Captain America

Captain Steven "Steve" Rogers is the only living, successful test subject of the Super Soldier Serum developed by Abraham Erskine during the Second World War. Transformed into the embodiment of human physiological perfection, the patriotic super soldier was given the title of Captain America and fought against the Nazis and their associated terror group HYDRA. Rogers was frozen for nearly seventy years and awoke in the twenty-first century, where he joined the Avengers as their team leader.

Biography[]

Captain America and Thor: Avengers[]

On a mission to a HYDRA base in 1944 with the Howling Commandos (minus Bucky for unknown reasons), Captain America stows away on a small merchant boat, when according to his plan it is attacked by a Hydra sub, the Levaiathan, as it is a perfect test target. While they are distracted, the Captain swims to the sub and proceeds to enter and attack the crew, wiining it for himself and the Commandos, who anxiously wait in a raft. After finding out where the base is via map, they quietly dock in the base, and on Rogers' count they storm out guns-a-blazin', to find it completely deserted. The team decides to split up in groups of two, all but Cap, having already moved to investigate, leaving Dugan alone. After searching, Cap finds a deserted lab that looks like a war had torn through it. Searching through the notes, He discovers that they were working on creating a literal Hydra beast, just as he receives a call for help from Falsworth and Mortia, who the creature has in its grip. Trying to save them, He throws his sheild to cut thru a tentacle or "head" which like the mythical beast, resulted in two more growing back. The creature then drags the two under water. Rushing to inform the rest, Steve is informed by Jones that all records indicate the expierements were only on people. The remaning team decide to set charges to blow up the base while Cap goes to try and rescue the others. upon finding the creature's lair in a caved in area, the Captain notices several german names scrawled into the wall, and is then told by Jones that more notes reveal that the Hydra scientist thought that the "Hydra serum" got in their water supply, when suddenly Cap comes across the beast, still with Falsworth and Mortia, and a fight ensues. the two Commandos escape as Cap stays and fights, when suddenly the beast scrawls "Help Me" in German on the wall. Cap then realizes the beast is the scientists, and with ten seconds until the charges detonate protects it with his sheild. The beast lives, and he and the Howling Commandos leave, as he reflects on the horrors of war.

Fury's Big Week[]

Whilst searching for Steve's body, Operation Frostbite, Fury was ordered by the World Security Council to abort the mission. A year later, Fury had kept a team searching for Rogers eventually finding him in the ice. Fury tries his best to calm down Agent Coulson over the possibility of meeting the WWII hero, of whom Coulson was a great fan.

The Avengers[]

A week after being defrosted, Steve Rogers found himself lost in a world that has moved on without him and found it very difficult to adjust to this modern world. Nick Fury approached him with a mission to save the world. Fury informed him that the Asgardian mischief-god known as Loki had stolen the Tesseract and intended to use it to conquer and rule the Earth. Rogers wasn't thrilled to learn that HYDRA's secret weapon and power source had found its way into this era.

Rogers met with Agent Coulson; a loyal Captain America fanboy; Natasha Romanoff and Bruce Banner, the scientist who attempted to recreate the super-soldier serum but instead created the Hulk. Rogers was given a new uniform and sent to Suttgard, Germany, where Loki had been sighted. Captain America arrived just in time to battle Loki, but found himself in a stalemate and had to be rescued by Tony Stark, the son of Howard Stark. While travelling back to the Hellicarrier, Thor emerged in an attempt to take Loki back to Asgard, only to end up in a fight with Stark, which Rogers himself broke up. Rogers protected himself from a blow by Thor's mystical hammer Mjolnir with his unbreakable shield, ending the fight and forming a truce with the thunder-god.

Back at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, Stark and Rogers felt a potentially violent friction between the two of them and Rogers found himself taking up a leadership position. Rogers was angered by the discovery that S.H.I.E.L.D. had plans to use the energy of the Tesseract to build weapons as a detterent against extraterrestrials. As the Avengers became argumentative over how to confront the imprisoned Loki and the differences between them, the Helicarrier was attacked. Rogers helped Stark restart a failed engine.

The death of Agent Coulson during Loki's escape and the learning of the Avengers Initiative led Rogers and Stark to make the decision of ending the Avengers association with S.H.I.E.L.D.. Captain America led the Avengers against the Chitauri invasion on New York and arrested Loki, who had been hindered by the Hulk. Rogers and the other Avengers greeted Thor farewell as he took Loki and the Tesseract back to Asgard, and knew that the Avengers would form again when this level of catastrophe were to occur again. Rogers rode of on his motorcycle to discover the modern world he was now a part of.

