Captain America: Return of the Winter Soldier Omnibus

Captain America (2004) (Collected Editions) #16-17

by Ed Brubaker, Chris Samnee (Illustrations)

Ed Brubaker's award-winning run concludes! As Captain America's staunch ally Bucky, James Buchanan Barnes was one of America's greatest heroes of WWII - until he was brainwashed into becoming the Soviet spy known as the Winter Soldier. Now, in the aftermath of FEAR ITSELF, James is the Winter Soldier again! When Russian sleeper agents awaken and old enemies resurface with new identities, Winter Soldier and Black Widow clash with Doctor Doom - and James must save the Widow from her own past! But even with help from Wolverine and Hawkeye, must Bucky sacrifice everything to save his love? Meanwhile, Captain America takes on Scourge and the Discordians, while a deadly villain from the past reveals a mystery spanning generations of heroes! Collecting CAPTAIN AMERICA AND BUCKY #620-628, FEAR ITSELF #7.1: CAPTAIN AMERICA, WINTER SOLDIER (2012) #1-14, CAPTAIN AMERICA (2011) #11-19 and FEAR ITSELF: BOOK OF THE SKULL.

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction, Comic Book, Superheroes

752 pages, Hardcover

First published May 19, 2015

About the author

Ed Brubaker (born November 17, 1966) is an Eisner Award-winning American cartoonist and writer. He was born at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland.

Brubaker is best known for his work as a comic book writer on such titles as Batman, Daredevil, Captain America, Iron Fist, Catwoman, Gotham Central and Uncanny X-Men. In more recent years, he has focused solely on creator-owned titles for Image Comics, such as Fatale, Criminal, Velvet and Kill or Be Killed.

In 2016, Brubaker ventured into television, joining the writing staff of the HBO series Westworld.

Reviews

[Drew Canole · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was going to write individual reviews for all the story arcs in this book, but it's all starting to blend together after just a couple days. I will say, I read this entire 750 page comic in just two sittings! I think that says a lot about Brubaker's writing. He makes some fast-paced thrilling comics here.

Captain America and Bucky 620-628
Francesco Francavilla as usual stands out. Just super interesting artwork. He does a few issues of Captain America & Bucky that explores their relationship. The first half of this run is more interesting - it explores their time in WW2.

Winter Soldier 1-14
The strongest storyline is perhaps the Winter Soldier story where Bucky gets involved with the Russians again and Black Widow gets kidnapped.

Captain America (2011) 11-19
Captain America, Vol. 3 and 4 co-written with Bunn... I honestly forgot what happened. Some high adventure with Hydra. It feels like a rehash of the earlier Captain America storylines Brubaker wrote with Red Skull and co but this time featuring a more faceless Hydra. With some brainwashing, media manipulation, the falcon helps out.

Fear Itself: Book of the Skull, Fear Itself 7.1: Captain America
Fear Itself just has a couple issues that feel out of place since I never read the main storyline for that comic although I guess it features a few villains that Brubaker set-up.

***
COLLECTING: Captain America and Bucky 620-628, Fear Itself: Book of the Skull, Fear Itself 7.1: Captain America, Winter Soldier 1-14, Captain America (2011) 11-19

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brubaker’s 100 issue or so run on Captain America comes to a close. Hell of a ride.

First you have Captain America and Bucky 620-628. The first half of this was good. Shows Cap and Bucky’s early days as a team. All the mishaps they got into while not fighting and Bucky earning his respect in the eyes of Namor and the android human torch. Nice art by Chris Samnee too. The second half was just decent with Adam II evolving to Adam III and coming after the replacement Bucky and to take over the county.

Fear Itself Book of the Skull shows Sin team up with Zemo and some mystic art users to summon some ancient evil to use as a weapon. Solid,

Fear Itself 7.1 shows how everyone one was lead to believe Bucky was dead but find out he was alive. The show how this was done why they did it. Cap flew off the handle and unleaded his anger on Fury. Damn.

Captain America 11-19. First half was pretty cool. There is a new Scourge going around killing villains that are now in the witness protection program. Cap and company try to track him down, figure out who he is, and protect anyone else from being killed. The second part finishes up Bravo and Queen Hydra’s story. The use a talk show and some super powered people calling themselves the Discordians to sway Americas view on Captain America and use some super Mad Bombs to drive people crazy. This seemed a little lazy on Brubaker’s part as this felt like a retread story from Gruenwald’s run on Cap which I’m also reading.

Then you have my favorite story in here, Winter Soldier 1-14. This was awesome! Some real spy/espionage stuff. This is the story they only scratched the surface on in Cap 2 in the MCU. There were 3 other sleeper agents like Winter Soldier that he also trained that were out there waiting to be activated. Someone has sold the activation codes on the black market. This had some great cameo’s, dope action and great art by Butch Guice and Michael Lark.

