Thursday, January 28, 2010

Captain America: Reborn #6 (of 6)

There was a lot riding on this issue as it wrapped up the two-year saga of the death and rebirth of Captain America.

So there's good news and bad news. The good news is, the art really sings, and Bryan Hitch and Butch Guice provide some amazing visuals, starting with a killer cover spread (of which you only see a third here). One of the splash panels will make a dandy poster, and the issue is loaded with some great action sequences.

The bad news is, the story kind of falls flat here. After a great build-up, a clever explanation for Cap's "death" and a heck of a cliffhanger last time around, this issue's story doesn't really deliver.

Instead of a big surge to victory, Cap returns through dubious means and almost immediately gets lost in the huge crowd of heroes and villains duking it out on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

There are some good moments near the end setting up future storylines, but I was hoping for a more definitive and dynamic return for Marvel's greatest fighting machine.

It's all a bit anticlimactic - sort of the equivalent of having your football team win a game because the other team missed a last-second field goal attempt - you're glad for the win, but you feel like you almost didn't earn it.

I'm not arguing with the results, and I'm thrilled to have Steve Rogers back, but with Ed Brubaker writing, I expected better.

Grade: B

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