Captain America #253
☆ Be the first to review + Add to your collection — Join freeCaptain America #253 (January 1981) serves as the opening chapter of one of the most fondly remembered two-part stories in the character's history, introducing Joey Chapman — the working-class third Union Jack — and marking the first appearances of Kenneth Crichton (the future third Baron Blood) in a single issue. Written by Roger Stern and plotted with John Byrne, the story brought the WWII Invaders cast back into the modern Marvel universe in a way that had lasting consequences: characters, relationships, and plot threads seeded here reverberated through the Union Jack miniseries of 1998–99, New Invaders, and Captain Britain and MI:13. Beyond its debut content, the issue is a touchstone for how superhero comics can use the passage of time as genuine emotional drama — the image of an ageless Steve Rogers reuniting with visibly aged former teammates was a storytelling choice that proved influential on how Marvel handled its WWII-era legacy characters going forward.
In "Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot," Captain America journeys to England to reconnect with his former Invaders comrades as the ominous return of Baron Blood stirs old ghosts. Written by John Byrne and Roger Stern, with art by Byrne and inks by Joe Rubinstein, this 1981 issue blends wartime legacy with a chilling modern mystery, all rendered in vivid color by Bob Sharen and lettered by Jim Novak—its cover by Byrne and Rubinstein capturing the tension of a hero facing both past and present.
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The Baron Blood two-parter grew from a story concept that John Byrne had originally developed while drawing The Avengers; as Stern later recalled in an interview with GamesRadar, the idea was never used there and both creators felt it worked better as a Captain America story. Stern and Byrne — who were, per Stern, mutual admirers of the original Invaders artist Frank Robbins — co-plotted the arc with Stern handling the final script, under editor Jim Salicrup, during a nine-issue run (Captain America #247–255) conducted under editor-in-chief Jim Shooter. The creative partnership was under scheduling pressure throughout the run, and a disagreement over a planned fill-in issue and a proposed Red Skull three-parter ultimately led to Stern's departure — and Byrne's solidarity resignation — after issue #255, cutting the run short before the storyline Stern had envisioned could be told.
Trivia · 8 facts
- First appearance of Joseph 'Joey' Chapman (Union Jack III), a working-class art student from Manchester who accompanies his friend Kenneth Crichton to Falsworth Manor and eventually dons the Union Jack costume to help Captain America against Baron Blood.
- First appearance of Kenneth Crichton, the grandson of Lord Montgomery Falsworth (Union Jack I) and son of Lady Jacqueline Falsworth Crichton (Spitfire); Kenneth would later become the third Baron Blood in the 1998–99 Union Jack miniseries by Ben Raab and John Cassaday.
- First appearance of Inspector Sweeney of New Scotland Yard.
- Written and plotted by Roger Stern and John Byrne (co-plot), with inks by Josef Rubinstein, colors by Bob Sharen, letters by Jim Novak, and editing by Jim Salicrup under editor-in-chief Jim Shooter; cover date January 1981, on-sale October 14, 1980.
- The issue is the first chapter of a two-part story (concluding in Captain America #254) in which Baron Blood — the vampiric half-brother of Lord Montgomery Falsworth — resurfaces in England disguised as Dr. Jacob Cromwell; Captain America is hypnotized by Blood at the issue's cliffhanger.
- The story uses the age-gap between the perpetually young Steve Rogers and his now-elderly Invaders teammates (Spitfire and Lord Falsworth) as a deliberate emotional and thematic device, establishing a poignant dynamic that informed later Invaders-adjacent stories.
- The two-issue arc and its immediate context are dedicated to Frank Robbins, the original Invaders artist who designed the looks of both Union Jack and Baron Blood.
- The story has been reprinted in Captain America: War and Remembrance (trade paperback; first released 1990, later reissued in hardcover in 2007 collecting #247–255) and in the Captain America Epic Collection: Dawn's Early Light (#247–266 and Annual 5).
Cast · 29 characters
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Cap travels to England to reunite with his old Invaders allies when the threat of Baron Blood resurfaces.
Plot details indexed by the Grand Comics Database (CC BY-SA).
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