Avengers/Invaders #1
Old Soldiers, New Wars
December, 1943
The Invaders — Captain America (Steve Rogers), Bucky (James Barnes), Human Torch (Jim Hammond), Toro (Thomas Raymond), Sub-Mariner (Namor), Spitfire (Jackie Falsworth), and Union Jack (Brian Falsworth) — have traveled to Monte Cassino, Italy, to dismantle a secret Nazi program called Operation: Time Ghost. Things get off to an annoying start for Bucky, who is sent to disarm bombs. He knows that this is to keep him off the front lines.[1] But in his opinion, everywhere is the front line and he wants to be in the thick of it with his comrades. Seeing the other Invaders in combat has him in awe due to their superhuman abilities and skills.[2]
However, next to his fellow Invaders, Bucky is inspired by the heroism on display by the ordinary soldiers that are fighting alongside with them as they clash with Nazi forces. They are not much older that James himself, and are deathly afraid of dying, but still stand up and fight. It’s as they clash with Nazi forces many of these soldiers are gunned down and killed. Union Jack takes a bullet as well, prompting Spitfire — his sister — to run to his side to care for him. Captain America and the others follow the lead of a lone soldier who saw his buddies gone down. They are suddenly enveloped in a strange green mist…..
Manhattan, Today
Spider-Man (Peter Parker) is on the run from the Thunderbolts — Moonstone (Karla Sofen), Songbird (Melissa Gold), Radioactive Man (Chen Lu), Swordsman (Andreas Von Strucker), Venom (Mac Gargan), and Penance (Robbie Baldwin) — who are trying to take him in for being an unregistered superhero.[3] The web-slinger finds it crazy that the Thunderbolts — all former villains —are the ones seen as heroes while he is hunted down like a criminal.[4] As Spider-Man struggles to get away, an old man watching the fight protests the web-slinger’s unfair treatment, calling him a hero.[5] This is before his grandson pulls the old man to safety before he gets hurt.
That’s when a green mist appears in the middle of Times Square, and the Invaders emerge from it. This is an immediate shock to everyone present who can’t believe that these are the real Invaders from World War II. Confused by their surroundings, the Invaders assume that the Thunderbolts are some kind of Nazis when they hear the Swordsman speak with a German accent. As a fight breaks out between the two teams, Spider-Man is astonished to see Captain America in the flesh again.[6][7] That is until the Thunderbolt’s jet takes some damage, forcing the wall-crawler to leap to it and get it under control before it crashes on some innocent bystanders.[8]
Meanwhile, the Thunderbolts are quickly losing their advantage, with the Sub-Mariner being revitalized with water from a broken fire hydrant, and Venom being incapacitated by the Human Torch’s flame. When Namor rips apart Penance’s costume and sees the horrifically scarred body of a frightened young man, he wonders what has been done to him.[9] While the Thunderbolts being on the ropes, Captain America orders the Invaders to make a tactical retreat so they can assess their situation and figure out what’s going on. At the same time, Spider-Man has crashed the Thunderbolt’s ship into the East River. He has at least figured out that the appearance of the Invaders is some sort of chronological mishap but is in awe that Captain America is back.
As the battle comes to an end, Paul Anslem — the soldier who went through time with the Invaders — sees the news reports on television screens in a shop window. Picking up the day’s paper and seeing the date, he cannot believe what the date is.
At that same time, word about the Invaders has reached SHIELD. Deputy Director Maria Hill then heads into the office of Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. There, she discovers that Stark has already seen the news and is shocked to see that Steve Rogers is alive.[
Recurring Characters
Invaders (Captain America, Bucky, Human Torch, Toro, Sub-Mariner, Spitfire, Union Jack), Thunderbolts (Moonstone, Songbird, Radioactive Man, Swordsman, Venom, Penance), SHIELD (Iron Man, Maria Hill)
Continuity Notes
Here, Bucky states that everyone who used to call him James is dead. He is referring to his parents, George and Winnifred Barnes. George died in combat training, per Captain America (vol. 5) #14, while his mother died when James was still a boy, as told in Captain America #620. There is also his sister Rebecca, who actually survives until the Modern Age. However, they were separated after the death of his parents and sent to private school. I think we can forgive him for not mentioning her what with the fact that he is in the middle of World War II.
What we get is a run through the Invaders and their various abilities for uninitiated readers, including some talk about their abilities. They are:
Captain America: It talks about how he was given the Super Soldier Serum, as originally told in Captain America Comics #1. Here, Bucky refers to the government program that gave him these abilities as “Operation: Super Soldier” here. The government program has been given various code names, the first time “Operation: Super Soldier” was used was in Captain America #109. It is more commonly known as Operation: Rebirth, which was first coined in Tales of Suspense #63.
Human Torch: Is referred to as a synthetic man who was created by Professor Phineas Horton. This was first depicted in Marvel Comics #1.
The Sub-Mariner’s Atlantean heritage is mentioned here (Marvel Comics #1). It also states that he joined the war effort because Atlantis was viewed by the Nazis as yet another nation to conquer. When Namor first appeared, he was an enemy of humanity. He ultimately shifted his focus primarily on the Nazis in particular starting in Marvel Mystery Comics #4.
It is mentioned here that Spitfire got her super-speed after getting a blood transfusion from the Human Torch. This happened after she was exsanguinated by the Nazi vampire known as Baron Blood. See Invaders #10-11.
Union Jack is stated as being the second man to carry the mantle. The original Union Jack was Montgomery Falsworth, first seen in Invaders #7. Montgomery was a World War I veteran who had to retire after being seriously injured in Invaders #9. His son, Brian, succeed him in Invaders #19. Here, Bucky states that Union Jack does not have any superhuman powers. However, in 1942, Brian obtained electrical powers during an encounter with Thor, as seen in Invaders #33. However, he stopped exhibiting these powers at the end of that Invaders series and all subsequent appearances, so it appears that these new powers were only temporary.
