#literally every comment on their release posts is about this so maybe? we'll get a deluxe version with the rest???

[stormlit]

not to get theatre kid on main (i'm always theatre kid on main) but h.adestown uk's album being LIVE and so good with a talented cast and accents that are familiar to me vs it being so horribly abridged that it's missing so many tracks that are both excellent but also vital for any understanding of the plot

[sunsoakedhighhopes]

Captain America issue #5, Case #3 - Killers of the Bund

In this issue, a group of German Nazis (I say German, because of course, there are American Nazis, and those are actually the most commonly featured Nazis in these comics) have started terrorizing prominent German-American citizens who refuse to join their ranks.

So, here's something that I think is historically interesting. We have a panel of Bucky and Steve musing that German-Americans are nice people, despite the war with Germany that's happening in Europe. This is reinforced in the MCU with the first scene between Steve and Erskine when we see Erskine almost tense up when Steve comments on him being German, and his later relief when Steve expresses that he isn't going to judge him.

And I understand the difference here, between this and what is about to happen to Japanese-Americans in this country just six months after this issue released. Because Erskine, and Bob Shmidt aren't just German-Americans, they are also German Jews who fled Germany. But I do think it's interesting, because I don't think we are likely to see this sentiment expressed by Steve about Japanese-Americans in the coming issues. I don't know. It will be interesting to see.

Okay, so one of Bucky's friends, Bob Shmidt, and his family are from Germany, and the Nazis have attempted to recruit his father for something. When he refuses, they beat him up and he ends up in the hospital. Bob runs to inform his friend Bucky what happened, which is very fortuitous, since, you know, Bucky is secretly bff with Captain America.

Yeah, you are Steve. Go get em!

Steve and Bucky sneak into the Nazis compound -- or, rather, they attempt to sneak in.

Bucky, how did you not see the bucket before you stepped in it? Okay, well you know how it is. If you can't sneak in, then you'll just have to fight your way in.

Steve and Bucky fight off a literal battalion of Nazis, and I didn't grab the panel, but Steve says, "You've had enough, eh? You're pretty brave until someone stands up to you and fights!" and that just feels like a very Steve line to me.

So, Steve and Bucky leave the Nazis in a pile of beat-up flesh, tell them to never threaten anyone again, and leave. I mentioned in my last post that Steve typically doesn't kill the enemies -- and I want you to hang onto that thought until later in this post -- and he says, "Well, we're going now. We never hit men when they're licked -- We're not Nazis! -- but we'll be back! The time has come for Americans to teach you a lesson! We'll be seeing you!"

Now, there's this thing in the middle of every issue, where kids could send in a dime and join Captain America's Sentinels of Liberty. Basically, they just got a membership card in the mail. it was a way for kids to feel like they were a part of the fight along with Steve, and I think they maybe actually did hold meetings (but those meetings were really just, like Captain America fanclub meetings).

I've talked previously about how Bucky works as a stand-in for the audience, but I swear I read somewhere, though I have to admit I cannot find the source again, that the Sentinels of Liberty was actually a means of propaganda in its own right, because kids would talk to their parents about how they were fighting Nazis, and how their parents should fight Nazis, too. Essentially it was a means to drive support for America getting involved in the war. Don't quote me on that, as I cannot find my source, but I swear I read this somewhere, and I think this case is really interesting if you view it through that lens.

Anyway, the Sentinels of Liberty exist in the comic itself (though this is the first time we've seen them -- again, let that thought hang out in the back of your mind a bit), as well, and are meetings where kids gather to talk about how they can help in the fight against Nazis. Like, literally join in the fight against Nazis.

Bucky of course, is the leader of one of these groups, and he holds a meeting the next day (yes, with fellow small children) where he instructs the members to find the location of other Nazi hideouts and report back so that Captain America can mop them up -- not that Bucky knows how to contact Captain America, because secret identity or something (?) -- but no one questions this apparent flaw in the plan.

Also, y'all, there is a picture of the group, and there is one black child in the group, and y'all.... the art.... ooof. That's all I can say. It's bad.

Okay, so these small children start spying on literal Nazis -- which I mean, look, you do what you gotta do, this was probably actually happening in Germany -- but as a means of propaganda, it is kinda a lot. Bucky happens to overhear two Nazis talking about how, at that precise moment in time, there are some other Nazis on their way to "take care of Captain America". Bucky runs back to camp to warn Steve...

