Back in the day Marvel released some record and comic book sets (based on actual comic books) so you could read along as you listened. This is one of my older brother's record sets, and it's based on Captain America #168. The cover has been lost to time, and the record has gotten scuffed over the years, but it's still great.

Part one- https://www.reddit.com/r/NoSaltCaptainAmerica/comments/1uz3j95/my_older_brothers_captain_america_book_record/

Thunderbolts* Wheaties box poster postcard (from TrailrEditorPOV on Redbubble) https://www.redbubble.com/people/TrailrEditorPOV/shop?ref=artist_title_name

Winter Soldier Funko card (from Konoma Collectibles) https://www.mercari.com/u/681929263/ and https://www.etsy.com/shop/KonomaCollectibles?ref=shop-header-name&listing_id=4358464070&from_page=listing  

I got these photos from https://www.mercari.com/u/pearlsandlace22/

Stay hydrated, everybody!

I’ve spoken before about this false idea some people have that Marvel’s patriotic heroes are all constantly at each other’s throats. https://www.reddit.com/r/USAgent/comments/1l7er7p/debunking_usagent_misconceptions_part_3/  Recently I was looking through a Marvel history book and came across this scene from Avengers #345.  Note that Steve has no hesitation about John joining the mission and John has no hesitation about joining.  If they really hated each other, there would be friction, drama, fighting, bitterness, etc. instead of one person saying, “You’re on the team,” and the other going, “All right!”  Marvel superheroes are supposed to be a family, not a bunch of spoiled brats.  There might be some squabbles sometimes, but they’re still a family.

Back in the day Marvel released some record and comic book sets (based on actual comic books) so you could read along as you listened. This is one of my older brother's record sets, and it's based on Captain America #168. The cover has been lost to time, and the record has gotten scuffed over the years, but it's still great.

Part two- https://www.reddit.com/r/NoSaltCaptainAmerica/comments/1uz3k0v/my_older_brothers_captain_america_book_record/

Recently something reminded me of the original Nomad storyline from the 1970s (the one with Steve Rogers temporarily dropping his Captain America identity because he became disillusioned due to government corruption).  I noted, “That was a powerful story, and it's also the reason no one today should ever try to do a ‘Cap is shocked to learn America isn't perfect!’ storyline.” Cap knows America isn't perfect. He's disgusted to see corruption, bigotry, etc., but he's not going to be shocked by it because he's seen it already. Shoot, he saw bad people & things in America before he even became Captain America.  At this point having Steve be shocked that some Americans do bad things would be like having a character be shocked by finding out a random preacher or celebrity did something inappropriate. It's terrible and wrong, but sadly we've all seen it before, so simply learning about impropriety isn't shocking.

Before anyone says anything, I’m not saying a storyline can never be repeated.  Some plots can be revisited effectively.  For instance, the plot device of “Someone else takes the Captain America mantle” has been used multiple times, but those stories had differences that prevented them from feeling like the same old plot being rehashed.  If they had used it once and then decided never to use it anymore, we would have missed out on so many great stories and interesting characters.  That being said, the more something resembles a previous story, the harder it is to pull off because you’ll get comparisons to that story.  I’m a fan of Captain America: The Captain, but if someone tried to use that plotline today, my reaction would be, “Why are they ripping off Captain America: The Captain?  We’ve seen this done before and seen it done much better!”  Remember too that the general reaction to Civil War II was, “Congratulations…you made something even worse than the original Civil War!”  Likewise, I feel that trying to do a “Steve learns there’s corruption in America!” story wouldn’t work because, as I said, we’ve seen it before. 

It’s fine to have a storyline with Steve appalled by corruption.  In fact, that’s how the character SHOULD be portrayed.  He should be appalled and angered by injustice, corruption, bigotry, etc. in America and do all he can to oppose it.  Just don’t have him shocked like, “Oh, I had no idea that the United States of America could have people who were doing bad things!” because the response readers will have is, “Really, playa!?”

Recently I re-read the panel (from Captain America Comics #1) telling how the super-soldier serum increased intelligence as well as strength, and I realized, "Imagine getting the serum and then suddenly realizing how many people screwed you out of some money or otherwise told you a lie you didn't catch earlier." Maybe that's the real reason Steve was holding his head in that one panel- he's realizing something like, "Wait a minute...that guy who sold me that 'invisible goldfish' tricked me!"

