U.S. Agent Takes the Spotlight in a Character-Driven Debut
- WRITER
- Priest
- Artist
- Karl Story, Georges Jeanty
- Letterer
- VC's Joe Sabino
- Cover Artist
- Declan Shalvey, Patch Zircher, Marco Checchetto, Toni Infante, Edgar Delgado
- Publisher
- Marvel Comics
- Price
- 3.99
- Release Date
- 2020-11-04
- Colorist
- Matt Milla
While U.S.Agent is poised to make his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in the upcoming Disney+ miniseries The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, the star-spangled antihero is taking center stage in his own solo comic book miniseries by Priest, Georges Jeanty and Karl Story. The one-time Captain America has fallen from grace once again, no longer associated with the federal government or the Avengers. And the creative team really explores how far John Walker, the patriotic superhero, has truly fallen as he receives another shot at redemption. In this new series, John attempts to prove his own worth to himself as he faces a threat that falls particularly close to home.
As paranoid as ever, Walker is now relegated to take freelance gigs as a freelance enforcer. After being tasked with investigating a small town that's in the middle of an explosive conflict with a mega-corporation set to destroy it, Walker finds himself saddled with a new, wiser partner as he suits back up in his U.S.Agent digs. And as Walker begrudgingly takes on his latest assignment, the antihero is haunted by memories from his past that are ready to resurface in a collision course with his future.
From the outset, it's clear that Priest has no intent to necessarily make his protagonist a more sympathetic character, at least not initially. John Walker is just as much the rough-around-the-edges, overly jingoistic figure as he ever was, even if he is at least partially aware of how much his life has spiraled. In not compromising who Walker is, Priest wisely gives his protagonist a foil to play off of rather than tell the narrative entirely from Walker's skewed, unreliable perspective. And, in typical U.S.Agent fashion, Walker gets to know his new partner in the way he knows how to communicate the best: With his fists.
While Stefano Landini had originally been announced as the miniseries' artist, it's Georges Jeanty that takes the visual reins on the story instead, joined by inker Karl Story and color artist Matt Milla. The art team's sensibilities work best in the opening issue's action sequences though there aren't all that many here. Instead, this issue primarily reintroduces U.S.Agent and the inciting incident that draws the costumed superhero back into action. The art team's work in these exposition and introductory sequences are certainly competent but the artwork doesn't quite grab the reader just yet. As the stakes are set by the issue's ending and with the introductions out of the way, the art team will hopefully get the chance to stretch their artistic muscles a bit more as the five-issue miniseries continues and really lean more into the strong moments appearing sporadically in this debut issue.
The new U.S.Agent miniseries doesn't feel particularly vital in the wider fabric of the Marvel Universe but instead serves as a character study for it eponymous antihero. For someone that used to be a one-note antagonist for Captain America and his potential, government-sponsored replacement, Priest explores the nuance of John Walker with plenty of teases of how the antihero will be broken and deconstructed as the miniseries continues. With glimpses of explosive action that hopefully will make for a more riveting read, Priest and Jeanty's opening issue may not be as high-octane as many readers may be expecting, with the creative team instead setting the stage for a deeper journey for their patriotic protagonist.