Yesterday was a nightmare, none of us could avoid the press coverage of the death of Captain America. I’ve pretty much avoided all media coverage of the event, until this morning when I saw that Joe Quesada, Editor In Chief of Marvel, spoke pretty candidly to Comic Book Resources about the event and the public reaction to it.
UPDATE! In another interview with CBR, Ed Brubaker says that Cap’s death was his idea.
I have to admit, while I saw it coming months ago, after reading the book and actually seeing it happen, I still almost don’t believe it, but it looks like this is as real as it gets in comics.
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This didn’t affect me on more than a “hey, good book” level yesterday, but then this morning I got in my car and “Morning Edition” was doing an obituary featuring interviews with Stan Lee and Joe Simon and I found myself quite unexpectedly choking up. Say what you want about comics, but that won’t happen to me when Harry Potter dies.
This was NOT how I wanted to be woken up yesterday.
At the same time, seeing the death of Capt on the front page of the NYTimes last night made me smile a little.
Aaaaaah!
If this is to be taken at face value:
CBR: With so many major characters having died and returned
“I don’t think there are any editorial mandates. I think Millar just hates America.” -Ed Brubaker
Yeah, after reading what Joe said about Civil War: The Initiative, I am a little depressed now. Also I am very annoyed that the only graphic yahoo seems to have of Captain America is that real-life goofball in spandex pumping his arm muscles.
Also I am very annoyed that the only graphic yahoo seems to have of Captain America is that real-life goofball in spandex pumping his arm muscles.
Don’t even get me started on that. I showed Josh and I thought he was going to punch something.
I would be very surprised if Steve Rogers isn’t back in uniform within 18-24 months. It was 18 months between when he gave up being Cap in #332 and John Walker took over, and when Steve came back in #350/351. Of course, back then Steve was still around for most of those issues and now he is dead. Harder to come back from death.
Ed Brubaker continues to impress me with his great writing. Stay on for at least 75 more issues Ed!
“Also I am very annoyed that the only graphic yahoo seems to have of Captain America is that real-life goofball in spandex pumping his arm muscles.
Don’t even get me started on that. I showed Josh and I thought he was going to punch something.”
That is funny you mention that. Most people at my office know that I am a comic book fan. So I had not even heard about the whole Cap death yet. And I am walking by someone’s desk and they say, “Hey Craig! Aren’t you a comic book fan?” So I walk around the desk to see that they have the Yahoo article pulled up. People are all asking me questions and stuff…which sucked because I hadn’t even read the issue yet. Made me look kinda stupid. And then to top it off they start to talk about that picture they used for the article. Ridiculous! There are so many more great images that could be used. The CBR article had 3 or 4 in itself.
Well, sure, it’s the worst possible picture to have printed in your obituary, but have you seen the full image? It’s a couple of years old, and it still makes me laugh every time I see it.
What are Cap and Spidey doing with the Red Skull?
You know… I feel, ad far as media coverage, this is better when SPidey got unmasked. AT least it wasn’t page one of the freakin POst! Internet, I could avoid, and luckily I missed the tv news. ANd thank god I don’t ever read the Daily News….
“Well, sure, it’s the worst possible picture to have printed in your obituary, but have you seen the full image? It’s a couple of years old, and it still makes me laugh every time I see it.”
Umm…wow…that might possibly be the scariest thing I have ever seen. If I was at an event where something like that happened and two guys showed up dressed like that…
The least they could have done was get decent costumes. Those look like those really bad halloween costumes those companies come out with that are supposed to be “realistic with muscles” and they charge like $300 for them.
Ha! Suck it, Yahoo News!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6431619.stm
I don’t read many Marvel comics, but am I wrong to assume Bucky (or I guess they call him Winter Soldier now) will take on the mantle of Captain America?
It looks like it is going to go to the Punisher first and no doubt Bucky/Winter Soldier takes it from him.
Sounds like a good storyline. Making me want to pick up Captain America trades even more.
I agree that there are several options available that could allow for some good stories as to other characters taking up the mantle. It will just be interesting to see how, if and when they do, they decide to bring Cap back. Other than his super soldier serum induced abilities he has not other superhuman traits. So I hope when they do bring him back they will make it interesting.
I don’t want 4 different Captain America’s running around…each with a different personality and a different take on a costume a la the Return of Superman.
Lol I hadn’t thought about a Death of Cap type story with four guys trying to fill his role. Falcon, Punisher, Bucky, and Sharon maybe….
Marvel can’t do that, obviously it would be aping the Superman story…
I’m just glad they killed him, at least in death he has a chance to be written in-character, well, maybe a better chance than when he was alive in Civil War.
I’m just glad they killed him, at least in death he has a chance to be written in-character, well, maybe a better chance than when he was alive in Civil War.
