Silent Night-Silent Morning

Christmas is coming up and Lloyd Grunnell’s life has been turned upside down. He is now a former employee of Lennco, a company that has begun massive layoffs. Wondering what he is going to do, Lloyd cries at his desk before packing his personal belongings and leaving work for the last time. As he leaves, a coworker stops to tell him how much she’ll miss him and the two cry. He then passes by a room where other co-workers — ones that still have a job — are celebrating the holdiays.

Walking out into the snowy streets, Lloyd walks home. As he passes a jewelry store he sees the necklace that he wanted to buy for his wife and now cannot afford and feels sad again. When he passes a Santa on the street collecting for charity, Grunnell still stops to donate some money. He gives his last $5, as that is all the money he has.

When Lloyd arrives at home, he can see his children playing in the living room from the driveway. Not wanting to upset them, he stashes his box of belongings outside and puts on a happy face when he announces to his family that he’s home. His wife, Ellen, is in the kitchen going over the bills, many of them past due. After greeting his children, Lloyd sends them off to play so they don’t see him and his wife worrying about how they’ll pay for the bills now that Lloyd is out of a job.

Frustrated by everything, Lloyd goes upstairs and gets a shoebox out from under the bed where he keeps emergency money. Unfortunately, the money is long gone. In it’s place is an IOU from Ellen who apologizes taking the money as she needed it to buy him a birthday present earlier that year. Still, even though he’s tight on money, Lloyd goes out shopping for his children for something — anything — for Christmas.

Lloyd’s shopping trip is interrupted when Captain America and the Absorbing Man, aka Carl Creel, come crashing into the department store. Cap had caught the villain trying to rob the bank next door and a fight had broken out. A news crew happens on the scene and begins recording and, incidentally, Lloyd’s family is watching the whole thing unfold on live TV. While everyone else keeps their distance, Lloyd decides to do something to help Captain America. First he uses a remote control airplane to distract the Absorbing Man. It hits him in the face, causing the villain to lose his concentration and his concrete form. However, he quickly recovers and touches a metal support beam.

The battle has knocked loose an electrical wire and Captain America grabs it. Since he is in a conductive form, Absorbing Man tries to touch some nearby rubber balls to insulate himself from the electricity. Unfortunately for him, Lloyd is quick enough to grab a package of cotton balls and toss its contents across the room. Luckily, Creel touches one and turns into cotton instead. Now weaker than ever before, the Absorbing Man surrenders to Captain America.

Soon the police arrive and get a power dampener on him. As Creel is being led outside, he sadly tells Captain America that he was only stealing so he could buy his wife, Titania, a gift and now she is going to spend Christmas alone while he’s in jail. Lloyd overhears all this and feels sorry for the villain as his situation isn’t much different from his own.

That’s when the owner of the bank arrives and gives Lloyd a reward for his part in helping protect the bank. The substantial sum of money will certainly go a long way. However, he still feels sorry for Carl Creel and asks Captain America to help him out.

On Christmas Day, the Grunnell family wakes up to a Christmas tree brimming with presents. Among those, the necklace that Lloyd wanted to buy for his wife. While elsewhere, Titania wakes up to find a gift under her tree. It is from Carl with a note apologizing for getting arrested on Christmas and that he hopes the necklace inside will more than make up for it. This necklace is the same style as the one Lloyd bought for his wife. It was secretly delivered in the night by Captain America who watches Titania marvel over the gift with a smile on his face.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Absorbing Man, Titania

Topical References

• This story takes place around the Christmas holidays, ending on Christmas Day. Christmas is a holiday that usually breaks the usual rules of the Sliding Timescale of Earth-616. This story falls outside when Christmas should happen. However, this story is also intrinsically linked to that holiday.

• The Lloyd family is depicted as having a CRT model television. this should be considered a topical reference as this is now an obsolete technology.

• The cheque given to Lloyd is for 20 thousand dollars. Adjusting for inflation this would be worth closer to 33 thousand in 2023 money.

