Note that it is NOT Cap opposing registration that seemed absurd to me in New Avengers #21 (I'm coming to terms with that, though I think it could have been presented in a somewhat more nuanced way). It was his spouting on about the "corporations" etc... that made the character to me look like a mere mouthpiece of Bendis. Here is what he read Captain America "thinking" in a rather self-indulgent and condescending Bendis discourse:
This is where I'd like to remind everyone that the first President to really curtail far-reaching corporate power was Teddy Roosevelt, a Republican. And the first man to warn America of the so-called "Military-Industrial Complex" and the havoc it could wreak was Dwight Eisenhower, another Republican. Steve Rogers is a man from Eisenhower's era.
Interesting points. Not bad. Hmmmm.
Though in the quote Cap also bashes the American people as being a bunch of dunces. That seems a bit outta character to me.
... and YES, I LOVE the Ultimate Cap. I respect Millar's writing -- particularly as to the Ultimate Cap character -- as I would guess that the character does NOT parrot Millar's geopolitical views. A good writer allows the character to have his or her own identity apart from the author. I think some of the post-Vietnam writers who "used" Cap to advance their own agendas did so because they did see Cap as an American Icon, an American Symbol to exploit-- instead of as a fictional character who should have an existence independent of the author's views. Millar has instead remained true to the character he has crafted -- and what he has crafted as a much stronger ring of truth (in painting a man from the WWII Era).
I see the regular Captain America as the embodiment of American ideals in their truest form. He is a patriot, a man of action, and a humanitarian. He opposes America doing anything that is beneath her, so to speak. He encourages Americans to stand for ideals, rather than settle for what they are told is necessary. He is a true hero.
Ultimate Captain America is a good soldier. A better one than Steve Rogers, perhaps, because he does not question his orders, makes no moral judgements about the actions he is told to undertake, and undertakes his duties with a gusto and joy for violence that "regular" Cap just doesn't have. It's like the difference between Batman and Midnighter.
I also find it ironic that you like Millar's take on Captain America...I had always assumed that he would be offensive to Republicans, kind of like a neo-conservative sambo, as it were. Subtlety is not Mark Millar's hallmark, and with year two of the Ultimates he took Cap in a much more strongly authoritarian direction...he's still cool and badass, but his inability to question the situation he's in until it's all but too late is disappointing, to say the least. And in general, Cap (and the Ultimates, by extension) are being used to make a rather unsubtle allegory for imperialism. Yes, he's the more conservative-friendly Captain America, but he's also the less sympathetic Captain America, the one that long-time comic fans keep calling a "jack-booted thug". I prefer the Cap that walks the line between freedom and order, you know?
As for Cap bashing Americans as being dunces...well, let's be realistic for a moment. Our educational system's performance is laughable compared to other developed countries, we are well known internationally for our jingoism, xenophobia, and outright ignorance of any place not within our own borders, and more than half of eligible Americans can't even be bothered to participate in the democratic process. Even in the 2004 election, much ballyhooed as being so horribly divisive and hotly contested...we couldn't break the 50% eligible voter mark. "Dunces" seems like a mild way of putting it.
I've always appreciated Brian Bendis' portrayal of Captain America in his comics...his brief appearances in The Pulse and Daredevil showed a lot of class, and really displayed why Steve Rogers is the man in the Marvel U. He's a decent man, and a good friend. I haven't read New Avengers yet, but I doubt Bendis suddenly forgot how to write Captain America. I have noticed previously, on the old board, that you have a tendency to find fault in works simply because they part ways with your political beliefs. And that is well within your rights...but it doesn't have anything to do with the actual quality of the work. People get the two confused too often.
