Over at Marvel Comics, the publisher recently announced an end to the previous Steve Rogers-centered “Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty” and is preparing to launch a brand new “Captain America” volume. Acclaimed Marvel writer J. Michael Straczynski is returning to Marvel Comics for a new run in continuity with Steve Rogers. J. Michael Straczynski or JMS for short wrote a “Thor” comic book series that defined the modern tone of the character alongside artist Olivier Coipel. “Swamp Thing” artist Jesus Saiz always renders figures with an impressive level of gravitas. I’m very curious to see how Saiz and JMS work together to flesh out a younger Steve Rogers in this brand new volume of “Captain America.”
Cover by Jesus SaizWritten by J. Michael Straczynski
Illustrated by Jesus Saiz
Colored by Matt Hollingsworth
Lettered by VC’s Joe CaramagnaWHAT FUTURE AWAITS THE MAN OUT OF TIME? Decades ago, Steve Rogers changed the world forever. Now powerful and insidious forces are assembling to ensure he never does it again. Past, present and future collide as the man out of time reckons with an existential threat determined to set the world on a darker path at any cost… Esteemed creators J. Michael Straczynski (THOR, THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN) and Jesús Saiz (PUNISHER, DOCTOR STRANGE) embark on an exhilarating new journey for CAPTAIN AMERICA!
Marvel’s latest “Captain America” run appears to focus on Steve Rogers as an individual instead of a superhero. Watching Steve get to know some of the members living in his apartment building as the issue opens is heartwarming. Towards the beginning of the chapter, I initially thought writer J. Michael Straczynski was venturing in a more traditional direction by introducing a throwaway villain as the beginning of the issue. However, JMS quickly sheds the “Captain Marvel” and “Hawkeye” influence of the comic book by featuring so many interactions with Steve with average people. JMS is able to write these characters with humanity as they struggle through their lives and find relief through the good nature of Steve Rogers.
Artist Jesus Saiz captures the dramatic elements of “Captain America” beautifully. Saiz and color artist Matt Hollingsworth add so much shading to the figures which helps makes the tense interactions from the script much more believable. The sequence following this one showing Steve and his mother features devastatingly subtly movement and evocative facial expressions from Steve. Saiz perfectly taps into the supernatural and ghost-like elements lingering just below the surface of Steve’s life. Saiz does a great job capturing Steve across so many separate timelines in this tense, emotional “Captain America” comic book issue. The amount of detail Saiz lends over to some of the background details in the issue is staggering.
Steve Rogers is haunted in the pages of his new ongoing series. Every time Steve encounters a memory forgotten to his past, readers should expect to brace themselves for a harrowing scenario. There’s an absolutely heartbreaking scene tucked early in the issue where Steve is facing eviction as a young man. Watching these lost scenes come back to life captured by the beautiful art from Jesus Saiz is just stunning. Thankfully after Steve looked back on his past the issue picks up again by featuring some guest stars in The Marvel Universe.
Jesus Saiz picks up on incredible scene transitions that complements the scripts from JMS well. Later on in the comic book series, Steve Rogers returns to his time as a young man in an even more devastating scenario. Saiz chooses to evoke emotion by illustrating the massive architecture Steve is surrounded in. This issue even functions as a period piece, showing Steve in his own timeline navigating his life as a young man. In page late in the comic book issue, Saiz is able to render Steve doing chores as a young man in a collage sequence. Saiz uses negative space to make this really stand out among others and to make time pass in a visceral, captivating manner.
One of the additional elements behind this series that J. Michael Straczynski uses to great effect are some of the individuals surrounding Steve. Mr. Kim is a character joining the supporting cast that has a beautiful backstory meshing incredibly well with Steve’s modern outlook. In the back of “Captain America” #1, readers can get the first hints of the occult-like threat that Saiz and JMS are building in the background of the comic book. I’m also really intrigued to see if there is going to be any connective tissue between the cliffhanger and occult-based sequence in the series.
“Captain America” #1 is a staggeringly beautiful issue that depicts Steve Rogers as a young man. Artist Jesus Saiz is able to render Steve with so much beautiful shading and gravitas. JMS writes incredibly honest dialogue that shows how relatable Steve Rogers is as a man and superhero. Seeing the first hints of the occult-threat brewing beneath the surface of the issue was absolutely thrilling. I’m curious to see what elements Saiz and JMS can extract from Steve’s past to inform his future. In addition to Steve operating as a hero, it is also fascinating to see him work with others in The Marvel Universe. Marvel and the creative team behind “Captain America” #1 carry an intense level of ambition that looks like it is establishing a strong ongoing series. JMS and Saiz’s contributions to this brand new “Captain America” series was worth the wait.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – The ghosts of Steve’s past return in “Captain America” #1!
