Steven Rogers (Earth-616)

From Marvel Database

Captain America

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Real Name

Steven Grant Rogers

Current Alias

Captain America

Aliases

Steve Rogers, Cap, "Winghead", "Shieldslinger", The Sentinel of Liberty, Star-Spangled Avenger, Nomad, The Captain, Steven Grant Rogers, Roger Stevens, Yeoman America, Crossbones, Expatriate, Brett Hendrick, Stevie

Identity

Public

Alignment

Good

Affiliation

The Avengers, Secret Avengers, New Avengers, formerly The Invaders, Secret Defenders the Captain's Unnamed Superhero Team, The Redeemers; formerly partner of Bucky, Rick Jones, Falcon, Demolition-Man and Nomad (Jack Monroe)

Relatives

Joseph Rogers, Sarah Rogers, (parents, deceased), unnamed grandfather (presumed deceased), Steven Rogers (1st Captain America of late 1700's, ancestor, deceased)

Universe

Earth-616

Base Of Operations

Avengers Tower, formerly Avengers Mansion, Hydrobase

Characteristics

Gender

Male

Height

6' 2"

Weight

240 lbs (109 kg)

Eyes

Blue

Hair

Blonde

Status

Citizenship

American

Marital Status

Single

Occupation

Adventurer, formerly WPA artist, soldier, police officer, history teacher, freelance illustrator, special SHIELD operative

Origin

Origin

As a serviceman, Steve volunteered to be the subject of and was the first success of an experimental Super-Soldier Serum developed by the US Army—Captain America

Place of Birth

New York, New York

Place of Death

New York, New York(See note under "Out with the old in with the new" article)

Creators

Joe Simon, Jack Kirby

First appearance

Last appearance

(WWII)Captain America Comics #1 (1941), (Modern) Avengers v1 #4 (1964)

Captain America v5 #25

History

Becoming America's Super-Soldier

Steve Rogers was born July 4, 1922, to poor Irish immigrant parents,Sarah and Joseph Rogers, and grew up a frail youth during the Great Depression. His father died when he was a child, and his mother died later when he was in his late teens. Horrified by newsreel footage of the Nazis in Europe, Rogers was inspired to enlist in the Army. However, because of his frailty and sickness, he was rejected. Overhearing the boy's earnest plea to be accepted, General Chester Phillips of the US Army offered Rogers the opportunity to take part in a top-secret experiment called Operation Rebirth, as the military was trying to create an army of super men to use in WWII. Rogers agreed and was taken to a secret laboratory in Washington, DC, where he was introduced to Doctor Abraham Erskine (code named Professor Joseph Reinstein), the creator of the Super-Soldier Serum.
(The Super-Surem only awakens latent power of the patient. The test done beforehand are to see how much inner power the patient has and if it's worth it to bring it out. No matter how much latent power the patient has, the chance of survival is 1 in 4.)

After weeks of tests, Rogers was at last administered the Super-Soldier Serum. Given part of the compound intravenously and another part orally, Rogers was then bombarded by vita-rays, a special combination of exotic (in 1941) wavelengths of radiation designed to accelerate and stabilize the serum's effect on his body. Steve Rogers emerged from the vita-ray chamber with a body as perfect as a body can be and still be human. A Nazi spy who observed the experiment murdered Erskine mere minutes after its conclusion. Erskine died without fully committing the Super-Soldier formula to paper, leaving Steve Rogers the sole beneficiary of his genius.

Captain America - Transformation

Rogers was then put through an intensive physical and tactical training program, teaching him gymnastics, hand-to-hand combat, and military strategy. Three months later, he was given his first assignment, to stop the Nazi agent called the Red Skull. To help him become a symbolic counterpart to the Red Skull, Rogers was given the red, white, and blue costume of Captain America.^[1] He was given the cover identity of a clumsy infantry private at Camp Lehigh.

Rogers was originally issued a traditionally-shaped "kite" shield made of mundane steel, as well as a sidearm. His mask was separate from the rest of his costume, and in one early outing it was nearly knocked from his face, revealing his identity. Adding a hood to his costume solved this problem and afforded Rogers more protection in this previously exposed area. President Roosevelt presented him with his now-legendary disc-shaped shield. Discovering that its excellent aerodynamic properties made it an effective offensive weapon, Rogers abandoned his sidearm.