...but it's too late because Steve is already missing.

I'm honestly not clear on whether the presumption is supposed to be that they took him from his tent (or at least camp) since they shouldn't actually know where to find him -- since secret identity and all -- but hold that thought, because the plot holes in the secret identity thing are big enough to drive a van though in one of the upcoming cases.

Anyway, where is Steve? Steve is passed out and being manhandled by a bunch of Nazi men.

Note that he is in his uniform, which would mean that he was taken as Captain America and not as Steve. But still...

Okay, so they knocked out Steve with some sleeping gas of their own invention, tied him up, and then we get this exchange.

Steve! You are a menace. Also I love how absolutely nonchalant Steve is, because then they tell Steve that they're going to use the sleeping gas to knock out the whole town and then take it captive. And then they quickly discover that they probably should have kept that detail to themselves, because this upsets Steve a great deal, and we get this:

Like, I am absolutely enamored with the fact that Steve was like "Okay, I'll stand here and pretend like you actually have me captured because it amuses me and I have clever quips about it" and then he's just like, okay, now I'm done pretending, and completely wipes the floor with all of them.

I mean, they didn't even successfully have him tied up (score one for Steve bondage fics where he breaks his bondage when he gets bored with it).

The Nazis run for their planes, and we canonically have Steve being able to fly a plane.

Also.... remember how I was like, Steve typically doesn't kill the villains.... yeah, that all changes here, where he literally does go target them and hunt them down.

Which is.... interesting, I think? The US didn't join the war until four months after this issue was released. Yes, ostensibly we joined the war because of Pearl Harbor, but things had decidedly been moving in that direction before Pearl Harbor. I just feel like we can track the overall feelings about the war and the Nazis by how Steve handles them at any given point in time during his run.

After he shoots down all the Nazis, and has a fist fight with one of them on the wing of an airplane (hello, Indiana Jones) he lands back on the ground where he meets Bucky, who tells him that the members of the Sentinels of Liberty (and their fathers) have gone to raid the Nazi hideout where they went before. Yes, again, literal children show up at the Nazi camp with a bunch of sticks and start kicking Nazi ass. And then Steve shows up and the Nazis flee.

Later Bob Shmidt's father turns up at camp to thank Steve for taking care of Bob when he was in the hospital (uh.... Steve did not take care of Bob while his father was in the hospital, he was off fighting Nazis.... with Bob! ... but anyway...)

Steve! Actually I think this is kind of sweet. He wants to reassure them that Captain America knows they appreciate what he does.

And Steve somehow manages to avoid KP-duty this time. May miracles never cease.

[sizzlingpatrolfox]

I don't think we'll ever see loud jikook moments again, now they're quite muted around each other, they don't talk much about each other unless they are asked about it, their affection have a certain limit too. I'm not saying that they aren't a couple anymore, but they haven't been showing it for a while, if I could only see them now and not see their previous behavior, I probably wouldn't have believed that there is more than a band between them.

I totally understand what you feel about seeing them in certain period of time/s and thinking that if you got to know them like that, you wouldn't think that they're even friends. Been there done that.

But I wouldn't be so sure about there not being loud moments anymore. I mean, I could be wrong and maybe there won't be anymore, but from experience, I can say that I thought the same last year and it turned out that I had been wrong.

I've said before how I really didn't see anything no spark no nothing between them last year. The only thing that made me think they were just fine even if I didn't ""see"" them, it was them coming from and going home together almost every day and the comments that Jimin did like waking up and seeing Jungkook, JK's birthday, etc. The car rides plus the things Jimin said: those were literally the only situations that made me think that things were still good between them. Because I did not see any affection or attachment in their actions or way they talked to each other, among other stuff.

But then DVDs were released this year lol! And you know how that went. Memories, ON:E concert, season greetings, all of that was released in 2021 but it was filmed in 2020. So, even if we're not seeing the actual moments right now, maybe we will get to see them six or eight months from now. I hate this SO SO SO much you have no idea, but bighit has decided that's how it'll be, that they will post behinds and stuff like ten months later after it actually happened 🙃

I actually think their moments will progressively be less frequent, yeah. And also that other ships might have their moments more frequently than jikook. But I'm sure there will still be some "loud" moments.