Steve Rogers Will Return... But Should He?
Listen. My dog's name is (Steve) Rogers. Still, I have mixed feelings about Steve returning to the fray.
Listen. My dog's name is (Steve) Rogers. As an organizer, all-around Nazi hater, and a believer that America can be what it says it is if we fight for it, he's been one of my favorite comic book characters for a considerable amount of time. Still, I have mixed feelings about Steve returning to the fray.
Last weekend, Marvel released the Avengers: Doomsday teaser ahead of Avatar: Fire and Ash, revealing that the shoddy AI-looking trailer that leaked was real (though, the final product doesn't look like a shitty ripped knockoff in the way the ones that were making their way around TikTok did). Today, that trailer dropped to the public, finalizing their confirmation that Chris Evans' Steve Rogers would return.
While the "cashgrab" allegations started flying immediately, I feel like it's important to note that I see this completely differently from Robert Downey Jr.'s return to the franchise before I get into my overall worries about Evans. Tony Stark is dead. Dead, dead. And, while RDJ will be returning instead as Doctor Doom, the connection is hamfisted and broadly exhausting. Will it end up making me cry anyway? Yeah. I'm sure. I'm a mark! But that doesn't make it good storytelling. Steve and, by proxy, Evans' ending was open ended. There was always a chance that we were going to see him again, even without considering the "no one ever stays gone in comics" of it all.
Evans' return isn't bothersome for the same reason that RDJ's is, but I do have a major concern given how hard the MCU has failed Anthony Mackie's Sam Wilson so far.
With Captain America: Brave New World being little more than a Red Hulk movie in disguise, they haven't even let Mackie's Cap take control of his own film yet. Given that screenwriter Malcolm Spellman is yet to deliver anything meaningful from the character, maybe we need to try letting him stand on his own feet with a different writer before we crowd the whole Captain America space, yeah? (Don't even get me started on the Thunderbolts disrespect and the MCU having absolutely no idea what it's doing with Bucky Barnes either.)
Still, there's potential for this to work in a way that doesn't demean Sam Wilson (or at least fails him less than Brave New World). Steve has come back during other Cap runs in the past, casually dropping the now-famous "I'm just Steve these days" and carrying on in support. If handled right, it can be done in such a way that elevates Sam rather than overtakes him. I trust that Evans would fight for that, but I do have some concerns about Marvel's producers knowing better. Hopefully the symbolism of Steve packing the suit away carries through to the film itself.
If there's any kind of silver lining, one can hope that this starts to make up for the fact that Steve Rogers did, ultimately, completely bail on Sebastian Stan's Bucky. Sure, he had his blessing. Yes, he spent years fighting for him, but don't go around making those promises if you don't intend to keep them, Stephen! Also, if I get more of Hayley Atwell's Peggy Carter, I'm far more likely to accept whatever's going on here.
Unless, of course, they make the unforgivable mistake of bringing Nazi Cap to the big screen. No one needs or is asking for that shit right now.
The Final Bow
As of today, I have wrapped up all of my assignments and sent off all of my invoices. The last month of the year has featured a handful of reviews and a couple considerable interviews.
Nia DaCosta 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple Exclusive: Highly recommend talking to one of your favorite living directors about not-zombie zombie dick.
Walker Scobell Percy Jackson Season 2 Interview: Cool your jets on Percabeth, babes. It's not time yet!
I also turned in reviews on the IT: Welcome to Derry finale, the Fallout premiere, and The Housemaid. There are couple of scragglers that haven't been published yet, but my well of assignments is officially dry.
No, I'm not stressed about that, why do you ask?
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