Cap as wartime inspiration

World War II Service

Main article: World War II

During the war, "Cap" served as both a symbol of freedom and America's most effective special operative. In addition to working with his young sidekick Bucky, he sometimes fought alongside other Allied heroes such as Namor the Sub-Mariner and the android Human Torch, and sometimes as part of a superteam known as the Invaders. He sometimes came into contact with a Canadian paratrooper named Jim Howlett, the man who would come to be known as Wolverine.

As part of the war effort, the US government commissioned a documentary about Captain America. Rogers (secretly) played himself, after the stunt man was shot by a Nazi spy posing as the prop master. In the serial, Cap used conventional firearms rather than his shield, and the Super-Soldier Serum and Bucky were omitted. His identity was given as Grant Gardner, a distrct attorney.

Unstintingly, Rogers faced fascist Germans and imperialist Japanese. Among his foes and adventures: battles with the John Maxon imposter Red Skull, the White Death, the Legion of Unholy Beggars, the Dragon of Death, the Reaper, the Black Toad, the Black Talon, the Mikado, Stryker, Doctor Crime, Mock Mikado, Master Man and the Super-Axis, Togaro, Prophet of Hate, Agent Axis, the Shark, the Hyena, N2 and Mister Sinister, Togu, Doctor Destiny, Snapper, Jack The Ripper and Terdu, Dormammu, HYDRA, the Hand, the Grandmaster, the Ringmaster, Baron Zemo, Colonel Von Wagner, Fang (who later died in Hiroshima and thus became one with the Everwraith), and the Butterfly; preventing the murder of President Roosevelt by a group called the Defenders, the Battle of the Bulge, D-Day, stopping saboteurs (early March 1941), meeting Wakandans, saving President Roosevelt from a deranged Namor, meeting Nikola Tesla, saving a Manhattan Project scientist from Red Skull with the help of the Howling Commandos, stopping (with Howling Commando support) the Red Skull's plot to deploy a centuries-old automaton designed by a time-travelling Doctor Doom, facing the Red Skull in a hover device, scuffling with fellow Allies the Crusaders, fighting alongside the French Resistance and Peggy Carter, almost accidentally slaying a war orphan, saving Michael Kramer from the Red Skull. In April 1945 he stormed the Red Skull's bunker with Red Guardian, Patriot, and Spirit of '76, in his last WWII battle with Red Skull. For a time, Bucky fought alongside a time-displaced modern-era Captain America until the Avengers recovered their colleague.

"Once more into the breach..."

Suspended Animation

Then, during the final days of the war, on or before April 18, 1945, ^[2] he was trying to stop a bomb-loaded drone-plane launched by Baron Heinrich Zemo when the plane exploded, apparently killing his partner Bucky and throwing Rogers unhurt into icy Arctic waters. The Super-Soldier Formula prevented crystallization of Captain America's bodily fluid, allowing him to enter a state of suspended animation.

Postwar Successors

While Cap and Bucky were seemingly killed, the war still raged on. Not wanting morale to suffer, President Truman asked William Naslund (the Spirit of '76) and a boy named Fred Davis to secretly replace and impersonate the two, respectively. Though Davis was several years younger than Barnes had been, nobody seemed to notice the difference in the last days of the war. With the Invaders, the two finished the fight against the Nazis and then against the Japanese. After the war they were part of the All-Winners Squad.

Naslund was killed in 1946 while protecting a young man running for Senate, John F. Kennedy. An android called Adam II and his robots intended to kill Kennedy and take his place, and Naslund held them off long enough to summon the rest of the All-Winners. The adventurer Patriot (Jeffrey Mace) (who had saved Rogers once during WWII) found Naslund as he died, and was the next man to take on the Captain America identity. Mace adventured for a time with the All-Winners, Davis, and Golden Girl before marrying her and retiring in 1950. Years later he died of cancer, with Rogers at his side.