Character traits[]

Steve Rogers has always had a noble and honest spirit, intolerant towards injustice and abuses of power. Since he's always been weak and small, he has learned on his own skin what true strength is, and vowed to protect defenseless people at the risk of his own life. Despite being transformed into a perfect human by the Super Soldier Serum, he maintained his original spirit and character, often resulting goofy and shy, even in his new shape. In The Avengers, Rogers seems to change a bit since his reawakening, becoming somewhat weary of this new time but still seems to be the same man as he was in the 1940s. Due to his exploits of the past, Rogers seems to naturally have a certain amount of respect given to him, even if he doesn't look for it. It is evident in Coulson who is arguably his greatest fan. Even Romanoff seems to show a great deal of respect to him and is even friendly with him. It is also evident in Fury, Banner, Barton and even Hill.

As a Super Soldier, Steve Rogers possesses peak human abilities, such as formidable strength, speed, agility, stamina, dexterity and reflexes, as well as a healing factor that prevents him from being drunk. He's a highly trained soldier, expert in combat. As a weapon of choice, he uses a Vibranium shield, which can become a throwing weapon and is able to absorb any kind of impact; in war, Rogers uses also canon weapons like guns and other firearms.

Abilities[]

Super Soldier Serum: The serum metabolized and enhanced all of Steve's body natural abilities to the peak of human potential. Colonel Chester Phillips describes the Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR) program as the means of creating the first in a new line of Super Soldier to win WWII. Dr. Abraham Erskine chose Steven Rogers as the first test subject. With the aid a machine and Howard Stark, Dr. Erskine injects Rogers with the serum and dosing him with "Vita-Rays". It's transformed a frail Steve, he emerges from the machine taller and muscular.

Super Soldier Abilities[]

Enhanced Strength: Steve's physical strength is enhanced to the very peak of human potential. Steve is capable of lifting 800 lbs, but no more than 2 tons. His strength is among the most displayed of his Super Soldier abilities in the movie. After his transformation and after running Kruger down and chasing him to his escape mini-sub, He punched through the solid glass of Kruger's mini-sub and threw him out of it and back onto the docks in one throw. During his USO tour, he was able to lift a motorcycle with two USO dancers sitting on top of it. While escaping the HYDRA facility when he went on his first solo mission and after Bucky got across one of the metal bearings before it collapse, near the stairs before he leapt over to where Bucky was at, he bend an section of the railing to make space. On his last mission to attack the final HYDRA base, he threw an HYDRA trooper into the air and threw one out of the hangar bay of the Red Skull's plane. Also, upon his waking up in the hospital room set, he was about to be approached by two S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and proceed to threw them through the set wall, hurting them in the process. In the post credits of the movie, before Fury approached him, he was working out his frustration of his reawakening by beating a punching bag before delivering a powerful blow that took it off its hook. Also in the movie, an combination of his strength, his shield and his hand-to-hand combat skills made him an devastating opponent to HYDRA troopers who tried to attack him. When Steve battled Loki in Germany, he was able to land several heavy hits, however the hits did no damage and barely even stunned the evil god. He was able to break a secure door open on the Helicarrier by simply pushing on it. A combination of his strength, combat skills and shield enable him to tear through Chitauri foot soldiers with ease. He was able to get Black Widow onto an Chitauri airship by an combination of her running start onto an nearby car and then onto Cap's shield and then he throws her up into the air and enabling her to get onto one.
Enhanced Durability: Steve's bones and muscles are denser and harder than normal, to the highest human potential, which makes him very durable compared to a normal human. He has survived full on combat with Red Skull on two occasions, during the last confrontation between the two, Skull hit him with his own shield and showed no signs of being hurt by it. He was able to withstand Loki throwing him around in the square without serious injuries. When he was thrown out of the second story window of a bank and landed on top of a car, he was able to get up in a short time and continue fighting. Not even a blast from Chitauri weapon was able to put him out of action, though it was mostly due to his protective costume and he did go down long enough to require Thor's protection.
Enhanced Speed: Steve can run and move at speeds that are superior to the finest Olympic athlete. Upon his transformation and after Kruger killed Eskerine, he gave chase to Kruger, easily keeping up with him, showing he can run at speeds of up to approximately 30 miles per hour (48 kilometer per hour), and could probably run a mile in little over a minute when under duress (which would roughly be a little less than 60 miles per hour). He was able to cover at least several blocks quickly during the attack in New York and dodge Chitauri attacks and return back to Barton and Romanoff to help them in under what seems to be at least 7-10 minutes.
Enhanced Stamina: Steve musculature produces less fatigue toxins during physical activity than the musculature of an ordinary human. Roger's body eliminates the excessive build-up of fatigue-producing chemicals in his muscles, granting him exceptional endurance and lung capacity. As seen in the movie, Steve could catch up with Kruger's mini-sub while swimming under water. As mentioned, he was able to go several blocks to reach police officers and back to help Hawkeye and Black Widow and looked like he didn't broke a sweat or wasn't tired at all.
Enhanced Senses: Steve senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch are at the highest possible limits of human potential.
Enhanced Agility: His agility is greater than that of an Olympic gold medalist. He can coordinate his body with balance, flexibility, and dexterity. He also has the ability to leap 50 yards out in a single bound and 20 ft into the air without a running start, which he displayed while chasing after Kruger, clearing an large fence in one leap. Also, while the first HYDRA base exploding, Steve leapt to the other side to reach Bucky. He was able to leap around up to a catwalk in an storage room on the Helicarrier and was able to leap back and forward in the damaged section of one of the Helicarrier's engines. Also, he leapt off the bridge on to the top of a bus and then on top of a car and land on the ground while dodging Chitauri attacks. Also, he leapt over a car with a simple running move and another car with a parkour-type move and didn't lose any momentunm.
Enhanced Reflexes: Steve reflexes are similarly enhanced and are superior to those of the finest athlete.
Enhanced Mental Process: His mental performance has been greatly enhanced, allowing his mind to operate in the most efficient and rapid manner possible, though he is still far from being a genius like Tony Stark or Bruce Banner. But in The Avengers, even with his limited knowledge of technology Steve was still able to help Tony repair the Helicarrier and saved it from crashing.
Enhanced Healing: Rogers' healing speed and efficiency is at the highest limits of human potential, which means he can heal faster than most humans. His healing preventing him from getting drunk and let him survive whilst being frozen for almost 70 years. It is unclear at this time if the serum also helps extend his lifespan but it may be possible. While he displayed various cuts during the battle of New York, after the battle, he seems to fully heal and no longer displayed the wounds of battle.
Longevity: Steve Rogers was frozen in ice for nearly 70 years before waking up in the 21st century. It is theorized that the serum dramatically slows Roger's aging due to extensively healthy cells.