To the Core

On the coast of Maine sits an abandoned mansion, Captain America’s destination as he promises in doing so his inner truth will be revealed. Walking inside, Steve is instantly exposed to strange mist. Suddenly, the abandoned building turns into a battle field in World War II. Captain America is joined by Bucky as he fights the Red Skull and a group of Nazi soldiers. Steve remembers this as one of his earliest battles as Captain America.[1][2]

Suddenly, the scene shifts and Cap finds himself fighting against the Super-Adaptoid.[3] The scene shifts again and Steve is on the rooftops of New York City where he is attacked by yet another android, the Dragon Man.[4] He is knocked off the roof but he is saved from the fall by his occasional partner, the Falcon, who is wearing his original costume.[5] Up on the next rooftop they come across a man in a Captain America costume, dead and tied to a chimney. This is Roscoe Simmons, a man who briefly tried to take Captain America’s place.[6] The scene shifts again and Steve sees himself wearing his old Nomad costume and fighting the Serpent Squad on the rooftops.[7] The present day Steve Rogers remembers how this came at a time when he was disillusioned about America. However, he eventually learned that he doesn’t represent the government or the people of the day, but the American Dream itself.

However, when the person he came to show all this asks who Steve Rogers is, he admits that he doesn’t think that there is a division between his two identities. While he wears a powerful symbol on his uniform, he’s still the same man underneath. Thinking of his past relationships, he says just like anyone else he still gets in the same entanglements anyone else does in life, love and loss.[8] With each failed relationship he learned a bit more about himself.

With that, the gas clears the room and the hallucinations disappear. That’s when Sharon Carter enters the room to talk to him. As it turns out, this is a SHIELD training facility that utilizes hallucinatory gasses and holographic technology to create realistic illusions. Steve wanted to share all of this with Sharon to prove that he is ready for a long term relationship with her. While Sharon is touched that he is opening up to her right now, she has a lot going on in her life right now that she needs to sort out before settling down into a serious relationship. Steve is disappointed to hear this, but accepts her wishes. She’ll always be someone special to him and will be there for her whenever she needs him. The two then kiss one last time, for old times sake then watch the sunrise together.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Sharon Carter

Continuity Notes

1. Captain America first fought the Red Skull back in Captain America Comics #1. However, this battle did not take place in Europe and there were no Nazi soldiers present. One could assume the hallucination on display here is not simply that early battle but the core of most of the conflicts Steve fought in World War II.

2. Steve is really surprised to see Bucky. At the time of this story, Steve believes Bucky died back in 1945 as per Avengers #4. However, Bucky survived and was later transformed into the assassin known as the Winter Soldier by the Russians. Steve won’t learn this truth until Captain America (vol. 5) #14.

3. Captain America’s first battle against the Super-Adaptoid happened in Tales of Suspense #82-83.

4. This rooftop battle with Dragon Man took place in Captain America #248.

5. Captain America and the Falcon first teamed-up together in Captain America #118.

6. This happened during a period when Steve Rogers was disillusioned after discovering that the leader of the Secret Empire was also the President of the Untied States in Captain America #175. Roscoe convinced Falcon to let him take over the role in issue #181. He was murdered a few issues later by the Red Skull in Captain America #183.

7. Steve Rogers took on the Nomad identity shortly after he became disillusioned, as seen in Captain America #180, the same issue he fought the Serpent Squad. Steve would continue fighting crime in this identity until Roscoe’s murder convinced him to become Captain America once again.

8. We get a parade of all of Captain America’s past romances up to this point in time. They include:

   • Peggy Carter: Per Tales of Suspense #75, Peg is the woman who he fell in love with in World War II when she was part of the French resistance. However, he lost track of her following the French liberation. She would re-enter his life in the present day in Captain America #161. However, as she had aged the two only maintained a friendship. She has since drifted away from Cap as she has gotten much older. She was last seen in Captain America #443. She’ll be seen again in Captain America (vol. 5) #25 in a retirement home.

   • Sharon Carter: A direct relative of Peggy, Cap met her in Tales of Suspense #75. The two had an on-again-off again relationship during Cap’s early days in the present. The two had been apart for years when Sharon faked her death in Captain America #237. Although she resurfaced in issue #445, the two have had a love-hate relationship since. Just last issue Steve convinced her that they should get back together. Although Sharon hits the breaks here the two will get back together in Captain America (vol. 5) #14.

   • Bernie Rosenthal: Bernie moved into the same apartment building as Steve in Captain America #247. The two quickly started dating shortly thereafter, it wasn’t long before she deduced that Steve and Captain America were the same man, as seen in Captain America #275. Although the two got engaged in Captain America #292, Bernie felt that she was sacrificing her wants for Steve’s and eventually left him to pursue law school in issue #317. The two eventually drifted apart

   • Diamondback, aka Rachel Leighton, she became attracted to Captain America upon their first meeting in Captain America #310. After some convincing, including a promise to go straight, the two began dating in issue #371. When Captain America started getting sick in Captain America #425, Diamondback left him to work as Superia’s bodyguard in exchange for a cure in issue #433. Cap was later cured on his own circa Captain America #445 and the two drifted apart. The two will reconnect in Captain America (vol. 4) #32. That will only prove to be a brief hook-up.

