Captain America: Sam Wilson, Vol. 1: Not My Captain America

Captain America: Sam Wilson (Collected Editions)

by Nick Spencer (Writer), Daniel Acuña, Paul Renaud (Illustrator)

When Steve Rogers was restored to his natural age, he chose one of his closest and most trusted allies to take up his shield: Sam Wilson, formerly the Avenger known as the Falcon! But Sam isn't Steve — and after recent events, he's on the outs with both his old friend and S.H.I.E.L.D. What could have sent the high flying new Cap's approval rating plummeting so dramatically? Things get slithery when the vile Sons of the Serpent make the scene, and you'll howl at the glorious return of fan-favorite Cap-Wolf — well, Fal-Cap-Wolf! But what other horrors await in the dungeon of Doctor Malus? And who will be the All-New, All-Different Falcon? The headline-making Sam Wilson is a Captain America for today!

Collecting: Captain America: Sam Wilson 1-6

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

136 pages, Paperback

First published May 3, 2016

About the author

Librarian Note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Nick Spencer is a comic book writer known for his creator-owned titles at Image Comics (Existence 2.0/3.0, Forgetless, Shuddertown, Morning Glories), his work at DC Comics (Action Comics, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents), and for his current work at Marvel Comics (Iron Man 2.0, Ultimate Comics: X-Men).

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a kinda love/hate thing going on for this book. On the one hand, I really LOVE the idea of Sam Wilson taking over as the new Captain America. I mean, we all know it's only temporary because Marvel always returns characters to the status quo eventually, but I'd actually be cool with Sam taking on the role permanently. I've always liked Sam as the Falcon and I actually like the aspect that seems to be putting off a lot of Cap fans: the fact that he's pretty vocal about his left-of-centre politics.

I also loved that Sam gets turned into his own version of Cap-Wolf! A genuine laugh out loud/cheesy grin moment.

I also loved seeing D-Man and Diamondback in this book again... and it's always nice to see Misty Knight (although I'd love to see her old partner Colleen Wing get some more page time).

Speaking of Misty segues nicely into my first complaint about this book and that's her new costume. It IS 2016, right? Why the Hell is Misty Knight running around in this book dressed like a character from a bad 1970s blacksploitation movie? It's just so disappointing that Marvel hasn't moved past this kind of crap.

The other thing I didn't much like was portraying Sam as such a rookie in the early part of this arc. YES, he's new to being Cap and new to shield-slinging but he is in no way a rookie superhero! The guy's been fighting crime as the Falcon since the '60s, for goodness' sake!

I'm also not overly keen on the new Falcon; mainly because it doesn't look good for the guy when Steve Rogers inevitably reclaims the Captain America mantle and Sam wants to be the Falcon again. I see a 'tragic' death in this guy's future...

Oh, and I also thought the ending was a cop-out and made Sam look like a complete hypocrite.

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hurrah, Rick Remender’s finally left Captain America! So is Nick Spencer’s series better? Nah, unfortunately it’s the same shit quality with a different writer.

Sam Wilson is Captain America (though hopefully not for much longer) and is looking for some random granny’s grandson who’s been taken by the Sons of the Serpent. Wow, really - that was the best they could come up with?! Meanwhile, the Serpents have become a business consulting company, Serpent Solutions, in a clumsy critique of the 1%. Boredom ensues for the entirety of the book and then it’s over.

The stupidity begins right from the get-go. Why the hell is a character who’s known for flying taking a commercial plane?! It makes no sense, especially as the experience is a miserable one for him (and everyone else who’s ever flown in America)! After enough bullhonky, he jumps out and flies away – like he should’ve done from the beginning!!!

The weak, utterly unengaging story rambles on with the only bright spot being the return of Cap-Wolf (Sam is transformed into a wolf) - a random call-back but I’ll take it. Misty Knight does nothing in this book besides strike some Foxy Brown-esque poses for no reason, and there’s some drivel about Cap’s approval ratings. Who. Fucking. Cares.