Other Abilities

Indomitable Will: Steve Rogers is an extremely dedicated person. Despite being physically weak and small he still try to enlisted in the Army, after being rejected for his poor health and condition. Then even after he became a "Super Soldier" instead of fighting the enemy, Steve was used to inspire the American solders. But after he heard that the 107th, including Bucky where captured in a nearby HYDRA facility he went behind enemy lines and rescue them. After he rescue the imprisoned soldiers Steve finally giving active duty. But after Bucky supposed death he went into a depression feeling that it was his fault. But after talking with Peggy and when it came down to stopping HYDRA once and for all, he found the strength to finish it. However, upon being awakening from the Arctic and found that the world had changed and gone on without him, he once again went into a depression. However, due to striking a friendship with both Coulson, who is his greatest fan and Romanoff, who was friendly with him when they met on the deck of the Helicarrier, he slowly but surely started to come back around. It is only when called back to action does Rogers fully find the strength once again do what needs to be done.
Master Combatant: Captain America has mastered numerous martial arts like hand-to-hand combat, boxing and judo during his WW2 days, after being unfrozen and through training with SHIELD, Rogers mastered modern day forms of martial arts like Muay Thai, Karate, Brazilian Jujitsu, Pro- Wrestling, Krav Maga, Wushu, Kickboxing, Savate and gymnastics put together with his shield. Captain America’s Super Soldier physiology plus skills have made him the best fighter in the Avengers and one of the best who’s ever lived.

'Master Shield Fighter: Over time of training and experience with his unique shield, as well as its physical properties, allow him to accomplish amazing feats with the item. Aside from bashing foes and blocking incoming attacks, he is able to throw it with nearly perfect aim. Rogers can hit multiple targets with the same throw by means of ricochet, and could even achieve a boomerang-like return effect, allowing him to strike enemies from behind or retrieve the shield without objects to ricochet from.

