Captain America #25

History

Ed Brubaker had been building toward this moment since he took over Captain America (vol. 5) in January 2005, seeding Doctor Faustus's manipulation of Sharon Carter and the Red Skull's long-game conspiracy across dozens of issues before Civil War even began. The issue lands directly after Steve Rogers surrenders to authorities at the close of Marvel's 'Civil War' crossover, meaning Brubaker had to dovetail his own multi-year character work with the conclusion of a company-wide event he did not write — a significant editorial coordination challenge. Marvel recognized the issue's importance immediately: in addition to the standard direct and newsstand editions and an Ed McGuinness variant cover, a special 64-page Director's Cut edition was published that reprinted the full story alongside Brubaker's complete script and behind-the-scenes commentary on the mainstream media reception, and a Wizard World Los Angeles convention exclusive with a John Cassaday cover was distributed to advance ticket holders in March 2007.

Trivia · 8 facts

• Writer: Ed Brubaker; Pencils and Cover: Steve Epting; Colors: Frank D'Armata; Letters: Joe Caramagna; Editor: Tom Brevoort; Editor-in-Chief: Joe Quesada. Cover date: April 2007.
• The issue depicts the assassination of Steve Rogers (Captain America) on the steps of a New York federal courthouse, shot first by Crossbones acting as a sniper, with the killing blows delivered point-blank by a brainwashed Sharon Carter (Agent 13) acting under Doctor Faustus's mind control, all orchestrated by the Red Skull.
• This is the opening chapter — subtitled 'The Death of the Dream' — of the eighteen-issue 'Death of Captain America' story arc running through Captain America (vol. 5) #25–42, which ultimately culminates in Bucky Barnes assuming the Captain America mantle in issue #34.
• The issue is a direct epilogue to Marvel's 'Civil War' event: Rogers had surrendered to pro-registration forces after concluding that superhero-on-superhero fighting was tearing the country apart, and was being escorted to arraignment when he was shot.
• Steve Rogers's death broke into mainstream media: ABC News covered the story, with reporter Bryan Robinson drawing parallels between the fictional assassination and real-world post-9/11 American political tensions.
• Multiple print editions exist: a standard direct edition, newsstand edition, an Ed McGuinness variant cover, a 2nd printing with a wraparound Epting cover, a Wizard World Los Angeles 2007 exclusive with a John Cassaday cover (given only to advance convention ticket holders), and a 64-page Director's Cut edition featuring Brubaker's complete script.
• The story has been collected in the Captain America by Ed Brubaker Omnibus Vol. 1 (2007), The Death of Captain America Omnibus (2009), the Marvel 75th Anniversary Omnibus (2014), and the Captain America Modern Era Epic Collection: Death of the Dream (2024), as well as multiple international editions including French (Panini) and Russian (Hachette) printings.
• The storyline was adapted into a prose novel by Larry Hama in March 2014, timed to coincide with the theatrical release of Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Key issues in Captain America

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#25 Death — Death of Captain America (Steve Rogers)

#25★

#25 Death — Steve Rogers

Other variants of Captain America #25 (3)