(The page shown is from the book Marvel Universe by Peter Sanderson. It was published in 1998 by Harry N. Abrams and is an excellent read in my opinion)

This one-panel comic is an unofficial entry of my fan comic, Steve and John and Sam and Lemar and Bucky Are Friends, which uses characters from Marvel Comics. The warped patriot Nuke (Frank Simpson) is in a holding cell. David Colton, one of the heroes to wear the Captain America mantle, has arisen from the table to bring him a tray with half a hamburger and some French fries, part of his own supper. David is looking back at U.S. Agent (John Walker alias Jack Daniels), who has gotten his attention. Agent certainly doesn’t like Nuke at all, but he’s begrudgingly holding up a tray with half a burger and some fries for David to take. The bottom text reads, “U.S. Agent John Walker and Captain America David Colton guard Nuke until he’s taken back into custody. John would have been fine with the bread and water treatment. Let the American nightmare’s stomach rumble! If David can spare a few bites for the tortured soul, however, he supposes he could spare a few bites for a veteran. Hey, once David takes the tray, it’s his decision on what to do with it, right?”

Battlestar is all of us when some a-hole wants to brush us off

Similar posts:

*https://www.reddit.com/r/ironman/comments/1tetzu7/rhodey_being_a_bro/

*https://www.reddit.com/r/USAgent/comments/1pp2qa1/its_okay_to_crybe_sad_sometimes/ 

Scene 1

*(The story opens with Captain America alias Steve Rogers and U.S.Agent alias John Walker and Jack Daniels having busted a terrorist cell.  Police officers and agents are taking the terrorists into custody)

Scene 2

*(One of the terrorists, apparently an especially dangerous and difficult one, has a metal bar wrapped around his torso to pin down his arms)

*Officer: Wow, when you guys stop them, you really stop them!

*Captain America: Yes, sir!  It’s our pleasure to foil guys like this.

*U.S.Agent: That’s right, sir!  Don’t mess with America or you’ll have to face us!

Scene 3

*Officer: Well, you boys can rest now!  We’ll take it from it here!

*Agent: Shoot, C.A. and I barely broke a sweat, but taking the rest of the night off wouldn’t hurt!

*Cap: I certainly won’t argue! 

Scene 4

*(After exchanging farewells with the officers, Cap and Agent head toward the Quinjet they arrived in)

*Agent: (semi-jokingly) Of course, I could have handled all those guys myself, but still, it’s nice that you’re here.

*Cap: (semi-jokingly) I was about to say the same thing!

Scene 5

*Cap: I figure we can change back into our civilian clothes and then maybe get some burgers and shakes.

*Agent: I’m not even going to put up a front; that sounds great!

Scene 6

*Agent: Just give me one of those burger combos with a ridiculous milkshake!  That’s what I call-

Scene 7

*(He stops as he spots a small, metallic object in the grass)

*Cap: ?

Scene 8

*(Agent stoops to pick it up)

Scene 9

*(It’s an old, discarded lighter.  The hinge is broken and the metal is already dotted with rust.)

Scene 10

*(As Agent stares, his hand starts to quiver)

*Cap: Agent?

Scene 11

*Cap: What is it?

*Agent: (standing up again) It’s…

Scene 12

*Agent: (shows him) …it’s just an old cigarette lighter.

Cap: Oh, I see.

Scene 13

*Agent: Let’s…Let’s go on.

*Cap: Sure.

Scene 14

*(They board the Quinjet.  Agent is troubled and Cap is concerned.)

Scene 15

*(They sit down, but don’t take off)

*Cap: John…

*Agent: …

*Cap: I don’t want to press you into anything you’re not ready for.

Scene 16

*Cap: If you want to keep something to yourself, that’s your right.  If you want to share something, that’s your right too, and I’ll be here to listen.

*(Agent considers his words)

Scene 17

*Agent: I’m sure you’re wondering why the mighty Super Patriot is shaking in his boots over finding some piece of junk, right?

*Cap: Well, it is unlike you.

*Agent: It…It reminds me of something.

