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| ISSUE REVIEW |
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There is no review of this issue. |
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| ISSUE SYNOPSIS |
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There is not synopsis for this issue. |
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| RECOMMENDING READING |
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- There is no recommended reading for this issue.
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| ISSUE'S LETTERS |
Dear Stan and Jim,
Beautiful is the only word I can use to describe the one-hundred-
and-tenth issue of CAPTAIN AMERICA. Of course, this might
be partly due to the fact that Jim Steranko is my favorite artist.
I enjoyed Rick Jones’ speech to Captain America, for Cap needed
a straightening out about his grief for Bucky. I also enjoyed the
"Caution: Danger Ahead" sign in the last panel. A subtle hint of
things to come? Then I flipped the page nonchalantly to the
letters section. The letter by Albert Rodriquez made my blood
boil! Mr. Rodriquez called Captain America a warmonger. I
take it Mister Rodriquez has not been reading CAPTAIN AMERICA
for long, for he would have found that the deer Captain is far
from a war lover. Where does Mr. R get off knocking patriotism?!
It's the apathists, not the patriots, who have caused our country's
problems. Mr. Rodriguez is not consistent. I quote from his
letter: "This magazine does not fit in with today's society. Cap
ought to know that some day the world will be built on a pinnacle
of Peace and Freedom." I suggest Mr. Rodriquez look out his
window. What does he call Vietnam? A flower garden? Perhaps
someday Mr. Rodriguez's prediction will come true. But Cap’s
mag does fit in with today's society with all its evils and wars.
No one but a dreamer can think the world is safe and peaceful.
Comics are based on patriotism. How can a comic be successful
without portraying men fighting for good and for country? And
at the end of his letter is the crowning sentence of a stomach-
turning letter. I quote, “Get rid of that Living Legend of World
War II deal. Who wants to be reminded of a shameful ideal?"
Was it shameful to dislike Nazis' and what they stood for? You
seem pretty mixed up to me, Mr. Rodriquez. If not for our brave
fathers and the men who fought in WW II, we probably would not
be here today. I know you could not have served in that war, for
nobody who had would have written such a shameful letter. I
would be proud if you guys would print this letter to give you and
other adults the knowledge that some of the younger generation
cares. My apologies for writing such a long letter, but I felt it had
to be done. My thanks to all who served in the U.S. Army of
World War ll, and of any other of our wars. I end with a combina-
tion of two famous phrases— LONG LIVE MARVEL AND
AMERICA’
Kenneth Burke, P.O. Box 1136
North Highlands, Calif. 95660
And, while we generally try to avoid siding with one reader or
another in various disputes, this is one time we have to agree with
you, Ken. However, in fairness to reader Rodriquez from our
point of view, we must add that perhaps up “shameful ideal"
of which he speaks is the war itself, not the preservation of our
freedom that emerged from that war. And we're obviously all in
agreement in hoping that, one day, that “pinnacle of Peace and
Freedom" which he mentioned will be reached. So, maybe there’s
some common ground, after all. in the meantime, let's all be glad
that, thanks to the sacrifices and struggles of those who have gone
before us, we are all free to air our views—whether on the air,
from a public platform, or in the unlikely pages of a comic-mag!
‘Nuff said!
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Dear Stan and Jim,
In a prosaic world full of "liberal" or "practical" characters like
Albert Rodriquez, Captain America supplies us with a rare com-
modity— inspiration. Struggling through many mediocre or even
slightly outworn ideas and events— such as Cap‘s endless neurosis
over Bucky Barnes, the disjointed plot of CAP #110, the over-
usage of certain villains in past issues—there are still those stories
which bring to us those high points we value most in life. Mr.
Rodriquez tells us, "The day of hero worship is gone." “The so-
called patriotic fighter is gone." "Who wants to be reminded of a
shameful ideal?" This shocks me to the core! If Mr. Rodriquez is
one of the “modern" types, out for his own good and nothing else,
contemptuous of all and any ideals—he doesn't have to read
CAPTAIN AMERICA. I'm an idealist. I believe that hero worship
is stronger today, in our lonely society, than in many other periods.