[Relstuart · Rating 4 out of 5]

I let this one sit on the shelf for a little bit after I got it. I'm so glad Marvel printed the whole of Brubaker's run in omnibus format. But, it was a little sad finishing it off and knowing there is no more of the run to read now.

So, Marvel finished their classic numbering of the Cap book and rebooted with a new number one. Also included is the beginning issues of the Winter Soldier series written by Brubaker (14 issues). I thought the Cap issues towards the end of the run weren't the best issues from Brubaker. They were a little shallow depth wise, but even the weaker issues are better than some other writers' good issues of Cap (sad to say).

Where Brubaker shines in this collection are the Winter Soldier issues. Brubaker's espionage writing is excellent and he uses his skills to weave a well plotted interesting story with several Soviet assets on ice like Bucky, coming back into action. There is also some nice art work from Guice and Lark.

The omnibus includes Brubaker's last Cap issue and a short letter from Brubaker talking about his love for Captain America and Bucky and how glad he was to have had the chance to write Cap. This collection is well put together and well worth having.

[The Lion's Share · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll be honest. The whole Brubaker run was a bit of an anti climax for me. There are good bits and bad but nothing spectacular, it just didn't hit a chord with me, yet I thought it had so much potential. The artwork was great and Bucky and black widow were awesome, but I think the villains were very poor.

The most interesting villain for me was dr. Faustus with his mind control, but when red skulls daughter Sin came on board I tuned out. They should have focus more on better villains.

[Jess Bragg · Rating 5 out of 5]

As good as advertised!

[Gabriel · Rating 4 out of 5]

While volumes 3 and 4 made me want to wait out on reading this final 5th volume, I have to admit that this ended the series strong.

I was not the biggest fan of Volume 3 and 4 because I felt as though Ed Brubaker was messed with by Editorial for the return of Steve Rogers, but following that, it felt as Brubaker was just repeating some of the same storylines and doing them worse than before. I STRONGLY believe that Brubaker's run is more of a a Bucky run and so I personally wouldn't recommend anyone this for specifically Steve Rogers content. Yes, you get him in here and he was written very well in the first volume, but Brubaker has such a great voice for Winter Soldier and this series in this omnibus is what steals the show. I thought it was great and something fresh compared to the repeated storylines. Brubaker returns to his speciality of crime/spy noir stories instead of usual superhero tales and gives us a brilliant run that changes Bucky once again. It was a treat to follow and it made me wish I didn't wait so long to read this because, again, Bucky is amazing in this entire Brubaker run.
Bucky may not be American's perfect son, but he is a true soldier for being able to take on all the weight. Between having to deal with his guilt of Winter Soldier, to taking everything that comes his way as Captain America, and to being faced with some big changes here...he is a dog. Love Bucky.
The very final issue in this goes back to Steve Rogers and it was a simple, yet touching reminder that as long as Steve is here, he couldn't possible let others suffer the weight he feels as Captain America even if he never wanted to be a hero himself. It was really good way for Brubaker to end his run.

I may not have enjoyed every single thing about this book, but it has some great highs.
Omnibus ranking for me: 1, 2, 5, 4, 3.

8/10 for this omnibus and 8/10 for the entire run.
Barely made that 8 from me, but the worst parts are worth sticking around because you get a great ending that brings it back close to what it was in the very beginning, in my opinion.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Been reading this book off and on for over a year, so forgive the relative vagueness of this review. I don't remember a ton of specifics besides the ones I've read most recently, but I will say this: Brubaker loves Captain American and Bucky. He clearly has a passion for these characters that has allowed him to write this book (and occasional simultaneous offshoots) for 8 solid years, always maintaining a general high quality of craftsmanship and plotting.

Even though his original run, including the introduction of the Winter Soldier, is the clear standout of his run, it would be wrong to discount his continued work on the character. The stories collected in this final volume are all high-energy, idea-filled comics goodness, and I don't think anyone has been better suited to write for Cap or Bucky. Hell, he basically invented Bucky as we know him today.

I will say the strongest portion of this omnibus arrives towards the end, when Brubaker returns Bucky to Winter Soldier status and starts writing espionage stories again. This has long been Brubaker's strong suit as a writer (check out Sleeper or Incognito for incredible examples of this), and seeing him really own that genre again is a real thrill. It's fitting that he ended his Cap run returning to his own roots as a writer and really nailing some final stories in that realm.

