Captain America: The Legend #1
Strength Levels
A listing of various Captain America allies and foes and where their strength levels are at.
Off the Chart: Terminus, Super-Adaptoid, Thanos, Jakar, MODOK, MODAM, Dragon Man, Amerdroid.
Augmented Strength/Highly Skilled: US Agent, Wolverine, Cable, Grand Director, Deathlok.
Augmented Strength/Moderately Skilled: Americop, Primus, Nomad, Armadillo, Vormund, Man-Brute, Power Man (Josten)
Augmented Strength/Limited Skills: Animus, Vermin, Baron Blood, Grey Gargoyle, Mister Hyde, Nefarious
Peak Human Strength/Highly Skilled: Batroc, Crossbones, Black Panther, Nick Fury, the Punisher, the Tumbler, Razorfist, Viper, General Wo
Peak Human Strength/Moderately Skilled: Red Skull, King Cobra, Zaran, Machete, Mother Night, Swordsman (Duquestne), Bullseye, Flag-Smasher, Mad Dog, Constrictor
Peak Human Strength/Limited Skills: Dr. Faustus, Eel, Machinesmith, Asp, Baron Zemo (Helmut), Zeitgeist, Scourge, Whirlwind
Average Human Strength/Limited Skills: Every-Man, Madcap, Sidewinder, Arnim Zola, Black Mamba, Trapster
The Loved and the Lost
A feature on the various women and sidekicks in Steve Rogers life including Peggy Carter, Sharon Carter, Bernie Rosenthal, Diamondback, Rick Jones, Bucky, Falcon, Nomad, Demolition Man, Fabian Stankewicz, John Jameson, Zach Moonhunter
Schematics, Cap’s Booklyn HQ
A blueprint and floorplan of Captain America’s headquarters in Brooklyn Heights.
Captain America, This is Your Life!
A run down of the the various supporting cast members during various periods of Cap’s life including his parents (Joe and Sarah Rogers), Arnie Roth, Abraham Erskine, Chester Phillips (incorrectly named Richard here), Myron MacLain (incorrectly named McLean here), Mike Duffy, Sub-Mariner, Human Torch (Hammond), Toro, Edwin Jarvis, Nick Fury, Hawkeye, Quicksilver, the Scarlet Witch, the Black Panther, Dave Cox, Donna Maria Puentes, Joshua Cooper, Anna Kappelbaum, Mike Farrel, Free Spirit, Jack Flag,
Test Your Strength
10 questions to test you knowledge on Captain America.
Captain America’s Lamest Foes
As the title suggests, 10 of Captain America’s lamest foes: Ameridroid, Animus, Blistik, Brother Nature, Every-Man, Gamecock, Mister X, and the Peeper
Top Ten Greatest Foes
Self explanatory. Featuring: Doctor Faustus, Flag-Smasher, Viper, Baron Zemo (Heinrich), Arnim Zola, Crossbones, Batroc, MODOK, Red Skull, Machinesmith
Outnumbered
A run down on the various organizations that Captain America fought over the years including the Serpent Society, Advanced Idea Mechanics, the Skeleton Crew, and the Watchdogs.
Cap Creators Speak out
Q&A with Captain America creative teams including Ron Garney, Mark Gruenwald, Mark Waid, Paul Neary, Ralph Macchio, and Stan Lee
He Looks Good in Tights, But Can He Hold a Job?
Detailing all the different jobs that Captain America held over the years including a soldier, a teacher, a policeman, a commercial artist, and a costume shop owner.
Top Ten Embarrassing Moments
Again, pretty self explanatory, these include: Captain America: Crossdresser! (Captain America #391), Kingpin’s Right on the Money — Not! (Captain America #148), Serpents Recruit the Eel (Captain America #163), Cap Trips on his Own Cape (Captain America #182), Braggin’ Fool (Tales of Suspense #92), Diamondback: Super Aerobics Instructor? (Captain America #389), Cap Masquerades as Canned Goods (Captain America #438), Captain America, Fashion Victim (Captain America #307), Helpless Baby (Captain America #355), and Capwolf (Captain America #405)
Captain America, Fashionable Guy
A showcase of the various costumes that Captain America has worn including his original wartime costume, his Nomad outfit, his all-back “Just the Captain” suit, the armored uniform, the Ex-Patriot costume, and his traditional outfit.
