The Good

For some reason, Brubaker managed to pack in a boatload of action and managed to keep it from being dull. Cap's fight with a huge robot and Sharon's fight with Zemo were beautifully protrayed, and I really got a sense of Cap's limitations. Sharon trying to throw Cap's shield (and failing) was pretty great.

I think the creative team are trying to portray Steve's powers and capabilities a lot more clearly in this volume: no longer is Cap just a "punch Nazi's and throw shields" kind of hero. We get a firm sense of how fast he can run, what he can survive and how agile he is. I think he needed this desperately; it helps to define his character.

The cliffhanger (involving teleportation) has kind of got me hooked, but at the same time, I don't like how Brubaker is eliminating most of Cap's supporting cast. While I enjoy Steve, I enjoy "Steve + everyone else" more.

The Bad

Not much, to be honest. It's a set-up issue, so a lot of the plot hasn't been explained yet. However, once the arc gets ramping up, I'm sure it'll get better; again, I almost want the arc to end quickly, as it'll allow for Steve to interact with people other than the villains.

This is kind of compounded by the fact that we don't get much inner dialog from anyone in the book; this is a problem, because now that Steve is being separated from Sharon, Fury and Hogan, who will he talk to?

The Verdict

Brubaker writers amazing Captain America; that's my thoughts on this series so far in a sentence. I've never been a big Steve fan, but his recent run (along with his other work) have made me a convert. Ed is the only man who can have Captain America fight a giant robot version of himself and keep me from closing the book.