The Good
I've gone back and forth over the direction of this Captain America series. At first it seemed odd to have Cap taken off the board in the Marvel Universe and stuck in Dimension Z. But Rick Remender is on to something with this angle. This is the opportunity to get some definite different sorts of stories rather than what we've seen the last twenty years or so. To make matters worse for Cap, he's still trying to recover after being captured by Arnim Zola. Cap is stuck in a strange land, he's weak, lost and there are hordes of strange creatures presenting deadly threats at every corner.
We're used to Cap being the ultimate fighter and hero. Seeing him broken down a bit is hard to see at times but we are reminded that this is the sort of stuff he has overcome his entire life as we see flashbacks to his childhood. The idea of Cap having to work and build himself up, being an underdog again is a cool idea.
The other nice thing about being separate from the rest of the Marvel Universe is we don't have to worry about other events going on that would pull him in. This is a pure Captain America story and until he finds a way out of Dimension Z, you can just dive in and focus on what's going on here.
The Bad
There were times once again the art just doesn't work for me. I've said it before, I don't mind John Romita Jr's art at times and on the right project. The issues I have are with the flashback scenes. Steve Rogers as a kid, and the other kids, all have gigantic heads. Steve's head is larger than his entire torso. There's also the 'creatures' in Dimension Z. They don't look fearsome enough. Strangely, if you use the AR app, you get to see Romita Jr's pencils for some pages. The penciled panels look way better than the final product. There could also be the color scheme used for Phrox. I'd love to see a black-and-white/penciled version of this issue.
We're only three issues in. Arnim Zola never really struck me as a truly worthy adversary for Captain America. Maybe it's the character design. I mentioned I like that Steve is removed from the Marvel Universe but I'm also waiting to see where this story is going to go.
The Verdict
Things are getting worse for Captain America. Stuck in Dimension Z and trying to recover from when he was held captive by Arnim Zola, Steve has a child he needs to protect while also trying to figure out how he can make his way through this dimension and get back home. Unfortunately there are moments the art can become a distraction from the story. It could also be a combination of the inks and colors. This is a different sort of Captain America story. It's a nice change of pace but having Arnim Zola as his main villain still strikes me as a little odd. Although the last page will make you utter "Holy$#!&." There's no telling where Rick Remender will take this series next and that is part of the fun. You definitely need to fasten your seat belts when reading this series.
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