Milestone Issues
Captain America Comics #1, Captain America’s Weird Tales #75, Young Men #24, Captain America Comics #76, Avengers #4, 16, Tales of Suspense #58, 66, 75, 94, 97, Captain America #100, 183, 193, 200, 209, 223, 231, 237, 247-248, 250, 275, 281-282, Annual #8, 300, 309, 310, 312, 317, 320, 322, 328, 332-333, 350, 354, 360, 368, 372, 383, 400, 425, 431, 434, 438, 443, 445, 450, 452, 454,
Scenes We Never Saw
After being revived in the present day, Steve Rogers attempts to get his life back in order. It’s a task easier said then done, a lesson he learns, when he goes down to the DMV to reinstate his license and the woman at the counter refuses to believe he was born in 1922.
Steve then takes a taxi down to his old neighborhood and is let off out front of the old apartment building where he used to live. He is disappointed to see the place run so run down after all these years. Stopping to look in a shop window displaying TVs, Cap watches the newscasts announcing his return after years in suspended animation. While his guard is down, Steve is then cornered by three muggers who rob him at knife point.
Once they run off, Steve changes into Captain America and easily catches up and trounces them. When one of the crooks wonders who he is, a man by the name of Jack Kirby pokes his head out his apartment window to tell him that they got beat up by Captain America. Kirby then goes down stairs and gives the crooks an earful about how Cap is a huge hero from World War II. Jack then calls up to his friend Joe Simon to see who it is.
As the police show up to take the crooks away, Jack is glad to see Captain America is back. He admits that the world is a different place than when Cap last left it, but assures him that it still needs him.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Jack Kirby, Joe Simon (voice only)
Continuity Notes
These continuity notes include both the featured story and all the information articles. Story related notes are noted with a number, while feature notes are bullet points.
This story follows Captain America’s recent revival in Avengers #4
This issue makes multiple references to the fact that Bucky died in 1945. This had been the status quo since Avengers #4. However, years later, it was discovered that he survived, was found by the Russians, and transformed into the operative called the Winter Soldier. See Captain America (vol. 5) #1-14.
When referencing Steve Rogers parents, it states that here that his father died of a heart attack. Captain America (vol. 7) #2 states that Joe Rogers drank himself to death. Since alcoholism increases your risk of high blood pressure then these two ideas aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive.
Sarah Rogers cause of death is not specified here. Captain America #255 confirms that it was influenza.
References to the creation of Captain America’s trademark shield do not detail later revelations tying its creation to the mysterious organization called the Outer Circle, see Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty (vol. 2) #1-7.
Topical References
These topical references include the various informational features in this series.
References to Captain America being in suspended animation that give a specific number of years should be considered topical. Due to the Sliding Timecale, the length of time between World War II and the Modern Age is ever expanding.
References to Sharon Carter being the younger sister to Peggy should be considered topical due to the fact that Peggy was active during World War II. Her relationship to Peggy will constantly change as time goes on. Modern readers should instead consider Sharon a direct descendant of Peggy and nothing more.
How Arnie Roth could survive into the Modern Age without a means of artificially slowing or stopping his aging process is never explained in the fiction. I have a theory on that here.
References to Dave Cox fighting in the Vietnam War should be considered topical. The Sliding Timescale for the same reasons why someone alive during World War II couldn’t be alive today. Since History of the Marvel Universe #2, all Modern Age characters who have been stated as having served in Vietnam now have fought in the Sin-Cong Conflict, which involved the nation of Vietnam.
Like Arnie Roth, it is unexplained how Anna Keppelbaum could still be alive in the Modern Age. However, the character’s backstory is tied to the Nazi concentration camps. I posit a theory on how she could be long lived in my summary of Captain America #237.
The TVs in this story are depicted as CRT models. This should be considered topical as this is now an obsolete technology.
The appearance of Jack Kirby in this story is not topical. Unlike other real world individuals Marvel Comics creators all exist in the Modern Age of the Marvel Universe in the relative prime of their lives, even if they are dead in real life, such is the case with Jack Kirby.
The Last Word
Some last words on Captain America from other members of the Marvel Comics staff including Glenn Greenberg, Chris Fagan, Polly Watson, Tom Brevoort, Andy Ball, Ben Raab, Ralph Macchio (again), Matt Idelson.
