Homeland: Part 2

Steve Rogers has been invited out to an art gallery showing by his new friend, Rebecca Quan. Steve finds the subject — the authoritarianism of superheroes — troubling. Particularly a piece that shows Captain America wrapped up in barbed wire. As Rebecca explains the exhibit, she gets shade from a rival artist named Paige Rand. Quan, however, has a sharp tongue herself and quickly shuts that bitch down.

The art conversation continues when they leave the gallery. Steve finds it all fascinating but admits that the only thing he knows about the subject came from when he rescued a couple of Rembrandt and Vermeer paintings from the Nazis during World War II. Wanting the night to continue, Rebecca suggests they go check out a party downtown. Steve declines, saying that he has work in the morning. He is surprised when Rebecca knows that he is heading to an off-shore military prison as part of the jury in Fernand Hedayat’s treason trial. As it turns out, the story was leaked and she heard it on NPR.

When Captain America arrives on the island prison the following day he is given a tour of the facility. The soldier giving it makes a point of showing Captain America the prisoners while they are in the middle of their daily prayer rituals. This was on orders from Colonel John Boyle, who wanted the prisoners to get a good look at the man who will be deciding their fate. Steve doesn’t like being exploited this way and tells the soldier to continue the tour. Eventually, Steve ends up in the mess hall for a meal. It’s here that he is reintroduced to General Lincoln Barron who introduces him to the other senior officers: Colonel John Boyle, as well as Generals Tony MacPherson and Marty Oliver. While the ensuing conversation is light, the recurring subject matter surrounds a recent string of terrorist attacks on American soil and the military action being done to stop it.[1] Both MacPherson and Oliver have some hardline opinions on them and don’t view their prisoners in a favorable light. They are also unhappy that US Senator Lester Paley has stepped up to defend Hedayat during his trial. With dinner over, Captain America asks to speak Colonel Boyle in private for a moment.

Boyle leads Captain America out to the shoreline so they can talk in private. Steve wants to know why he was shown the prisoners while they were going through their prayer rituals, because the move lacked respect. Boyle isn’t interested in the feelings of people he only views as enemy combatants. More over, he isn’t interested in hearing complaints from Cap himself who he views only as a subordinate. To that, Steve asks the Colonel if he is a strong swimmer. Before Boyle can answer, Captain America picks him up and throws him into the ocean. This is witnessed by Senator Paley who is impressed by the gesture and formally introduces himself to Cap. When Boyle gets out of the water he tries to sucker punch Steve from behind, but is heard coming a mile away and easily evaded. Steve then picks the Colonel up again and tosses him back into the ocean. When other soldiers arrive to investigate the yelling, Captain America tells them to fish their commanding officer out of the water and bring him inside before he embarrasses himself any further.

Cap and Senator Paley then go for a walk and talk about the trial. They talk about the poor conditions of the prisoners. While Paley admits that some of the prisoners are killers that doesn’t preclude them from proper due process. He also brings up the fact that John Boyle — who has known Lester for years — told him to recuse himself as Fernand Hedayat’s council. He admits that he isn’t sure if that was a kind request or a threat.

Their discussion is interrupted by Colonel Boyle who has come to put Steve under arrest. Cap tells him to hold on a second as he is getting a phone call. It is from Rebecca Quan, who has called to spill the tea about Paige Rand. Apparently after Rebecca embarrassed her at the art gallery she has suddenly wanted to save face and wants both Rebecca and Steve to join her for dinner sometime soon. On the other end of the line, Steve pretends that he is getting a call from a government official. He reminds Rebecca that he’s in Cuba presently and suggests that she call Avengers Mansion, certain that Thor would be an excellent stand-in. By the time the call is over, a flustered Boyle has given up and heads back to base. Senator Paley, on the other hand, was able to read between the lines and asks if the woman who called Steve is her girlfriend back home. Cap isn’t sure, but says that she might be.[2] Lester advises Steve that it is important to have a woman in one’s life, saying if he wouldn’t be where he was if not for the support he received from his late wife over their 35 years of marriage. When Steve gives his condolences he admits that he misses her dearly, and laments how hard it is finding someone new in the age of internet dating.