The Grand Director (who had his name legally changed to "Steve Rogers") and Jack Monroe were the next "Captain America" and "Bucky." "Rogers" suggested to the US government that the military needed a Captain America for the Korean War. Using a version of the Super-Soldier Formula on themselves in 1953, they were unaware of the entire process, and without the essential vita-ray treatment, the serum had significant mental side effects. By the time they were ready for action, the Korean War was winding down, and the two, by mid-1954, were irrationally attacking anyone they perceived to be Communists. They were placed in suspended animation by the FBI, and would have later encounters with the man they modeled themselves upon.

Modern Age

Early Modern Career

Decades later, Rogers's wartime comrade the Sub-Mariner stumbled across Rogers's still-frozen form, which was being worshipped by a far-flung Inuit tribe. Enraged, the Sub-Mariner threw the ice block into the ocean. While opposing Namor, the newly-formed Avengers happened upon Rogers's thawing body. They soon revived the legendary hero. Needing to adjust to the world he found himself in, Rogers joined their ranks as the first recruit since their formation, and was given retroactive "founding member" status in place of the Hulk. Despite his lack of superhuman abilities, his extensive training and combat experience, combined with his impressive physique, confidence, and will, made him an excellent addition to the team. As a born leader, Rogers would come to be seen as the heart and soul of the team, and his commands while in the field were often looked to, regardless of who might have been chairman at the time. Rogers would teach teamwork, tactics, and hand-to-hand combat to many later Avengers.

Captain America joins the Avengers

Seeing that Avengers associate Rick Jones bore a resemblance to Bucky, Cap took him into tutelage, trying to recover from the great trauma of losing his wartime partner. After a time, Jones even convinced Rogers to let him wear Bucky's old costume and initiate a partnership. The early adventures Cap had with Earth's Mightiest Heroes included a run-in with his wartime foe Baron Heinrich Zemo. Zemo organized the first incarnation of the Masters of Evil, a group of supervillains who each bore a grudge against a particular Avenger. After several skirmishes between the two groups, Zemo kidnapped Rick Jones. Zemo was accidentally killed in a rockslide caused by his own weaponry as he battled Cap.

Following a battle with Kang the Conqueror, the remaining founding Avengers (Iron Man, Thor, Giant-Man and The Wasp) decided to take a leave of absence from the stress of super-crimefighting. Captain America was thus left to lead a new team comprised of Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. "Cap's Kooky Quartet" was at first regarded as less able than the previous lineup, but soon proved their worth by overcoming several threats including a resurgent Kang as well as Doctor Doom. While the hot-headed Quicksilver and Hawkeye were at first headstrong loose cannons, Rogers' leadership was able to mold them into valuable team members.

When Cap took his first leave of absence from the team, it was the Black Panther who stepped in to take his place on the roster. When Cap discovered that one of T'Challa's motives was to "spy" on the Avengers (part of his actions as King of Wakanda to observe foreigners), relations between the two were strained for some time. Eventually they restored the bonds of alliance and friendship.

Meanwhile, Cap's old nemesis the Red Skull was brought out of suspended animation by the subversive organization THEM. The Skull feigned cooperation with THEM (actually the ruling council of HYDRA led by Baron Wolfgang von Strucker) long enough to steal the Cosmic Cube from subsidiary organization AIM. This led to the first postwar clash between the two great symbols of World War II. Later the Skull, wielding the Cosmic Cube, impersonated Rogers and drove Rick Jones away.

Rogers often crossed paths with another World War II veteran as well, this one an ally: Sergeant Fury of the Howling Commandos was now Colonel Fury, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. Captain America teamed with Fury many times after emerging from suspended animation. Rogers and Fury's relationship has warmed and cooled over the years, depending on various circumstances, but they often work together and towards the same ends, and the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. maintained a close working relationship, even sharing a common computer database. Rogers worked with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Agent 13, Sharon Carter, a sister to Peggy Carter (an American who had joined the French Resistance in WWII, and who had fallen in love with Captain America) with whom he would come to share a romantic relationship.

Another plot by the Skull involved attacking Rogers with a Cosmic Cube-empowed man named Sam Wilson. Rogers was able to break Wilson out of control by the Skull, and the two teamed together to defeat Cap's archenemy. Wilson became the costumed adventurer called The Falcon, and the two shared a partnership for a long time. One of their many battles together pitted them against the Grand Director and Jack Monroe, the "Captain America" and "Bucky" of the 1950s. Rogers is shaken at the fact that he could have shared the Director's fate.

