Review: Captain America #7-16: A Disappointing Epic Battle Between Life and Death

Last year, I reviewed the first six issues of J. Michael Stracynski’s run on Captain America, which was a brand new volume of Steve Rogers’ adventures that started with Captain America #1 in September, 2023. Since then, the series has lingered on, until it was revealed that Issue #16 (released in December 2024) would be the last issue written by Stracynski, and the last issue in the current volume –  which came as a surprise, as many of the plotlines Stracynski was implementing still felt like they were just getting started.

Now, the series is complete, with the remaining issues up on the Marvel Unlimited app and with the last TPB collection (containing the final issues of Stracysnki’s run) to be released this May. Let’s take this apart:

Building upon the plot elements introduced in Issues 1 thru 6, Captain America finds he’s still wrapped up in storyline involving “Change Agents” – important people who come along at the right moment in history and who have the ability to shape the future for the better (of which he is one). Last time, he was in battle the demon Asmoday, but his defeating the demon has brought him to the attention of even higher powers, including “new” characters Lyra (the embodiment of life) and her brother Death itself….which brings me to my first conundrum: There already is a “Death” in the Marvel Universe – it’s been depicted as a skeletal woman whom Thanos worships. And there are “embodiments of life”, “Gaea” (the spirit of Earth) is one that could’ve been used.

Captain America is tasked with bringing other “change agents” to Lyra’s headquarters (the “Front Door Cabaret”) to protect them from Death. Steve Rogers races around the globe and meets up with different figures, slowing bring them on board for a journey back to the United States (to the entrace to the “Cabaret”, which is a strange Heaven/Limbo theater where artists perform). For some reason, every single “change agent” that Steve rescues is a mutant?!? Some of these mutants exhibit abilities that are so powerful, it’s bewildering they haven’t come to the attention of Professor X or Magneto (or any X-book character) before now, but that’s because these are all creations of Stracynski, and why should he bother using existing mutants?

There’s also talk of a Pale City that Lyra and Death used to live in, in harmony, and there’s a vison showing Captain America eventual death one day, and just…a lot of bewildering mystical elements. The problem is, Stracynski doesn’t want to play with the already existing plot elements of the Marvel Universe, he wants to invent his own mythology and shove Captain America awkwardly into the middle of it. He’s done this previously, with the “Spider-Totem” mystical stuff he introduced back during his run on Amazing Spider-Man, but whereas that plotline became incorporated into the work of later writers (eventually morphing into the “Spider-Verse”), this….just doesn’t feel like it’s going to be used in any other comics.

After that story arc, the final 3 issues of the series revolve around Captain America in a team-up storyline with Thor and Spider-Man. it becomes apparent that this is Stracynski’s way of saying goodbye to the three characters he’s most well-known for writing, but the plotline….isn’t really a Captain America story. Instead, it’s a chance for Stracynski to do a correction to a Thor storyline: The City of Broxton, Oklahoma (which was introduced in Stracysnki’s run years ago) was destroyed by another writer a few years back. Well, our heroes get wrapped up in a plotline to try and restore the town to life.

The details aren’t important, what is important is that these three issues are the best of Stracynski’s run, as the banter between the heroes is great, and features the best elements of his previous runs. This is an enjoyable endcap to the series, though it too is convoluted in it’s plot revolving around bringing a town back to life.

Still, the ending of this volume of the Captain America comics is abrupt. The final issue ends with a blurb written by Stracynski, thanking us for reading what he calls a “diversion”. With all of these unfinished plot elements, I’m left wondering: did Stracynski grow tired and say “Yeah, this isn’t working out like I wanted” and he threw in the towel, or is Marvel Editorial to blame? Did they come along say “We’re thinking of going in a different direction than with all of this mysticism”?

With the glacier pace of the “change agents” storyline and the feeling of grandiose concepts being introduced, but not fully implemented, in the end, Stracynski’s run feels like a misfire. This is one of the shortest runs of Captain America in history (with a mere 16 issues). Marvel has recently announced a new volume of Captain America (with a new Issue #1) is starting this July, written by famed writer Chip Zdarsky (fresh off of recent popular runs on Daredevil and Batman). We’ll see if this new upcoming volume has more durability than what we’ve gotten the last year and a half with Stracynski.

Captain America (2023-2024) #1-16 is now available on Marvel Unlimited or for purchase digitally on Comixology, or in print at your local comic book store.