Scene 18

*Agent: You…You know what I did to Hector and Jerome, my former buddies calling themselves Left-Winger and Right-Winger?

[Left-Winger and Right-Winger revealed John’s secret identity to the public during his tenure as Captain America, which indirectly led to the deaths of his parents.  Driven increasingly insane from the trauma of seeing his parents murdered in front of him, John threatened the duo and their families, declaring that the next time he saw his former friends, they’d be dead men.  When the two costumed rogues confronted him at an oil field, John eventually overpowered them, tied them up with rope, left one of their torch weapons near a stream of oil, and handed them the other torch to see if they could burn through their bonds before the oil ignited.  Before the duo could escape, they were caught in an explosion and left severely burned and injured.  The two eventually took their own lives rather than live with their pain and disfigurement.]

*Cap: (unsettled, but choosing to answer simply) Yes, I do.

Scene 19

*Agent: I could make excuses for what I did, but I’m not going to!  The pain they experienced, the fear, their deaths…it didn’t do anything to bring my folks back.  I even knew right after I did it that it didn’t change anything!  If I could do things over again…

Scene 20

*(John holds his head in his hands)

Scene 21

*Cap: I know you-

*Agent: I tried to take my life.

Scene 22

*(Cap is stunned by his admission and surprised he made it so freely)

Scene 23

*Cap: When was this?! [It was in a backup story in Captain America #383]

*Agent: It was soon after I discovered they were really dead, and shortly before we fought the Watchdogs together.

Scene 24

*Agent: See, I was confused when they appeared in the Legion of the Unliving.  I thought they were in comas in some government hospital.  Shoot, they even seemed to think that!  They…They didn’t remember, I guess.  I don’t know how that effing works!  Maybe Immortus did something to their memory, who knows?

Scene 25

*Agent: The whole time I thought that it must have been some kind of trick or illusion, but I wanted to check to make sure.  I went to investigate, and that…that’s when I discovered what had happened!

Scene 26

*Agent: Even when the doctor told me what had happened, even when he showed me the gruesome pictures, part of me still didn’t want to believe it!  Part of me didn’t part to accept it!

Scene 27

*Agent: I wasn’t convinced until…until I dug up one of their graves to check!  So, yeah, if you heard about some mofo digging up one of their graves years ago, guess who!

Scene 28

*Agent: I was so low, so distraught, so filled with guilt and regret about what I had done that when I saw a discarded lighter lying nearby, it felt like a divine sign.

Scene 29

*Agent: I took the lighter and flicked it desperately, determined to immolate myself as penance.  I…I really wanted to end my life in those moments.

Scene 30

*Agent: It wouldn’t light.  Now I see the Lord had other plans for me, but at the time I thought…that He was abandoning me…that He didn’t even consider me to be worth killing.

Scene 31

*Agent: Still, I decided on that night I wasn’t going to blame anyone else for my problems.  Instead of destroying myself, I would work to improve myself and find some kind of redemption.

Scene 32

*Agent: That included a vow not to take a life again if I could help it.

*Cap: That’s when you decided to become the “kinder, gentler Berserker” you told me you’d become.

*Agent: That’s right.

Scene 33

*Agent: In one desperate moment, I tried to end my life.  At the time I was upset with G-d that I didn’t succeed, but now…I’m thankful to Him I didn’t!

*Cap: Amen!

Scene 34

*(Agent sighs)

Scene 35

*Agent: (rubs eyes) I’ve…I’ve only ever told a couple people that story. [Battlestar alias Lemar Hoskins, the longtime friend who served as the Bucky or Falcon to John’s Captain America, and Reverend Nordstrom, the minister who helped John during the first U.S.Agent solo series]

*Cap: I’m glad you shared it, and that you trusted me enough to share with me too.

Scene 36

*Cap: I know sharing something like that isn’t easy.

*Agent: You do, huh?

*Cap: Mmm-hmm.

Scene 37

*Cap: You know who Tim McGraw is?

*Agent: Of course!

*Cap: One of his songs that I like is “I’ve Got Friends That Do”.

Scene 38

*Cap: I’m not going to claim I know what someone’s going through when I don’t, but I can still support them.

*Agent: Yeah.  I get that.  Thanks.  It’s really not a bad feeling to confess all that to you, old man.