I'm sad to see him go from Cap, even though it's clearly time. I feel like I've been reading Brubaker Cap stuff since I was a child, even though that isn't true. It's just the effect he has as a comics writer. He's a joy to read, plain and simple.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life Story (CA 620-624). There’s nothing deep in these stories, but it’s a nice walk through a variety of eras in Bucky’s life, as seen through the lens of the modern day. [4/5]

Old Wounds (CA 625-628). The plot has some pretty neat elements, with its focus on past Captain Americas and Buckys. Unfortunately the script is fairly dull with lots of fights and double-crossing, none of which is particularly exciting. [3+/5]

Fear Itself: Book of the Skull. I have to assume this was included because it was by Brubaker and it very briefly features Captain America & Bucky in a nice parallel to the Life Story. But there's almost nothing to the story. It's got one plot point: Sin gets a Hammer [3/5].

Fear Itself #7.1. This is a muddy story without the rest of Fear Itself and it really should have gone in the previous volume to bridge Bucky-Cap and the return of the original Captain America. But it's good to have it here to explain Bucky returning to his Winter Soldier persona [4/5].

The Longest Winter (WS #1-5). I found Bucky’s death and almost immediate rebirth in the wake of Fear Itself to be extremely cheap, but here we at least see some purpose in it, as it allows him to go back undercover.

The actual story has a lot of the advantages of Brubaker’s Captain America run, including a nice noirish feel, espionage missions, and great chemistry with the Black Widow. This volume also pushes things further into the Marvel Universe, with its inclusion of a variety of big-name “villains”. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel the same heart in this volume as in the best Captain America. Perhaps it’s just finding its feet. [4/5]

Shock to the System (CA #11-14). Another good Brubaker Captain America comic. This one has a lot of the nice espionage feel that the Bucky comics did, and also some great attention to continuity. It’s a bit too decompressed, resulting in yet another very quick read, but it continues to be enjoyable. [4/5]

New World Orders (CA #15-18). Brubaker's Captain America ends not with a whimper ... but not exactly a bang either. Bravo & Madame Hydra were used better earlier in this new series, and by Volume 4, they're just going through the motions. As for the main plot of the public going crazy and a demagogue stoking them on: it's been done before, particularly in DC's Legends. It's also reflective of Madbomb, which Brubaker at least namechecks.

Don't get me wrong: this is enjoyable action adventure. However when I started reading Brubaker's Cap, it's because he was doing something notably different, and that time is gone. It's good we're all moving on to something new. [3/5]

Broken Arrow (WS #6-9). I lost most of my interest in this title when Brubaker abandoned it so quickly, but having finally gotten back to it, I’m happy to see this second volume is a good read that takes after the espionage stories that Brubaker was writing for Bucky-Cap. The use of story elements close to the heart of Bucky and Natasha also helps to maintain the interest, overall resulting in a good book. [4/5]

Black Widow Hunt (WS #10-14). It's nice that Brubaker opted for a single coherent story for the end of his Bucky run (covering all 14 issues of his Winter Soldier), but it's unfortunately started to drag a bit, in this last volume, which feels like a long snipe hunt. It's got a great ending, but it was a little obvious what was going to happen and thus a little dull getting there. [3/5]

Finale (CA #19). After weak final arcs for Captain America and Winter Soldier it was good to have a heartfelt finale that also tied up some loose ends and gave us a bit of retrospective [5/5].

[FrontalNerdaty · Rating 4 out of 5]

As far as finishing an epic run goes Brubaker knocks it out park with this and really sticks the landing. The graphic starts with us finally getting Bucky’s side of Cap’s war story and it’s a decent story which shows you Bucky had the same desires/ goals as Steve but just differed in the methods. This leads in to a so-so story revolving around Steve fighting ghosts of his past (a beat Brubaker loves) and goes on to the Winter Solider miniseries. However I really feel like that series should’ve been called ‘Winter Soldier and Black Widow’ as she’s such a large part of the story.
As far as runs of comics go it’s an amazing read which both reinvents a character (or 3!) whilst still honouring what people love about them.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bucky bae :(

[Derek Moreland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brubaker end as his time with Cap and the Winter Soldier on a series of absolute bangers. Arguably the best collection of stories from his entire run.

[Jordan Lahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The quality doesn't always live up to the heights of the first half of Brubaker's epic Cap run, but it's a satisfying conclusion to the series, particularly the Winter Soldier issues. Happy to have this as part of my collection.

[Sophie C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!!

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love all things Bucky Barnes or Black Widow. Both are these amazing, spy badass characters with super deep backgrounds and motivations. This collection is huge, and is really great.

[James De Leon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one took me a while to get through. There are some nice bits and pieces here, but it’s obvious that Brubaker either ran out of steam, or wasn’t as interested anymore, or was shackled by interference (e.g., Fear Itself). Don’t get me wrong - it’s not bad. It’s just not as good as the early volumes, so my measuring stick is strict here.



The art is still consistently great. And the pairing of Natasha and Bucky is interesting - again, it just wasn’t as interesting as in the early volumes. The villains were poorly conceived and it doesn’t seem that there is a good narrative structure to it all.

Overall, 6/10 for the story and 9/10 for the art. Only recommended to wrap up the series.

