Generations: The Americas #1 Review

Writer: Nick Spencer / Artist: Paul Renaud / Marvel Comics Generations: The Americas #1 is required reading for anyone who’s been keeping up with Nick Spencer’s run with Captain America – either of them. Spencer’s spent more than the past year juggling Marvel’s two Caps telling very different stories. This issue is clearly meant to be the finale to both. The consensus on the Generations titles we’ve gotten so far is that they’re meant to be the bridge between Secret Empire and Legacy, but have mostly been cool side-adventures and nothing more. This issue is clearly an exception and appears to have a lasting impact. While the other heroes that got sent into the past to interact with their predecessors were gone for a limited time, Sam Wilson had the unique experience of living an entire life. He had a family of his own and watched his own lifetime occur with the wisdom of an extra 40 years of experience. Then, as the final treat, Sam gets the closure of telling Steve Rogers everything that’s been bouncing around his head ever since he took up the shield. But, in a disappointing move that I guess is best for the sake of timey-wimey stuff, nothing he experienced stuck. The years Sam lived as Paul Jeffries was left as nothing more than a dream. Sure, it will likely affect his outlook on life for the foreseeable future. But it’s another example of comics changing stories for shock value before going right back to the status quo.

Also, um, how blind and/or dumb are we supposed to …