Spencer’s writing style is maddening. He overwrites like crazy and nearly every page is crammed with worthless, extraneous exposition. Diamondback’s backstory was pointless - just more criticism of America’s terrible healthcare system, I get it - as was so much of the Serpent Solutions crap, which was also more anti-1% shit. I agree, fuck those rich bastards but why do we need to read so much tedious waffle about stocks and contracts?!

Too much of that nonsense added nothing to the book anyway making it slow and clunky to read with no flow to it. I found myself sighing every time I turned the page to be confronted with another page overloaded with dialogue and captions, none of which were worth the effort of reading. Spencer’s writing style made me want to bash my head against a wall more than once!

Sam just isn’t an interesting character. He wasn’t interesting as Cap when Remender wrote him, he’s equally uninteresting with Spencer writing him. No, he’s Not My Captain America, but is he anyone’s? The dude is so plain and dull, even as Cap-Wolf! That’s it, I can’t read any more Sam Wilson as Captain America comics, they’re just the worst!

[Terence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sam Wilson, formerly Captain America's sidekick Falcon, has donned the name of Captain America.

Because of a few ill advised choices Sam finds himself without the support of SHIELD and with the general public angry at him. He's a super hero on a budget now.

I've given Sam Wilson a few tries as Captain America and I'm just not a fan. Something about him is lacking in the role. The storyline in this issue wasn't overly compelling as it takes a shallow yet realistic look at political issues the country is facing and how corporations are able to get away with a lot because of their role in the economy. It's weird seeing a supervillain rant about corporate profit structure and the nature of business in such a detailed sense. I don't imagine younger readers would have any appreciation for this, but perhaps the politics would go over their heads and therefore lead them to simply see kicks and punches. The storyline isn't one I'm particularly interested in either though.

The title says it best, Sam Wilson is Not My Captain America.

2.5 out of 5 stars

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was okayish but felt too on the nose but having read it when it came out.. well its of those times.

So it starts off with Sam talking about the legacy he took and some stands he took which led him to being chastised by the other end of the political spectrum and well even Steve is debating it and well we see the two going against each other sort of and seeing how Sam is so different from Steve and then the fact with whatever is happening now as he fights Hydra and this villain Dr Malus, whose a mad scientist who turns him into a were-wolf and thats a fun story and we see him going against Serpent society and well it also involves this chick Diamondback and we follow her story too and how both intersect and well the face off and the ideological battle and the thing with wallstreet and all.. yeah it felt forced and weird and sometimes all over the place.

It certainly is quite political and I won't deny it but I like how Spencer manages to show both sides of the argument like when he is talking about if he takes these guys down how it will affect everyone and well thats a fun status quo change and then the drama afterwards and even more stuff like that but regardless getting off that topic and into the personal side of it.. its fun and makes for great camraderie between Sam and his supporting cast and the emergence of a new sidekick and that felt like a good status quo change but man this comic could have used more subtlety.

My only complaint: TOO MUCH TEXT, omg even moreso than Bendis and it was hard to get through like you don't need to explain each and everything omg, but oh well Spencer. The art was men and felt weird but then again its Acuna and I never liked his art so take it upon yourself to judge it and the story overall.

[Chad · Rating 1 out of 5]

Take everything stupid from Mark Gruenwald's Cap run in the 80's and combine it with everything that's wrong with modern politics and you have Captain America: Sam Wilson. This thing was so awful where do I even start? Daniel Acuna provides some of his worst work I've seen. It's sketchy, looks unfinished and cartoony. Misty Knight is fighting Hydra in something from Frederick's from Hollywood. I'm shocked something this misogynistic even made it through the editors. I guess girls really don't read comics. Cap-Wolf? Really? Cap-Wolf is consistently mentioned on the dumbest thing to happen in comics list and Spencer decides to bring it back. Viper has been turned into Donald Trump. "You know all that bickering partisan politics you hate watching on the news. Well, now we've added it to Capt. Ameriga" Ugh!

[James DeSantis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow...I love Sam.

This was so damn boring.