[Joshua]

The Winter Soldier series here is some of the most compelling stuff in Brubaker’s entire run even as the Steve Rogers stuff is potentially some of the least, but man, as a whole, reading Brubaker’s entire eight-year run in a little under a month, this was a really brilliant time capsule to a not so distant past that is so profoundly relevant. It was such a wild ride going through this story as it hit and reacted to Marvel events and just straight up true events. The world outside your window. And the world outside your window yesterday has so much to say about the world outside your window today. In hindsight I see how every Cap book I’ve read since picking up comics ten years ago has in one way or another been a reaction to Brubaker. Excited to watch the Winter Soldier again.

[Eric Burton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best of the five volumes IMO, tying together everything Brubaker set up and giving us the dual perspectives of Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes throughout. Brubaker really made Bucky into one of my favorite Marvel heroes, and he tells some amazing stories with him in this volume, as well as Steve.
The stakes are high and feel important, the characters have real growth, and he ties everything up in such a satisfying way. This might be the best run of comics I've read from Marvel. Bravo to everyone involved.

[Highland G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this final omnibus. The cap stuff was ok but the Winter Soldiers arcs really shined. They could have used a lot of this for him in the mcu instead of making him a pointless side character and there’s even an arc that would have served well to introduce daredevil and wolverine in here. Honestly makes me wonder about who’s leading that ship.
Anyway Brubaker does what he does best here, war spy stories.

[Adam Spanos · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is rather a hodge podge, with no real unifying theme other than Ed Brubaker’s writing. The retro-engineered World War II romps of Captain America and Bucky sit alongside the final and weakest issues of Brubaker’s Captain America run, emphasising the superhero, and then there’s the spy-oriented Winter Soldier solo material.

[Mohamed Ahmed · Rating 4 out of 5]

I Enjoyed The winter soldier stories a lot, but Cap stories not so much, except for the finale. and the same can be said for the art with Michael Lark and Butch Guice amazing talent.
but then again through out all Ed run, he has been much better with The winter soldier stories, and i will always remember that he made me love the character.

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Captain America stuff dragged and felt pretty boring and unoriginal, but the Winter Soldier stuff was great. Brubaker run of Cap is pretty great overall though but about midway through it starts to lose its luster a bit.

[Patrick Herman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Marc Andreyko, Ed Brubaker and Chris Samnee collaborated on a phenomenal Captain America and Bucky arc. Their work was of such a high quality that I frankly don't understand why they were not allowed to do another.

[Gerky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brubaker's legendary Captaib America run comes to and end. And, to be honest, it feels a bit haphazard. Its not as strong as others in his run.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

It seems like Bucky keeps regressing as a character. Hard to root for him when he keeps leaning in to his character flaws and not really accepting responsibility.

[boofykins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five out of five Ed Brubaker-helmed Captain America Omnibi get five stars in book. Incredible run!

[Josh Trice · Rating 5 out of 5]

This ends Beubaker’s run with Cap with a bang! Not every run is great, but the highs in here are incredible!

[Trey Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like the previous volume, I prefer the stories with Bucky to the ones of Cap, except for the final issue which is the ultimate finale to a side plot ever and feels so appropriate. Still, the story for Bucky was pretty heart wrenching at the end.

[drown_like_its_1999 · Rating 3 out of 5]

The end of Brubaker's run was a bit more inconsistent than the start, both in story and art, but I liked the more clandestine focus of this volume. I do wish there was a bit more overarching narrative to the run as a whole but as a collection of arcs it is still quite entertaining. This era of cap still seems overrated to me, or perhaps is more influential / important than a must read. Though maybe if I was a fan of Captain America I'd feel differently.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice way to end what has to be considered one of the best Captain America runs ever. This hefty Omnibus edition contains all of the post-Fear Itself issues of Captain America (most of which focused on Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier) as well as the full Winter Soldier solo series.

The quality of the stories is hit and miss. I liked the early Bucky tales, but thought the Discordians arc was kind of weak. The best of the bunch was the Winter Soldier series since it had a heavy spy/Bourne Identity vibe that really makes the most out of characters like The Winter Soldier and the Black Widow. At the end of the day though, we have a revitalized Captain America character, a Winter Soldier who's a leading character in his own right, and a lot of new Captain America fans. Ed Brubaker has definitely made his mark on the Marvel Universe.

If you have the previous Brubaker Captain America Omnibus volumes, this is a must-have.

[Dean Olson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This omnibus collects Brubaker's final story arcs for his 8 year run writing the stories of both Captain America and The Winter Soldier. This collects both series and alternates back and forth from them, so the different art styles change throughout the book. The writing is always strong and he has such a great grasp of these characters. I think it will be a long time before someone can great a better Captain America run. The best story in this book is when a Russian sleeper agent decides to destroy Bucky's life using the Black Widow.