Post by goldenfist on Sept 26, 2008 15:38:25 GMT -5
Ign.com reviews Captain America #42.
Spoiler Warning: Some mild spoilers in here for the "Death of Captain America" arc - but not this issue.
Nearly a year and a half, and eighteen whole issues, after Ed Brubaker first killed off Steve Rogers by having Sharon Carter go all Jack Ruby on him, his three-act "Death of Captain America" saga comes to an end with Captain America #42. The saga doesn't, however, come to much of a conclusion, leaving many threads unresolved and a few important character motivations unrevealed.
More so than anything else, the issue simply entrenches Bucky Barnes as the undisputed heir to the Captain America mantel while establishing his and the book's new status quo. In those respects, the issue can be seen as an important and fulfilling experience, one that ushers this series into a new era for the first time since it debuted with issue #1. Still, the book leaves a lot to be desired as a finale to such an extended epic, and it's tough not to walk away a bit disappointed considering how much time and space was dedicated to this story.
I think the matter of this issue and this story's lack of a proper resolution has a lot to do with Ed Brubaker's approach to ongoing titles. Brubaker has always seemed to be just as concerned with crafting an ongoing soap opera as he is telling story arcs that entertain in their own right. This attention to the larger picture of his titles is what makes each of Brubaker's series so completely captivating and must reads on a monthly basis, but it also can leave a bitter taste in the mouths of fans looking for self-contained stories with proper resolutions. His work is a bit of a catch-22 in that regard – what makes them so utterly engrossing and grand in scope also deters from one's ability to enjoy them on an issue to issue or story arc to story arc basis. With the exception of maybe Criminal, all of Brubaker's current work seems to involve this sort of give and take.
With "Death of Captain America", Brubaker brilliantly set into motion a number of different chess pieces. There was Bucky Barnes' struggle to come to terms with Steve Rogers' legacy; Sharon Carter struggle to come to terms with her role in Rogers' murder; the Red Skull and Arnim Zola's plot to put their own puppet candidate in the presidency; the sudden reappearance of the 1950s substitute Captain America, who genuinely thought he was the real Captain America; and Dr. Faustus efforts to subvert the Skull's plans for his own mysterious reasons.
Again, all these various chess pieces were put into play masterfully. What Brubaker failed to do was push most of them towards what should have been an inevitable collision. Instead, only a few threads collide, with others merely bumping into each other in passing. In the end, a lot of pieces are left standing, and some of the biggest confrontations are put to the side for a later date.
Despite my problems with the way this finale played out, it's still impossible not to recognize what Brubaker has accomplished with this epic, particularly what he accomplished with the Bucky Barnes character. With this story, Brubaker has made Bucky just as complex as Steve Rogers ever was while making him an entirely different sort of Captain America. Thanks to this story, the Marvel Universe now has a new A-list hero with a ton of dramatic depth and potential. It just would have been nice to see a more satisfying conclusion to his first adventure.
Review Score: 8.3 Impressive
Spoiler Warning: Some mild spoilers in here for the "Death of Captain America" arc - but not this issue.
Nearly a year and a half, and eighteen whole issues, after Ed Brubaker first killed off Steve Rogers by having Sharon Carter go all Jack Ruby on him, his three-act "Death of Captain America" saga comes to an end with Captain America #42. The saga doesn't, however, come to much of a conclusion, leaving many threads unresolved and a few important character motivations unrevealed.
More so than anything else, the issue simply entrenches Bucky Barnes as the undisputed heir to the Captain America mantel while establishing his and the book's new status quo. In those respects, the issue can be seen as an important and fulfilling experience, one that ushers this series into a new era for the first time since it debuted with issue #1. Still, the book leaves a lot to be desired as a finale to such an extended epic, and it's tough not to walk away a bit disappointed considering how much time and space was dedicated to this story.
I think the matter of this issue and this story's lack of a proper resolution has a lot to do with Ed Brubaker's approach to ongoing titles. Brubaker has always seemed to be just as concerned with crafting an ongoing soap opera as he is telling story arcs that entertain in their own right. This attention to the larger picture of his titles is what makes each of Brubaker's series so completely captivating and must reads on a monthly basis, but it also can leave a bitter taste in the mouths of fans looking for self-contained stories with proper resolutions. His work is a bit of a catch-22 in that regard – what makes them so utterly engrossing and grand in scope also deters from one's ability to enjoy them on an issue to issue or story arc to story arc basis. With the exception of maybe Criminal, all of Brubaker's current work seems to involve this sort of give and take.
With "Death of Captain America", Brubaker brilliantly set into motion a number of different chess pieces. There was Bucky Barnes' struggle to come to terms with Steve Rogers' legacy; Sharon Carter struggle to come to terms with her role in Rogers' murder; the Red Skull and Arnim Zola's plot to put their own puppet candidate in the presidency; the sudden reappearance of the 1950s substitute Captain America, who genuinely thought he was the real Captain America; and Dr. Faustus efforts to subvert the Skull's plans for his own mysterious reasons.
Again, all these various chess pieces were put into play masterfully. What Brubaker failed to do was push most of them towards what should have been an inevitable collision. Instead, only a few threads collide, with others merely bumping into each other in passing. In the end, a lot of pieces are left standing, and some of the biggest confrontations are put to the side for a later date.
Despite my problems with the way this finale played out, it's still impossible not to recognize what Brubaker has accomplished with this epic, particularly what he accomplished with the Bucky Barnes character. With this story, Brubaker has made Bucky just as complex as Steve Rogers ever was while making him an entirely different sort of Captain America. Thanks to this story, the Marvel Universe now has a new A-list hero with a ton of dramatic depth and potential. It just would have been nice to see a more satisfying conclusion to his first adventure.
Review Score: 8.3 Impressive