I get the idea behind it. I actually love internal thoughts from heroes. Sam is especially interesting and a lot of his opinions side with mine so I always enjoy that. HOWEVER, one big issue is this, too much dialog can be a bad thing. Things don't need to be explained for everything you did or will do. You can just show it, or let the art do it's part, but WAY too much dialog can drive anyone crazy.

Then we got a lot of goofy stuff here like the return of wolf cap...it's not funny. It's not entertaining. It's just stupid. It's a waste of an issue and I facepalm throughout this entire portion. I love goofy fun stuff, but not when it's dumb and filler.

Overall the art is all over the place too. Sometimes love it, sometimes the faces look distorted and odd.

I'll be going with a 1.5-2 on this one. It's not very entertaining and I won't be reading past this unless it somehow gets way better.

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 3 out of 5]

3, 5 stars



Loving the idea of Sam Wilson as a lefty Cap until is going to last (sooner or later Steve Rogers always come back as Cap) and loved a lot Acuna's art and all the references to old Captain America stories (D-Man, Diamondback and... Cap Wolf!) but the second part of the volume was just not so good and in the end Sam seemed really out of character... meh. :/

The cover reference/tribute to Grifis Phemt from Kentaro Miura's "Berserk" series was a real blast!

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captain America's usually one of the 'safe' heroes. You know what you're going to get with Cap. He'll punch some bad guys, maybe get a sidekick or two, and then save the day. But now, Cap's not Cap. Instead, he's the Falcon. But now there's a new Falcon too. My head hurts.

Building off of the 8 month gap between Secret Wars and All-New All-Different Marvel, Sam has managed to annoy Steve Rogers, and the general public by getting opinionated, something Steve has never done before (to my knowledge). So now he's working without SHIELD's backing, without any cash, and operating out of an old apartment with Misty Knight and D-Man as his back-up as he takes on the Sons of the Serpent, and a symbiote-crazed scientist too.

It's definitely not the Captain America you're used to, and that's a good thing. Everything is unpredictable and new, and it works really well. There's a great balance between humour and politics (even to the point where an uneducated-on-US-politics-Englishman (although Trump is bad. I know that much after listening to him once) can understand what's going on), and it's almost lighthearted in parts.

The artwork helps, with Daniel Acuna's painted style in the first three issues, whose style is a little darker and more cramped than I've seen before, but it opens up and becomes a lot brighter and optimistic when Paul Renaud and Joe Bennett take the reins for the second three.

'Not My Captain America' is probably a good title for this book - Sam's his own Cap, and he's not out to impress anyone. That said, this book IS impressive, and deserves a look.

[Michael Hicks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, this was a pretty fun book. Sam Wilson — the new Captain America — squares off against Hydra, anti-immigration terrorists, an eeeeevil! genetic modification corporation, SHIELD, the media, capitalism, corporate fascism, and his old friend, the original Captain America and now depowered and aged, Steve Rogers.

Writer Nick Spencer certainly doesn’t shy away from using political fodder, and this new volume of Captain America has a bit of of-the-moment commentary on Trump, his policies, and the current state of affairs in America. It��s occasionally clumsy satire, but for the most part it’s OK and doesn’t take itself too seriously, to the point that one plot point in particular threatens to derail the story and jump the shark.

Given that Sam Wilson was formerly a hero known as the Falcon, there’s a lot of animal stuff encircling the narrative (falcons, snakes, wolves and the like). It all goes a bit overboard at the midpoint, but if you can cope with the silly ridiculousness of it all, it’s amusing enough.

The highlight for me was Spencer’s decision to pair up Sam and Misty Knight as crime-fighting vigilantes. After some of his decisions as Captain America put Sam at odds with the government, he’s quite an outsider and doing the vigilante gig out of pocket. Having Misty as a partner in his operations is cool beans, and she gets some moments to shine and kick butt, which is always welcome.

While there’s plenty of current-day political buzzwords bandied about in these pages, it’s not a particularly deep or meaningful exploration American affairs. It is kind of fun, though, and I’m looking forward to seeing where it goes (even if I’m exactly not thrilled about the forthcoming and much ballyhooed Nazi Cap story arc this is all building toward).

