Wow. The news today. Wow. I'm assuming that he's truly gone, though I know that in the world of Comics, nothing is forever, and there's a decent chance he'll pop up.
I've not been following Civil War (going to get it in trade), so my judgement is a tad limited but.
Why Him?
Why Now?
Why that way?
From some of the comments the Marvel types are saying, they see it as an allegory of the current situation in the world.
Captain America is an incredible character. Maybe today, many would think that the world needs to get rid of things like Cap, since he's so much from another time. Yet, I think he is, and isn't.
He stands for America, but I've always thought in a good way. We all know that this nation has problems (though we may well disagree with what those exact problems are). He's not about what America is to my mind, but, what America could be. He's about those things that are actually worthwhile. He's about honor and integrity, about making the world a better place. As much as Clark Kent in the DCU, Cap is the Moral Center of the Marvel world. This isn't to say he was perfect, but he had honor and integrity, and always stood for what is right.
I find it a bit sad that they are getting rid of him now, when so many members of the Greatest Generation are passing away.
What are they getting at though? Is killing him that way some sort of a statement that "Liberty is dead?" He fought against registration, and lost, and then was killed. If so, that's the wrong message to give. If someone feels that Liberty is dead, then they should have pictured him fighting, even if it is a lost cause.
To die on courthouse steps? That's not a bang, it's a whimper. A pathetic, foolish whimper.
I'll be honest, like most comics geeks, I've thought from time to time about writing them. Back around 1994 or so, I had an idea for a big All-Marvel crossover, based around the Mutant Issue (I called it World War X.. yeah, yeah). Anyway, at one point, I thought of the idea of having the Government turn on Wideawake, the Sentinals. However, the info of that got to Nick Fury, who called Cap... the two old WW2 Warhorses, and their response was "Never Again." I saw Cap leading a mixed force of the Fantastic Four and every Avenger they could get their mitts on to demolish the factory. If you wanted to kill Cap, that's the kind of moment to do it. Fighting the good fight, showing what he truly stands for. Not the victim of an assassin's bullet on the courthouse steps.
I imagine that we'll see a New Captain America soon. It's been done before. I can see it with Cap more than some of the others like Batman or Spiderman. Bats is eternally Bruce Wayne, and Spidey is always Peter Parker. Yes, Steve Rogers is gone. I hope though that they don't decide to put some post modern, ironic character in that slot, who would mock all that has gone before. Man or woman, black or white, it makes no difference. The Spirit of Captain America demands a person who will hold the shield with honor. I only hope that the people in New York understand this.