   • Connie Ferrari: First met Steve in Captain America (vol. 3) #15. The began dating by issue #20. Connie broke up with Steve after learning he was Captain America in issue #44.

Keep in Mind

2002

At East Park Elementary School, a World War II veteran named Mister Scott has come to talk to Mrs. Watt’s class about his experiences during the war. He is more than happy to teach the children about his experiences so they can understand the horrors of war and the freedoms people fought for during World War II.

Scott was 23 years old when he joined the military in 1944. After two months of training he was assigned to be the co-pilot on a reconnaissance plane. On October 9th of that year, he was on a mission to draw maps of the French countryside. Their plane ended up getting shot down by Nazi artillery and Scott was the only survivor. Alone and fearing for his life, Scott ran from the crash sight and found cover in an abandoned farm homestead. He stayed there for six days, living off raw potatoes and win. That was until one day a member of the French resistance had come and rescued him.

As he concludes his story, Mr. Scott holds up a photograph of the soldiers who graduated from basic training along with him. After pointing himself out in the group, Scott tells the classroom that only 9 of the 32 men pictured made it back home. When he returned home from the war, Scott clipped an article from the newspaper about how Captain America assisted in the liberation of France. He tells them all that if it wasn’t for that, he probably wouldn’t have survived. He tells the children they should respect the war dead, but in these times of peace they have to make a conscious effort to do so. With his story concluded, the children then flood him with questions about his experience.

Now

Steve Rogers has come to France to see the country as it is today. He heads along the coastline where the liberation of France began and salutes the sea, to commemorate those who died on those beaches. Although the world is at peace, some of the scars from World War II are still visible. concrete structures that were one German pillboxes are now party to tourists snapping selfies of themselves, with little idea of the lives that were snuffed out by the machine guns boxed within. He then heads to the national cemetery where the war dead have been buried. There he notices a woman on her cell phone. However, this isn’t out of disrespect, seeing the rows of graves had such an emotional impact she had to call her grandfather and connect with him.

Recurring Characters

Captain America

Topical References

• The central narration of this story is of a World War II veteran talking to a classroom full of students about his experiences during the war. While this was possible when this story was first published in 2002. However, as the Modern Age is bumped forward by the Sliding Timescale this becomes increasingly impossible without some means of slowing, stopping, or suspending the aging process. Here, Scott states he was 22 in 1944, which would make him nearly 80 years old time of this writing (February, 2023). Marvel has yet to provide an explanation. However, the usual solution seems unlikely given this is a one-off character who was a low ranking soldier during the war. It also seems unlikely that an explanation will be forth coming. My best guess would be that the parts of the story featuring the old man actually take place in 2002 when this story was originally written, while the scenes involving Steve Rogers in he present are part of the Modern Age and are dictated by the Sliding Timescale.

Translations

This story features dialogue in French that is not translated into English. These phrases are:

• Douanes et Immigration = Customs & Immigration

• Nom? = Name?

• Citoyenneté? = Citizenship?

• Bienvenue à France, Monsieur Rogers = Welcome to France, Mister Rogers.

Relics

Captain America has just gotten off the phone with Sharon Carter after she, once again, had to remind him that she needs time to sort out her life before she can think about getting into a serious relationship. Alone on a Saturday night, Steve passes the time watching late night television and bouncing his shield around his room. He catches a popular late night sketch comedy show. One of the segments features a sketch where actors portraying the Punisher, Ghost Rider, and Wolverine mock Captain America for being an old fashioned relic of the past.

That’s when a call comes in from Nick Fury, he has called to try and give Steve a pep-talk about his romantic woes, but Steve isn’t really interested in hearing it. Still, Steve thanks Fury for his advice. After he hangs up the phone, Steve hears a beeping coming from his closet. It is coming from the suitcase that he kept his laptop that used to be connected to his old Stars and Stripes Hotline.[1] It is a message from one of the young hackers who used to work the hotline and they have have a fear that someone might have a nuclear bomb.

Getting the necessary information, Steve calls Nick Fury to verify things by telling him what SHIELD has on the town of Chancey, New Jersey. Fury is able to learn that in the 1950s a bomber armed with a nuke crashed off the coast of Atlantic City near there. While the military were able to locate the crash site and remove the nuclear core, they left the rest of the bombs behind. The possibility that someone has recovered those explosives — even if they are not nuclear anymore — is still enough to get Captain America to want to investigate.