Changing Identities and Avengers Troubles

In reaction to the Marvel Universe's version of the Watergate Scandal, Rogers abandons his Captain America identity and takes up the alias "Nomad." Several men try in vain to assume the "Captain America" title in the meantime. Considering that he could be a symbol of American ideals rather than the government, Rogers re-assumed his classic name. A rehabilitated Jack Monroe joined Cap in a partnership, himself assuming the Nomad costume. Following a battle with Viper, Rogers' Super-Soldier Serum reacted with the venom in her whip, temporarily granting him superhuman strength.

Captain America becomes Nomad

Captain America's sterling leadership abilities were showcased when he became leader of the heroes who were summoned to Battleworld during the so-called Secret Wars by the godlike Beyonder. Clashing with Doctor Doom's forces repeatedly, Cap was faced with leadership challenges ranging from dealing with the outcast X-Men, keeping the Hulk from attacking Doom's forces by himself after She-Hulk's defeat and The Wasp's apparent death, and keeping morale up in the face of battling Galactus. Rogers' leadership qualities would be deferred to time and time again during large gatherings of heroes, such as when Adam Warlock sent a band of heroes to oppose the Infinity Gauntlet-wielding Thanos, and also when he assumed joint command of the Avengers and the Justice League of America.

When Avengers Mansion was attacked and conquered by the Masters of Evil under the leadership of Baron Helmut Zemo, Captain America was specifically targeted by Zemo to avenge his father's death. Rogers was captured during an attempt to retake the mansion, and was forced to watch as Mister Hyde tortured helpless butler Edwin Jarvis. The Masters proceeded to destroy a treasure trove of Rogers' memorabilia, including a picture with Bucky taken just before he was killed, Rogers' only picture of his mother, a baseball signed by Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, and Cap's original triangular shield. In the final battle, Cap defeated The Wrecker with the aid of The Wasp, and defeated Baron Zemo in a rooftop duel. As Zemo fell, Cap tried to grab his hand, and though he did survive the fall, refused such charity.

Captain America continued to come into conflict with many foes, including the extreme anti-nationalist Flag-Smasher and the vigilante called The Scourge of the Underworld. Rogers was informed by the Commission on Superhuman Activities that he had never been officially discharged from the U.S. Army. For this, he recieved a large back-pay, dating to the end of World War II, which he used to establish a nation-wide hotline service to help him keep abreast of criminal activities. However, the Commission demanded that Rogers, as an "active" member of the armed forces, resume service as a government-directed operative. Rogers again resigned the Captain America identity, even surrendering his legendary shield to the new Captain America, John Walker, who had previously clashed with Rogers as the "Super-Patriot." During this time, Rogers used an adamantium shield and, adopting a new costume, continued adventuring as "The Captain."

Not long afterwards, the Avengers' East Coast branch was temporarily disbanded due to a lack of active members. As The Captain, Rogers led a new lineup of the Avengers consisting of Thor, Gilgamesh and temporary recruits Mister Fantastic and Invisible Woman of the Fantastic Four. Richards himself was accustomed to leading, however, and there were some conflicts of leadership between the two.

The Captain also led an unnamed, unofficial team during the same period that accompanied him on several missions. Along with The Falcon and Nomad, the group at times included Demolition-Man, who had assisted Rogers against Power Broker, Inc., and Vagabond, a tagalong of Nomad's.

It would later be discovered that Red Skull was manipulating the Commission. The Captain and Nomad clashed with "Captain America" and his "Bucky", and then Rogers and Walker confronted the Skull. Following these events and deeds that Walker had done while Captain America, Walker was stripped of the role and it, along with the shield, was returned to Steve Rogers.

