Captain America (2023-2024) #6

Captain America (2023) (Single Issues)

by J. Michael Straczynski, Lan Medina (artist), Taurin Clarke (cover_art)

CAPTAIN AMERICA VS. THE EMISSARY! It's a fight to the death as Captain America races to take down the Emissary before he destroys a peace rally - and Cap himself. But when physical might proves futile against the supernatural, will an assist from Doctor Strange be enough to turn the tide?

Genres: Marvel, Comics, Graphic Novels Comics

25 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 7, 2024

About the author

Joseph Michael Straczynski is an American filmmaker and comic book writer. He is the founder of Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Studio JMS and is best known as the creator of the science fiction television series Babylon 5 (1993–1998) and its spinoff Crusade (1999), as well as the series Jeremiah (2002–2004) and Sense8 (2015–2018). He is the executor of the estate of Harlan Ellison.
Straczynski wrote the psychological drama film Changeling (2008) and was co-writer on the martial arts thriller Ninja Assassin (2009), was one of the key writers for (and had a cameo in) Marvel's Thor (2011), as well as the horror film Underworld: Awakening (2012), and the apocalyptic horror film World War Z (2013). From 2001 to 2007, Straczynski wrote Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man, followed by runs on Thor and Fantastic Four. He is the author of the Superman: Earth One trilogy of graphic novels, and he has written Superman, Wonder Woman, and Before Watchmen for DC Comics. Straczynski is the creator and writer of several original comic book series such as Rising Stars, Midnight Nation, Dream Police, and Ten Grand through Joe's Comics.
A prolific writer across a variety of media and former journalist, Straczynski is the author of the autobiography Becoming Superman (2019) for HarperVoyager, the novel Together We Will Go (2021) for Simon & Schuster, and Becoming a Writer, Staying a Writer (2021) for Benbella Books. In 2020 he was named Head of the Creative Council for the comics publishing company Artists, Writers and Artisans.
Straczynski is a long-time participant in Usenet and other early computer networks, interacting with fans through various online forums (including GEnie, CompuServe, and America Online) since 1984. He is credited as being the first TV producer to directly engage with fans on the Internet and to allow viewer viewpoints to influence the look and feel of his show. Two prominent areas where he had a presence were GEnie and the newsgroup rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated.

Reviews

[Nilum · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Give me time."

Would I Recommend It?
Read the first five comics, first. Chronology and all that. Otherwise, yes, it's an easy recommendation for anyone who wants to see Captain America fighting Nazis and Demons.

Good, Mostly
It's a solid storyline from the first to the sixth--worth reading and enjoying. With the power of hindsight, I would say that the strongest element--by and far--is the flipping between timelines; specifically, between Steve's pre-powers past, and his powered present. Not only are the transitions between each elegantly handled, but they demonstrate just what sort of a person Steve is at his heart and core, when all else is said and done. For that reason alone, this is easily worth reading. If I had to pick a close second, there are multiple VERY quotable lines from this comic run--dialogue in these comics is punchy and memorable.

The only part I think is generally a let down is the apartment subplot. For something that got so much attention in the first comic, it doesn't really go anywhere for the rest, and by the end references to it feel more like an obligation than anything else. The apartment complex doesn't really suggest anything about Steve that isn't meaningfully conveyed in other ways; it's not a complete waste of time, but I do wonder if the potential for this subplot was not possibly lost in how busy the storyline wound up being in flipping between past and present.

These minor gripes aside, I've enjoyed this run, and plan on continuing to read more of it in the future, as it releases.

To those who read this review: Have a nice day.

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captain America wielding the Eye of Agamotto infused shield is one of the hardest images I've ever seen

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5