Advanced Tactician and Strategist: He is an accomplished strategist. He is able to formulate battle strategies and his brilliant tactical sense allows him to alter any strategy to fit the changing need of the situation. A prime example is when he formulated the plan to go in first by himself in "the front door" of Skull's hidden base and then after they bring him in, the assault team and then the full force of the SSR came in. His tactical brilliance also came into play during the Chitauri assault on New York, first in organizing first responders to protect the civilian population, and then re-deploying other members of The Avengers to best defend the city with their limited resources (even the usually anti-authoritarian Tony Stark recognizes Rogers' tactical abilities and accepts his assignment).
Advanced Military Operator: Rogers is well-versed in all Armed force disciplines including intelligence gathering, escape arts, demolition, survival tactics, swimming, mountaineering, march or drill skills, map making, map reading, communication systems and vehicles used in armed forces.
Expert Marksman: Rogers can throw most projectile weaponry with great aim and is well-versed in the use of firearms like the military-issued Colt 1911 or the Tommy Gun during WWII and eventually modern firearms, picking up an assault rifle and using with ease.
Expert Vehicular driver: He is proficient in driving motorcycles and piloting various aircrafts such as one of the bomber/jet planes and the Red Skull's plane.
Expert Sketch Artist: Rogers enjoys drawing and does so with his free time. He even adds humor and irony to his drawings as he sketched himself as a monkey in the original Captain America uniform.
Excellent Stealthiness: Cap was able to sneak around the HYDRA base where Bucky was held and was able to sneak around the Helicarrier, regardless of the surveilliance.

Equipment[]

Uniform: Rogers and Howard Stark both design the suit. It is made of Carbon polymer and it offers a medium level of resistance to gunfire. The helmet also served as a mask. And allows for a sidearm. The shield can be attached to the back. S.H.I.E.L.D. designed his new upgraded suit, it has more flexibility and mobility than his previous suit. The new suit carries a wireless communicator. The uniform is composed of a Nomex and Kevlar fiber.
Shield: A concave disk about 2.5 feet in diameter, weighing 12 pounds painted in its familiar red-white-and-blue pattern with a five-pointed star design in its center. Constructed by Howard Stark and made from Vibranium. The Vibranium alloy can absorb kinetic energy from impacts therefore making it nigh-indestructible. The shield is also strong enough to combat magic and mystical weapons, such as Thor's hammer Mjolnir, it can also deflect Iron Man's Repulsors. The shield's shape makes it a superb throwing weapon. It can cut through the air with minimal wind resistance. It is also able to bounce off solid objects, such as walls and floors, when struck on its edge and can be ricocheted off of multiple surfaces.

Relationships[]

Friends and Allies

Nick Fury - S.H.I.E.L.D. director and current commander.
Phil Coulson - S.H.I.E.L.D. ally and fan.
Hawkeye - S.H.I.E.L.D. ally.
Maria Hill - S.H.I.E.L.D ally.
Thor - Avengers teammate

Enemies[]

Red Skull - archenemy.
Loki - brother of Thor, attempted to conquer Earth.
Chitauri - alien race lead by Loki that attempted to conquer Earth.

Appearances/Actors[]

Marvel Cinematic Universe (6 films)
- Captain America: The First Avenger (First appearance) - Chris Evans
- The Avengers - Chris Evans
- Thor: The Dark World - Chris Evans
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier - Chris Evans
- The Avengers: Age of Ultron - Chris Evans
- Captain America 3
Marvel Cinematic Universe (2 comics)
Captain America & Thor: Avengers
Fury's Big Week

Behind the scenes[]

Regarding the extent of the character's abilities Evans remarked, "He would crush the Olympics. Any Olympic sport he's gonna dominate. He can jump higher, run faster, lift stronger weight, but he can be injured. He could roll an ankle and be out for the season. He's not perfect, he's not untouchable. So a lot of the effects, if I'm going to punch someone they're not going to put them on a cable and fly them back 50 feet, but he's going to go down, probably not getting back up, which I think humanizes it. It makes it something that, again, I think everyone can relate to a little bit more, which I really like."
Evans stated that Steve Rogers is much darker in The Avengers explaining, "It’s just about him trying to come to terms with the modern world. You’ve got to imagine, it’s enough of a shock to accept the fact that you’re in a completely different time, but everybody you know is dead. Everybody you cared about... He was a soldier, obviously, everybody he went to battle with, all of his brothers in arms, they’re all dead. He’s just lonely. I think in the beginning it’s a fish out of water scene, and it’s tough. It’s a tough pill for him to swallow. Then comes trying to find a balance with the modern world."
Regarding the dynamic between Captain America and Tony Stark, Evans remarked, "I think there's certainly a dichotomy—this kind of friction between myself and Tony Stark, they're polar opposites. One guy is flash and spotlight and smooth, and the other guy is selfless and in the shadows and kind of quiet and they have to get along. They explore that, and it's pretty fun".
Chris Evans comments on where 'Captain America' essentially stands in The Avengers. "I don't think he's the coolest guy—he's far from it. He's a straight- shooter. He's probably pretty boring as far as a character goes, but I feel like he grounds things. When you have these giant personalities and egos, there needs to be someone who brings them back down and reminds that this is a team, not the individual show."

