Captain America is dead, but that doesn't mean that this is the end. Captain America: The Death of Captain America Vol.1 collects issues #25-30 of the Captain America comic. Having brought back Captain America's World War 2 sidekick, the long though dead Bucky Barnes, as the Winter Soldier, legendary scribe Ed Brubaker found a way to ramp things up another notch by killing a comic legend.

Issue 25 of Captain America picks up at the conclusion of the Marvel Civil War, with Steve Rogers having surrendered to authorities and about to stand trial. As an underground Nick Fury, the Winter Soldier and Agent 13 (Sharon Carter), plot to free Captain America from custody, his old nemesis the Red Skull is plotting to have him killed. The death of Captain America is somewhat of an anti-climax in that, while he dies "heroically", it is not the usual superhero death you may have expected. Shot by a sniper as he's being escorted into Court, Steve Rogers dies on the way to hospital. That's it, no big explosions, no dying to save the world from a Nuclear Holocaust, just an average bullet.

Rogers death throws the lives of those around him into chaos. The Winter Soldier is hell bent on tracking down the killer, while Agent 13 struggles to come to terms with a "shocking" discovery.

You would think that a comic would struggle to maintain momentum after it's title character is killed off, but surprisingly this isn't the case. The Death of Captain America picks up pace if anything and it's no big surprise to learn that Bucky is the guy most likely to pick up the Captain America mantle.

Captain America: The Death of Captain America, Vol. 1 is a solid story, although it has to be said, there is a lot of set up for future plot lines in this six issue collection, as Brubaker establishes Bucky Barnes as the central character. This is recommended reading if you intend to follow the Captain America series, but would also be a good time to drop off if the death of Captain America was the only thing keeping you around.

What did I learn?

You can continue a comic series even having killed off the title character.