Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America

AUTHOR: Loeb, Jeph

ARTIST: John Cassaday (illustrator); David Finch (illustrator); Ed McGuinness (illustrator); John Romita, Jr. (illustrator); Leinil Francis Yu (illustrator); Klaus Janson (inker); Danny Miki (inker); Dexter Vines (inker); Dave McCaig (inker, colorist); Frank D’Armata (colorist); Morry Hollowell, (colorist); Jason Keith (colorist); Laura Martin (colorist)

PUBLISHER: Marvel Comics

FIRST SERIAL PUBLICATION: 2007

FIRST BOOK PUBLICATION: 2007

Publication History

Fallen Son was published as a hardcover collection in October of 2007. This followed the publication of its five chapters as individual issues between June and August of 2007. Each chapter uses as its theme one of the five stages of grief for the dying, according to the Elizabeth Kübler-Ross model—denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. This stands in slight contrast to the format used when the chapters were published as individual issues; then, each issue bore in its title the name of the character or characters at its focus (for example, the first of the five issues was called Fallen Son: Wolverine).

Although he was not writing the Captain America monthly series at the time, Jeph Loeb was vetted by other creators and editors at Marvel Comics as the writer best equipped to handle the aftermath of Steve Rogers’s death. This was largely because Loeb was acutely familiar with the grieving process, having lost his son, Sam, at the age of seventeen two years before. Once he had the idea of telling his story in terms of the five stages of grief, Loeb quickly asked to work with several well-known artists over the course of the project, allowing multiple respected artists to pay tribute to the iconic character of Captain America.

Plot

Fallen Son presents popular characters from the Marvel Universe in the days following Captain America’s death by assassination (which occurred in the monthly Captain America series) and, ultimately, at his funeral, showing the various ways that these characters choose to grieve and remember their fellow hero. The actions of each chapter’s central heroes reflect the stage of grief from which the chapter derives its title.

The first chapter, “Denial,” depicts Wolverine’s efforts to prove that Captain America is not truly dead. With the help of allied superheroes Doctor Strange and Daredevil, Wolverine infiltrates the facility where the body identified as Captain America’s is being held. His animal-like sense of smell confirms that the body is indeed that of the fallen hero, but before Wolverine can leave, Iron Man appears and threatens to arrest him for violating the Superhuman Registration Act, which requires all masked heroes to make their true identities known (and which pitted Iron Man against Captain America in the Civil War event). Wolverine, however, convinces Iron Man to release him so that he can inform other skeptical heroes of the veracity of Captain America’s death.

“Anger” follows, presenting the contrast between two superhero teams: the New Avengers, who had sided with Captain America against the Superhero Registration Act, and the Mighty Avengers, who sided with Iron Man. In “Anger,” the Mighty Avengers engage in battle to release the anger that they collectively feel at Captain America’s death. By contrast, the New Avengers engage in a tense game of poker until their comrade Wolverine enters the mansion and confirms Captain America’s death. Wolverine’s report sends New Avenger Spider-Man into a fit of rage that causes him to walk out on the game.

In the third chapter, “Bargaining,” Iron Man offers Clint Barton, formerly known as the bow-wielding hero Hawkeye, the chance to assume the role of Captain America, using replicas of his outfit and iconic disc shield. Barton initially accepts, but while out in the costume with Iron Man, he witnesses two young heroes, Patriot and Kate Bishop—currently using the moniker Hawkeye—immobilize a villain. A conversation with them, combined with the realization that Iron Man wishes to arrest them for violating the Superhero Registration Act, convinces Barton that Captain America would not have supported Iron Man’s agenda.

“Depression” returns to the story of Spider-Man, who, after running away from the New Avengers hideout, is paying a nighttime visit to the grave of his Uncle Ben, one of many people dear to him who has died. While he is mourning the loved ones who have passed from his life, his spider sense leads him into battle with the Rhino. Once the Rhino is defeated, Wolverine, who had followed Spider-Man from Doctor Strange’s mansion, attempts to share words of comfort.

