I must admit, the last story arch of Captain America left me a little depressed. It’s not that it wasn’t good, but there was something about it that left me feeling like Ed Brubaker was treading water and tying up a loose end. I read the first issue of the new story, and while it was promising, I left the issues to stack up.
Today, I read the last three issues. I’m back on this book with a vengeance. Brubaker caught my attention early on. He’s good at doing super hero fights, but even better at the noir mystery and the telling-but-not-overtly-expository conversations in between. I’m even happier that he’s given Bucky an arch-nemesis that is so obvious I can’t believe I didn’t think of it before. If a hero is defined by the enemy they fight, then Bucky couldn’t do better than Baron Zemo. He has a history with that name, and both characters are in the shadow of men who held the mantle before them.
But the real reason I set down to write this review is the art. I can’t say I’m a huge fan of Butch Guice. However, what I saw today was a tour de force in the history of comic book art. I’m sure I’m not the first to notice, but the angles and facial construction are sometimes drawn directly from the influence of Kirby and Steranko. This issue, in particular, had a panel that I stared at for minutes before I recognized the influence (I’ll let you decide which it was) as none other than Will Eisner. For that, I can only applaud. I hope more people notice what I see as your love letter to the legends of comic art.