Captured in Vietnam!

After finally convincing Sharon Carter to resign from active duty and take a desk job at SHIELD, she betrayed her promise. This has angered Steve Rogers so much that he ended their relationship. Still, despite his anger he cannot get thoughts of Sharon out of his head and still longs to be with her. To try and get his mind off of things, Steve decides to watch the news and see what’s going on in the world.

He catches the latest report about a conflict happening overseas and learns that Doctor Robert Hoskins, a doctor who has aided both sides of the conflict, has gone missing in Vietnam. Since the doctor was helping both sides reach a peace agreement, his disappearance has caused hostilities to flare up in the region once more. Deciding to do something about it, Steve Rogers heads to Washington, DC to speak with a representative of the State Department to get permission to travel to Vietnam to locate Hoskins. The assistance of Captain America is greatly appreciated and he is cleared to go to Vietnam.

At that moment, in Vietnam, the enemy forces are using the disappearance of Doctor Hoskins to create propaganda to inflame their soldiers. Meanwhile, taking an American bomber into the Asian country, Steve Rogers convinces the pilots to drop him over a combat zone, assuring them that he can handle himself. Once on the ground, Steve changes into his Captain America costume and quickly realizes that its bright colors are making him an appealing target for the enemy. Diving into a mud filled trench for cover, Cap waits until the enemy soldiers pass.

Searching the jungle, Captain America begins to realize how ill prepared he was for this mission. Spotting a tripwire, he decides to intentionally cross it and allow himself to be captured. When he does so, he notices that the soldiers that have come to subdue him are wearing uniforms that belong to neither side of the conflict. Captain America plays possum while these soldiers take him to the castle of their master, the Mandarin. There, Captain America learns that the Mandarin was the one who captured Doctor Hoskins so that he could continue to inflame conflict hoping that it would lead to a world war that would allow him to claim dominion over the survivors.

Captain America breaks free from the soldiers and begins fighting back against the Mandarin. Although the soldiers are easily knocked out, Cap is not equipped to deal with the Mandarin’s power rings. Luckily, he gets some cover by deflecting a beam from one of these rings off his shield, causing a fire. Slipping away as the Mandarin scrambles to put out the flame, Captain America locates the cell where Robert Hoskins is being held prisoner. As they flee the castle, the Mandarin blocks the draw bridge and tries to blast Captain America again. Using his shield to deflect the attack yet again, the beam snaps the chain of the draw bridge, sending the Mandarin falling into the moat below. Captain America and Hoskins then flee to the nearby American military outfit is located. There, Hoskin’s return is celebrated and soon peace talks are allowed to resume.

With an end of the conflict on the horizon, Captain America returns home where he slumps into another depression. Although he won this fight, he figures that sooner or later he will eventually face defeat.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Mandarin

Topical References

• This story presents itself as though it is taking place during the Vietnam War. However, this should be considered a topical reference. Per History of the Marvel Universe #2, all Modern Age references to Vietnam happening in the present should now be considered part of the Sin-Cong Conflict. See here for more details.

• Captain America is depicted as watching a news broadcast on a black-and-white CRT television that requires an antenna to get a signal. I shouldn’t have to explain why this is a topical reference.

• Cap is also depicted being flown into Vietnam in B-52 bomber. While B-52’s will still be used by the US military until at least 2050, the model shown here was one commonly used during the Vietnam War. These bombers have undergone a great deal of upgrades to still make them viable in modern warfare and they look a lot different now than they did in the 70s when this comic was published.