Marvel announces Steve Rogers will lay down his shield, Sam Wilson AKA The Falcon will be the new Captain America
Another shocking announcement comes from Marvel, after revealing that there will be a female Thor. Well, sort of. Marvel has been saying for months now that there will be a new Captain America.
Marvel made this announcement on their site, on Wednesday, "Robbed of his superior strength and vitality, Steve Rogers must surrender his blues for a sturdy cane. He’s not about to fade away just yet though. The old maxims hold true: If dead men declared the war and old men talk about it, a young man must rise and continue the fight. If Steve Rogers can no longer hurl his mighty shield, then he’ll hand it to one who can carry it across the battlefield, above the clouds, to greater heights than ever before. This fall, Sam Wilson flies where eagles dare, as the intrepid Falcon assumes his new role as Captain America."
The All-New Captain America will be written by by Rick Remender and Stuart Immonen, and will according to Marvel, it will be the culmination of the two years of storytelling that took place in the already existing Captain America monthly series. Marvel promises that the new run of the character will be exciting and explosive, taking a look at Steve Rogers’ evolution as a character while also working around the constantly shifting elements in comic books
"I’ve been having a lot of fun writing Sam. It’s a completely different attitude. The fact that he’s not a soldier shifts things up a bit. Sam’s not going to be Steve. Steve can be very rigid. That can be kind of joyless at times, whereas Sam is absolutely not that."
Editor Tom Brevoort also added his inputs on this massive change in the Marvel Universe, "While Sam shares many of Steve’s beliefs in a general sense, he’s also a very different person with a very different background," adds Brevoort, "He didn’t grow up in the 1930s, he’s a modern day man in touch with the problems of the 21st Century. For most of his professional life, Sam has worked as a social worker, so he’s seen the worst of urban society up close, and how crime, poverty, lack of social structure and opportunity can affect the community. So he’s got perhaps a greater focus on the plight of the common man, and perhaps a greater empathy for the underprivileged than maybe even Steve himself. He’s also not a military man, so he’s more apt to be instinctively skeptical of any situation that calls for just following orders. Sam, like Steve, will be led by his personal morality and beliefs as to what is right and what is wrong—and where his beliefs may differ in their shading from those of the previous Cap are where the interesting stories will be found."
- But Who Is Sam Wilson? -
Most people are more familiar with the high flying Falcon because he was a major part of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Anthony Mackie did a great job of capturing the essence of the character, but comic book fans would realise that the American hero is much more than just Steve Roger's buddy.
Samuel Wilson was introduced in Captain America #117, in September 1969. He was created by the man behind Marvel Comics Stan Lee and the illustrations and artwork was done by Gene Colan. It is interesting to note that Wilson holds the title of the first African-American superhero in mainstream comics. The origins of the hero have been retconned through the years, from social worker, to army man, to reformed street thug; one thing has always held true though. Cap and the Falcon are one of the best teams in Marvel Comics. Since 2012's relaunch Marvel NOW, Falcon has joined the Avengers, working closely with not only Captain America, but also Luke Cage, Spider-Man, the Hulk, Iron Man, Black Widow, Hawkeye and SHIELD.
"Historically, Falcon would often act as air support, flying Steve into the battle. Why not merge the two? He pops the wings, and as he flies, he keeps the shield latched onto his back. He dives down onto the scene, hurls the shield, wings retract, and rolls into a kick or jump, catches the shield on the way back. He doesn’t have the super soldier serum, but he has the added zing-zang-zoom of flight."
While Sam Wilson wields the shield, Ian who is Steve Rogers’ adopted ward from Dimension Z and the artificial son of Arnim Zola, takes up the storied mantle of Nomad. And although, Steve himself, will be physically aged, he will still be the sharp tactical mind that he's always been.
"Steve’s spirit is as willing as ever," explains Brevoort, "But his body is no longer up to the task of being Captain America. So he’ll instead employ his skills as the new Cap’s remote strategic advisor, running missions from his headquarters in Avengers Mansion and providing Sam with technical support and field information from a distance. He’ll also tutor Sam in how to throw the shield, a skill that’s deceptively difficult for the new Cap to master. So Steve will continue to be a vital part of the series moving ahead. And Steve is completely supportive of Sam as his hand-picked successor—the only replacement Captain America ever to be chosen by Steve himself. Steve and Sam are effectively brothers-in-arms, and there’s a level of trust and camaraderie between them that’s matched only by that of soldiers who’ve fought shoulder-to-shoulder in foxholes on the battlefield."
It's worth mentioning that how the rest of the Marvel Universe will react with the change will be interesting. As Falcon is a veteran hero, and a long time Avenger, and has more than proven his worth as a hero. With two of the Marvel's trinity being retooled, and several of the other Marvel characters taking up major roles, Marvel's new changes are quite the gamble.