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Will The End Of Secret Empire #2 Give The Haters A Glimmer Of Hope?

Published Tue, 16 May 2017 14:30:53 -0500

Tomorrow sees the publication of Secret Empire #2. And with it, the hope of a generation.

We have seen Captain America turned into a sleeper agent of Hydra, the fascist organisation set to conquer America, the world, the universe. We have seen from Hydra's eyes that the earliest days of Captain America's life were a lie. He was never on the side of freedom, he was always Hydra, to the extent that Hydra alongside the Nazis won the Second World War. That was until those pesky do-gooders the Allies used a cosmic cube to change everything and make Captain America a good guy. But Hydra were able to save their version of Captain America for later…

And now, through legal and political means, Captain America, Director Of SHIELD runs the USA as a fascist dictatorship, subduing the people through fluoride and chemtrails. And successfully fighting any rebellion. It all looks pretty bleak.

And Marvel has been condemned by some commentators for making Captain America, created by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon as an anti-Nazi propaganda weapon, into what they see as nothing more than a Nazi. For glorifying fascistic imagery. And for rewriting the Marvel Universe as a place where the Nazis were shown to win.

There has also been outrage for portraying fictional Auschwitz survivor Magneto as Hydra on covers (but not in the comic), lesser outrage for portraying Roma character Scarlet Witch as a member of Hydra Avengers (though very little for portraying Thor Odinson the same – he didn't even get the Enchantress magic get-out clause that Wanda got. Anyway.)

That's a hell of a lot for a final page reveal to do. I read Secret Empire #2 (and #3) a while back. Does it do it? Is Captain America redeemed?

Um… no. Not by that. There will be many theories as to what's going on, some will be generous, some not so, but I think there's going to have to be a bit of black-and-white text explanation. Probably an article on CBR with Nick Spencer and Tom Brevoort titled "What Does The Ending of Secret Empire #2 Mean?"

What it may do is provide a handhold for someone reaching out. But for those who choose to fold their arms, it may mean less than nothing.

Check out Secret Empire #2 by Nick Spencer and Andrea Sorrentino on sale tomorrow to get the full details on what, I'm sure, everyone will be talking about. In fact, you can tell Nick Spencer yourself at the Midtown Comics booth at the 5 Points Festival, this weekend in Lower Manhattan.

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