Clearly you weren’t reading Captain America.
Seriously? Fuck the news. I saw something about Captain America and to my demise watched it before getting #25 at my shop that day.
iukhdaskfaksjfd. I can’t even express how pissed off I am at the ruin of supprise. I swear, it’s as bad as finding out about Pete’s un-masking in Civil War #2 before I read it.
Maybe they killed Captain America to take everyone’s mind off how Civil War failed.
They said Civil War would be big and a seminal changing event. They unmasked Spider-Man….that didn’t quite do it…they brought back Chlor….that really didn’t do it….they killed Goliath….brought back Captain Marvel…
Then they were like “Damn it…what do we have to do” So that made events leading out of it responsible for the death of the one character in Marvel that was supposed to not die ever.
Ooh well…apparently it isn’t permanent anyways.
Was the surprise really ruined? What else was going to happen? Cap spends the next year in jail, studying law, and finds all sorts of legal loopholes in the registration act? Yeah, that would have made a great comic. C’mon, all of us saw this coming. The media covering it as much as they did will get more people into the stores. Even if it is just for a short time, it will help the industry grow.
Yeah I know it is maybe a logical conclusion to the event.
But Cap could have fled the country to Mexico and fought alongside Nacho Libre or something….
Ok so that might have been worse then killing him.
I haven’t been reading Captain America Conor, my “out of character” reference was strictly limited to the portrayal I read in Civil War.
“Brubaker: I didn’t, no. But I’ve got the next two years of Cap plotted, if that says anything.”
They’re going to keep him dead until the Bush administration is out of office, if that says anything.
I haven’t been reading Captain America Conor, my “out of character” reference was strictly limited to the portrayal I read in Civil War.
Yes, I know. You should read Captain America. It’s really quite good – everyone that I know that has picked up the trades has loved it.
🙂
I think this is my favorite take on the news so far, and I wish I’d written it.
I wouldn’t say that I saw this move coming from Marvel only because I thought Brubaker would do another sort of storyline with prisons like he did with Daredevil, only maybe this time Cap leads a rebellion in the prison, takes out Stark and reverses Civil War. Too cliche?
I read about the death while I was at work, and I was pretty bummed. His character is the heart of the Marvel U and they just up and kill him out of no where. Bummer. The only real pain in the ass about the media circus is the fallout: no issues left in stores for real fans, and single issues being sold for outrageous ass prices. Barf.
I want to see Barbra Walters cover this story, you know, go to Stan Lee, Brevort, Joe Q. and Brubaker’s house, walk with them in the back yard, just her normal crap, all about Captain America…it’d be both funny…and get comics out to the public.
I was a big fan, whole no powers/normal guy thing I guess, but just like wrestling and soaps there will be a big “unexpected” return at some point to sell more comics. But I don’t know why the fans are up in arms at all this as it is to be expected from the industry. I do agree on the whole Punisher picking up the mantel, it should make for an interesting story arc. It would be very funny if the writers did do an homage to the Death of Superman from the 90’s by having 4 “New” Caps fighting for the uniform, very unlikely though. More importantly “The Shield” is what will be the new beacon in the Marvel Universe, Cap’s Shield is like Thor’s Hammer, who ever has it has the title. I would like to see Spidey get to have it, not that it suits him or his powers, but he is the closest morally to Cap in my eyes.
Cap was the heart and soul of the marvel universe in my oppion and now he gone….. Plus no one else in comics can do a better rally moment than Cap.
Be ready for The Punisher to become the new Cap. He picked up Cap’s cowl remember.
If Steve Rogers represented the America of the past, what is Marvel saying about America today, if Frank Castle is the new Captain America?
Richard
http://1rightopinion-comics.blogspot.com/
After thinking about it some more…is it just me or was Cap kind of killed similar to how Lee Harvey Oswald was killed?
No, that was Speedball. (Although he wasn’t killed).
I, too, wish I had a chance to read the comic *BEFORE* it made the news cycles that day. Even Wikipedia waits until people have had a chance to read the comics before they add it to articles as spoilers.
I’ve since had a chance to see the Colbert Report’s Word on “Comic Justice” and the subsequent willing of the shield to Colbert himself. I think, by far, it’s the classiest reaction in the mainstream media. At least Stephen seems to know what he’s talking about when commenting on this and Civil War. I’m now very interested in knowing if anybody else, from Leno and Letterman to Tim Russert and George Stephanapoulos (sp?) had any comments or jokes, and would like to see the video of that.
I, too, wish I had a chance to read the comic *BEFORE* it made the news cycles that day. Even Wikipedia waits until people have had a chance to read the comics before they add it to articles as spoilers.
That’s actually not true. Wikipedia had the details of the death up before noon on the East Coast.