I believe that if the “day of the patriotic fighter is gone", it should
return. I do not believe in Mr. Rodriquez’s reasoning (?) process,
by means of which he manages to contradict everything he says,
and uphold the things he is fighting. Marvel Comics is unique in
that at times, few and far between —but all the sweeter for that
— it attains pinnacles of glory, coins magnificent statements of
the principles of freedom, tells us things that no one in literature,
movie, TV, novel or comic book will say for fear of being "square".
The now-classic scene with the Watcher in FF #72,p.13, panel 5;
the never-failing nobility of Prince Namor, like someone out of
Tolkien; the heroics of Captain America, which Albert deplores;
the flippancy of Spider-Man and Daredevil in the face of stark-
death; and rolling phrases and mighty ideals of Thor and Dr.
Strange: these are what make Marvel what it is, in the final
analysis. If Mr. Rodriquez wants to go back to reading more
"ordinary" Brand Echh comics, he can go right ahead. I'm sticking
with Marvel.
Rick Ellrod, 11503 Yates St.
Silver Springs, Md.
And we're glad you are, Rick. But, since we've already stated our
views in answer to an earlier letter— and since you reiterated them
at least as well as we could — we'll just let it go at that! Excelsior!
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Dear Stan, Jim, Joe. and Sam,
I would like to start this letter off by complimenting you on the
stapling done on CAPTAIN AMERICA #110. So much for the
good points of the issue. In your editor's box you gracefully bow
to the wish of the public and will attempt to answer those ques-
tions which require answers. Let mine be one of the first. What,
in the name of heaven and good taste, caused you to ruin a good
thing by inflicting a new Bucky Barnes on us, Marveldom Assem-
bled? I had been so happy to find a new Cap image without the
pointless and dated junior partner hangup, that for you to resort
to it leaves me no less than disgusted with the entire production.
Was there no other way for you to harp on Cap's well-deserved
but infantile guilt complex? The sad shape of things to come was
everywhere in the book. If all I have to look forward to with Cap
is to have him constantly rescuing his helper from danger in order
to work off the bad karma resulting from his failure to save Barnes
I wish you'd say so in advance so I could scratch Cap off my
reading list. If Cap really needs a partner to shield his back, as the
Romans would have it, why not turn to a real SHIELD, groovy
Sharon Caner? Please don't tell me that you already have a man-
woman team in [i]Henry Pym & Frau[/i]. Sure, you have a man-woman
team, but you don't have a man-boy team; you left that to your
competition, where it deserves to be left. I'm sure you know what
Dr. Wertham said about your competitors‘ characters, and since
many of your readers are a lot more sophisticated than those of
your rivals, I should think you would realize that you can't
attempt to feed them the same tripe. Not if the “Marvel Age"
means anything besides a sales slogan. Professionally, cartoonists
in your field are beginning to enjoy recognition as artists because
their product reflects their professionalism. Are you going to blow
that because some illiterate pre-teen wants to see the same re-
assuring mediocrity in your work that he sees in others? When
you killed Zemo off, he stayed dead. The [i]role[/i] of Bucky Barnes,
no matter who plays it, should go and do likewise. On another
note, Rog Vanous complains about Cap fighting the Red Skull,
and Albert Rodriquez complains about Cap's generally conserva-
tive outlook. I'd like to answer, somewhat, both of their com-
plaints. First, Al, Cap is conservative because he is from a time in
which it was more commonly accepted to be pro-USA than against
it. Actually, he is a very strange mixture of individualism and
statism in that, when he lectures on freedom, he seems to be
talking about the nation rather than the people who make it up.
