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Steve Rodgers is on a mission from the embodiment of life itself, Lyra, to find “Change Agents”, mutants that can effect the outcome of the battle between Life and Death. His first stop on this global tour is Chile, where nothing is as it seems, and everything and everyone is suspicious. Can Captain America find this special mutant before Death does?
- Written by J. Michael Straczynski
- Illustrated by Jesus Saiz
- Colors by Matt Hollingsworth
- Letters by Joe Caramagna
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Captain America and The Funky Bunch?
Let’s be real about this run of Captain America, it’s been out of the box…and I’m here for it. Cap has been battling supernatural forces, right up to the living embodiments of Life and Death themselves. After a perilous fight against Death is the previous issue, Cap has officially been made a protector of Lyra’s Front Door Cabaret. Lyra is the embodiment of Life and The Front Door Cabaret is magical safe house, protecting mutants that Lyra deems “agents of change”. These are persons that have a real effect on the fate of the world and wether or not it is all consumed by Death.
Weird for Captain America, right?! Funny enough though, Steve thrives in this world. He sticks out like a sore thumb, obviously, but it’s his desire to help those in need, and defend the defenseless that draws him here. It’s his struggle with everyones whimsical personalities that makes for a fun contrast. Dialogue can sometimes be hilarious as Steve tries to communicate in his own way with eccentric performers and artists. He appreciates what they do and enjoys their performances, but he has no idea how to interact sometimes.
Captain America: Agent of Change
In this issue, Steve is on the hunt for his first person to save in the deserts of Chile. He rides his iconic bike and encounters a penguin…in the middle of desert…and gives him a ride. Yeah, I told you this run was weird, but it’s fun. On his trip there’s a great flashback to Lyra explaining the lore of this battle between Life and Death and how there are rules to how they can and cannot interact with the world. It helps cover up what would be plot holes, but it also drags the pacing of the book.
When Steve finds his man, it’s a mutant named Skinz with a particularly interesting power. I can’t remember seeing anything like it before, and it’s very macabre, much like this whole series thus far. It’s revealed that Death was using this mutant as bait and Cap and Skinz have to battle their way out of a deserted town. There’s some great action and an awesome use of Skinz powers all while in the background a singing performance at The Front Door Cabaret is happening, revealing another mutants very powerful abilities.
Artists Drawing Artists
The art in this Captain America run has been very unique. Jesus Saiz brings a very classic look to this book that feels gritty and grounded, while at the same time has an ethereal glow about it. In each of his works I always get an uncanny valley type of feeling, and it works really well in these supernatural stories. Not only that, it really gives off a 40’s or 50’s vibe, which is great for a Steve Rodgers book.
The colors by Matt Hollingsworth are very complimentary to Saiz’s style. He’s not afraid to play with a large color palette, using a wide variety of tones ranging from earthy to pastels to to rich vibrants. I think it all works well to bring each scene to life.
Everything Points to 7/10
The pacing of this issue was a the biggest problem for me. There was some heavy dialogue involving lore dumps that were interesting, but seemed to bog down the story. Steve Rodgers is so interesting in this though. He tries his best to relate to the residents of The Front Door, but he just comes off like the weird one and it’s a lot fun. Skinz was a fantastic addition to group of mutants with some wild abilities, and the penguin in the desert was a very surprising part of the story.
