Captain America #17
"The New World" Part One
Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Artist: Ton Lima
Colorist: Rod Fernandes
Cover Artist: Valerio Schiti and Rod Fernandes
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Steve Rogers awakens from his coma to find the world very different than he remembers—and he's not quite feeling like himself...
A word of warning.
There is absolutely no way to talk about this issue without getting into spoilers.
So if you want to read this issue cold, jump down to the conclusion in the “Don’t Relapse” section so you can see my final score.
Otherwise, read on...
*** Spoiler Warning ***
Captain America #17 appears to jump back and forth across two points in time: when Steve first wakes up from his coma, and while he is on the run with Vic, the young clone of Victor Von Doom. During the scenes with Vic, it quickly becomes clear that something isn't right with Steve.
I want to talk about each period separately.
The Road to Recovery
Steve is still in the hospital, being checked over by doctors following his coma. He's learning about the new state of the world. Thousands are dead in Russia, including the Red Hulk and Bucky. The Avengers disbanded. Superpowers outlawed. Nick Fury Jr. in charge of a new SHIELD that is responsible for policing powered individuals.
It's... a lot. And you can tell it's getting to Steve, even as he's reaching out to old friends.
Under Chip Zdarsky’s pen, Steve Rogers has really been through the wringer. He’s finding his faith in both himself and his country being tested over and over, and it’s really got him shaken. The events of Avengers: Armageddon showed us what happens when Captain America isn’t around, and now Steve is having trouble finding his way in the new world he woke up in.
It’s not for everyone, but I’m liking this new take on Steve. It’s too easy to make him a stoic, infallible, “rah-rah America!” type, which can get boring. The key word in the phrase “man out of time” is man, and that’s what he is. Yeah, he’s a symbol, but under that is a living, breathing man.
So when Nick Fury Jr. keeps asking him to work with the new SHIELD and act as the “police” for powered individuals—once nicely and once with a goon squad—it makes him really angry. And that makes what happens in the next section seem all the more plausible.
Road Trippin’
Steve and young Vic are on the lam, moving across America (the beautiful) to stay one step ahead of all those folks who'd like to get their hands on a clone of Doctor Doom. Along the way, Steve is teaching Vic different lessons—but he's much harsher about them, as if the earlier stresses have gotten to him.
Then the big reveal: it's not Steve that is traveling with Vic. It is Hydra Cap, the evil duplicate of Steve Rogers that ran Hydra and took over the country at one time. He goes by Grant Rogers now, but to me he's "Stevil." And now he's in possession of Captain America's shield and the young clone of Victor Von Doom...
I totally didn’t see this coming. Early in the issue, I seriously just thought Steve was really angry given all he’d been through, and it was getting to him. The history lessons he was giving Vic seemed like the kind of thing Steve would say.
Then we got to the diner scene. The real Steve Rogers would probably have talked to the abusive husband right there in the diner. But here he let them leave and then confronted the husband by their car—with his fists. Okay, still plausible, given all he’s been through lately. But then he grabs the shield, and things get bloody…
So yeah. Didn’t expect this at all. I honestly thought the newly resurrected Red Skull was going to get up to trouble right away, and certainly didn’t have Hydra Cap on my bingo card. I’m actually glad to be wrong about the Skull—let that build in the background for a while before he pops up again. Let Stevil have his time to shine right now. In a world that went to hell in a handbasket without Captain America around, what happens when an evil version of Cap sets out into this brave new world?
Riding Shotgun
As I said earlier, it's starting to feel like Chip Zdarsky has it out for Steve Rogers. Seriously, he's been horrible to the poor guy since issue #1. But it makes for some very compelling stories. I genuinely thought this issue was jumping around in time for most of my reading—Zdarsky did such a good job making Stevil feel like a Steve who'd had enough after everything else we saw him going through. There wasn't much action in this issue, but the story didn't need it. In fact, the action was almost gratuitous—there's no way that Fury Jr. thought his goon squad had a chance against Steve; it was just macho posturing. And now Stevil has used the shield to kill, which is not going to be a good look for Steve in the eyes of SHIELD.
I was not familiar with Ton Lima before this issue, but it's safe to say I'm a fan. His work is very similar to that of regular series artist Valerio Schiti, so I was glad to have some visual consistency there. His style is very clean and expressive, and he did a terrific job putting Steve and Stevil in similar garb so that the reveal was a genuine shock. He showed a great sense of motion in the short action sequence, so I'm looking forward to seeing what he can do when the two Caps come face-to-face.
Rod Fernandes brings solid color work to round out the issue. First off, I love Vic's look. I wasn't sure if I should credit the art or the colors for this, since it's a team effort, but having his hood be green was a simple but brilliant decision. He spends much of the issue with the hood up, and it obviously invokes the classic Doctor Doom look by doing so. The splatters of blood at the end of the issue, both across the ground and on the shield, are also incredibly effective at standing out against the almost idyllic view of America we've seen from the road trip.
Don't Relapse
Captain America #17 does a great job giving us a Steve Rogers who is lost and off-balance, with the world having changed so much since he went into his coma. Forces like Nick Fury Jr. and his new SHIELD won't leave Steve alone, and we can feel his anger as this new world pushes him further and further into himself. The idea of a Steve Rogers who's out of control isn't something that anyone wants. Add to that the wild card of Vic, the young clone of Victor Von Doom, and all eyes are on Steve right now, whether he likes it or not.