Fighting Chance Book 1: Super Patriot Games

A man dressed as the Super-Patriot pays a visit to the Tinkerer, the inventor who creates weapons for super-villains.[1] He has come to pick up the weapon created for his vendetta against Captain America. The Tinkerer says it is ready and present him with a replica of Captain America’s shield. Although not as durable as the genuine article the Tinkerer assures him that it’ll do the job. Impressed by the craftsmanship, the Super-Patriot says he’ll take it.

Meanwhile, Captain America is engaging in a training session on the roof of building to try and get back into peak shape since he has been stricken with recent bouts of fatigue.[2] He is interrupted by Keith Kincaid, the Avengers resident doctor who just ran some tests. He explains that the Super Soldier Serum in Steve’s blood is starting to break down. This is having an adverse effect on his body which is now rapidly atrophying as a result. Keith tells Steve that extraneous use of his muscles will only speed up the process and if he continues at his current rate, Rogers will be completely immobilized by the end of the year. With no known cure at the moment, Steve either has to give up being Captain America or face becoming completely disabled. Steve refuses to do anymore tests as being a guinea pig once in his life was enough he also swears Kincaid to secrecy about his condition. After Kincaid leaves, Steve vents his frustrations out on his training dummies.

At that same moment, on the Lower East Side, someone dressed like Captain America shows up at a local dive bar. At first, his aggressive demeanor almost starts trouble, but the atmosphere changes when the impostor offers to buy everyone a round.

Later, Steve Rogers returns to Brooklyn Heights where his allies are setting up his new base of operations. Diamondback is curious to know if SHIELD was able to confirm if Snapdragon is dead.[3] Steve decides that he needs to come clean with her and tells her about his health problems. He’s happy to hear when she tells him that she is going to stick by him through this ordeal, no matter what he decides to do.

At that same time, back at the dive bar, one of the patrons tries to pick a fight with the phony Captain America. The impostor easily overpowers him and orders the man to lick his boots. Later, he shows up at a fancy hotel restaurant with a gaudy escort. This happens to be the same night that local candidate Rudolph Bradley is fundraising for his campaign. Although the phony barges in interrupted, Bradley sees this as an opportunity to boost his profile. However, the introductions are interrupted when the Porcupine arrives to pick a fight.[4] In the ensuing clash, the fake Captain America's date, as well as Bradley and his wife are struck by Procupine’s quills.

Meanwhile, Steve and Rachel have gone out for dinner and are sitting out on a patio when a kid runs by who stole some comic books from a local shop. Steve stops the boy for the owner who is concerned that the books were damaged. Seeing a Captain America comic in the pile, Steve tries to lecture the kid that Cap wouldn’t approve of him stealing. He is disturbed when the kid reveals that he wasn’t stealing the comics to read them, but to sock them away until they became valuable. He is even more disturbed when the shop owner is able to relate more with anti-heroes like the Punisher and Wolverine than he does Captain America. The whole experience leaves a sour taste in Steve’s mouth and he begins to doubt his ability to make the world a better place. Rachel is trying to cheer him up when Peggy calls him to report the incident with the Captain America impostor. Rushing to the scene to check things out, they discover the front of the hotel a zoo of police, emergency teams, the media, and rubberneckers coming to gawk. Everyone has a negative opinion about Captain America because of what happened and when Steve is interviewed he tells the reporter that this was obviously the work of an impostor as the real Captain America wouldn’t act that way. Needing to get ahead of the negative public relations, Steve decides to call a press conference as Captain America for the following day to try and mitigate the damage done.

Not far away, Super-Patriot has changed out of his costume and meets up with his ally, a man called Dead Ringer. He commends Ringer on his necro-mimicry as it totally fooled everyone into thinking he was really the Porcupine.

