All-New Captain America #2

By Rick Remender, Stuart Immonen, Wade von Grawbadger & Marte Gracia

All-New Captain America’s second issue continues the adventures of Sam Wilson, formerly Falcon, now the new titular character, in this issue with some great results that continue the strong, pulpy feel that this series started on, and continued from the previous run. The book itself is once again well written by Rick Remender, and the addition of Stuart Immonen, Wade von Grawbadger and Marte Gracia only add to the strong, high quality level of awesomeness in this book as it continues to excite and entertain, as it pits Sam against Crossbones.

The issue itself is fast paced and there are no dull moments. It’s action packed, pulpy and entertaining and it’s great to see that the momentum has not decreased in the second issue even if readers may still be getting used to the fact that yes, there is no Steve Rogers anymore. This is Sam’s story now, and it’s given Captain America comics the fresh injection of energy and pace that they need. There are new challenges, different things to overcome. Even if the story may have started out as fairly formulaic, there are some interesting twists that help keep this issue feeling fresh.

The artwork from Stuart Immonen is top class. Immonen is one of the strongest artists in Marvel’s stable right now and he knocks it out of the park with some superb pencilling, really adding life and energy to the title. Wade von Grawbadger and Marte Gracia also reinforce the book’s overall quality in terms of inks and colours, meaning that a Captain America book, be it titled ‘All-New’ or not, has never looked better. The characters are handled wonderfully and the action is made all the more engrossing by the fantastic artwork. If you want a good looking comic book, then it’s safe to say that you’ve come to the right place.

The inclusion of Crossbones as a villain was an interesting one. He’s been cropping up a lot around the place lately (Nathan Edmondson’s Punisher is another example of where this character can be found), ever since his exposure to the world in Captain America: the Winter Soldier, one of the year’s best movies, and it’s handled very well indeed. Of course, there’s a good Crossbones/HYDRA connection there already built thanks to the movie and All-New Captain America #2 helps to re-establish HYDRA as a major force again, even if one could argue that they have been having plenty of exposure thanks to the movie and Agents of SHIELD.

All-New Captain America #2 makes it two issues out of two for the series in terms of quality then and Rick Remender further develops Sam Wilson’s adventures as Captain America. It’s handled very well and when you consider the awesome artwork brought to you by Stuart Immonen, Wade Von Grawbadger and Marte Gracia, this is one of the best books that Marvel has to offer right now. Excellent stuff, and if you’re not reading this book because Steve isn’t Captain America, then you’re missing out on something good.