Continued Career

At one point, Cap avoided the explosion of a meth lab only to have the chemical effects of the blast react dangerously with his Super-Soldier Serum. To remove the problem, he removed the serum, and must train constantly to keep in peak condition. He discovered that the serum was not a drug per se, which would have metabolized out of his system, but in fact a virus that effected a biochemical and genetic change. This additionally explained how archnemesis Red Skull, who at the time inhabited a body cloned from Rogers's cells, also had the formula in his body. Because of his altered biochemistry, Rogers' body began to deteriorate, and for a time he wore a powered exoskeleton designed by Iron Man and Hank Pym, but was eventually placed again in suspended animation. During this time, he was given a transfusion of blood from the Red Skull, which cured his condition and stabilized the Super-Soldier virus in his system. Captain America returned both to crimefighting and the Avengers.

Captain America was reunited with his WWII-era flame, the now-aged American Maquis fighter Peggy Carter. Freeing her and others from the grip of the criminal Doctor Faustus, Rogers had her hired on as communications expert at Avengers Mansion as part of the expanded domestic staff called the Avengers Ground Crew. Their romantic feelings diminished, but the two remained good friends. Another person taken on by Steve during this time was John Jameson, who acted as his pilot.

When the Avengers learned of the Kree-Shi'ar War and the danger the war efforts posed to Earth's sun, they proposed to send diplomatic envoys to each superpower in an attempt to avert catastrophe known as Operation Galactic Storm. Captain America led the team bound for the Kree Empire. He had several conflicts of leadership with Iron Man, which culminated when the latter, against orders, led a team of Avengers to execute the Kree Supreme Intelligence for war crimes. His confidence in his leadership shaken, Cap offered to resign as chief executive and commanding officer of the two Avengers branches, but this was not the route the other Avengers wanted to take. Cap's old friend Hawkeye helped reinforce Cap's leadership confidence, as did the rescue by USAgent (John Walker) and The Falcon of Demolition-Man from ULTIMATUM, Flag-Smasher's terrorist organization.

After returning to Earth, Cap rescued Diamondback (Rachel Leighton) from Red Skull's henchman Crossbones. Diamondback had previously, as a member of the Serpent Society, had a chance to kill Rogers in battle that she did not take. This was because she was smitten with him; the two began an on-and-off semi-romantic partnership afterwards.

Cap was part of the force raised to battle the psychic entity called Onslaught, and was one of the Avengers who seemingly gave their lives to absorb Onslaught's energy. In reality, they (the senior Avengers and the Fantastic Four) had been shunted to an alternate dimension created by Franklin Richards. After several months in this world, the heroes realized it was a construct and escaped.

During a rebuilding period with the Avengers, Captain America and the rest of the team (past and present) were duped by Morgan Le Fay into acting as her elite guard, the Queen's Vengeance. Rogers' alias in this alter-ego was "Yeoman America." He was the first Avenger to break out of Morgan's trance, and formed a resistance group that foiled the ancient sorceress' plans.

Captain America, both in his solo career and as an Avenger, went on to participate in a variety of other missions.

Out With the Old, In With the New

WARNING!THIS ARTICE ALONG WITH THE NEXT TWO ARE APART OF AN ALTERNATE FUTURE THAT DOESN'T EXIST!!

On a day that would become the darkest in Avengers history, the Scarlet Witch suffered a breakdown that, combined with her powers, had catastrophic consequences. Cap had recently had a strange encounter with Wanda, as well as the beginnings of romance, and was struck hard by the devastation of the team, which disbanded shortly thereafter.

Meanwhile, Captain America and the Falcon had had to deal with the Anti-Cap. Red Skull tried to capitalize on his enemy's misfortunes by using a Life-Model Decoy of Diamondback to lure him into a trap.

Cap moved into the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, revealed his identity to the world (although he lived in a SHIELD safe house), and resumed his off-and-on relationship with Sharon Carter.

Cap was among those heroes present at the Raft when Electro instigated a jailbreak. The next day, he spoke with Tony Stark, and convinced him to help form the New Avengers. Most of those present during the jailbreak were founding members of the team. The new SHIELD Director, Maria Hill, was opposed to their incorporation, but Rogers reminded her that he had Full Champion License—that is, he was authorized by SHIELD to assemble any team he deemed necessary for any mission he deemed necessary, and therefore did not need her permission. The New Avengers embarked on several missions under his leadership.