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

This was unusual in that it manages to be good and bad at the same time. Half the time Sam Wilson is trapped as a werewolf, and the way it's handled is silly, but at the same time it's entertaining. The whole Serpent Society as wall street villains sounds like a bad idea, but it reads better than it sounds. Then we have a new Falcon who's literally half falcon, and that sounds stupid but once again reads better than it sounds. It's hard to really explain what's going on here as I think you'd need to read it for yourself, but I think this is one of those "so bad it's good" moments, which are really hard to find. Overall I was entertained and while this isn't the type of direction I'd like to see a Captain America book go, for some reason it did work, at least to me.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recently I've been lamenting Marvel's lack of Lefty politics that it had embraced under Stan Lee's reign. Finally, I've been rewarded with the book that brings it back, in a great story with wonderful art (mostly by fav artist Acuna.)

I've read several books by Nick Spencer but none had prepared me for this extremely well told tale. I had no idea Spencer was capable of such heights. I'm not a hard-core Captain America fan. Loved the Kirby runs. And I've read bit here and there. I think this book can stand toe to toe with the best of them. I really loved this book.

This is one of the best Marvel books I've read in some time. Highly recommended.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this; really, I did.

The short version:
I like Sam Wilson as Captain America. I like the art. I hate that there is too much text. It wasn't so much that there were politics and social issues in the arc so much as that the way that the were included made this boring and not fun to read.

The longer version:
This is definitely not for people who are fans of Captain America because they like the escapism of simple good guy punches bad guys. It's easy for a contemporary audience to look back at World War II and imagine it as a simple fight of Good vs Evil, and "keeping the world safe for democracy." It doesn't take much to suspend readers' disbelief (if they had any in the first place from at least one history class that touched upon the difficulties of rebuilding post-war, of complacency and fear paving the way, etc) that the fight was as simple as Nazis bad, Cap good. It is *NOT* so easy to caricaturize recent and on-going social and political ills so that Sam Wilson's Captain America can prevail against them. In Sam Wilson's case, there is no nefarious mustachioed villain (ahem Hitler) or Red Skull to fight.

After the Brubaker run (and evident in the most recent Captain America: Civil Wars film), Steve Rogers as Cap is literally a man out of time, and a "man from a simpler time" (supposedly). He has clear values and struggles with how to adhere to those values in a modern world that is seemingly more complex and all shades of gray. Enter Sam Wilson as Captain America, the guy who's stuck with trying to be the symbol of Captain America in these times, whose experiences of the world (and let's be blunt, including him being a black guy who grew up in a tough neighborhood in Harlem) have shaped him, including forcing him to internalize inequality at a young age and doubt the American people. I loved the lines, though somewhat heavy-handed, in which Sam thinks to himself that he's not like Steve, who "BELIEVES...his country will do what's right...[because] in [his] heart [he] can only HOPE it will."

Unfortunately, those lines were at the end of issue 2, and the rest of the arc, other than the amusement gleaned from the ridiculousness of Sam being turned into a werewolf, isn't fun to read. There's too much text, and it reads like annoying blog posts from liberals and Fox News clips pasted into bubbles above the appropriate characters (Sam's thought boxes for liberals and Serpent villain bubbles Fox News/big business).

The first two issues show that there's huge potential for Sam Wilson as Captain America, and I hope that the series eventually finds that sweet spot that the best cape comics have between dealing with serious, complex issues and being fun, escapism reading. Unfortunately, this arc left enough of a bad taste (maybe some soap from the soapbox ended up in my mouth) that I'm leery of continuing.

[Christine · Rating 1 out of 5]

I got as far as this panel and what Misty Knight was wearing when she fought Hydra. Something she chose to wear while on a mission.

[charlotte, · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rep: Black mc

[Chantaal · Rating 1 out of 5]

Embarrassing on multiple levels. Yikes.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mix of different artists, letterers, inkers, whatever... my track record is not great with that concept. Usually it ticks me off that the artwork changes from chapter to chapter... Beware, my review is a somewhat spoilerish chapter recap.



Chapter 1
Captain America is on deck and approaching! On wings!



