| Title | : | Essential Captain America, Vol. 7 |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0785184090 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780785184096 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 528 |
| Publication | : | First published May 10, 1981 |
Essential Captain America, Vol. 7 Reviews
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This collection was a mess. I thought it was bad when you bought a volume and there's like 5 different artists. This collection had about 7 different writers and it very much showed.
There were few bright spots. Issue #247 was good, there was a pretty decent run from 248 to the end but the rest of this book was just terrible? I mean, watching Captain America tell black people to sit out the war against white terrorism and the book implying that they're part of the problem? THe unnecessary flip flopping in Cap's feelings about Peggy and Sharon? The continuance of using Sharon poorly until killing her off?
What more could I say that wasn't covered in the many, many letters to the editor complaining about the way the comics were going. Including one notable one from Kurt Busiek asking when the writers were going to present a story that was memorable.
It's not a recommend at all. I would recommend reading "War & Remembrance" because those collect the decent issues from this collection.
I love Cap, I love a lot of Cap stories, these just weren't worth spending time on. -
I liked the John Byrne issues. JB always seemed to get Captain America and it really clarifies the characterization from earlier in this volume.
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The best collection of Captain America stories without the brooding.
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The Stern/Byrne run was one of the few Cap runs I had bought issues from back in the day. It really made this volume for me.
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A case of the good parts that were working in Vol. 6 being just enough to tip the scales away from developments which weren't as charming.
The case of the stuff working at it's best is the first issue presented, "Captain America #231", wherein Captain America gets swept up in a several issue arc with the National Force, a combative neo-Nazi outfit that is starting to hypnotize the world into its way of thinking. A lot of good emotional duress, plot turns, and generally well thought out action by writer Roger McKenzie and artist Sal Buscema.
Things get worser because of a fairly simple change in art team. John Byrne, of X-Men and later Fantastic Four fame and a great artist, he seemed like good news. Roger Stern, not so much.
Roger Stern is a weird animal. On the one hand, he likes to sort of hint at modern complications in his stories, but I think something nostalgic in him makes for simplistic stories and more talking than is needed.
The biggest deal and probably the worst issue is "Captain America #250", wherein a third party group tries to stage a movement to get Captain America to run for US President. A clever enough story issue, not a bad one for sure. But so many speeches and a resolution based more in political speechmaking and maneuvering than superhero comics or good storytelling in general.
The mediocrity of Roger Stern continues for pretty much the whole way (the re-telling of the origin story for the zillonth time in "CA #255" was a bit much, although with stellar Byrne artwork)
Ending on a positive note, with Mike W. Barr writing "Captain America #257", in which Captain America and Bruce Banner/The Incredible Hulk get caught up in neo-Nazi revolution, and the re-printing of stories from MAD Magazine esque "Not Brand Ecchh" at the end was a nice touch.
So what I'm basically saying is that Roger McKenzie is great, and while Roger Stern kind of stinks, his readability and flow and storylines just scrape by enough to be an ok resolution to the book.
What a strange mix of great and bad, but Captain America is arguably the most solid read in multi-volume Marvel Essentials. -
As is often the case with these Marvel Essential titles the material included is often uneven. The Stern/Byrne issues are wonderful and the most of the McKenzie issues are very good as well, particularly those with art by Buscema, but many of the one-off or fill-in issues between these runs are mediocre at best.