Winter Soldier and Civil War

Meanwhile, Cap had also been dealing with more personal matters. Having been made a special SHIELD operative, Rogers, Sharon Carter, and Nick Fury began an investigation into Aleksander Lukin and his powerful Kronas Corporation. After the apparent assassination of the Red Skull, Lukin was in possession of the Cosmic Cube, but he also had a more personal weapon: the Winter Soldier (a revived Bucky Barnes). A KGB assassin who had been occasionally let out of suspended animation to perform only the most difficult missions, the Winter Soldier encountered Sharon Carter, who believed that he was the real Bucky. Cap at first refused to believe it, but Fury presented him with solid evidence.

Winter Soldier killed Jack Monroe and caused major devastation in Philadelphia before Cap, the Falcon, and Agent Carter stormed a hidden underground base operated by Lukin. Cap and Winter Soldier dueled, and the latter showed no sign of memory. Cap used the Cosmic Cube to restore his memory; Bucky then used it himself to teleport to Camp Lehigh, where he began to cope with his past.

Months later, Cap and Sharon tracked Bucky to a small midwestern town that was actually controlled by AIM. Distracted by storming the AIM compound and battling Crossbones and Sin (Synthia Schmidt), they were unable to catch up with him.

When SHIELD suggested the Superhuman Registration Act, Special Agent Hill ordered Rogers and the Avengers to help enforce it. When he refused, Hill had her trained "Superhuman Response Unit" attack him. During the scuffle Rogers avoided being tranquilized and managed to escape by lodging his shield in an aircraft and forcing the pilot to fly him to safety. Soon after, at the Baxter Building, the Watcher told the heroes who had gathered there about Cap's escape. He would become the leader of the resistance to the act.

He adopted the alias "Brett Hendrick", a mall security guard, to avoid government detection. As the Civil War continued, Rogers became more and more extreme in his desire to win, including allowing The Punisher to join his "Secret Avengers," (though he did not condone the man's willingness to kill) and working (albeit reluctantly) with the Kingpin. Since his old friend Iron Man was leading the Pro-Registration Superhero Unit, the rivalry was especially bitter. The two attempted to meet twice during the conflict, but each time it devolved into combat. They even refused to attend the wedding of Black Panther and Storm together. Cap was nearly captured by Paladin but escaped with the aid of the Heroes for Hire. Rogers's old teammate the Vision disabled Iron Man's armor, evening the odds for Cap and allowing him to take down the unarmored Stark during the climactic battle in Times Square. Soon, however, a crowd of civilians approached in support of Stark. Realizing that his fight against the registration act was endangering the people that he was trying to protect, he took off his mask, leaving it on the ground as he surrendered to Iron Man. He then gave his followers the order to stand down. The Punisher was seen picking up Captain America's discarded mask after the battle.

Death of a Hero

The death of Captain America. Art by Steve Epting, from Captain America #25

Following his surrender, Steve Rogers was indicted on several criminal charges. Orchestrated by the resurgent Red Skull, the assassination involved Crossbones deployed as a sniper. He fired the first shot, hitting Captain America in the back as he entered the federal courthouse. In addition, Doctor Faustus, posing as a SHIELD psychiatrist, had manipulated Sharon Carter and implanted in her mind a hypnotic suggestion that she believed caused her to shoot Rogers, three times in the stomach and chest, in the chaos that ensued. Rogers was taken to a hospital, where he succumbed to his wounds. It was noted SHIELD had restrained Steve with strength dampeners, while he was in custody.

Captain America was given a state funeral, but the body in his memorial at Arlington was a fake. Immediately after his death, Rogers's body was taken to SHIELD HQ as the only perfect super-soldier specimen in the world. Standing before Rogers's frail and withered looking body, Tony Stark (new director of SHIELD) informed Sharon Carter that:

Our best guess ... is that the super-soldier serum reversed its effect when he died. It's unexpected though, so we're running comprehensive tests.^[3]

Tony Stark, accompanied by Hank Pym and Janet Van Dyne, returned Steve Rogers's real body to the Arctic where he was found all those years ago, frozen in ice. Namor attended the small private ceremony and swore that as long as he ruled the seas, no one would disturb Captain America's rest.^[4]

The reformed Winter Soldier and Wolverine swore to avenge his death.

