Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Rare is the time I get to see a movie while it's in the theater. Yesterday however, while visiting Adepticon to pick up my Kickstarter rewards from Tectonic Craft Studios, my amigos and I had some time to kill and visited the local AMC Theater and saw movie, Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Very good movie and while I'm not sure it's the 'best' super hero movie or even the 'best' Marvel super hero movie, it's well worth watching.

One, while it uses a good deal of humor and has some catchy bits, it's also got a lot of gravitas to it. The situations are taken from many concerns people have these days in terms of security versus freedom. It may not be a movie of the times, but it is certainly reflective of the times.

Two, the action sequences are fantastic. I'm not one of those who mourns the death of 'shaky' camera when it comes to fight scenes, nor was I ever a fan of seeing little of the action in exchange for seeing some dude's face grimacing in pain and wondering what the hell was actually going on. The scenes are shot in enough detail and speed where you get the 'full effect' so to speak.

Three, the scenery. Not all of the action takes place in exactly the same spots. We have a battle on the freeway that is worthy of comparison to the Matrix II as well as many other great scenes.

Four, the characters. While this is a great Captain America moment, the 'secondary' characters like Nick Fury, Black Widow, and the Falcon, all have great moments of their own. They might not necessarily have the 'character' moments that Captain America himself does, but they get their share of the action.

If you're interested in getting more background on the comics this movie draws from, I recommend the following:

Captain America: Winter Soldier Vol 1: $3.99 in Kindle format.
Captain America: Winter Soldier Vol 2: $8.79 in Kindle format.
Captain America: Civil War: $3.99 in Kindle format.
The Death of Captain America Vol 1: $3.99 in Kindle format.
Captain America: Road to Reborn: $3.99 in Kindle format.
Captain America: Reborn: $3.99 in Kindle format.

Ed's strength in the comics, is that he was able to take elements like the Civil War that was going on in Marvel at the time and adapt them to the story he was already telling. A lot of these were on sale so they make a great jumping on point for those who enjoy comics.

I'll be doing spoilers next so for those who want no specific spoilers, read no further.

First, I'd like to thank Ed for breaking the rules of 'no one stays dead in the Marvel Universe except Bucky and Uncle Ben' For decades that was an excepted rule and was rarely broke. There was much fan angst about it when it happened but damn if a lot of great stories haven't come out of the whole thing.

In addition, while issues like work for hire and ownership of things continue to crop up in the comic industry, especially as the become mega movies, if you're able to, really LOOK and experience the movie, and then look and experience the original comic books. No, not the ones I'm suggesting you read about Winter Soldier, but like, Avengers #4. You know, the one from 50-60 years ago. Those comics, regardless of how great a footstep they started, have very little to do with the movies success today. Thank the current creators and artists who've made the movies, in my opinion, that much better than the previously were in decades past.

In terms of specifics, I thought that there was some weaknesses to the movie. When you look at villains, the Winter Soldier, due to his training and his physical augmentation in the form of at least a robotic arm, make a great foil for Captain America.

Someone like that is needed due to the sheer physical power Captain America brings in the movies. At the start of the movie, Steve, good old Captain America in civis, is lapping a fellow runner over and over and not actually trying to, he's just that good.

As the movie progresses and we see just how good he is, you might wonder, what can stop him? Apparently a super soldier who Steve knows and doesn't necessarily want to fight, but rather save, is the answer.

And again, the action sequences between the Winter Soldier and Captain America aren't the problem. It's that 'Bucky' isn't necessarily the villain. He's just the hammer if you will.

The real 'villain', Robert Redford playing Alexander Pierce, is completely wasted. We don't really get a good grip on why he does what he does or even what the whole 'Hydra' mission is about. It's hard for me to take it seriously when in his current position he's always got pretty much everything he wanted. There's really no 'agenda' outside of Pinky and the Brain methodology. What exactly would Pierce get in his new world order? He also gets so little screen time that I think his talents are wasted.

When building your villains, it's always great if the players have good fights and challenging fights. If they can use the environment around them and challenge their enemies in different ways while facing threats that might not normally be part of the standard.

But if the end result is some dweeb that doesn't really have an end game plan in mind? M'eh.

Another nice thing about the movie, is that it's essentially accepted that this is the Marvel Universe. They don't spent any time on the 'origin' of the Falcon. He's a soldier who happens to know how to use a specific type of super suit. We don't have to have a special origin tale to determine how he got it, or how Bucky as the Winter Soldier has a bionic arm. We can just accept those things now.