Artwork, meh. Oh, but I do like her:



Blaxploitation comes to mind. That‘s not necessarily a good thing, is it?
A political message this strong in a Marvel comic is rather unusual. Not bad.

Chapter 2
I don‘t really like where this plot is going. And I don’t like this Cap a lot. Should he really be this inept and clueless?

Chapter 3
Cap-Wolf? Now that is funny... the artwork has gone downhill though. And the previous artwork was not up there either. The ending was a bit silly, no?

Chapter 4
This is my kind of artwork! Better!



Wordy and heavy on social commentary. I am dying to find out who the whisperer is...

Still a wolf, btw. There has been some shedding, lol! My favourite so far. Definitely the best artwork and I like the story telling as well.

However, bottom line, this Captain America is not really happening for me.

Chapter 5
Is this dude Donald Trump in a Super Villain Snake outfit?



The political commentary keeps on giving with a heavy hand.
Much better artwork than the previous chapters.

Chapter 6
Ok, that wrapped up the storyline quite nicely. If you don’t mind that the guys enabling the villains got off like that. Cap turning from inept to way too jaded? The whole stock exchange thing and that newscast part were pointless.
And it was a bit lame, that Sam is just back to his old self like that. Is that like the closing sequence in Star Trek, where everybody is back to square one and happy?
Not sure if I like the new Falcon much either.

Oh, and Diamondback needs a job and all she can come up with is exotic dancing? The women in this are just the same old clichée, aren‘t they? Would be nice to have female superheroes or villains for a change that are not defined by the size of their boobs and lack of clothing.

Ok, I‘ll stop now, before I talk myself into rating this down any further.

PS: Yes, my review is allover the place, just like this comic. I can‘t decide if I like it or not.

[TJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

First couple issues were great, but then it got too weird real quick. I wasn’t down for Sam being a werewolf most of this book, personally. But the political stuff was great! 3/5 stars

[Thaddeus Rice · Rating 2 out of 5]

Challenging the current political climate in the US, with Sam Wilson taking a stand against the prevalence of right-wing fear and hate mongering, this comic tackles some tough issues- and the crazy reaction from elements of our society proves that Sam/Cap's points have validity- and harkens back to great storylines in the past when Steve Rogers stood up against the establishment. However, this storyline suffers from making Steve into a rather unsympathetic character. The artwork is good, and they bring back D-Man, so that's awesome!
I really like Sam as Falcon and wish he could have been brought into prominence as an iconic character in his own right as opposed to taking the mantle of Cap. There is a strange element here that could be read as saying that African-American characters can't stand on their own- with their own identities- and need to assume the mantle of an established Caucasian character to earn legitimacy and be marketable. A black Captain American forces certain preconceived notions to be addressed, however, and it makes logical sense that Steve would trust the mantle of Cap to longtime friend and ally Sam- so maybe this is a bit hyper-critical. If so, it probably stems from the fact that even though this particular move for these particular characters makes sense, I read it as part of an ongoing trend of having more culturally diverse characters assume the role/name/title of pre-established characters. And that trend is actually the target of my skepticism not Sam/Cap.

I am also a bit peeved about the Misty Knight romantic sub-plot mainly because Iron Fist/Misty Knight was the first inter-racial romantic subplot in comics (as far as I can remember) and the Sam/Misty romance seems forced and out of the blue. As if, being two African-American characters, Sam and Misty obviously had to have a romantic relationship.

Ultimately, this is a good comic, but not phenomenal. It is sad that less than a year later, Steve Rogers is back as Cap with a headlining grabbing twist that might just bury what Spencer was trying to accomplish with Sam.