Some time later, an attorney gave Stark a package containing a photo of Captain America and Bucky in World War II, and Steve Rogers's final requests: that Stark "save" Bucky, and that the mantle of Captain America should continue.

Recently Sharon Carter found a body looking just like Steve, but it has yet to be detrimened if it is part of the Red Skull's plan or actually cap.

Powers and Abilities

Powers

The Super-Soldier Serum metabolized and enhanced all of Rogers's bodily functions to the peak of human potential. Dr. Reinstein described this potential as being the next step in human evolution, while still remaining completely human.

Artificially Enhanced Physiology: Rogers in the mainstream Marvel Universe has no superhuman powers, although as a result of the Super-Soldier serum, he is transformed from a frail young man into a "perfect" specimen of human development and conditioning. Captain America is as intelligent, strong, fast, agile, and durable as it is possible for a human being to be without being considered superhuman.^[5]

• Peak Human Strength: Captain America's physical strength is enhanced to the very peak of human potential, allowing him to military press around 800 pounds. See "Strength" below.

• Peak Human Speed: Captain American can easily run at a speed of approximately 30 miles per hour, and has run a mile in little over a minute (almost 60 mph) when under duress.

• Peak Human Agility: Captain America's agility is superior to that of any Olympic athlete that has ever competed in any olympic game.

• Peak Human Stamina: Captain America's body eliminates the excessive build-up of fatigue-producing poisons in his muscles, granting him phenomenal endurance. He can exert himself at peak capacity for an hour without rest before showing any signs of fatigue.

• Peak Human Durability: Captain America's ability to resist or recover from injury and disease are superior to those of ordinary humans. This explains how he has survived the physical punishment during his career. ^[6]

• Peak Human Metabolism: Captain America's enhanced metabolism allows him to heal faster than normal when recovering from injury. Gunshot wounds and broken limbs heal within days, and lesser injuries can heal in just a few hours. This metabolism also renders him virtually immune to most poisons, including intoxication by consuming alcohol.

• Peak Human Mental Process: Captain America's mental performance has been greatly enhanced, allowing his mind to operate in the most efficient and rapid manner possible. One manifestation of this is his tactical genius; the ability to quickly process multiple information streams (e.g., threat assessment) and rapidly respond to changing tactical situations.

• Peak Human Reflexes: Captain America possesses reaction time superior to any Olympic athlete that has ever competed.

• Peak Human Perception: Captain America has exceptionally keen eyesight and hearing. ^[7] Captain America once stated that he is able to dodge bullets because he "sees faster than them"^[8]
  

Abilities

Master Martial Artist: Captain America has mastered the martial arts of American-style boxing, jujitsu, aikido, and judo, and has combined these disciplines with his exceptional acrobatic talents to create his own unique hand-to-hand style of combat. He has also shown skill in and knowledge of a number of other martial arts, even pressure point fighting. He engages in a daily regimen of rigorous exercise (including aerobics, weight lifting, gymnastics, and simulated combat) to keep himself in peak condition, and has often defeated opponents whose size, strength, or other powers greatly exceeded his own. Captain America is one of the finest human combatants Earth has ever known.

Master Shield Fighter: Captain America's years of training and experience with his unique shield, as well as its physical properties, allow him to accomplish mind-boggling feats with the item. Aside from bashing foes with it and blocking incoming attacks, Cap is able to throw the shield with nearly perfect aim. He is able to hit multiple targets with the same throw by means of ricochet, and can even achieve a boomerang-like return effect with it, allowing him to strike enemies from behind or retrieve the shield without objects to ricochet from.

Master Tactician: Captain America is an accomplished strategist. He is widely considered one of, if not the greatest tacticians on the planet both on and off the battlefield. He is able to formulate battle strategies and his brilliant tactical sense allows him to just as quickly alter any strategy of plan to fit the need of the situation change. When Scarlet Witch described Captain America as a leader she simply stated “You’re just the best there is.” During Secret Wars the scientific genius Reed Richards asserted," No one could have directed there group better then Captain America," as Ironman and the others agreed. This of course is coming from brilliant tacticians that are Tony Starks and Reed Richards, when they are commanding there own teams.