Suddenly, a military helicopter arrives and touches down. A soldier comes out of the chopper and tells Captain America and Senator Paley that they need to go inside for their own safety as there has been a breach of the perimeter. Both men refuses, and race out to the breach. There they discover that whoever was responsible had killed General Oliver and tied his corpse to a cactus using the barbed wire cut from the fence.

Recurring Characters

Captain America, Rebecca Quan, Khalid El-Gamal, Lincoln Barron, John Boyle, Tony MacPherson, Marty Oliver, Lester Paley, Fernand Hedayat

Continuity Notes

1. Captain America is asked if he was in New York City on 9/11. While the terrorist attack in question is topical (See below) his being in New York on the day of a significant terrorist attack was seen in Captain America (vol. 4) #1 and Amazing Spider-Man (vol. 2) #36.

2. Steve and Rebecca do start dating starting in Captain America (vol. 4) #25. However, the romance proves short lived. She will break up with him after she was almost killed by an enemy of Captain America in issue #28.

Topical References

• This story is stated as taking place in December of 2003. This date should be considered a topical reference as it is relative to the date of publication. Characters in this story acknowledge that Christmas is coming up. Since the holiday isn’t integral to the story, it too can be considered a topical reference without drastically altering the story.

• When comparing Paige Rand’s artwork she compares her to the works of Cindy Sherman and Jeff Koons. Both of whom were contemporary artists at the time this comic was published in 2004. Reader, I get it, you’re not big on the art world, but take my word for it when I say that these name drops will become topical references eventually so you might as well just accept the truth.

• The prison that most of this story is set around is the Guantanamo Bay military prison off the coast of Cuba. At the time this story was published in 2004 if had just recently opened to house those captured and charged with terrorism in the fallout of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It had already gained infamy for reports of torture and prisoner abuse and the fact the prisoners were often held without trial for years on end. At it’s height, it was home to over 700 prisoners. Time of this writing (February, 2023) there are less than 40. With talks of shutting the prison down becoming more common in recent times the place will probably be closed sooner or later and as such its reference here should be considered a topical reference. Modern readers should interpret this location as an unidentified off-short prison that is unique to the fiction as opposed to a real life location.

• Rebecca Quan states that she heard about the Hedayat trial on NPR, or National Public Radio. It is a non-profit media network that broadcasts primarily in the United States and its territories. As NPR was established via an act of Congress and is primarily funded by donation, its reference here wouldn’t necessarily be considered topical as it falls under the same purview of other government agencies referenced in the fiction.

• The conversation between Captain America and the military brass at the prison is rife with topical references. It’s like a running tally of shit that was relevant in 2004. Let’s get into each one:

  • Tony MacPherson is drinking from a coffee mug that has the New York Yankees logo on it. This should be considered a topical reference because this is a real world sports team.

  • Steve remembers meeting General Oliver at the 9/11 Memorial. They are likely referring to the service that was held shortly after the attacks. Which should be considered topical. Modern readers could assume that they met at a memorial service or monument on an anniversary of 9/11 rather than shortly after the attack itself.

  • Needless to say, this story is written around the fact that the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 happened in the recent past. These references should be considered topical. Including references to Captain America being present when it happened, the invasion of Afganistan, and to al-Queda leader Osama Bin Laden, the mastermind behind the attack. This is topical because it happened over 20 years ago now and Bin Laden has been dead since 2011. Likewise, the US pulled out of Afghanistan in 2021. Modern readers should interpret this as a general spate of terror attacks on US soil that are unique to the fiction.

  • Marty Oliver complains about his granddaughter being into the Dixie Chicks the year before. The Dixie Chicks are an all female country group that started in 1992. They later changed their name to “The Chicks” in 2020 as the word Dixie has connotations associated with America’s past history of slavery. They were at the height of their popularity in the early 2000s. They received blowback from the general public when the group criticized the invasion of Iraq that occurred shortly after 9/11, hence why they are being referenced here with disdain. In any event, this reference should be considered topical given the context.

  • Lastly, it is stated here that General MacPherson served three tours in the Vietnam War in the Marines. This should be considered a topical reference. One could assume that, per History of the Marvel Universe #2, MacPherson fought in the Sin-Cong conflict, which spilled over into Vietnam as well.

  • General Marty Oliver is stated as having been in the service since the Cold War. These references should also be considered topical.