[Zack! Empire · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked some of the things they were setting up in this volume. What does it mean to be Captain America in today's America? That's a question Sam is struggling with. He just doesn't trust his current position with SHIELD or the government, so he goes off on his own. Now he has no back up and no money, which I think will make for some interesting stories. There's also the idea of people just not accepting Sam as Captain America. That's Steve Rogers job, and they can't be convinced otherwise. It seems like they will play out more in the future though.
My big problem with the book was that it was a little too...political for me? Not sure that's the right word. Like I said, it's interesting to see Sam wrestling with his idea of what it means to be a symbol of America in today's America, but there were times when it seemed like the author was really bringing his own personal views into the story, rather than telling a story. The idea of a super villain group becoming a legit organization isn't really a new one, but here I just felt like it was taking a shot at corporations, because, as we all know, corporations are completely evil and filled with greedy assholes.
Also, I HATED Misty Knights new costume. I thought Marvel was really starting to move away from all the women just having their tittes falling out, but I guess I was wrong. Being 13 and designing costumes is alive and well.
I can easily see myself reading more of this series, but if it heads down this overtly political path, I'm going to give it up.

[Derek Newman-Stille · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the way this comic engages with social media and, especially, the backlash that occurred when Marvel announced that there would be a black Captain America. Even the title "Not My Captain America" brings up the Twitter hashtags and reactions to Sam Wilson's new role.

By putting a black man in the Captain America costume, Marvel did something powerful by critiquing the assumed whiteness of the American body and by pointing out that there is an incredible amount of racism within the public that comes up when American cultural images are associated with black bodies. My hope is that Sam Wilson as Captain America will continue to challenge the assumed whiteness of America and bring attention to the way that racisms are built into the symbols of the state.

This comic was powerful for its interplay with Sam Wilson's struggle to find himself within a costume that had already been shaped by another identity, to discover how his own Captain America would differ from Steve Rogers'. This is a Captain America who wants to challenge what it means to be American and to keep the question of that meaning open. Wilson doesn't have simple answers for the pubic and he doesn't want there to be simple answers. He is a Captain America who wants to question and challenge what that title means and to open up new possibilities. Sam Wilson wants to invent himself, using the imagery of Captain America's previous incarnation, but also adding to that imagery, shifting it, and inviting the question of what Captain America could be.

[Alex Sarll]

Relaunching Sam Wilson as the black Cap, this is an emphatically political book. Like Sam says, Steve Rogers could know that his country would do the right thing; Sam, younger and less white, can only hope that it will. Low-end villains the Serpent Society return, now retooled as Serpent Solutions, happy to improve the bottom line of companies which aren't too bothered about ethical considerations (that is to say, pretty much all of them); their anti-red tape rhetoric is familiar from a thousand whining capitalists, but bears an especial resemblance to Donald Trump's. Albeit perhaps with more self-awareness: "You think people want to get along, feel better. They don't. People like fear! They love hate! It's fine entertainment!" All of which was shown to be depressingly true when Spencer built on subplots here with the now-infamous 'Hail Hydra' Cap scene and an Internet full of people so high on their own outraged righteousness that they could seemingly no longer handle concepts like 'misdirection' or 'cliffhanger' duly went off on one. Well done, chuckleheads; you just proved the Serpent Society right.

Still and all, this is a thoroughly entertaining read, and not just through the black humour gained from seeing the world's idiocies reflected back in spandex. There really is a surprising amount of mileage in temporarily turning your lead into a (flying, communist) werewolf.

[Frédéric · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've heard lots of rantings when Sam Wilson became the new Cap' and seeing how sensitive it went didn't know what to expect.
I found it pretty good. I particularly liked Nick Spencer's idea of Sam taking on political issues, certainly not Steve Roger's way but pretty coherent with Sam.
These issues are certainly more sensitive in the U.S. than in Europe because I didn't actually find anything offensive there. Eh, that probably makes me a friggin' communist or something. Whatever.
I won't pretend it was always very subtle but decent enough to be a statement of a kind I don't think we see much often in mass-entertainment comics. And there's humor, too!
Good art from Acuna, Renaud and Bennett, even though I much prefer my runs/arcs with one creative team only.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably the most topical graphic novel I’ve I’ve seen up to this point. The Marvel Civil War arc was metaphorical, but this addresses immigration and other current hot-button political issues. Consistent and rather good art, overall.
I wasn’t familiar with the character Sam Wilson before Captain America: The Winter Soldier, but I immediately liked him, as played by the fabulous Anthony Mackie. Sam’s a great guy. And this book version of him is great, too. A real hero with a conscience.
The “Cap-Wolf” part of the plotline, though, struck me as very silly.
Misty Knight is a cool character, a real take-charge woman, but her clothes are absurd.