Fury continues by telling him that Chancey was a town that was shut down in exchange for a new electric dam project via eminent domain law. However, environmental groups protested the plan and production stalled. Chancey remained untouched and has become a ghost town ever since.

When Captain America arrives outside Chancey, he sees that the entire town is fenced off with trespasser warnings. Leaping over the fence, Steve is soon attacked by a swarm of old men wearing Red Skull masks. Not wanting to harm elderly people, Steve tries to get away but soon he is swarmed by an entire army of old men. They overpower him and drag him to the local church which has been redecorated to have the Nazi Iron Eagle atop its steeple.

Inside, Captain America is shackled to one of the bombs that the had recovered from the ocean. Their leader, reveals that they were the ones that lured him to Chancy with a phony message through his old hotline. The head of these Red Skulls explains that they were all Nazi scientists who were brought into America and given new lives in exchange for the atomic secrets they developed for Germany during the war.

They were all given homes in the town of Chancy. At first they quickly adapted to and assimilated into the American way of life. That all changed when the government used eminent domain laws to evict them all to start the new dam project. A large number of them took this as a betrayal and proof that the Nazi cause was right all along. When the town was later abandoned, the group returned to their former homes and became a suicide cult. They were eventually able to locate the bombs that were left at sea in the 50s. With the weapons at their disposal it was now time to end their lives, but first they were going to capture Nazism’s greatest enemy, Captain America, and end his life along with their own.

With that, he sets down the timer on the bomb so it will go off in minutes. Not wanting do die, Cap struggles against the chains shackling him to an Iron Eagle statue. He manages to break free with supreme effort. Steve then tries to disarm the bomb, but he is soon swarmed once again and the bomb goes off.

The following morning hazmat crews arrive on the scene to investigate the blast site. Along with them is Nick Fury, who is there to find out Captain America’s fate. While they were able to recover many bodies from the church, they still haven’t found the body of Captain America.[2]

Recurring Characters

Captain America, (voice only) Nick Fury, Sharon Carter

Continuity Notes

1. Captain America set up the Stars and Stripes Hotline so that ordinary Americans had a way of reaching him for help. The hotline opened in Captain America #312. It remained in operation for quite some time, but fell out of use around issue #443.

2. Captain America obviously survived this explosion although explaining how this happened was never clearly explained. See below.

Topical References

• Captain America is depicted as having a CRT television. This should be considered a topical reference as this is now an obsolete technology.

• He is also depicted watching Saturday Night Live. This late night sketch comedy show has been on the air since 1975 and has been a staple of American television for decades. Despite its longevity, its reference here should be considered topical as it is a real world television program.

• When Captain America cracks a few sarcastic jokes, Nick Fury quips “You’re a real Steve Allen tonight.” Steve Allen was a comedian who was active from 1940 until his death in the year 2000. This reference wouldn’t be considered topical, as both Fury and Steve — having grown up in the early to mid 20th Century — would have grown up with Allen’s comedy. Fury would also mention someone they both knew. As such this reference would not be considered topical.

• The people of Chancey all claim to be former Nazis that were brought to America to learn all of the Nazis nuclear secrets. While it was possible for Nazis from the war to still be alive when this story was written in 2002, it becomes increasingly impossible due to the Sliding Timescale. Marvel has yet to provide an explanation and for one-off characters I find it doubtful that they will. One could assume that their work in nuclear technology yielded a means of slowing the aging process. This is plausible within the fiction given the number of Nazi scientists that developed way to extend their lifespans.

A Moment of Silence

It’s recess at an elementary school somewhere in America. As the children play, the teachers meet to discuss how to break the news about Captain America’s death. The principal asks them to resume classes as normal until he gives an announcement and then they spent time processing the news.

Unaware of this tragic turn of events, a bunch of children are pretending to be Avengers. Two of the children are Smita and Ranj, both students of Indian origin. They are friends and often talk to each other in their native tongue. Today, Ranj has to play the role of Doctor Doom, but really wants to be able to play his hero, Captain America. This usually goes to a white student named Mark. But Smita encourages Ranj to asks Mark if he can be Captain America next time. Ranj is nervous at first, but Mark has no problem with it, saying they can all switch tomorrow at recess.