The final installation, “Acceptance,” brings most characters from the Marvel Universe (save the New Avengers, who remain in hiding) to Washington, D.C., for Captain America’s public funeral. Three days after the funeral, however, Iron Man travels to the Arctic with the Wasp and Yellowjacket, where he reveals that a Captain America decoy had been buried publically and that Captain America and his shield are to be buried in the cold, peaceful sea.

Characters

•Captain America, a.k.a. Steve Rogers, does not appear in the present-day narrative of Fallen Son, but he does provide its central motivational force. The blond-haired, blue-eyed former soldier assumed the role of “Captain America,” complete with the costume based on the pattern of the American flag, in order to present the image of an “All-American Hero.” Through flashbacks, he is remembered for his selflessness, graciousness, and commitment to the ideals of the United States.

•Wolverine, a.k.a. Logan, is the motivated cynic in Fallen Son. Short, scruffy, and more prone to unsheathing retractable metal claws from his arms than to holding an emotionally frank conversation, he has a skepticism that, combined with his tendency toward action, leads him on a mission to determine the truth behind Captain America’s assassination.

•Iron Man, a.k.a. Tony Stark, maintains a stance that proves antagonistic to Captain America and his legacy. Often seen protected by his suit of red and golden armor, Iron Man leads the government-sponsored Mighty Avengers. He also continues to enforce the Superhuman Registration Act after Captain America’s death, even though Captain America’s opposition to it had placed him and Iron Man, once considered close friends, on conflicting sides of the law, a situation that Iron Man regrets.

•Spider-Man, a.k.a. Peter Parker, provides a voice tinged with confusion and loss. Spider-Man is subdued in Fallen Son; his trademark red-and-blue costume is replaced with a black suit that bears a simple white spider design, a suit that he wears in mourning for Captain America. He recalls his meetings with Captain America with a sense of wonder as well as a sense of grief that borders on guilt.

Artistic Style

The five artists chosen to provide the line art for Fallen Son—John Cassaday, David Finch, Ed McGuinness, John Romita, Jr., and Leinil Francis Yu—work in noticeably distinct styles, yet each style adds to the interpretation of each chapter’s focus. Yu’s lines, for example, have been described as “shadowy” and “sketchy,” similar to the artistic style of Hellboy’s creator Mike Mignola. Though this may not seem like a style appropriate for a story that touches on a character considered a beacon of light by other superheroes, it does help depict the stealth and suspicion by which Wolverine operates in “Denial.”

McGuinness’s art style in “Anger,” marked by clean lines and an animated, sometimes cartoonish, appearance in his characters, allows him to effectively render a host of characters trying in various ways to distract themselves from the issue of Captain America’s death. Romita’s art has appeared in Marvel Comics titles since the 1970’s; his experience in rendering nearly every Marvel Comics character emphasizes the contrast in ideals among characters in “Bargaining.” In particular, Romita fills many of his panels with close-ups of the faces of the two characters with long-standing roles in the Marvel Universe, Iron Man and Clint Barton’s Hawkeye, clearly communicating the emotions that affect them. Though he also employs close-ups, Finch depends mostly on the dark, atmospheric line work that later led him to be the artist behind DC Comics’ Batman to convey the despair that plagues Spider-Man in “Depression.”

“Acceptance,” the story’s resolution, is handled by Cassaday, whose work is lavishly realistic, drawing on the traditions of the Art Nouveau style, an appropriate style for the chapter in which characters are asked to accept the reality of Captain America’s death. In contrast to the first four chapters, which are colored in dark, muted tones, “Acceptance” presents a brighter color palate, perhaps to convey a sense of peace.