Lastly, it is stated here that nobody knows the source of Toro’s flame powers. In Invaders #22 it was theorized that he might be a mutant. This is seemingly confirmed by Wolverine later on in Avengers/Invaders #5. However, it’s later revealed in All-New Invaders #8 that Toro inherited Inhuman genes from his parents.
This story takes place after the events of Civil War #1-7, which saw the passage of the Super Human Registration Act (SHRA) that required superheroes to register with the government. While Spider-Man eventually supported the law, he went rogue, making him an outlaw. This law will remain on the books until Siege #4.
When Spider-Man wishes people would praise him with kisses for being a hero, he jokes that he’d accept one from actress Kirsten Dunst. This is a reference to 2004 Spider-Man 2, which features an iconic scene of Spider-Man (played by Tobey Maguire) kissing Mary Jane (played by Dunst) upside down in the rain. Typically a movie reference like this would be considered a topical reference. However, other forms of Marvel media exist in the Marvel Universe and Marvel creatives are generally considered to exist in the Modern Age in their relative prime. I think it is safe to assume this also extends to actors that appeared in Marvel movies?
This old man is the present day version of Paul Anslem, which causes some issues due to the Sliding Timescale. See below for further details.
As will be stated multiple times in this story, at this point Steve Rogers was believed to have died in Captain America (vol. 5) #25. In reality, he was shot with a chronal bullet and is actually living his entire life in a loop. He will remain in this purgatory until Captain America: Reborn #1-6.
Spider-Man states that his uncle met the Invaders once. He is referring to Ben Parker who died in Amazing Fantasy #15. Ben Parker was first stated as serving in the military in Spectacular Spider-Man Annual #4, a flashback story that was set around the 1930s. However, this period is part of the Pre-Modern Age, and subject to the Sliding Timescale and is subject to change. For example, when the story was retold in Spider-Man Family #7, it was bumped up to the 1950s. That said, at the time of publication it wouldn’t have been impossible for Ben Parker to have served in World War II. It would be impossible now. Modern readers could assume that rather than serving in the war and meeting the Invaders in person, Ben Parker knew all about them from his collection of Golden Age comics that we saw in Amazing Spider-Man #-1.
Spider-Man jokes that he doesn’t have a drivers license and can’t even drive his Spider-Mobile. He totally had one, once upon a time, as seen in Amazing Spider-Man #130. He also differentiates Jim Hammond from the other Human Torch (Johnny Storm, first seen in Fantastic Four #1), he and Spider-Man have had a long association dating back to Amazing Spider-Man #1.
Penance was once the hero known as Speedball until he was involved in the Stamford Incident in Civil War #1. Surviving the explosion, Robbie experienced further trauma and injury before he took responsibility for his actions. To atone for the lives lost in the disaster, he took on the Penance persona, wearing a suit with spikes on the inside that caused him pain and scarred him whenever he moved. See Civil War: Front Line #1-11.
Tony Stark was made the Director of SHIELD following the end of the superhero civil war, as seen in New Avengers #25. Stark blames himself for Cap’s apparent death, as seen in Civil War: The Confession #1.
Topical References
The people in the present day are depicted as having “flip” style cell phones which were commonly used in 2008 when this comic was originally published. However, this have fallen out of popular use thanks to the advent of smart phones. As such, their depiction here should be considered a topical reference.
Speaking of 2008, this date is used multiple times in this story. This date should be considered topical as it is relative to the date of publication.
Likewise should the measurement of time between 1943 and the present day. This is because Marvel’s Modern Age operates on a sliding timescale that slowly bumps it forward in time. This causes the gulf of years between World War II and the “present” grow larger over time. Like the references to 2008, the measurement of time used here is relative to the date of publication.
How Can Paul Anslem Be Alive in the Modern Age?
The character of Paul Anslem is rooted in World War II, which creates some problems with him still being alive in the Modern Age. This is because the present day of the Marvel Universe operates on a sliding timescale. As a result, the gulf of time between World War II and the Marvel Present will continue to grow over time. While it was possible for Anslem to still be alive in 2008, when this comic was originally published, it has since become increasingly unlikely. In a lot of cases, characters from World War II have survived by artificial means that either slow, extend, or stop their aging to explain why they are still alive.
However, as of this writing, Marvel has yet to provide a specific explanation as to how Anslem — a seemingly ordinary man — could still be alive in the Modern Age. I think the simplest explanation is tied into all the time travel shenanigans involved in the Avengers/Invaders series. The Invaders are pulled forward in time by the power of the Cosmic Cube. One could assume that — somehow — the Cube sustained Anslem so he could still be alive in the Modern Age to meet his past self.
This leaves explaining his grandson, who is depicted as a young man in his early 20s. I think there are three possible explanations: (1) The familial relationship is topical, in which case this relation would be subject to change to justify his youthful appearance, (2) Paul’s grandson also somehow had his aging process slowed or (3) Perhaps Paul’s longevity allowed him to produce children much later in life (say, when the pre-modern age kicks in) to explain his grandson being so young.
Personally, I think option 1 is improbable because there’s a certain point when Paul’s grandson is shifted down to a great-grandson where the idea of him caring for someone who was alive during World War II like it’s the most normal thing in the world is outlandish. Option 2 seems like a cop-out if you have to come up with magical excuses to explain everyone. I think Option 3 seems like the more likely one. I’d buy that Paul still had viable baby gravy to pump out family members who could live normal lives in the Modern Age. Yeah, “extra viable baby gravy” is the least outlandish explanation. What a world, huh?