THE CAPTAIN'S QUARTERS: CAPTAIN AMERICA #41 IN REVIEW

“The Death of Captain America Act III: The Man Who Bought America, Part V of VI”
It has been nearly six months since one time sidekick, Bucky, stepped into the role of Captain America, a role vacated by the death of the man for several decades most synonymous with the red, white, and blue, Steve Rogers, who seemingly met his end back in issue #25 at the hands of his brainwashed girlfriend and fellow SHIELD operative, Sharon Carter.  And, yet, despite the lack of Steve and, for several months, of any real Captain America at all, Brubaker’s “The Death of Captain America” epic is still rolling strong as the final pieces are moved into place in this penultimate chapter.
   With Bucky growing more comfortable in the costume with each issue, Brubaker has made his “return” from the dead one of the more acceptable ones, which is surprising considering that Bucky Barnes, along with Uncle Ben Parker and once and future Flash Barry Allen, was long considered one of those sacred characters for whom dead really meant dead.
  Part of what makes this storyline work is that it did not just begin as a gimmick with the death of Steve Rogers at the end of the Civil War, but rather back in the very first issue of Brubaker’s run.  All of threads that have been started — Lukin and the Red Skull, Bucky’s reemergence as the Winter Soldier, corruption at SHIELD — are starting to be neatly tied up in a way many writers are not often able to do.
   While this issue lacks some of the action of some of the previous installments, by the time it ends, we are faced with the sense of an impending doom as well as hope, as Faustus’ surprise betrayal and his subsequent manipulation of events to throw a monkey wrench or two into the Skull’s plans set up a showdown between the forces of good and evil in the final chapter, with Bucky finally openly and emphatically declaring for the first time that he is indeed Captain America.
   As we have a good sense as to where this may be going, part of Brubaker’s talent on the title is to throw a curveball when we least expect and provide us with jaw-dropping moments that leave us wondering if we really did just read what we thought we did.  The Red Skull’s master plan, in motion from the very beginning, seems unlike almost anything he has ever attempted and Brubaker appears to be saying, with Bucky’s declaration as the issue ends, that no matter the evil, no matter evil’s plans, and no matter the odds, the symbol of Captain America will always be there to stop it.  For a book to not at all feature the most prominent Captain America ever for nearly 18 months and still continue to sell strong is testament to the writing abilities of Ed Brubaker, as he continues to weave a captivating and engaging storyline and leave us wanting more.  The story has admittedly dragged at a point or two, but all in all, issues like this one are pulling things together.
   For the set-up, the surprise betrayals, the final massing of both sides, and the always striking pencils of Steve Epting, this one gets a 5 out of 5 stars.
   -Charles J. Baserap