Multi-lingual: He's fluent in Russian, German, Japanese and possibly other languages. Operational equipment: He's a phenomenal pilot and is also versed in many if not all Military, Shield, or the Avengers equipment.

Strength level

Captain America is as physically strong as a human can potentially be in the Marvel Universe without being considered superhuman, and can lift over his head approximately 800 lbs as listed in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe. In the books of The Invaders or CA Vol 4 #17 it is noted that he is as strong as ten men.

Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #2 (1983). Captain America has been seen bench pressing 1,100 lbs. This is reasonable given that Marvel estimates strength level by amount of weight held over the head. A person can generally military press about 2/3 of the maximum weight they are capable of lifting on the bench press. In Captain America's case, this would make his maximum bench weight about 1,200 lbs. Thus, this is consistent with the 800lb strength rating listed above.

Notes

• Under duress: It would seem Cap can surpass what is normally considered Peak-human in his feats. Adrenaline and indomitable will have been cited for past feats.
• Formerly: Cap at one time was briefly endowed with true superhuman strength when his Super-Soldier Serum interacted with the poison of the Viper.
  

Weaknesses

None known.

Paraphernalia

Equipment:

• Uniform: Cap's fire-retardant costume incorporates kevlar body armor as well as a chain-mail shirt composed of light-weight "duralumin."
• Utility Belt: Cap has often worn a utility belt containing mission-specific equipment.
• Formerly Avengers Identicard. Also, Cap briefly wore an exoskeleton specially designed by Iron Man and Hank Pym while suffering a breakdown of the Super Soldier Serum.^[9]
  

Transportation: Captain America regularly used both a high-performance motorcycle and a van. As an Avenger he traveled via Quinjet or Sky-Cycle. Furthermore, he often traveled aboard SHIELD or military vehicles while on assignment.

Shield Action

• Captain America's Shield: is his primary, and usually only weapon. A concave disk about 2.5 feet in diameter, weighing 12 pounds, it is made of a unique Vibranium-Steel alloy that has never been duplicated.^[10] The Shield was cast by American metallurgist Dr. Myron MacLain, who was contracted by the U.S. government to create an impenetrable substance to use for tanks during World War II. During his experiments, MacLain combined Vibranium with a steel alloy he was working with and an unknown catalyst, creating the disc-shaped shield. MacLain was never able to duplicate the process due to his inability identify the still-unknown factor that played a role in it; however attempts to reverse engineer its composition resulted in the development of adamantium. The shield was issued to Captain America by the government several months after the beginning of his career.
  

The shield has great aerodynamic properties: it is able to slice through the air with minimal wind resistance and deflection of path. Its great overall resilience, combined with its natural concentric stiffness, enables it to rebound from objects with minimal loss of angular momentum. It is virtually indestructible: it is resistant to penetration, temperature extremes, and the entire electromagnetic spectrum of radiation. The only way it can be damaged in any way is by tampering with its molecular bonding.

Notes

• No special notes.
  

Trivia

• Steve Rogers has been shown to be worthy of carrying Mjolnir.
  
  

Appearances in Other Media

• Captain America Marvel Legends Series 1

Captain America series 1

When in 1941, a frail young patriot agreed to be a test case for an experimental "super-soldier" serum, he was transformed into Captain America - the living symbol of freedom. His body is now physically perfect, his courage unmatched and his fighting skills can not be equaled. Cap joined WWII and helped the allies win the war. After spending the decades following the war in suspended animation, he was revived by the Mighty Avengers , a super hero group this charismatic born leader would eventually command. -Description from Marvel Legends packaging

See Also

• Appearances of Steven Rogers (Earth-616) (Chronological)
• Appearances of Steven Rogers (Earth-616) (Unordered)
• Character Gallery: Steven Rogers (Earth-616)
• Fan-Art Gallery: Steven Rogers (Earth-616)
• Quotations by Steven Rogers (Earth-616)
• Images that include Steven Rogers (Earth-616)

Discover and Discuss

• Search News for: Captain America · Steven Grant Rogers · Steven Rogers (Earth-616)
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Links and References

• Marvel Directory
• Last Man Standing: Unca Cheeks' article on Captain America
• Toybiz archive
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