4-F Forever?
Envious of his friend Bucky Barnes’ military enlistment, and undeterred by his own multiple rejections by the U.S. Army, physical weakling Steve Rogers made one more attempt to join the march of men to fight for their country in the dark days of World War II. Rogers’ valiant wish to fight bullies wherever they were grabbed the attention of scientist Dr. Abraham Erskine, and he handpicked the idealistic young man for the Army’s Super-Soldier program under his supervision.
Though Rogers learned of Erskine’s disastrous previous attempts to realize a super-soldier, Germany’s so-called “Red Skull,” he braved the process and emerged from it a new man. With a powerful body and heightened speed and reflexes, Rogers faced his first challenge when forced to chase down Dr. Erskine’s assassin immediately following the experiment. In doing so, he also learned of the involvement of Hydra, the Nazi science division, in the doctor’s murder.
The Army moved swiftly to create a colorful, star-spangled persona for Steve Rogers they called “Captain America,” and put him on a tour to sell war bonds. Chafing at what he felt was inaction, Rogers jumped at the chance to join the real fighting when he received news of the capture of his friend Barnes’ army division and rushed to rescue the soldiers. Upon the successful completion of the unplanned mission—and a brief meeting with the Red Skull himself—Rogers determined his path as a one-man fighting force.
The Right Tools
As Captain America, Steve Rogers carries a nearly indestructible shield fashioned from the rare Wakandan metal known as vibranium. Designed and crafted by genius inventor Howard Stark during World War II, the shield is a perfectly balanced instrument capable of withstanding intense stress and damage, yet also able to be thrown as an offensive weapon that rebounds back to its owner. Rogers maintains the shield as an almost constant companion after it was recovered from the wreckage of the Red Skull’s airplane, as its become a symbol of strength to all those who recognize Captain America as the country’s defender.
Rogers is also well-versed in the use of firearms, though he rarely carries or uses them in modern times. His famous Captain America suit and helmet have been updated more than once since the 1940s, and offers him some protection against the elements and enemies alike.
Axis of Evil
Steve Rogers’ first real enemy took the form of Johann Schmidt, a German scientist and wartime leader of the Nazi science division, Hydra. Schmidt became known as the Red Skull after a failed attempt to augment himself using Dr. Erskine’s super-soldier serum devolved his features into a crimson, skull-like countenance. His obsession with power led him to gain possession of the Tesseract, an otherworldly power source of unparalleled energy, and split off of Hydra from Hitler’s forces. The Red Skull met his match, though, in Captain America. The hero dogged the villain throughout the war until Schmidt’s apparent demise in his own aircraft high above the North Atlantic.
Arnim Zola, a scientist under the Red Skull’s command, managed to survive the war by supposedly allying himself with the allies and the newly created S.H.I.E.L.D.; but in reality, he kept the dream of Hydra alive all the while. When his own death approached, Zola transferred his consciousness into a S.H.I.E.L.D. computer to continue to be a thorn in Captain America’s side in the present.
Other modern-day menaces for Steve Rogers include Asgardian god of mischief Loki, mercenary and martial artist Georges Batroc, and weapons dealer Brock Rumlow, AKA Crossbones.
Captain America has also come face to face with the fearsome threat of Thanos, doing all he can to stop the Titan in his quest to end half the life in the universe.
Lasting Friendships
Steve Rogers’ forthright attitude and positive disposition has attracted a select group of people into his inner circle of friends. His longest companion is James Buchanan “Bucky” Barnes, who Rogers met in his Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood in New York and formed a close friendship with. Despite Barnes’ enlistment in the Army and Rogers’ career as Captain America during the war, the two found each other and united to form a solid battlefront against the Axis. When Barnes seemingly fell to his death, Steve Rogers felt as if a brother had been taken from him.
Though his time with Peggy Carter was comparatively short to his friendship with Bucky Barnes, Rogers’ feelings toward the capable young woman had begun to blossom into romance before his crash into the Atlantic. The two reunited in the present day, but Carter’s advanced age and her weakening health prevented them from continuing what they’d begun during the war. Regardless, Rogers maintained his connection with the woman until her death from natural causes and looks forward to what the future may bring with his relationship to Sharon Carter, Peggy’s great-niece and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Agent 13.
Through their partnership in the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D., Steve Rogers and Natasha Romanoff have formed a friendship, something the infamous Black Widow does not offer lightly. Despite moments of Rogers’ distrust of Romanoff’s decisions and her prodding of him to fully embrace the modern world, an underlying understanding exists between the two heroes.
Captain America has also formed a bond with Sam Wilson, known as the Falcon, who has shown intense loyalty to Rogers. His relationship with Iron Man Tony Stark remains a difficult one to categorize, given the rift the two have had.