Iconic tragedy

As some of you might know, I'm a fan of the classic (perhaps VERY classic) Marvel superhero Captain America. Now, say what you want about him and cast all the derision you care to as it will not change my mind. Cap has undergone some serious changes since his first appearance in March of 1941 . . . if you really care for the research low-down, Wikipedia has a fantastic article here.

So, being one of the true founding members / characters of the now massive Marvel enterprise (the folks who have brought you Spiderman, The Fantastic Four, The X Men, Daredevil and so on) you would expect Steve Rogers / alias Captain America to receive some credit and accolades for his 66 years of hard work.

Yet I found out some of the saddest and cruelest news today: Captain America was brought down by two assassin bullets in issue #25. This news is big enough to garner CNN coverage, USA Today and even Howard Stern. I, like many others, cry out "WHY HAS THIS BEEN DONE?!"

I guess if Cap had to go out some way it's best he go out defending people's rights. Yet, he was shot down on the steps of a federal court house . . . not once, but twice.

This is a heavy blow to me because this is one of my childhood heroes . . . imagine Optimus Prime killing off the Voltron team (the original guys in the lions, not that car crap) only to be cut to bits by the Thundercats who are later obliterated by He-Man and his crew who . . . well, you get the picture. Needless to say I am not happy and do not like it one bit.

For those of you who are interested, here's a picture of Cap fallen on the court house steps:



Now, through some clever researching and following up (seeing as I no longer collect the comics and graphic novels, the last one I purchased being back in 1994 or 1995 if not earlier) I was able to dig some things up regarding this "death":
-the comic never shows Cap dead in any frame, only mortally wounded
-another superhero, Ms. Marvel, states that Cap is not dead but "...tucked away safe on the Raft... They're trying to save his life even as we speak". (Wikipedia article on Captain America)

So, is this a clever ruse to pick up sales? If so, I still disapprove. One of the most legendary heroes of the Marvel universe being brought down like some celebrity rapper from a drive-by. It makes him look like a chump if you ask me. Other heroes, when they've died, have had magnificent opus-claiming death scenes (like Superman). Not Cap. No, he gets shot like a simple victim of violent crime.

All stop here before I get too worked up to make a coherent sentence. For those of you interested, here is another link I use to stay abreast of Cap news:
"Captain America-The Web Page"

Long live Cap . . . wherever he is . . .