This week’s Captain America: 75 Heroic Years special had a major announcement for comic book fans. Steve Rogers, the original Captain America, will be back in costume and headlining a new Captain America series later this year. Also, we totally predicted this last year!

Back in 2014, Steve Rogers was written out of the Captain America role when the super soldier serum in his body was rendered inert, leaving him an (incredibly) old man. But apparently, Steve Rogers will be rejuvenated in the upcoming Avengers: Standoff crossover.

“Without spoiling too much of Standoff at this early date, something happens that restore Steve to full vigor,” said writer Nick Spencer, who will remain with the new Captain America series. “Which will obviously greatly impact his own mission and his standing within the Marvel Universe. The biggest part of that? He’s Captain America once again.”

But this doesn’t mean that the current Captain America, Sam Wilson (formerly the Falcon), is stepping down from his position as the Star Spangled Man with a Plan. Instead, there are going to be two Captain Americas in the Marvel Universe.

“When Steve handed the shield to Sam, it didn’t come with any caveats. It’s his. Steve respects and admires what his old partner is doing, and wants him to carry on,” related Spencer. “For me, it’s great, because I get to tell two very different kinds of Captain America stories. If you’re liking what we’re doing in Captain America: Sam Wilson, with a more topical, of-the-moment take, we’ve got a lot more of that coming your way; but if you’re looking for that classic, timeless version, the one that’s steeped in the Greatest Generation with Cap fighting the face of true evil, now we’ve got that for you as well. I think they’ll complement each other nicely.”

Spencer will be joined on the new series by artist Jesus Saiz, who touched upon the new design for Captain America’s costume and the throwback look of his shield.

“Cap’s redesign has actually been created by the magnificent Daniel Acuña, and it truly is an incredible design,” said Saiz. “It’s very modern, and at the same time perfectly identifiable as Captain America at first glance. It has all the classic elements you’d expect to find in the character’s suit, but updated in a very clever way.”

Saiz continues, “And the greatest part [is] the shield, indeed! Its shape is similar to the original shield Cap had back in the 1940s, the pointy one, but this one has two main innovations: its tip can deploy an “energy blade” so Cap can cut into things, and the shield can be divided in two, so Steve can use both halves, one with each arm. Both modifications will help us see a completely different set of moves for Captain America, moves that we [have] never seen Steve use before, in terms of hand-to-hand combat.”

Marvel hasn’t announced a release date for the new Captain America: Steve Rogers comic, but it should debut sometime close to the premiere of Captain America: Civil War on May 6.

How do you feel about the return of the original Captain America? Throw your mighty shields in the comment section below!

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HT:Marvel.com

Image Credit: Marvel Comics