Themes

The theme of grief and death as factors that motivate human behavior are central to the story. Each Marvel personality reacts distinctly to the news of Captain America’s death, no different from what readers may observe in everyday life. By presenting these diverse reactions, Fallen Son reminds its readers that death is personal, and each individual will respond to it in ways that will likely differ from the ways that members of their surrounding circle respond. The use of different artists to illustrate each chapter of the story serves to highlight the particular effects of death.

The superhero as everyman is another theme that Fallen Son addresses. Marvel Comics’ stories have made it a point to emphasize the humanity of their heroes, whether through the familial squabbling of the Fantastic Four or the youthful mistakes of Spider-Man. In Fallen Son, readers see superheroes reacting to the death of one of their own—caused not by a villain’s superpowers, but by a simple gunshot wound—according to the model of grief that is said to apply to all humans. This does not necessarily stand in contrast to the individuality mentioned above; though particular actions may vary among people, or superheroes, the emotions that they share are common.

Fallen Son also joins other Marvel Comics works in placing the relationships between characters at the story’s forefront. After Captain America’s death, friends and superhero teams draw on each other for support, and one hero in particular, Iron Man, laments that his friendship with the fallen hero had soured. Fallen Son demonstrates how these characters relate to each other after Captain America’s death—and how Captain America affected them while he was alive.

Impact

Fallen Son had less of a cultural impact than the regularly published Captain America series did in 2007 and is therefore considered a companion piece or a secondary work. The assassination of Steve Rogers, the iconic Captain America, occurred in issue 25 of Ed Brubaker’s Captain America series; the gravity of the event drew the attention of mainstream media outlets to the monthly title. By contrast, Fallen Son, both as a five-issue miniseries and as a hardcover graphic novel collecting those issues, received most of the attention paid to it from Internet sites dedicated to comics and graphic novels, and reviews offered by these sites were mixed. Generally, the art was praised as solid and appropriate for the story. Reviewers seemed more divided in their assessment of the plot, with some lamenting that Fallen Son offered nothing new to develop the surviving Marvel Comics characters and others stating that the story provided characters a necessary opportunity to pay tribute and move forward.

Although Fallen Son is not touched by any events as profound as Captain America’s actual death, it may be noted that the story does mark the reverence accorded the fallen hero’s famous round shield. The final chapter, “Acceptance,” shows Iron Man revealing to a few colleagues that, while replicas of the shield remain in the United States, the original shield will be buried with Captain America in his coffin in the Arctic Sea.

Films

Captain America: The First Avenger. Directed by Joe Johnston. Marvel Studios and Paramount Pictures, 2011. The film stars Chris Evans as Captain America and details the superhero’s origin during World War II as an experimental “supersoldier.” Hugo Weaving stars as the Red Skull, Captain America’s nemesis, while Sebastian Stan assumes the role of Bucky Barnes, Captain America’s sidekick. The film ends with the discovery of Captain America frozen in ice in the present day.

Further Reading

Brubaker, Ed, et al. Captain America (2005-2011).

Loeb, Jeph, et al. Batman: Hush (2002-2003).

Millar, Mark, and Steve McNiven. Civil War (2006-2007).

Bibliography

Brubaker, Ed. The Death of Captain America Omnibus. New York: Marvel Comics, 2009.

Kreiner, Richard. “Planetary/Batman: Night on Earth.” The Comics Journal 258 (February, 2004): 50-51.

Kübler-Ross, Elizabeth. On Death and Dying. New York: Routledge, 2005.

Loeb, Jeph. “Jeph Loeb Talks Fallen Son . . . In Detail.” Interview by Newsarama. Newsarama, March 7, 2007. http://replay.waybackmachine.org/20090207155307/http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=104117.

McGuinness, Ed. “Ed McGuinness Interview.” Interview by Flint Henry. Sketch 9 (October, 2001): 4-11.

Robinson, Bryan. “What the Death of Captain America Really Means.” ABC News, March 8, 2007. http://abcnews.go.com/US/Story?id=2934283&page=1.