Captain America #602

Yowza, this one isn't exactly subtle. I guess the Marvel U gets right back on track, because when we first see Winter Cap this issue, Nick Fury is a spymaster again and he's outfitting WC with a new robotic arm. Fury is handing out assignments again too, and he sends Winter Cap and Falcon out to Idaho to take on 50's Cap and his new gang. I love that Ed Brubaker is integrating 50's Cap into one of Mark Gruenwald's best concepts, the Watchdogs. But that's where things get political. Brubaker really ties the Watchdogs to the whole Tea Party movement, and then it is only a hop, skip, and a jump from there to flat out racist accusations. To go undercover with the Watchdogs, Winter Cap stages a beat down on the Falcon, even sending him off with a "And don't forget your briefcase, Obama!" Clearly, the real villains are the worst people we see here, the Watchdogs are intrigued by Winter Cap and immediately recruit him. But there are some clear comparisons made between that comic-book villain group and the Tea Party movement. I'm as liberal as the next guy, but man, that's awfully political.

The normal comic stuff is handled great, as always. Brubaker is setting up the Watchdogs as a force to be reckoned with, and I love seeing Winter Cap and Falcon working together. They may end up being almost as good a pair as Falcon and the real Cap.

Luke Ross does a great job keeping the book look consistent with Steve Epting's house style for the title. Butch Guice's inks are so distinctive that this book has been remarkably consistent for years now.

Good