When the bell rings, the children all return to their classes. After everyone is seated the teacher hands out everyone’s spelling test results when the principal comes on to inform the students that Captain America has died. The teacher then turns on the television so they can watch the news coverage. Suddenly, one of the bullies in class gets up and hits Ranj in the face, blaming his “people” for killing Captain America. Most of the other children rush to Ranj’s side to defend him against their bigoted classmate.

As the teacher struggles to get her class under control, Ranj looks over to Samita and Mark for help. Samita turns to Mark and tells him to help but the little bitch stays in his seat and says nothing. Soon the situation is back under control, but Ranj was given a black eye and a bloodied nose, his only crime being that he is different from most of the other students.

When Ranj returns home from school he is depress. His mother is concerned when she sees the black eye. Ranji however runs upstairs to his room. When his mother catches up to him she finds her son standing by the wall where he has taped up newspaper articles and posters about Captain America. As it turns out, Ranj and his family were once refugees that were rescued by Captain America. Ranj tells his mother that Captain America is dead and that they killed him.

Topical References

• The classroom has a cart with a CRT television and VCR that were commonly found in public schools between the mid-to-late-80s until the early 2000s. This should be considered a topical reference due to the fact that CRT and VCRs are obsolete technologies. Flat screen televisions that can be mounted anywhere have eliminated the need to push a TV around on a cart.

Stars & Stripes Forever

In the wake of Captain America’s death, the media has been getting comment from his friends, foes, and the average American on the street. Those interviewed include his fellow Avengers: Iron Man, the Wasp,[1] Yellowjacket, Thor, the Black Widow, Quicksilver, the Scarlet Witch,[5] Hawkeye, the Black Panther, and their ever duitiful butler, Edwin Jarvis. Former allies like Union Jack, Nomad,[2] the Sub-Mariner, Tony Stark,[3] Rick Jones the Fantastic Four, US Agent, the Hulk as well as SHIELD agents Dum Dum Dugan, Sharon Carter, and Nick Fury. As well as foes like Mister Hyde, MODOK, the Mad Thinker, the Absorbing Man, Hydra, Arnim Zola, Doctor Doom, Whirlwind, Batroc the Leaper, and his eternal foe the Red Skull. There are also words from a high ranking military official, a kid at the skatepark, Daily Bugle publisher J. Jonah Jameson,[4] government agent Henry Gyrich, a police officer, a homeless conspiracy theorist, a drunk at a bar,[6] and the owner of a comic book shop.[7]

Soon it is time for Captain America’s funeral. Gathered that day are representatives across the entire superhero community. It consists of Avengers both past and present as well as members of the Defenders, X-Men, and the Fantastic Four, among others. Sam Wilson, aka the Falcon, gives a tearful eulogy for his friend. It is a fitting tribute to a man who was the definition of a superhero and a legend.

Recurring Characters

Avengers (Iron Man, Thor, Wasp, Yellowjacket, Scarlet Witch, Quicksilver, Vision, Hercules, Black Knight, Warbird, Stingray, Jack of Hearts), Nomad, Union Jack, Mister Hyde, MODOK, Rick Jones, J. Jonah Jameson, Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, Thing), Mad Thinker, Awesome Android, SHIELD (Nick Fury, Dum Dum Dugan, Sharon Carter, G.W. Bridge, Jasper Sitwell), Absorbing Man, US Agent, Black Widow, Hydra, King Cobra, Arnim Zola, Henry Gyrich, Hawkeye, Doctor Doom, Whirlwind, Edwin Jarvis, Defenders (Doctor Strange, Hulk, Sub-Mariner, Silver Surfer, Valkyrie, Nighthawk, Hellcat), Black Panther, Batroc the Leaper, Red Skull, Falcon, Doc Samson, Wyatt Wingfoot, Tigra, X-Men (Storm, Phoenix, Cyclops, Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Beast), She-Hulk, Spider-Man, Daredevil

Continuity Notes

1. The Wasp mentions how she and the other Avengers were the ones who revived Captain America from suspended animation. That was in Avengers #4.

2. Nomad mentions how he and Cap were partners for a while. The two fought alongside each other from Captain America #281 until Nomad decided to go solo in issue #307 and again from #336 to 345.

3. The reason Tony Stark is giving a public statement after Iron Man is because, at the time of this story, Stark had not yet revealed his true identity to the public. Something that won’t happen until Iron Man (vol. 3) #55.

4. J. Jonah Jameson wonders why it couldn’t have been Spider-Man. Jameson has had a grudge against the wall-crawler since Amazing Spider-Man #1.

5. Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch states here that Captain America always accepted them when the rest of the world feared who they were. At the time of this story, everyone believed that the pair were mutants. This is revealed to be false in Uncanny Avengers (vol. 2) #4-5.

6. The drunk at the bar doesn’t believe the it was the original Captain America, saying that there have already been six different guys in the suit. He’s not far off:

   • Per What If? #4, when Steve Rogers went MIA in 1945, the government had William Nasland, aka the Spirit of ‘76 take over the role.

   • Nasland died on one of his early missions and was then replaced by Jeff Mace, aka the Patriot, see What If? #4, again. Per Captain America: Patriot #4, Mace retired from the role in 1950. He later died of cancer in Captain America #285.

   • Next there was William Burnside, the Captain America of the 1950s. He took on the role himself in Young Men #24. Surviving into the modern age, Burnside was branwashed into becoming the racist Grand Director and is believed to have committed suicide by self-immolation in Captain America #236. He survived however, and will turn up again in Captain America (vol. 5) #37.

   • There was a brief moment when Sam Wilson went into action as Captain America when Cap was believed to have been killed, as seen in Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty #8-9.

   • Roscoe Simmons: Who we already talked about up in To The Core, scroll up.

   • Lastly, John Walker, who took over the role when the government confiscated it from Steve Rogers in Captain America #332-333. He flubbed the job and gave the title back to Steve in issue #350. He has been operating as US Agent since Captain America #354.

7. Among the merchandise the comic shop owner is selling is an issue of Adventures of Captain America #1.

How Did Captain America Survive Getting Blown Up?

The last few stories in this issue concludes Dan Jurgen’s run on the book with Captain America seemingly getting killed in an explosion. This was to hype up the launch of a new volume of Captain America that was to begin later in the year, and to be tackled by the series next writer John Nye Reiber.

A couple of things happened though: Reiber wasn’t a good fit on the book and was bogged down with rewrite requests from editorial. On top of this, 9/11 had happened at the time they started working on the new volume of books. As such, a new storyarc that touched on that issue was rushed into production. There were a number of delays that made the fourth volume of the title late. The re-writers made it even worse. Eventually, Marvel editorial and Reiber agreed that he should step off the book and Chuck Austin was hired to take his place. However, instead of crafting his own stories, he rewrote and reworked the partially finished stories Reiber had written. To not lose anymore ground, Marvel also took the finished work on a limited series called Captain America: Ice, which was also written by Reiber. This story was supposed to take place in an alternate reality. Instead, it was reworked and put on the main Cap title.

By the time these stories were all published, it was 16 issues over a year and a half since Captain America (vol. 3) #50 was published. Marvel was moving forward, so going back and resolving a cliffhanger like that wasn’t high on the priority list.

If you searched on the internet you will find a lot of people shrugging and going “wha happen?” like it is never not addressed. Such as this CBR piece by Eve Cassidy, which delivers the usual “I just went on Wikipedia” lazy research that you’d expect from a content mill like CBR. No brains. No fucking imagination. If Eve Cassidy wasn’t fucking terrible at their job, they would have remembered that Captain America didn’t just appear in his own title. He was also appearing regularly in Avengers at the time. That and a little bit of actual research and Cassidy would have gotten an answer about this conundrum instead of being school at their own fucking job by me. Because there is no excuse for Cassidy to not have been able to look this up themselves since that article was written in 2019 and they would have the same resources I do.

If you open up Avengers, Thor & Captain America: The Official Index to the Marvel Universe #13 or the Captain America: Official Index to the Marvel Universe TPB, it states that Captain America’s next appearance after this story is in Avengers (vol. 3) #45. In that story, we have Captain America appear in bandages and a wheelchair recovering from serious injuries. The dialogue of this story makes it sound like these were injuries sustained by the Presence (in Avengers (vol. 3) #41-45) Although its not implicitly stated, it’s clear that Cap survived the blast and perhaps those bandages aren’t from injuries he suffered from the Presence, but the explosion.

It’s not a good explanation, but it is an explanation. One could assume that Cap’s body was shielded from the blast from all the geriatric Red Skull suicide cult. He was found by someone who helped him heal for a bit. Since nobody was able to find his body, they prematurely had a public funeral for Captain America. Cap got well enough to leave wherever he was healing and there you go, and explanation.

The idea of Captain America surviving an explosion relatively unscathed is not that outlandish to believe. In the fiction countless super-villains have survived being blown up to little or no ill effect. The idea of the hero pulling off such a Hat Trick shouldn’t be a huge stretch of the imagination either.