Captain America #19

By Rick Remender, Nick Klein and Dean White

Captain America #19 was the first Captain America comic to hit shelves following the release of the Winter Soldier in the UK and continues to move Steve Rogers into the ongoing Iron Nail arc pitting him against Dr. Mindbubble, who has – following the events of the last few issues, has both Maria Hill and Nick Fury Jr. on his side and has hijacked a S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. Needless to say, things look pretty dire for Steve and Falcon, but they gave us another entertaining issue that continues to prove that Captain America still remains a fun, pulpy and entertaining comic from the awesome Rick Remender.

Much like the movie, Remender plays with the theme of trust nobody and much like the movie, it works very well. Despite the emotional impact of this issue feeling not as powerful as it should (in part because we get Helicarriers blown up every other week nowadays), there are some pretty cool moments throughout this book that continue to keep this series established as one of the best Marvel comics currently ongoing – if not quite in the Top 5 it’s definitely in the Top 10.

Nic Klein’s artwork adds to the pulpy atmosphere created by Remender. His pencils are great as per normal and he really shines in the action sequences, with the end fight being one of the highlights of the issue. Regular Remender colourist Dean White impresses as well, adding to the positive feel of the book.

Cap’s allies also get some good development in this book as well. I love that Falcon and Jet Black are pretty much regulars in this series because they bring some interesting dynamics to the cast, preventing it from just being Cap’s show even when this issue spends most of its time with Steve. It’s also good that we don’t get Avengers cropping up every other issue, and even with the extra cast this book never feels like Avengers-lite. Both Jet Black and Falcon are perfectly at home in a Captain America book and long may they stay here.

All said Captain America #19 is a fun issue. It’s not among Remender’s best, lacking the emotional impact that it needs to really make it a stellar comic, but it’s still a very entertaining one and better than plenty of other comics on stands right now.