Since WWII, Captain America has continued to fight the good fight throughout the Marvel universe. As one of the most important heroes around, the character has accomplished all sorts of wonders and impossible feats, all while inspiring those around him.
However, for such an iconic and true hero, not every version of Captain America has proven to be up to the same standard as the original. Looking at some of the stronger and weaker interpretations from over the years, here is our list of the 5 best and 5 worst versions of Steve Rogers.
9 Worst: Heroes Reborn
The Heroes Reborn version of Captain America is infamous for being one of the worst depictions of the character out there. With impossibly massive muscles, far more was wrong with this character aside from the design alone.
Fortunately though, Heroes Reborn itself didn't last too long, and most of the Marvel universe returned to its original status quo. However, the memory of this Captain America is forever one of the darkest chapters in the character's history.
8 Best: White
Years after issue #0 hit the stands, readers finally got the rest of the highly anticipated Captain America: White miniseries from the iconic duo of Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale. As part of Marvel's massive Secret Wars event, this alternate retelling of the hero's early days paid off greatly, especially in regards to his relationship with Bucky.
Though the story doesn't completely retell the hero's origin, it does offer a fantastic look at some of his more inspiring moments from WWII. Capturing some of the best traits of the hero all in one short story, Captain America: White is easily one of the stronger alternate versions of Steve Rogers around.
7 Worst: Hydra
As one of the more recent examples of a bad Captain America, the character was actually completely reinvented by the Cosmic Cube to believe that he was an undercover Hydra Agent for his entire superhero career. Of course, this massive change to the character didn't sit well with fans, as seeing Steve Rogers as the ultimate villain isn't really the best idea ever.
Furthermore, this depiction of the character was actually the main Steve Rogers. However, the drastic change to his mind still makes it easy to see why he is an alternate version. Thankfully though, this Captain America is no longer part of Marvel Comics with the classic hero back in the role he was born for.
6 Worst: Age of Ultron
Though he is only seen for a short while, the Age of Ultron Captain America is one of the most hopeless, beaten-down versions of the character ever seen. While this was a great way to show just how extensive the damage Ultron's damage was, seeing Captain America this way was truly heartbreaking.
Being such an inspiring and hopeful character by nature, it is virtually impossible to break a spirit like Captain America's before he goes down. Fortunately, this timeline no longer exists, but that doesn't change the fact that this is definitely Steve Rogers at one of his worst moments.
5 Best: Earth X
Set in an alternate future of the Marvel universe, Earth X offers one of the best alternate looks at Captain America around. Furthermore, a surprising amount is known about this version of Captain America, even though he hasn't been seen terribly often.
Even in the future though, this version embodies everything about Steve Rogers that makes him so great to begin with. Despite the changes made to his backstory in this timeline, this is still one of the bravest and most inspiring versions of the hero to exist outside of the main universe.
4 Worst: Amalgam
While it makes sense to combine a character like Captain America with DC's Superman, something about Super Soldier just didn't quite fit right. On a more obvious note, Super Soldier's costume left a lot to be desired, but several other Amalgam characters could have also used an improvement in that regard.
Though the character himself did seem to embody the best of both Superman and Captain America, something about him just came across as far cheesier than either character typically is. However iconic the heroes he is based on may be, Super Soldier is definitely one of the weaker interpretations of Steve Rogers out there.
3 Best: MCU
Of course, Chris Evan's depiction of the iconic hero within the Marvel Cinematic Universe is easily one of the strongest to ever be seen. Not only does the actor look the part, but he perfectly captures all of the best traits of the hero, bringing him to life in a way that is both exciting and believable.
For the past several years, Captain America has been an incredibly important plot point within the entire MCU, making his satisfying departure all the more heartbreaking. Fortunately, fans can look back on this version of the hero with fond memories, and also see how his influence will carry on moving forward.
2 Worst: Age of X
As another villainous interpretation of Captain America, this version of Steve Rogers is actually somewhat redeemable. After leading the Avengers against mutantkind with the motive to slaughter them all, Mystique of all characters actually causes Steve to doubt his actions.
Shortly afterwards, he has a change of heart and realizes the error of his ways, dying after trying to fight the Hulk. Though this version of Cap eventually came around, he still slaughtered a bunch of innocent mutants, making it easy to see why this isn't exactly the best version of the character ever.
1 Best: Main
Obviously, the main version of Steve Rogers has to be the best depiction of the character ever. Serving as the inspiration for all others on this list, this is easily the most important version of the character yet introduced.
Love him or hate him, there's no denying the impact this version of the character has had both within and beyond the main Marvel universe. With such an impactful and inspiring personality overall, it is easy to see why this version of the character is the best Steve Rogers to date.