Time for your mid-week edition of Comics Relief comics fans. We’ve got many news items on the docket this week, but first lets get all this Captain America nonsense out of the way. Read on for all the detailsâ¦
The Truth About “HYDRA Cap” Revealed
Last month when it was revealed that Captain America was secretly a HYDRA agent, and had been all along, the internet lost its damn mind, as if they’ve never read a comic book before in their life. Well, lo and behold, this week the truth about “HYDRA Cap” has been revealed, and just as most of us who have been reading comics for more than five minutes assumed, it wasn’t what it was presented to be.
In this week’s second issue of Steve Rogers: Captain America, it’s revealed that Cap isnât a Hydra agent; he only thinks he is because his memories have been tampered with by Kobik, the sentient Cosmic Cube that turned into a little girl during the Avengers: Standoff crossover, working together with Capâs #1 foe, the Red Skull.
Said Marvel’s Axel Alonso:
Captain America, one of the most trusted superheroes in the Marvel universe, is not exactly who you think he is. He is operating with a different and sinister intent now and every interaction that we see from here on in will be shaded by that. Thatâs a story that Nick [Spencer] wanted to tell, and thatâs a story thatâs going to be fascinating for the next two months and a story thatâs going to build to big, big things within the Marvel universe as well.
You can read our full story on the subject, and watch our Nerdist News re-cap on the Cap reveal -reveal, by clicking here: [Nerdist]
Marvel’s Latest Black Panther Commentary Video features new music by Prodigy of Mobb Deep feat. Mark the Beast
Marvel Comics is continuing to push their newest Black Panther ongoing series by putting out a second video commentary with writer Ta-Nehisi Coates. The video mixes together some Brian Stelfreeze art from the book, Coatesâ commentary on the story, and music. The music used in this video is the world premiere of âBeast with Itâ by Prodigy of Mobb Deep Ft. Mark the Beast. The latest video is called Upheavel in Wakanda, and you can watch it above. [Marvel Entertainment]
Forgotten Golden Age Hero Silver Streak Might be Coming to Dark Horse Comics
He’s the superhero who can run at speeds no ordinary mortal can run. Nope, not the Flash. Not Quicksilver either. He’s…the Silver Streak! Wait, who? Well, he’s one of many comic book superheroes from the 40’s who have been lost to the mists of time, and are now in the public domain. He comes with a pedigree though, having been created by Captain America co-creater Joe Simon.
Now it is looking like publisher Dark Horse Comics, who have recently published several Silver Streak archive collections, have registered a trademark for the name. While it’s possible this only means that more archives are on their way, this may also suggest that new Silver Streak stories are on the way. Could the comics world use another speedster? Maybe we’ll find out soon. [Bleeding Cool]
Sonic the Hedgehog gets a 25th Anniversary Humble Bundle
Speaking of super fast comic book characters, Sonic the Hedgehog is turning 25 this year, and in celebration, publisher Archie Comics is teaming with Humble Bundle for a Sonic the Hedgehog 25th Anniversary comic bundle. This latest digital deal brings together just under $300 worth of comics. As with all Humble Bundles, you choose how much money you spend, and then how the money you spend is being divided between the publisher and charity. The Humble Comics Bundle: Sonic the Hedgehog sale runs from Wednesday, June 22, 2016 at 11 a.m. Pacific time until Wednesday, July 6, 2016 at 11 a.m. Pacific time. You can check out the bundle by clicking here. [Bleeding Cool]
Canadian PMÂ Justin Trudeau Meets Alpha Flight
Obama isn’t the only head of state appearing on Marvel Comics covers these days. Now Canada’s Prime Minister is getting in on the Marvel action too. The space agency Alpha Flight — that was once famously Canada’s #1 super-team — is going back to its roots in Civil War II: Choosing Sides #5, teaming up with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Trudeau will appear on a variant cover for Choosing Sides #5 in his trademark boxing gear, sporting a Canadian maple leaf drawn by artist Ramon Perez.
The story is being brought to us by Canadian writer/artist Chip Zdarsky, whose idea it was to include Trudeau. In the issue, Alpha Flight returns to Canada from their assignment in space to ask for some advice from the Canadian leader. Zdarsky explained, “I didn’t want this to just be like a walk-on … rescued by superheroes and he thanks them and that’s the end of the story. I think a lot of these real-life appearances in comics tend to go that way. I liked the idea of him actually engaging them in an ethical debate.â Civil War II: Choosing Sides #5 hits comic book shops on August 31. You can see the variant cover above. [Newsarama]
Del Rey’s Long Lost Manga Comes to iTunes
Although the Del Rey manga imprint has been defunt for six years now, if you’re a fan of some of those titles, then you’ll be happy to know they are making a comeback…in digital format. The four older manga series that are making a digital format comeback are School Rumble, Alive, Nodame Cantabile, and Princess Resurrection. All these titles will be available in the iTunes Store beginning on July 26. [Comic Book Resources]
Latest Marvel NOW! Teaser is A Bit of a Puzzle
Finally, Marvel Comics has released another “Divided” teaser for their upcoming Marvel NOW! initiative, but this one is going to be a little bit harder to make out than the ones we saw last week. It’s essentially a mosaic image, showing a lot of “divided” characters. Although a lot of the characters are a bit hard to pinpoint, you can see images of Elektra, Cable, Spider-Man (Miles Morales) and several others. Why are they all “divided”? Well, we still don’t know, but all should become clear this fall when Marvel NOW! rolls out. [CBR]
Images: Marvel Comics / Dark Horse Comics / Del Rey / Archie Comics