Breaking Down The Trailer: 20 Things To Look Out For in CAPTAIN AMERICA

With Captain America: The First Avenger set to hit theaters this Friday we took a look at the most recent trailer (below) and identified 20 things of note for Cap fans both new and old.

1. Steve Rogers (Skinny)

Steve Rogers is a plucky kid from New York City who just wants to join up and take the fight to Hitler. There is only one problem: while he has the heart of a lion he has the body of a 12 year old. But Steve is determined to do his part and so, with the help the US Army's Project: Rebirth AKA the super soldier program (here possibly known as the Super Soldier Project), he becomes…

2. Steve Rogers (Now with Muscles!)

… the pinnacle of physical prowess. Knowing a good thing when they've got it, the U.S. Army promptly turns Steve Rogers into the Nazi-busting publicity machine known as…

3. Captain America

Created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, Captain America first appeared in 1941 as part of a wave of patriotic super heroes designed to capitalize on the mood of the United States during World War II. In the comic books, Captain America fought the good fight against the Axis and their own super soldiers alongside his partner Bucky and the super team known as The Invaders until Baron Zemo's exploding rocket sent him into the North Atlantic and into suspended animation, only to be found and revived by The Avengers in the present day. Steve Rogers / Captain America is played by Chris Evans.

4. Johann Schmidt

Johann Schmidt is the leader of Hydra but he also goes by the name of…

5. Red Skull

Also created in 1941 by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, Red Skull has been plaguing Captain America for 70 years. In the comic books, not only was Red Skull personally recruited into the Nazis by Adolph Hitler, but he was trained by Hitler as well. Originally, his grotesque red face was but a mask that he wore to inspire fear and intimidation as head of the Nazi's terrorist activities. His value as a symbol was so great that it caused the U.S. government to create their own symbol, and thus was born the super soldier program. "Experimental gas" exposure lead to Red Skull's own suspended animation at the end of World War II which allowed for his battle with Captain America to continue through the present day. Johann Schmidt / Red Skull is played by Hugo Weaving.

6. Peggy Carter

In the comic books, Margaret "Peggy" Carter was part of the French Resistance during World War II where she worked closely with Captain America. They fell in love for a short time before Cap took an unexpected and prolonged nap in the ocean. Originally she was (current Captain America love interest–awkward!) Sharon Carter's older sister but as time in comic book is fluid she is now her aunt, though she should probably be Sharon's great aunt soon. In the film it appears that Peggy Carter is now more integrated into the Captain America story as part of the super soldier program. Peggy Carter is played by Hayley Atwell.

7. Colonel Chester Phillips

In the comics and in the movie, Colonel Chester Phillips is the U.S. Army officer in charge of the Super Soldier Project. Colonel Chester Phillips is played by Tommy Lee Jones.

8. Dr. Abraham Erskine

Originally named Josef Reinstein in the comics, Dr. Abraham Erskine was the German scientist who defected to the Allies after being horrified by the inhuman experiments conducted by the Nazis. Once he joined up with the U.S. government he created the Super Soldier Serum. Dr. Abraham Erskine is played by Stanley Tucci.

9. Howard Stark

The father of Tony Stark, Howard Stark has now been integrated into the Captain America story to tie the events of the Marvel films even further together. It would appear that Stark is one of the scientists who is a part of the Super Soldier Project team. Howard Stark is played by Dominic Cooper.
 

10. Captain America & Bucky

One of the original comic book superhero/sidekick dynamics is on full display in the trailer as Captain America fights alongside James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes. In the comics, Bucky was a teenage army brat who hung around Camp Lehigh and became the unofficial base mascot after his father was killed. There he met pre-super soldier serum Steve Rogers and they became fast friends. After Steve became Captain America, Bucky became… well, Bucky and together they stomped Nazis all across Europe. In the film it would appear that Steve and Bucky are friends from Brooklyn from before the war. Bucky is played by Sebastian Stan.

11. The Howling Commandos

In the comic books, The Howling Commandos fought the Nazis under the command of Sgt. Nick Fury. Unless there is some big reveal being hidden, it would appear that Fury is out and Captain America is in as the team leader. The Howling Commandos are (from left to right) Jacques Dernier, Dum Dum Dugan, Jim Morita, Montgomery Falsworth, Captain America, Bucky Barnes, and Gabe Jones. The Howling Commandos are played by (respectively and minus Cap and Bucky) Bruno Ricci, Neal McDonough, Kenneth Choi, J.J. Feild, and Derek Luke.

12. Dr. Arnim Zola

Before he encased his consciousness in a robot with a face in its belly, in the comic books Dr. Arnim Zola was a chief biochemist for the Nazis. His specialty was transferring brain patterns into cloned brains. He's one of the big reasons why Cap can't shake Red Skull, even after 70 years. In the film? Who knows. Though he does have a snappy hat. Dr. Arnim Zola is played by Toby Jones.

13. Heinz Kruger

Moments after the Super Soldier Serum was successfully administered to Steve Rogers, the whole thing got mucked up by Heinz Kruger, a Nazi spy and saboteur. Heinz Kruger is played by Richard Armitage, who is no stranger to playing bastard turncoats!

14. Hydra

In the trailer, Hydra is described as "the Nazi deep science division" but I've seen them described elsewhere as a terrorist organization. Perhaps they are both! Either way, they have a lot of men for Cap to punch.

15. Guns

One of the great debates among comic books fans is whether or not Captain America should use firearms. The film is clearly falling down on the side of "there's a war on, son." In the trailer, Captain America is shown popping off a few rounds from his sidearm while his partner Bucky enthusiastically unloads the contents of his machine gun's magazine. Also, Dum Dum Duggan has a shotgun because a guy called Dum Dum would totally have one.

16. Original Triangle Shield

Before Captain America had the red and the white and the blue round shield that was both mighty and easy to throw, in the comic books he ran around the war with a triangular shaped shield. Apparently he does the same in the movie.

17. Super Soldier Serum

The mysterious concoction that turns Steve Rogers from zero to hero (at least physically) whose exact properties are known only to Dr. Erskine.

18. The Cosmic Cube

The Cosmic Cube is… well, it's best not to think too hard about what the Cosmic Cube is, exactly. What it boils down to is that it's a reality shaping device and Red Skull has spent much of his time in comic books seeking it. The Cosmic Cube was last seen in the mid-credits sequence in Thor in the possession of S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury. Rumor has it that the Cosmic Cube won't be called the Cosmic Cube in the films, but instead it will be called the Tesseract, which is stupid.

19. Shield Throwing

If you're going to get Captain America right you have to nail the shield throwing. It's like Superman flying or Spider-Man swinging on webs. If you can pull that off and make it look cool then you've got something. There hasn't been a ton of shield throwing in the trailers thus far but what we have seen looks pretty good.

20. Brooklyn

In the comic books, Steve Rogers was actually born on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, an area that was not only a fertile ground for new immigrants to the United States, but was also home to comic book creator legends like Jack Kirby. In the trailer, Steve calls himself "just a boy from Brooklyn." Why the change? It's possible that, to the general public, the idea of Brooklyn is more evocative than the idea of the Lower East Side. It's also possible that they are paying tribute to old World War II movies that almost always featured at least one guy in the unit who was from Flatbush and was going to show them Nazi bums a thing or two before going back home to catch a Dodgers game.

Captain America: The First Avenger hits theaters July 22. Come back to iFanboy on Friday to read our review and talk about the film.