Writer: Derek Landy / Penciller: Federico Vincentini / Colour Artist: Matt Milla / Letterer: Elleti / Editors: Shannon Andrews Ballesteros, Martin Biro, Alanna Smith Collects Falcon & Winter Soldier #1-#5 (February – November 2020) / Marvel Comics
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27th January 2021
The Pitch: A tale of two Caps! An office of dead government agents. A gifted new killer. Two ex-Captain Americas. When a dramatic attempt on the life of Bucky Barnes reunites him with Sam Wilson, the old friends are plunged headlong into a race to uncover the new leader of Hydra before a mass-casualty event announces the terror group's resurgence to the world! The clock is ticking - but who is the Natural, and how did he beat Sam and Bucky so easily? It's a bullet-riddled, window-smashing, table-breaking brawl for it all, and the Hydra Supreme is about to ascend!
Bucky Barnes and Same Wilson are both characters who live with the weight of legacy. Having once carried the shield and name of Captain America, they've both had to endure the glory and responsibility that the moniker and accoutrements bring. But there are negative aspects to the expectations placed on being not only a hero but the hero for a nation. 'Cut Off One Head', the collected 5-issue mini-series, addresses this and more. As with so much of American espionage fiction (largely screen-based), there's the inherent notion that you can do “whatever it takes” to protect Queen, country, borders, National Security – but ultimately, you must be punished for it. Bucky's punishment is to be at the whim of the US Government. His crime: unwittingly protecting the interests of a country that wasn't his as The Winter Soldier. Reading through this I began to wonder how much the knowledge that he did what he did for the enemy must eat away at Bucky? He was part of 'The Greatest Generation' after all. Men who signed up at tender ages, often lying about just how tender those ages were. I also began to wonder how much of Bucky's willingness to sign up that first time was based on an inspired, morally sound fandom for people who were giving their lives.
the most frightening thing about the ‘lunatic fringes’ is that they’re so normal
The concept of adoration, fandom, emulation, indeed the passing or taking of mantles, is key to the story of Cut Off One Head..., a concept that itself has its basis in emulation and mantles. The prodigious kid who acts as Bucky and Sam's nemesis for the early stages of the book is even called 'The Natural' – surely a nod to the man who at one time everyone thought should be Captain America, Robert Redford? And within the story, for Bucky, The Natural must be like looking at a youthful reflection: A young kid, trained and highly skilled in the art of assassination who both talks a good game and plays it. Like a good sidekick, in fact. The book also plays with the concept of 'Domestic Extremism'. You begin to realise that the most frightening thing about the so-called lunatic fringes of extremism is that they're so normal. They have their own unique fandom, best accentuated here in The Natural's parents. They're fans who've taken the wrong message from the things they obsess over. Bucky's belief that The Natural can be turned around is a mirror of his own life and the way it could have gone if the right people had interceded at the right time. In saving the kid, Bucky is really saving himself. Or at least the part of him that was corrupted and broken decades before.
Perhaps then, that explains Sam's disdain for the kid and any notion of saving The Natural. His ill-temper with Bucky, the frisson of their not-quite-pals relationship gets to play out with a level of dissonance and remove. The Natural becomes a surrogate for Bucky in Sam's eyes, too. If he kills the kid, he's killing the parts of Bucky he hates also. The book wants to talk about the nature of symbols and ideals. When you represent ideals, like Captain America and the shield, people get inspired. They want to be you. But sometimes you're going to inspire the wrong people. And those people are going to do awful things in the name of the things they think you represent. If all this sounds too weighty and dour, you need not worry. Landy's writing is brisk, snappy and fun. He layers his ideas into the background and lets them play there whilst his characters get busy kicking ass and quipping. More than once this book made me laugh out loud. Vincentini's art has a pleasing, Rafael Albuquerque meets Sean Murphy fusion going on (whilst remaining his own) and as such, he gives us some interesting, dynamic panelling. The action scenes are faced paced, timed to perfection to deliver on the crunch and laughs of Landy's impeccable script. Matt Milla colours the book like it's Simpson / Bruckheimer action-fest, with golden hues and cold blues. Elleti's type is pitched nicely, giving an eerie, perky tone to the drones that would be Hydra. All in all a solid, entertaining, fun book that makes a perfect accompaniment to the new Falcon and Winter Soldier show you've doubtless heard is out now.
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