After two issues that boldly reframed a new Captain America’s role in a post-9/11 world through the parallel journey of Captain Dave Colton, Captain America #3 brings the series to its most pivotal moment yet. Chip Zdarsky and Valerio Schiti have already established this run as a thoughtful exploration of war, identity, and shifting ideals, contrasting Steve’s unwavering hope with Colton’s more complicated, modern reality. Now, the creative team raises the stakes by placing Steve face-to-face with one of Marvel’s most enduring villains: Doctor Doom.
Titled “Origin of Doom,” this issue picks up where we left off, as Cap is still in World War II mode and Doctor Doom is an elevated supervillain Cap’s not ready for. The concept of dictatorship is introduced at the start, and Doom makes it clear that he is nothing like Cap’s ultimate enemy, Hitler. It’s an interesting moment, as Doom shares he admires Cap and doesn’t stand for what many assume he’s all about. Steve’s confrontation with Doom forces him to reckon not only with the harsh new world he’s awoken to, but also with the limits of his own optimism.
While Cap is with Doom, hanging out to buy the rest of his outfit time, Colton and the Howling Commandos attempt to rescue the American hostages. There are covert strikes taking place with them, with brutal killings of guards along the way. It’s very much a war, and not some light-hearted superhero fight where everyone lives.
“Hitler was elected,” really hits home.
Credit: Marvel
The danger in these scenes is amplified thanks to an important flashback that opens the issue. Set in the Middle East, Colton is in the middle of a bombing, which at face value appears to be a trap set by a child. The trauma is very real in these scenes, from the civilians caught in the blast to Colton, who can’t believe his eyes. Schiti and Zdarsky don’t sugarcoat war, and it’ll strike readers who grew up with the Persian Gulf and the various wars in the Middle East that America took part in. Nothing is black and white, and real loss happened on both sides. When you consider the heroic era of Cap in World War II, where only the Nazis died, it’s a stark contrast.
Schiti does great work, especially the final page, which shows Steve and Colton in very different times, but struck with a world around them they can’t comprehend. The action is always tight and efficient, with the explosion Colton takes particularly shocking and brutal. You never doubt the scenes are set in a very real world; even with Doom in his suit and cape, you can tell there’s a real human under the mask.
Captain America #3 delivers a riveting and weighty chapter that pushes Steve Rogers into new, uncomfortable territory while firmly grounding the series in the complexities of modern warfare. Zdarsky and Schiti balance superhero spectacle with the trauma of real conflict, creating a Captain America story that feels both timeless and urgently contemporary.
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