[Zoë Birss · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this book. Then I didn't at all. Then I thought it was clever. Then I came around to deciding it was pretty okay.

This new title, in which Sam Wilson, the original Falcon and Steve Roger's/Captain America's best friend, takes on the shield and name of Captain America, starts very strong. I absolutely love love loved the first issue. In this shockingly poignant and bold floppy, not only did we get a new, black, flying Captain America, but we got a Captain America who had cut ties with the government and the funding, was now supported by his brother's church in Harlem, flies coach, and fights white supremacists on the border of America and Mexico. Not only was the issue strong in story, art, and content, but it made a splash outside of the world of comics, too. The day after it was released, Fox News had a conniption, calling the new title, and Marvel, socialists and anti-American. It was awesome.

However, while I'd picked up and read the first issue when it came out, it wasn't until this volume that I read further. Unfortunately, the story just didn't keep up with that bold, relevant, realistic theme. After the somewhat disappointing follow up and conclusion to said story, the second chapter of this book, the comic took a sharp turn into weird comic book territory, literally turning Captain America into a werewolf, in which state he remained for the rest of the book. Yeesh. Furthermore, the tone abruptly changed from sincerity to self-aware camp in a big way. It knew it had got weird, and owned it. This is fine, I suppose, but comics weirdness just isn't my bag. It was the poignancy and gravity of the original premise that drew me in. By halfway through the book, I wasn't even sure what I was reading anymore.

Then it caught my heart. I mean, it still wasn't my bag. But really, it was doing ridiculous just so very well. And though it did lose the gravity of that first issue very quickly, it didn't lose the message. The change in tone also allowed it to poke direct fun at the furor the first issues has caused, even making direct reference to Captain America in the news, and the accusations he had received from Fox. By the end of the book, it had come right around to being really timely and sharp again, though I still wish it had kept the serious face, rather than the satire it settled into. It hit a lot of interesting and witty political notes, made me laugh, and for some I am sure it will be either a welcome or a needed challenge in that realm. So good on them.

As I said, these silly superhero books aren't my bag. I'm an old man now, and need my comics to be either straight comedy, or, you know, ... *art*. Or maybe not. At least, I need them to pick a tone, know what they are, and stick with it. And I guess gravity is my preference. I recognize this makes me sound like a snob... But I gotta be me. I'm sorry. You do you, cap. I'm glad you are being everything you are being right now, for those for whom you are being it.

Recommended to anyone who likes the comics mainstream, but also really wishes there was some more political commentary in there. And werewolves.

[C.T. Phipps · Rating 4 out of 5]

CAPTAIN AMERICA: SAM WILSON by Nick Spencer is probably my second favorite run on the story after Ed Brubaker's take on the man. I'm a long time fan of all incarnations of the character but I like it best when they either get into the meat of Steve Roger's persona or the contradictions of the American Dream. Sam Wilson as Captain America was controversial in certain Marvel circles for various reasons but even among progressives, there was the question of, "Why does he need to be Captain America? Isn't Falcon an established hero in his own right?"

Honestly, Sam has never gotten the respect he's deserved as one of Marvel's hero. He got called Captain America's sidekick, had that whole decades-long period where he was a pimp rather than a social worker (due to the Red Skull brainwashing him), and he was first offered a spot on the Avengers because of Affirmative Action. Honestly, Steve, what the hell was that about? He's a character that never quite got his shot at the A-list and making him Captain America with his own book is a good chance to show why Sam Wilson is a fundamentally different sort of man than Steve Rogers while simultaneously being every bit as good.

So why four stars instead of five? Well, this book is preachy. Deliberately so and if you're reading Captain America then you should probably have at least LITTLE politically charged content. Sam Wilson fights the Sons of the Serpent (KKK) who are illegally patrolling the Mexican-American border, fights against a super-greedy Objectivist CEO version of the Serpent Society, and also has him constantly put down by the public for taking various stands as Captain America. It even gets him fired from SHIELD.