In terms of 'big', it's also great to see that the Marvel Studio isn't afraid to shake things up. By the end of the film, S.H.I.E.D. is in shambles and things appear to have taken a very different turn than anyone would probably have assumed they would. With the 'mega' structure that brought characters together previously, how will future movies like the Avengers work? How will the television series itself continue? Marvel has a little bit of a hook here with this option.

Amazon's Kindle books does another up to 85% off

Touchstone (Glass Thorns) by Melanie Rawn : I don't remember too much of Melanie Rawn but recognized the name. Solid cover.


Spider Man: Spider Island: Ah, more work from Dan Slott. Good stuff and a decent collection for $3.99.


The Death of Captain America, Vol. 1: The Death of the Dream  This was a fantastic arc. I have it and the other parts in the big ass omnibus edition. $3.99


Captain America Reborn: This is part of the same series by Ed Brubaker. Again, I have the omnibus collection. A solid part of the Marvel comic setting.


Anyone have any recommendations based on what else is out there? There were a few Thor collections but the reviews were... unkind to say the least.


Outside of reading comics, Shazam Volume One, which was on sale, was very good. A nice change with a lot of nods to the old comics. There are still others I'm catching up on including some Avatar the Last Airbender from Dark Horse that was on sale last weekend.


I've also been reading Parsantium, a Pathfinder based RPG. It's got a nice simple layout and is a beefy size and reads well. Needs a lot more art though.


What's everyone else up to?

Captain America: The First Avenger

Just saw Captain America, The First Avenger. It was a solid movie and I enjoyed it. I actually thought it was too short, which is a rarity for a me to think such of a movie. The actors did a good job with their characters. The little differences between the comic and movies, actually worked in the movies favor this time around. For example,I wouldn't mind seeing the origin of the Red Skull as done in the movie makes a lot of sense and makes the Red Skull and Captain America more alike in some ways.

Now I'll be talking about specifics in the movie and how they bounce around the old brain and how I might relate some of that to a role playing game.

In terms of structure, Captain America is a soldier. Prior to that, he is a patriot. He wants to serve his country. One of the reasons I like games that follow some type of military structure, either mercenary or military, is that they provide a fairly clear structure that allows the game to flow in a manner that the GM has a little bit more leeway in controlling. As shown in the film however, not every soldier always does as he's told and even in those situations, they work out to be action filled scenarios that have the soldier 'officially' in the wrong, but doing such a good job of crippling the enemy, that it still works out to every one's advantage and any actual punishments are wink winked away.

For equipment, Captain America uses a specialized mesh for his uniform to protect him from small arms fire as well as from bayonets. His shield however, is a unique weapon of defense that is painted over and over again in the colors of his home country. With his augmented strength and agility, the shield becomes both defensive and offensive weapon. It is also iconic. Few fans of Marvel Comics wouldn't recognize the red, white, and blue of Captain America's shield.

Supporting cast includes fellow officers and agents who are allied with America. Another reason why I enjoy the military structure, there are opportunities to surround the players with interesting people who may not have the same type of plot protection that the players have. Will an explosion kill a friend? Will a sniper take out an important ally?

The nemesis... I've mentioned the Red Skull already. In this version, he too benefits from the super serum that turns a man into a super soldier. It ties him and Captain America together. the actor playing the Red Skull does a great job of bringing a level of arrogance to the Skull that works well. For example, when first introduced, he is warned away from an item of great power by an old guardian who tells him, "It's not meant for normal men to look upon", or something of that nature. The Red Skull agrees with him! Other opportunities for the Red Skull to shine include his first physical encounter with Captain America, which is cut short by the destruction of the building around them.

This destruction is a good method of keeping the final fight from happening. It allows the audience to get a taste of the Red Skull's physical prowess and reveals his madness as he claims to embrace his greater than human nature, by showcase his well, red skull visage.

In many situations where there is a need for a nemesis, having that nemesis have a similar origin to the players can provide insight into the abilities, methods, and motivations of the nemesis. It also serves to set up the nemesis as someone who is just as capable as the players. a good villain needs a good introduction. He needs a good theme.

The Red Skull also benefits in that he has a lot of neat toys. His car for example, is a slick piece of machinery while his soldiers, Hydra, are all armed with high powered energy weapons with their own signature look. These touches work well for the movie in that they allow viewers to quickly identify who the good guys and bad guys are.

Captain America is also packed with high energy. It keeps moving. There are times I wanted it to slow down as it actually uses a montage of Cap taking down various Hydra bases instead of showcasing specific missions.  Keeping things moving is also vital to a role playing game. It helps keep things moving. It provides the players reasons to pay attention, to keep their hands close to the dice.

While many of the ideas are immediately of use to a super hero based campaign, they are also grounds for any campaign that requires the GM to have a military structure with a villain who shares a common point of origin with the players. Good stuff all around.