Captain Carter #1 Review

Written by: Jamie McKelvie
Art by: Marika Cresta
Color by: Erick Arciniega
Letters by: VC’s Clayton Cowles
Cover art by: Jamie McKelvie
Cover price $3.99
Release date: March9, 2022

Captain Carter #1 continues the adventures of Britain’s first super soldier in a comic sequel (almost) to the Disney+ “What If…?” episode responsible for introducing the character. Now, Captain Carter contends with life in a very different London than the one she remembers when she’s targeted by an old enemy.

Was It Good?

Captain Carter #1 is, in a word, pleasant. The titular character was created from the Disney+ animated series, “What If…?” to imagine what would happen if Steve Rogers was unable to receive the super-soldier serum, and Peggy Carter had to take the concoction instead. Of the “What If…?” episodes, Captain Carter’s origin was the weakest because there was no appreciable difference in the timeline after the characters were swapped out.

The point of “What If..?” is to split the timeline in a completely new direction after a key event is changed, but the creators instead decided to retell Captain America: The First Avenger almost point for point with different details and a different lead. That doesn’t make it a bad episode necessarily, but it completely misses the point of of “What If…?” is supposed to accomplish.

In that episode, Peggy Carter isn’t trapped in ice to be revived decades later. She’s trapped in a pocket dimension and freed decades later (again, same result with different details). Here, the comic picks up later but deviates further from the “What If…?” episode by moving even closer to the Captain America source material and reviving Captain Carter from being trapped in Arctic Ice. It’s not clear why the change was made, but it positions this comic as a timeline all on its own. In other words, it’s a sequel to the Disney+ show, but not exactly.

Right off, Captain Carter is a relatable and enjoyable character. She’s strong yet humble, unassuming yet commanding, and polite yet direct. She personifies everything you could imagine as the right qualities for a Super Soldier fighting for what’s right, so on that count, McKelvie nails the character perfectly.

The story is equally pleasant. Putting aside the weird divergence from the origin story, plenty of time is spent showing how Peggy adapts to modern life, how she’s struggling emotionally with the loss of friends and family, and how the government is eager to pull her into superhero service. It’s a great framing job to show Peggy is in this world but not of this world, especially when Hydra rears its ugly head, forcing Peggy back into service.

The solicit for this issue mentions the art was finished by “rising star” Marika Cresta. Honestly, I like the art in this comic a lot. The pencils/inks have, admittedly, a Marvel house style, so there’s nothing super distinctive from what you’d find in a current run of X-title or Spider-Man, but I say that as a positive. The characters are polished and expressive, and the action scene is well done. The super-strong art is further elevated by Arciniega’s stellar coloring. From start to finish, this comic looks excellent.

Final Thoughts

Captain Carter #1 is a direct sequel to the “What If…?” character of the same name in a slightly different timeline. The character work to help readers get to know Peggy in a modern world is stellar, the art is equally stellar, and this was an enjoyable comic overall.