Captain America #289
Tomorrow the World?
The Present
The time has come for the Roxxon Corporation to launch their ambitious plan to try and take over the United States. To this end, Albert DeVoor is coordinating the Nth Command to banish America’s super-heroes to deadly alternate dimensions. They are to start with coordinated attacks on the Avengers, Fantastic Four, and X-Men, with DeVoor saying that with these main groups destroyed the solo heroes and lesser teams will be easier to eliminate.
At that moment, Captain America returns home from the future where Roxxon succeeds in their plan and turned the world into a violent dystopia.[1] Racing to a nearby pay phone, Captain America tries to use his Avengers priority to send out an emergency call to the Avengers to warn them of Roxxon’s plot to kill them all. Unfortunately, the operator refuses to listen to him and with time running out, Cap takes off to try and stop Nth Command from completing their mission on his own.
Meanwhile, the present day Godwulf and Iron Butterfly — two resistance fighters that Cap met in the future — station themselves outside the Baxter Building. They are preparing to eliminate the Fantastic Four, little knowing how they will come to regret their involvement in destroying the world in the future. When their dimensional projectors reach full power they make their way to the main lobby of the building.
Meanwhile, Captain America recalls how the Nth Command’s projectors are powered by a central unit that is costly and impossible to replicate. Luckily, after speaking with the future Godwulf, he knows that it is located inside the vault of a bank that operates as a front for Roxxon’s Nth Command. Leaping past the lone security guard, Captain America enters the vault combination. He fights his way through armed guards and various defenses to get to the central control room. However, before he can destroy the generator, Albert DeVoor activates the guardian robot built right into it.
While Captain America fights against this machine, more Nth Commandos arrive outside Charles Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. With telepathy shields in place they prepare to dump the entire school and all of the X-Men into another dimension.
Back in Manhattan, Captain America ultimately destroys the robot and the power source for the dimensional projectors. This happens just as some Nth Commandos are about to teleport the Avengers away to another dimension. However, the situation quickly turns against them when they discover that their projectors no longer work. With Roxxon’s scheme foiled, SHIELD is sent in to start arresting the conspirators. After leaving things in the hands of Nick Fury, Captain America takes off so he can be reunited with his girlfriend, Bernie Rosenthal.
Recurring Characters
Captain America, Nick Fury, Roxxon Oil’s Nth Command, Bernie Rosenthal, SHIELD, Albert DeVoor, Godwulf, Iron Butterfly, Avengers (Thor, Wasp, She-Hulk, Starfox)
Continuity Notes
Captain America has spent the past few issues in the future timeline of Deathlok the cyborg. Originally, this was supposed to by the future of the Prime Marvel Universe. However, the events of this story causes the two timelines to diverge from one another. Per Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Alternate Universes 2005, Deathlok’s timeline exists in Reality-7484.
Topical References
The narrative of this story states that the present day takes place in the 1980s, the year 1983 specifically. This should be considered a topical reference due to the Sliding Timescale.
Likewise, Deathlok’s future is stated as being in the 1990s, it is the opinion of this index that Deathlok’s future also operates on a Sliding Timescale.
The operator tells Captain America to deposit 20 cents into the payphone to complete his call. This should be considered topical because the cost of using a pay phone (what few that still exist) has gone up. I can’t find a website that confirms how much they are and I don’t care enough for a deeper dive, but it is certainly more than 20 cents. That said, public pay phones are quickly disappearing from New York due to the proliferation of cell phones and even the use of a payphone will eventually become topical. I suppose when that day comes we could assume that Cap tries to use his cell phone but the service is down because Roxxon or something? Use your imagination.
Bernie America: Sentinel of Liberty
Bernie Rosenthal waits for Steve Rogers to finally show up at her family home so he can meet her parents. She is upset with Steve for running off as Captain America and begins to imagine what it would be like if their roles were reversed.
Bernie daydreams that she is a superhero called Bernie America and while at an Avengers meeting she is attacked by Mo-Skull — a villain that is a combination of MODOK and the Red Skull — as Bernie America and the other Avengers battle this foe, they all trade quips and break the fourth wall. It’s all very stupid. She also fantasizes Steve Rogers as her dimwitted but handsome boyfriend who is upset that she is always going off as Bernie America instead of working on their relationship. She treats him with a condescending attitude and races off for another adventure as Steve cries alone.
Bernie is snapped out of this day dream by her sister who tells her that Steve has finally arrived. Racing downstairs, Bernie hugs Steve — forgetting all her frustrations with him — as she is happy that he is finally there.
Recurring Characters
Bernie Rosenthal, Nancy Rosenthal, Steve Rogers
Topical References
In Bernie’s fantasy, Mo-Skull plots to open Pizza Hut chains across the galaxy. This should be considered a topical reference as Pizza Hut is a real-world company.
About Assistant Editor’s Month
This issue is part of an event called “Assistant Editor’s Month”, in which Marvel claimed that while the usual editors were away at San Diego Comiccon for the summer, their assistant editors would be taking over for the month and wacky things were going to happen.
This was in the form of unconventional stories, gimmicky plots, and jokes. A lot of it was some real inside baseball kind of stuff and a lot of it has aged poorly.
In the case of this issue and every other title in the Avengers line of books, the cover is patterned after Silver Age DC Comic books with a checkerboard pattern across the top and the Marvel logo being stylized after the one used by DC Back in the 50s and early 60s.
The “inside baseball” jokes are the inclusion to the Captain America staff being featured on the cover rubber-necking over Captain America being defeated by Mo-Skull.
Anyway, if you haven’t guessed, the “wacky” Assistant Editor’s part of this story is the back-up tale involving “Bernie America”.
