The Super Powered Fancast

Captain America #703

Marvel Comics

Written by Mark Waid

Art by Leonardo Romero, Alan Davis and Mark Farmer

Colors by Jordie Bellaire and Irma Kniivila

Letters by Joe Caramagna

Jake Rogers has unleashed something that he cannot control and has yet to understand and everyone on Earth is now in danger.

In his desperate attempt to save his sick son Steve, Jake has uncovered a conspiracy involving the government and the Kree Empire involving the super soldier serum and effectively put himself and his son at risk in the process. He’s made misstep after misstep to the point of eye-rolling exhaustion an now has unleashed a resurrected Red Skull on the Earth infused with the power of the cosmic cube. While Jake is dealing with the problem he caused, his son Steve is taken into custody by the general who is stalking his father.

At the same time, we are given another moment in the life of Captain America in the past as Steve is shown withholding against torture in order to get information that he and the Avengers need to stop a devastating attack on the city. It’s a vignette that is meant to illustrate the strength and resolve on Captain America as well as how different his descendent is on all levels. While Jake is brave enough (when it comes to his own desires), he lacks the character traits necessary to either be sympathetic or interesting for the most part.

His plan to pit the super powered Red Skull against the Kree is desperate, but effective enough to give him time to get back to his own agenda. The problem being that his agenda puts the entire planet at risk. I like what this issue is trying to say about the legacy of Steve Rogers and his connection to his descendants, but Jake is still not that interesting a character to hold my interest for too long. Hopefully this story evolves more into something where Jake has some kind of redemptive arc that showcases the contrasts that the writer is making in this series.