I really enjoyed the return of Diamondback (Captain America's version of Catwoman) while being annoyed she was now a stripper. Diamondback is a great character and I hope she continues being part of the story. I also like how Misty Knight has become part of Sam's book. I wasn't aware her and Danny had broken up but I think they'd make a great couple. I also like the retconning of D-man from being a mentally ill and homeless wanderer (From Civil War: Frontline) to someone who is back to something of his old self.

In short, I'm very much enjoying this take on Captain America and wouldn't mind if Sam Wilson were to permanently become *A* Captain America. Make it like the Green Lantern Corps with multiple holders.

8.5/10

[Mr. Stick · Rating 3 out of 5]

"REALLY? THE WINDOW AGAIN? THEY HAVE MY CREDIT CARD ON FILE!"
- Dr. Karl Malus after Captain America "crashes" onto the scene.

"I PERSONALLY CAN'T WAIT UNTIL WE'RE BACK TO SELLING WARS!"
- Viper, CEO of Serpent Solutions.

Since I'm about to be disemboweled by a pack of frothing nerds, I'll just come out with it. I'm one of those mouthbreathers who didn't know anything about Sam Wilson pre-MCU. Yeah, I know, "How dare you start HERE with Sam Wilson. You're missing decades of backstory and character development. Would you start watching the Star Wars films from episode one?" Cap's not really my thing (aside from Brubaker's run), so I bite me. I stand by my galloping ignorance and encroaching senility.
Viper, leader of a rebranded Serpent Society, did a lot of really good monologing. Excellent stuff. Sucked me in. In fact, he probably had the best lines of the whole book. And this book was chocked full of one-liners.
I'm kind of torn, because the first three issues were really crappy because of the art. While the last four, same writing/different art, were really, really good. One story, one writer, two artists and a huge difference in tone from the first half to the last half.
So, grading all seven issues, on an average, it was just okay. Three stars.
(I await the verbal evisceration of my peers. Bring it on!)

[Matheus Gonçalves · Rating 2 out of 5]

Peguei pra ler devido à polêmica que essa série causou nos EUA. Vivemos em uma onda crescente do conservadorismo de extrema direita, na história temos um novo Capitão América, negro e de centro esquerda, que diferente do seu antecessor decide não apenas lutar contra vilões em uniformes coloridos, mas também demonstrar sua posição política e mostrar que os problemas do mundo não serão resolvidos apenas prendendo ladrão de bancos.

A história surpreende em alguns aspectos, como quando Sam vai até a fronteira com o México ajudar um imigrante ilegal que serve como coiote de outros imigrantes para adentrar nos EUA, bem como o grupo de vilões, Serpent Solutions, que deixam de instaurar o caos nas ruas de Nova York e passam a causar muito mais efeito contra a população trabalhando em Wall Street.

Porém, infelizmente, tudo isso funciona bem apenas na sinopse, como premissas. A história é muito mal executada e parece ser apenas uma cartilha política. Ainda não li nada de destaque de Nick Spencer. Tenho visto ele como um escritor backup da Marvel. Não vou seguir para o volume 2.

Além da premissa, as duas estrelas vão para a excelente arte do espanhol Daniel Acuña e para a caracterização bem feita da personagem Misty Knight, que é um alívio cômico sem deixar de ser badass.

[Joe Bogue · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's super reductive to spend 1/3 of the book spouting social justice rhetoric, then in the next third, further othering the Black main character by literally transforming him into a monster...and then playing the whole thing for comedy. Plus, considering the modern setting & themes, it's ridiculous that Misty Knight is still written/drawn like a bad Pam Grier knock off.

[Justin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm split on this one. I don't like Sam's constant narration, which mainly serves to provide way too much exposition. I do like that the book has its own tone, very different from any other Cap stuff I've read, and Spencer's genuinely funny.

[Kurt · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really like the Sam Wilson character, & I'm going to continue w/ this series, but I really hated this plot.