Marvel Comics Rewrites Captain America To Become A Nazi Spy

I think I’m gonna start a new hashtag – #LeaveCaptainAmericaTheHellAlone.

According to this, Marvel Comics (not to be confused with Marvel Studios – the movie-making arm of the same company) is releasing a new line of comics featuring Steve “Captain America” Rogers. The twist in this new storyline? That Captain America – the Star-Spangled Man who helped defeat Hitler and Nazi fascism and is beloved by patriotic Americans across the fruited plain – is actually a spy for the secret Nazi faction, Hydra.

Hello, I am a Captain America fan and Marvel Comics just punched me in the face.

From the article –

Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoort shed some light on the reveal, with USA Today citing him as telling them that this is “the real Steve Rogers,” and not “some clone, shapeshifting Skrull, Life Model Decoy or a Cap from an alternate universe.”

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, writer Nick Spencer added to Brevoort’s statements that this is the real Steve, saying, “Issue 2 will lay a lot of our cards on the table in terms of what the new status quo is, but the one thing we can say unequivocally is: This is not a clone, not an imposter, not mind control, not someone else acting through Steve. This really is Steve Rogers, Captain America himself.”

“His mission is to further the goals and beliefs of Hydra,” explained Brevoort, back at USA Today, of Rogers’s new (or possibly old) secret status quo. “If that involves taking down the Marvel universe, sure. (But) it may not be as simple as that. It’s not like he’s exchanged his white hat for a black hat — it’s a green hat.”

So… you’re going to take over 75 YEARS of Captain America continuity (first issue came out in 1941) and completely rewrite his ENTIRE story arc and motivations, just so you can claim you’re being super-edgy and original? (And those old-timey comics creators are so out of touch with what audiences want nowadays. I mean, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby and Joe Simon – what a bunch of outdated dummies. Amiright?)

What is this, Marvel? Did you feel left behind when DC screwed up their All-American Boy Scout Superman? You wanted to dump all over your superhero icon of American patriotism too?

Here’s the biggest problem with this – the other version of Captain America that Marvel Comics has been working on is basically Captain Leftist who routinely beats up parody stereotypes of conservatives (the Sam Wilson in the comics is nowhere near as cool or awesome as the Sam Wilson in the movies). So, if that’s what Marvel Comics thinks left-wingers idealize, then this version of Steve Rogers working for a Nazi Hydra must be what they think right-wingers idealize.

Yeah, no. You guys have NO CLUE just how wrong you got it.

This is seriously going to hurt Marvel Comics’ relationship with their readers. Just for one example, my libertarian-Gary-Johnson-supporting brother-in-law canceled SEVEN of his eight active Marvel Comics subscriptions after he learned of this (the only one he couldn’t part with is Daredevil. Which, if you knew how big of a Daredevil fan he is, is totally understandable). He’s not going to support a company that has no clue what he believes and he’s not going to pay to be slapped in the face. And just looking in the comments section of the news article, it looks like other readers think this is a big-time stupid idea too.

The worst thing about this? That’s exactly what the creators said they want to have happen –

“We knew it would be like slapping people in the face,” confessed Brevoort. “The idea of Captain America means something very primal and very strong to the people of this nation, and they have a very visceral reaction when you get to something like that. You want people to feel and react to your story. So far, so good.”

Okay, so you DO want your loyal readership and fans of Cap to hate you. Congratulations – you got your wish.

Doesn’t it seem like the left is bound and determined to destroy everything we love about Captain America? First, they’re mad that he sounds libertarian in the latest movie (even though that started with the Winter Soldier movie). Then they’re mad because he’s not totally gay in love with his childhood friend that he also served with in the army. Then they’re concocting stupid Twitter hashtags so they can pressure the movie studio into making him gay (even though that is in NO WAY part of his character AT ALL). All of those complaints are one thing – those are a minority of audience voices trying to get attention and they don’t have anything to do with Marvel officially. And, to be fair, those are the Captain America in the movies. Which haven’t tried to utterly destroy the movie version of Cap – for which I’m grateful.

This is different. This is the official creators at Marvel Comics trying to destroy a fantastic, moral, upstanding, good character who (before now) has been trying to hold to his goodness and morals in an increasingly evil and immoral world around him. THAT’S what makes Captain America beloved and awesome.

Basically, what they’re telling readers is that “nobody’s actually THAT good. Certainly not right-wingers. And let us prove it to you.”

Thank goodness for the movies. I mean, I’m sure that somewhere down the line some rabid leftist jerk is going to try to inject some idiotic progressive agenda into the movie version of Captain America and totally ruin the character there. But for now, at least they’re getting that one right.