Captain America
Steve Rogers was once a scrawny orphan born in Brooklyn, a frail and skinny young man who grew up in poverty during the Great Depression. When America entered WWII, Rogers - for all his frailty - wanted to enlist, but was rejected at multiple recruiting stations due to his physical weakness. But Rogers finally got his chance when he was approached by General Phillips to be a test subject in Operation Rebirth - a top-secret project to develop the world's first Super-Soldier. Headed by Nazi defector and brilliant scientist Abraham Erskine, the project successfully synthesized an experimental Super-Soldier Serum, and after drinking it and being bombarded by Vita-rays, the once thin and sickly Steve Rogers was forever changed into the world's first chemically-created superhuman.
Captain America began his career on the homefront, exposing Nazi spies who had infiltrated the United States, and would eventually go on to enlist a sidekick in the form of Bucky Barnes. As the war progressed, Captain America would eventually lead the Invaders - a team of Allied superhumans commissioned by President Roosevelt - to go overseas and behind enemy lines. He served with distinction in the various fronts of WWII, and encountered many Axis villains from Baron Zemo to Master Man and of course, his nemesis - the Red Skull. But Captain America would finally meet his end when he and Bucky tried to stop a drone plane that was launched by Baron Zemo. The plane was armed with a bomb, and both Bucky and Cap managed to latch onto it, but Captain America realized that it was too late to try defusing the bomb. He dropped off, telling Bucky to do the same, but Bucky's sleeve was caught on the drone plane. The resulting explosion from the plane catapulted Captain America into the freezing waters of the North Atlantic. Both the Captain and his sidekick were presumed dead, and it was assumed that this was the end of the living legend.
But as Marvel history tells us, it was only a new beginning. In the modern age, Namor destroys a frozen block of ice near the waters of the North Atlantic. The Avengers - then consisting of Giant-Man, Wasp, Iron Man, and Thor - fought off Namor and were shocked to find Captain America encased in the ice. Despite the years spent underwater, Captain America was still alive, and in due time, the Captain would adjust to the new world and would rise the ranks to lead the Avengers in nearly all of the team's subsequent incarnations. Throughout the years that followed, Captain America would be at the forefront of nearly every major Marvel event from the Kree-Skrull War, to Onslaught, and even played a central role in the superhuman Civil War. But many personal conflicts were also encountered by the Captain, including his time as Nomad, the return of Bucky Barnes as the Winter Soldier, and even the reemergence of the Red Skull. Through all of it, Captain America has persevered with his peak-human strength and his iconic and indestructible shield. Today, Captain America is arguably the face of the American superhero community, the leader of the Avengers and one of Marvel's top-tier heroes.
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