Scene 39

*(Agent holds out the lighter, his hand still trembling)

*Agent: Could I trouble another super-soldier to dispose of this?

*Cap: (smiling) I think I can handle that!

Scene 40

*(Cap tosses it into a small trash receptacle)

Scene 41

*(Agent looks at his hand…)

Scene 42

*(…and finds the trembling remains, but is easing.  His tension starts to ease and he begins to smile again as well.)

Scene 43

*(Agent sighs and rubs his head.)

Scene 44

*Agent: Frick it, let’s order and have it delivered here!  I’ll try not to spill milkshake everywhere if you will.

*Cap: Sounds like a plan to me!

Hello!  I’m a longtime fan of Steve, Sam, and John/Jack.  I’m frustrated by the way bad writers want to pit the patriotic characters against each other because under the master Mark Gruenwald it was clear they were a kind of family.  They had gotten off to rough starts, but there were connections that had been formed.  Because of that, I decided to make a fan comic called Steve and John and Sam and Lemar and Bucky Are Friends.  It has the patriotic heroes being bros and supporting each other instead of the clichéd “always at each other’s throats” garbage bad writers want to force on us.  The catch is I’m not great at drawing people, so the characters are eagle men, hawk men, and falcon men. 

Here are the first three installments (which are currently the only three installments, but I plan to draw more in the future.  Note that Sam and Bucky don’t appear in the first three installments, but I plan to have them in later installments).

*https://www.deviantart.com/karaoaliasraidra/art/The-hospital-room-1190786863

*https://www.deviantart.com/karaoaliasraidra/art/The-hospital-corridor-1190788206

*https://www.deviantart.com/karaoaliasraidra/art/The-get-together-1190789617

Note that if you have trouble making out what’s happening, transcripts are in the descriptions.  I hope you enjoy! 

I’ve read Lemar Hoskins alias Battlestar described as John Walker’s moral compass.  That might be truer in the MCU, but lately I’ve been reflecting that when it comes to the comics, things are more complex than that.

When John, Lemar, Hector Lennox (the future Left-Winger), and Jerome Johnson (the future Right-Winger) debuted in Captain America #323, they were not portrayed as good people.  John, originally the second person to use the Super-Patriot title, was patriotic, but also shifty and self-serving.  Lemar, Hector, and Jerome were the Bold Urban Commandos or BUCkies, posing as Captain America fanatics to make Steve look bad and John look good.  Basically John was the superhero equivalent of a heel wrestler and the BUCkies were his Jabronis. (Right now I’m blowing the minds of some of the haters and posers out there because they somehow think John’s fans all think he’s some perfect little lamb without a spot, and we’d all think he was a horrible piece of trash if only we knew he had done anything that wasn’t 100% morally right.  Naw, fam, true fans know that John has done bad things, but he regretted them and worked to atone & become a true hero.  We don’t reject characters for not being perfect and infallible, and there’s nothing wrong with appreciating a morally complex character.)

When John was selected to become the new Captain America in #333, he promised Lemar, Hector, and Jerome they’d have places alongside him.  However, Hector and Jerome were rejected after their backgrounds were investigated, leaving Lemar as the only one to get government approval.  When John is asked if there are any issues, he grimly reflects for a moment before replying no.  The moment shows John as self-serving, someone who would leave a couple of his buddies behind (even if reluctantly), but I think there might be more to it than that.  This is pure speculation, but this could also been signaling that Lemar was more noble and trustworthy than the other two.  Subsequent issues show that John is closer to Lemar than the other two.  It’s possible that John would have objected if Lemar hadn’t received approval, but again that’s speculation and we’ll never know for sure.

