The Death of Captain America and the Fall of Freedom

By Mark Hebert

There is major turning point that can exist within the culture of a country. That point is when the majority of the populace decides it is time for change. The ideals of the old become the principles of the past because in some way they are no longer valid to the majority. This, like in life, is reflected in the Marvel Universe. Civil War is a comic book reflection of the issues faced within western culture and even more so within the United States itself. Captain America is used strongly to represent the America that once was, “The land of the free and the home of the brave.” In contrast to Captain America, we have Iron-Man, the symbol of a more modern culture. The mood of the Marvel Universe that was prelude to Civil War, show that the world is changing. Civil liberties then, much like the real world, are being threatened because of fear. Can America maintain the freedoms their peoples enjoy without having to change to deal with a growing sense of fear? Fear of terrorists, even fear of the heroes dedicated to protect those civil liberties the peoples so enjoyed.

The idea of a government policy the activities of super or meta humans has been around for some time. Stories like Alan Moore’s Watchmen has the Keane Act, an act that brings anti-vigilante law into effect that closes down shop on all masked heroes. Other stories also reside in within the Marvel Universe itself with the idea of the Mutant Registration Act. This Act was used many times in the stories of the x-men and other mutant based comic books in which there was law that made the mutants come forward and register their real names and powers to the government. Most often in comic worlds the hero comes and saves the day and leaves with a big smile on his/her face with a big mess behind. But sometimes for the sake of the story, heroes most often do have to deal with their actions. In the eighties, Marvel comics created a satirical construction company called “Damage Control” to deal with the property damage cause by super heroes and super villains (Marvel). This is an example at accountability for super heroes in the Marvel Universe. Marvel Comics Civil War has taken the idea of policing the heroes to a completely new level by applying it to their whole continuity of books, thus changing the very landscape of their stories and personalities.

Captain America, who openly rejects the Act, and thusly rejects the will of the government, is forced to flee underground. In telling spider-Man why he has chosen his, he quotes Mark Twain:

“If you alone of all the nations shall decide one way, and that way is the right way according to your convictions of the right, you have done your duty by yourself and by your county—hold up your head. You have nothing to be ashamed of” (Amazing Spider-Man 537 16-4).

This feeling gives sense as to why Cap sticks to his guns on this matter, but the reason he opposes the Act is his refusal to allow the government to control the actions of super-heroes. By this explanation, he is a vigilante. A vigilante by definition is “a member of a volunteer committee organized to suppress and punish crime summarily (as when the processes of law are viewed as inadequate); broadly: a self-appointed doer of justice” (Webster’s). When asked to obey the will of the people he responds, “Superheroes need to stay above that stuff or Washington starts telling us who the super-villains are” (Civil War no.1 30-4). Captain America does not trust the government. Cap does not represent the American Government but instead represents the America Ideal, largely associated with its founding fathers and not so much with the current ideology of America. This ideal is largely associated with the freedom Americans had in the forties and fifties.

The pro-registration side is led by Iron-Man, a technologist and a futurist. Iron-Man, although initially does not support the Act, sees the Act as unavoidable. “Registration was inevitable. It had to happen sooner or later. I’m just trying to keep it from getting out of hand” (Iron-Man 13). He sees the massacre in Stamford as a tipping scale in which the super heroes lost trust with the public. In the initial confrontation with Captain America, he pleads his case: “The public doesn’t want masks and secret identities. They want to feel safe when we are around. And there is no other way to win back their respect (Civil War No.3 18-5).”

When you analyze the reasons behind the Act you must decide, as I have, which side are you on? As a reader and a fan of comics, I quickly came to the decision to be on Captain America’s side. This side seemed so much more heroic and right, in the face of an oppressive government. How could Captain America be wrong? I mean he’s Captain America! He is fighting against the oppressive government that is using fear to strengthen their grip and control over the country. I mean this is what true heroism is, right? People love to root for the underdog, and the writers of the stories definitely wrote to this advantage, often painting the idea of the Act in a bad light. The portrayal of Iron-Man especially seems to have been designed to be the stereotypical “Bad Guy”.

But I, like most people, was looking at the situation through the lenses of fantasy, not reality. If we were to shift our view and imagine ourselves in a world where people can fly and in some cases have the ability to explode their bodies, wouldn’t we be afraid? Sure, we have super heroes but that also means we have super villains, ones that want to take over the world, and in not nice ways either. Accountability and training is what would most be ideal in this world. Iron-Man sums it up best when She Hulk questions the Act and if they will still be super heroes after its implementation. He says, “No, we’re super heroes, Jennifer. We tackle super crime and we save people’s lives. The only thing changing is that the kids, the amateurs, and the sociopaths are getting weeded out (Civil War No.2 6-2).”

Captain America’s Whole argument is eloquently summed up as when in disagreement with the government one should stick to our guns. And in this, we can understand why he does what he does. Iron-Man talks about inevitability and the future. People who can put aside the sentimental attachments to Cap’s ideal can see that Iron-Man knows that the Act could fail. This is one of the primary reasons that he puts himself behind it, so that it can be implemented in the right way. When you compare the two arguments, you see a contrast of old understandings (Captain America) and new ones (Iron-Man). In this war, as in most wars, the new wins.

Ultimately, we see Captain America lose the war, and on his way to trial for treason, assassinated. This is metaphorically the death of “freedom” as we once knew. With the death of Captain America and the rise of the Superhero Registration Act, the Marvel Universe is, in a way, acknowledging the fact it is also shifting into a modern reflection of the real world. The freedoms that were once enjoyed are now gone. No more do we easily fly into the States and out. People are mostly looked upon with suspicions and doubt, guilty before innocent. Perhaps the world does not need the freedom it once had. Freedom lost for security gained. Captain America represented those freedoms, and with him now dead, the entire landscape of the Marvel Universe seems to be just a little bit more real. But of course, there is a saying in comic books, “no one stays dead.” Therefore, we can assume that one-day freedom will reign again in comics, and hopefully, in the real world as well.