Trivia[]

Before Chris Evans was cast as Captain America, Sam Worthington and Will Smith were in early talks for the role of Captain America. Later on Channing Tatum, Scott Porter, Sebastian Stan, and Jensen Ackles were on the final shortlist for the role. Stan would later be cast as Bucky in the film.
Chris Evans almost turned down the role.
Captain America is not the first Marvel hero to be played by Chris Evans. He previously played the role of Human Torch in the Fantastic Four films directed by Tim Story.
In Iron Man, a prototype of Captain America's shield is visible in the background in the scene where Pepper Potts discovers Tony Stark is Iron Man.
In an alternate opening to The Incredible Hulk, which can be found on the DVD, Bruce Banner can be seen attempting to commit suicide on top of a glacier, instead transforming into The Hulk before he can do it, smashing the Glacier. A freeze frame shot of the crumbling glacier shows Captain America in the ice.
The Super Soldier Serum is a main plot element in The Incredible Hulk, giving Emil Blonsky his powers. The 'one successful test subject' (Captain America) is also referenced in the film.
In Iron Man 2, Phil Coulson finds another prototype of Captain America's shield in Tony's house.
In the movie, the government doesn't want Steve to be in the field, instead wanting him to be a performer to inspire the soldiers. But when he hears that his good friend Bucky and many other soldiers had been captured and were being held by Hydra, he breaks out with the help of Howard Stark to go rescue the captured troops.
In the film, before Rogers gets his signature trademark circular Shield, he is seen using three different shields. The first time he uses a garbage can lid as a shield when he's getting beat up by a bully in the ally. The second time he uses a cab door as a protective shield when Heinz Kruger fires a gun at him. The third time he uses a triangular shield during a musical tour and later ends up using it as a weapon on his first mission.
In The Incredible Hulk, General Ross refers to the Super Soldier formula.
Due to the Super Soldier Serum, his metabolism burns four times faster than the average person. Therefore, he can not get drunk.
Steve Rogers originally drinks the Super Soldier formula, while in the movie Steve is transformed into Captain America with a whole special equipment, designed by Abraham Erskine and Howard Stark.
Steve Rogers was an artist before becoming Captain America; Hitler was also an artist before he became Führer of the Third Reich. This is ironic, as Captain America was fighting Nazis.
In The Incredible Hulk, when Tony Stark is talking to General Ross, Stark says the Super Soldier program was "put on ice," referring to Captain America's frozen body.
In the movie, many kids and a soldier are seen reading Captain America Comics #1, the first Captain America comic ever published.
When Bucky takes Steve to the World's Fair near the beginning of the film he says, "We're going to the future" - a foreshadowing that Steve Rogers will actually go to the future at the end of the film.
According to Steve's WWII enlistment form, his birth date is July 4th 1918, making him twenty-five in 1943. Decades later in 2011, when he wakes up after almost seventy years, he is ninety-three (in Earth years). However, due to being frozen for so long and his fast metabolism, he still appears young.
When Steve awakens for the first time in almost seventy years in the '40's-style 'recovery room,' he hears the archive remains of a vintage Ebbets Field game from May 1941 on an old-fashioned radio and knows because he was there. This is actually a reference to a real baseball game played at Ebbets Field on May 25th '41, where Pete Reiser of the Brooklyn Dodgers hit the park grand slam. Sportscaster, Red Barber, is believed to have been the game's announcer (as heard by Steve on the radio) because he was with Ebbets Field at the time. Also, since Steve's birth date is July 4th 1918, he was twenty-two at the time of the game since he turned twenty-three on July 4th '41. All together, this is two years behind '43 when Steve became Cap at twenty-five.