2008-04-10 Heroism, racism, political chicanery......and snakes.....

Starting with the appearance of the superb looking Viper as the saga of the Cowled Commander begins and through a freak side-effect of the Viper's venom Captain America develops super-strength.
Following on Cap and the Falcon face off against the re-united team of Plant-Man, Porcupine, Eel (the Viper's brother) and Scarecrow before the identity of the Cowled Commander is revealed.
A few new menaces appear Solarr and Nightshade but they are the weakest part of this superb collection. The Harlem crime-lord Morgan constantly lurks in the background but the real stars are the writers and artists who in this volume weave a brilliant tapestry that combines elements from Captain America's past set against disillusionment with 1970's American politics, especially with regard to Watergate.
Dr. Faustus returns as does Cap's first love Peggy Carter (Sharon's sister) as the epic starts with the appearance of the first incarnation of the Serpent Squad with Cobra and the brothers Viper and Eel.
Then after a gap of two decades the real Yellow Claw re-appears and SHIELD takes a more active part in later tales as Peggy joins them. A new menace Phoenix appears but it turns out he has a connection with one of Cap's WWII foes, Baron Zemo, and is after revenge.
The return of another old foe, The Tumbler, starts the arc where the Committee to Regain America's Principles (CRAP?) begins to discredit Captain America by accusing him of murder and by using an ersatz hero Moon-Stone to replace Cap in the public's minds. The Secret Empire comes to the fore as Cap struggles to prove his innocence, guest-starring the Black Panther (who fits the Falcon up with a set of glider wings), the Banshee and the X-Men. The ending is a shocker to Cap as he unmasks Number One, the head of the Secret Empire who Cap recognises as a major US political figure, but the name is never revealed, this is the start of a major arc as Cap starts to become disillusioned with the establishment, so much so that he decides to give up his role as Captain America for good.
The return of another couple of old Marvel villains Lucifer and Aries as The Falcon now fights alone is Ok but pales against the other tales that surround it, there is the start of the Captain America copycats which ends rather badly for one of them.
An old ally appears in the role of The Golden Archer and convinces Cap to return in the form of The Nomad, a man without a country. A new and more vicious Serpent squad appears led by Madame Hydra who kills the Viper in cold blood and assumes his identity. The Atlantean warlord Krang puts in an appearance, as does the Sub-Mariner.
The last series of tales starts with the return of Cap's true nemesis The Red Skull and the brutal slaying of one of the Captain America copycats, this one was also a friend of Cap and the Falcon's. Using the dust of death which causes the victims to die whilst the skin on their faces shrivels to a grotesque parody of the Skulls own mask. The Red Skull's Nazi views of racial supremacy are offended by both SHIELD agent Gabe Jones and The Falcon with their being black and therefore inferior but he has one final trump card to play regarding The Falcon.
If I had one personal grumble it would be that Frank Robbins' artwork suffers when compared to that of the Marvel great Sal Buscema but the masterful story-telling, largely by Steve Englehart shines through.
I read many of these tales when they first appeared way back in the early 1970's and thanks to these Essentials' reprints I can read so many classic early Marvel story-lines. I unreservedly recommend this volume.