The following day, the media has gathered outside Avengers Headquarters to hear Captain America speak about the allegations leveled against him. However, the conference is interrupted by the arrival of most of the original Masters of Evil.[5] The villains seemingly start slaughtering members of the press, prompting Cap to call the Avengers to action. However, when the rest of the team — Black Widow, Vision, and the Black Knight — arrive on the scene neither they, nor anyone else but Cap, can see the attackers. That’s when Super-Patriot arrives with the unconscious body of Mirage and claims that the villain was responsible for creating illusions only Captain America could see.[6] Like the previous Super-Patriot, this one claims that Captain America is washed up and that he will replace the Star-Spangled Avenger as America’s patriotic hero.[7]

With that the press conference is over and the Black Widow hauls Mirage inside. Later, when Cap decides to question their prisoner, Natasha reveals that she let him go when he asked but cannot explain why she complied. They then go to the security footage to see what happened and are shocked when the footage shows Mirage turning into the Purple Man and, explaining why the Widow was so compliant.[8][9] A few blocks away, Super-Patriot and Dead Ringer meet up out of costume and decide to go celebrate their latest win in the smear campaign against Captain America. Meanwhile, Captain America finds himself in an impossible situation, someone is out there trying to ruin his good name, but if he tries to do anything about it he is pushing himself closer to losing everything.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Super-Patriot, Dead Ringer, Diamondback, Tinkerer, Avengers (Black Widow, Vision, Black Knight), Keith Kincaid

Continuity Notes

1. The identity of the new Super-Patriot is left a mystery here. We learn that he is Mike Farrell, Steve Rogers’ old neighbor, in Captain America #439.

2. These started back in Captain America #422 and are due to a deterioration of the Super Soldier Serum in his body as we’ll learn a few moments after this. This will lead Steve down a road to disability until he is cured in issue #445.

3. Diamondback seemingly killed Snapdragon by drowning back in Captain America #413. However, despite this, she will turn up alive again in Moon Knight (vol. 6) #2. A profile in Captain America: America’s Avenger #1 states that Snapdragon faked her death.

4. It is mentioned here that the Porcupine is dead. This is true, he died in Captain America #285. The man here is an impostor calling himself Dead Ringer. He can assume the forms of dead people whose DNA he has come into contact with. See Captain America #’s 426, 428, and 439 for the details on him.

5. The hologram of the Masters of Evil are all of original members of the team who were dead at the time of this story they include:

   • Baron Heinrich Zemo, who died in a one-on-one battle with Captain America back in Avengers #15.

   • Nathan Garret, the first present day Black Knight, he suffered serious injuries fighting Iron Man in Tales of Suspense #73, succumbing to his injuries in Avengers #48.

   • The Melter, aka Bruno Horgan, was killed by the Scourge of the Underworld in Avengers #263.

   • Lastly, Skurge the Executioner, he sacrificed his life so Thor and his allies could escape Hela’s domain as seen in Thor #362. He will remain dead until Asgardians of the Galaxy #1.

6. Mirage, aka Desmond Charne, was killed by the Scourge of the Underworld in Captain America #319. He will later be resurrected by the Hood in Punisher (vol. 8) #7.

7. Cap recounts that John Walker was the original Super-Patriot but cannot be this one since he is active as US Agent. John Walker started his career as the Super-Patriot back in Captain America #323. After a stint as Captain America that ran from issue #333 to 350, he was given the US Agent identity in issue #354 of that series.

8. At the time of this story, Purple Man was believed to have died in Marvel Graphic Novel: Emperor Doom #1. He even shows up as a reanimated corpse in Alpha Flight #62. He turns up alive again in X-Man #36. It’s later explained in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Daredevil 2004 #1 that Killgrave was actually in a death like state and was in the process of healing that took him all the way to his appearances in the X-Man series to complete.

9. It is stated later on that Dead Ringer can only template somebody by touching dead tissue, suggesting this power only works on the dead. If such were true, then it does not explain how he was able to mimic Purple Man given he wasn’t actually dead at the time. The Dead Ringer profile in Captain America: America’s Avenger #1 provides a possible explanation: his power wasn’t limited to dead bodies, but rather any dead flesh. Technically speaking, you can sever someone’s finger and while the person is still alive, the severed finger eventually becomes dead flesh.

Supplement Material

This issue features the following bonus materials:

• A blueprint of Captain America’s new Brooklyn Headquarters.

• Pin-up of Captain America and Diamondback vs. the Red Skull.

• A pin-up of Captain America and Diamondback.

• Solo pin-up of Diamondback.

• Solo pin-up of Captain America.