hard.  The notion of bringing back Steve Rogers this soon has seriously irritated me, as it stands in my eyes as far, far too soon, but Brubaker has crafted a unique idea for the returning hero.  Steve is leaping around in his own life, and is aware that something is wrong, so how long until he starts changing things?  I’m eager to see if he’s willing to preserve the timestrean or if Marvel will use this oppurtunity to tweak his origin, not that it needs it.  The art (which I mistakenly credited to Brian Hitch in the Pull List this week) is simply gorgeous.  No matter how many times you see it rendered, the image of Steve Rogers lying dead is a classic one.  There’s also key story elements that tie back into Captain America #25, like the cleverly hidden yet easily discernable unique design of the tachyon gun that Sharon used.

I’m still not necessarily ready for Steve Rogers to come back.  I think Bucky as Cap has potential, and I feel its far too early to bring Steve back to life.  But the Steve Rogers fanboys can rest assured.  Captain America Reborn has a unique idea, strong ties to the story its birthed from, and an interesting concept that net the first issue a solid A.  Pick this one up; its probably going to sell out fast.