Unfortunately you are right (if you are saying what I think you
are): Cap is a war lover. He is dedicated totally to smashing his
foes (read America's foes) and protecting his friends and allies
(the Avengers, SHIELD, etc.). This is not an outgrowth of his
philosophy, however, as much as a result of a biological accident.
You see. Cap is not really a natural human. He is a created [i]homo
superior[/i], such as an X-Man would be considered. His speed,
coordination, skill and strength do not result from training (as
some SHIELD episodes have suggested) but from a geological
change caused by science. He is, if you think about it, a biological
weapon devised by the allies during WW II (I don't understand
what you mean by “shameful" in regard to World War II; it. was
possibly the most honorable and just war ever fought. To have
lost it would have put the world in a scientific and systematic
Dark Age that might never be broken) and let loose on his enemies,
the Nazis. Now, the immediate enemy of the weapon is destroyed,
but the weapon still exists and since it is human, he must try to
find his own way to reconcile himself with life. Cap is no Wallace,
no demagogue of reaction, but a man trying to reach an under-
standing of a world which defies ready understanding. He can be
forgiven (if anyone has the right to pass judgment on him) for not
wholeheartedly accepting the canons of liberalism, not because he
“does not reason . . . " but because he is trying to. And don't
Forget, Al. the “Establishment"—the LBJ's HHH’s Galbraith's, Kennedy's, [i]et al[/i]— is a liberal establishment. So l wonder where
you stand. Not everyone in this nation is liberal, so Cap is not
alone. His enemy, the Red Skull, serves as counterpoint, not to
Cap's conservatism, but to his humanity! That is why the Skull
was revived. He represents all of the inhumanity inherent in the
fascist systems (and, dear reader, any and all variations of commu-
nism), and, as such, he is a necessity for just the reason Roger
dislikes him. The Skull is a living reminder of just what the war
was about: not economics systems or nationalist loyalties, but
life [i]vs[/i] death, the creed of freedom [i]vs[/i] the blasphemy of the beast.
The Skull is the embodiment of Man's enemies and the justification
for Cap's ideals which ideas can be found in the Declaration of
Independence: “ . . . all men are created equal. . . “. . . these
rights are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." The Red
Skull embodies in himself the forces which would destroy those
ideals; Cap, those that would defend them. Marvel didn't invent
the Red Skull, mankind did.
Michael Higgins, 17 Summit St.
Yonkers, N.Y. 10701
Mike, lad, you raise so many controversial points in the space of
one not-so-brief letter that it would take a whole LP just to answer
it! And so, since we've devoted similar space to a couple of other
long missives this time, we'll reserve comment at this time until a
future ish—when we can enter our own deathless thoughts
alongside those of other Cap-supporters! Okay, pilgrim?
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Dear Stan and Jim,
Thank you. Yes, thank you very much for bringing back Bucky.
It might not be Bucky Barnes, but I know Rick Jones will make
a great replacement (it's been needed for a long time). My hopes
for Bucky's return were shattered in Avengers #56, but now that
Rick’s taken his place. I predict that CAPTAIN AMERICA will
move to No. 1 in Marveldom. I have a question about Cap’s shield
that’s never been asked. In a book by Jules Feiffer titled [u]The
Great Comic Book Heroes[/u], it has the original artwork from CAP-
TAIN AMERICA #1. It shows Cap with a triangular shield.
Whatever happened to it? I do hope you print and answer this
question. Excelsior!
Rick Bilyen, 2825 N.E. 65th
Portland, Oregon 97213
We'll do better than that, Rick. In an upcoming ish of MARVEL
SUPERHEROES, our titanic trial-and-error mag, we intend to
reprint an ad for that famous first issue of CAPTAIN AMERICA,
which now sells in many places for as much as $150. The ad shows
both the cover of the mag. and also a never-since-printed pin-up
figure of Cap himself— complete with the triangular shield which
he used only in that immortal debut ishl How's [u]that[/u] for service,
R.B.? So keep watching, hear?
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