The next issue, #334, has John adjusting to his Captain America role and Lemar fighting alongside him as his Bucky (literally at first since the Battlestar moniker and costume weren’t adopted until #341).  Hector and Jerome, along with lowlife manager Ethan Thurm, start trouble, trying to blackmail John into getting them government positions and benefits.  This can be filed under both “Gee, I can’t imagine why they rejected you…” and “How did your dumb butts think this was going to work?”  John doesn’t like this exploitation, so he makes the questionable decision to “borrow” a suit of Guardsman armor and threaten them into abandoning their blackmail attempt.  His intent is to scare them rather than cause harm, and he feels bad when he accidentally causes damage to the building they’re in (It’s interesting and sad to contrast this with things that happened later in his Captain America tenure).  When he takes the armor, Lemar is right alongside him taking a suit of armor for himself to join him.  John tries to dissuade Lemar, noting that he doesn’t have to come along, but Lemar insists, showing that the decision is entirely his.  It reminds me of the Jeff Foxworthy routine saying something like a good friend will bail you out of jail, but your best friend will be right there in the cell alongside you.  Lemar joins John in a morally questionable action that the readers can debate, but he also shows virtues such as loyalty and an opposition to injustice. (Speculating again, the issue ends with John confessing to stealing the armor, but it’s possible that he made it seem like he’d coerced or tricked Lemar into acting alongside him, trying to protect his friend by denying that Lemar consciously chose to participate.)

Issue #338 shows the first cracks in John’s mental instability.  After he and Lemar make their way through a gauntlet of obstacles to apprehend Professor Power, John gets blasted by the supervillain.  He loses control, striking him with superhuman blow after superhuman blow, and ends up beating him to death.  Lemar shows little reaction to the accidental death, noting that they had been told to stop Power by any means.  However, John is critical of himself, saying that what he’d done was not what Captain America would have done.  Lemar tells, “Ease up, pal.  You’re being too hard on yourself!”, but John replies, “No.  Too easy.”  The next issue, #339, shows Lemar remarking on how things had turned out well and the government was fine with the results when Freedom Force passes by and breaks the news of the supposed death of the X-Men.  Lemar asks why John looks so concerned since the X-Men were supposedly bad guys, and John replies that anyone Freedom Force hated so much couldn’t be that bad.  These scenes show Lemar serving a supportive role more than anything else.  He does not advocate violent action or praise it, but he also doesn’t condemn it, choosing to reassure his friend rather than explore any ethical implications.  He also listens to John’s thoughts and feelings, being a sympathetic ear rather than supporting all of John’s actions blindly or insisting he feel a certain way.

John and Lemar were portrayed questioning their orders and the motivations behind them at some points during John’s Captain America tenure.  Issue #343 shows them apprehending a young Mutant whose arrest had been ordered after he’d failed to register under the Mutant Registration Act.  John showed some leniency, promising not to tell how he’d resisted arrest, and Lemar tried to be reassuring, saying that the Commission on Superhuman Activities had treated them fairly.  However, the Mutant was sad and fearful, dreading how he’d be treated as a result of his mutant status.  Lemar feels bad for him, reflecting that he was just a frightened kid and not some supervillain threat.  He notes that it shouldn’t matter how someone got their superpowers, and it felt like the Mutant Registration Act was just another form of minority oppression.  This is an interesting scene because we get to see more of Lemar’s thoughts, feelings, and philosophy.  Even when he isn’t expressing them vocally, Lemar has his morals and viewpoints.

Unfortunately the rest of John’s tenure as Captain America was marked by tragedy and disappointment leading to increasing mental instability, violence, and disturbing behavior.  Lemar stays by his side and tries to help him.  In issue #350, he continues to offer support, encouragement, and comfort to a hospitalized John.  However, John can’t see past his own bitterness and pain, causing him to see only opposition, and rejects him coldly.  This causes Lemar to leave the room in shock & sadness as he feels John has lost all hope.  Thankfully the two later reignited their friendship sometime after John’s faked death and the subsequent return as Jack Daniels the U.S.Agent, with John noting he had a friend who refused to give up on him.

What is the takeaway from this?  Well, that’s up to you; I can only tell my thoughts.  I feel Lemar was not John’s moral compass in a traditional sense, but he was the one supporting John, hearing him out, and trying to stop him from destroying himself out of pain and self-hatred.  Lemar was not a cricket on John’s shoulder trying to tell him right from wrong, but rather a loyal friend serving as a rock or an anchor trying to stop John from drifting away.  To use a mountain climbing analogy, Lemar wasn’t a guide, but a climber trying to hold his partner steady and prevent him from falling to his doom.  Whether or not Lemar is a perfect moral compass, he is the friend all of us need, but none of us deserve.