Steve Rogers in the MCU has many similarities as well as many differences from his comic book self. With so many decades of Captain America comics, there have been some wild storylines, strange moments, and interesting details about everyone’s favorite Star-Spangled man over the years. The MCU version consolidates many of these comic book traits and stories while also adding in some changes.
For fans who want to know all they can about Captain Rogers, we’ve put together a list of 10 things MCU fans probably don’t know about Captain America.
10. HIS BIRTHDAY IS LITERALLY THE 4TH OF JULY.
Steve Rogers was literally born on Independence Day. In the early days of comics, there wasn’t necessarily a lot of nuance. Steve was mainly a character created to be patriotic and punch Hitler, so it’s not surprising they went really literally with his birthday. The choice is fitting, however, as over the years Cap has come to represent the best ideals of America. (A role which Chris Evans himself seems to be taking on in real life, too.) Plus, if you’re into astrology, you now know that he is a Cancer.
9. THE SUPER SOLDIER SERUM ENHANCED ALL HIS PERSONALITY TRAITS, TOO.
The idea behind the serum that’s given to Captain America is that it enhances, and this includes Steve’s body as well as his personality traits. The serum would make bad traits worse and good ones better, which is why it was so important to pick a person who was inherently good. This is probably why Steve is so willing to sacrifice himself over and over and do anything to save people. This is also probably why he can be so damn stubborn at times and has a hard time seeing things other than black and white.
8. THE CAPTAIN AMERICA IDENTITY HAS BEEN HELD BY 12 OTHER PEOPLE.
Many people are aware that Bucky Barnes and Sam Wilson have both taken up the shield and mantle of Captain America in the comics (and also wondering if one of them will again in the films), but they aren’t the only characters who have done so. Other characters in the comics who have been Captain America at one point include Isaiah Bradley (a World War II test subject) and even Peggy Carter in a recent comic book series called Exiles.
7. HE ONCE WON AN ART AWARD.
MCU fans might remember that there are a couple of nods to Steve Roger’s artistic side in the film. In Captain America: The First Avenger, we see a close-up of his notebook as he draws himself as a performing monkey. In the comics, he actually won a gold medal once for his artistic ability. The award was for the Creative Arts “Art of the Future” contest. While he might not use his artistic skills that much anymore, drawing is clearly one of his favorite hobbies.
6. HE ONCE WENT UNDERCOVER IN GRANDMOTHER DRAG.
There are some really strange storylines in comics sometimes. In an early comic of Jack Kirby’s Captain America, Steve has to dress up as a grandma in order to sneak into Germany and retrieve money that was stolen. In this comic, Bucky Barnes is in his original comic book iteration as a sidekick and a kid, and Bucky has to help Steve get into his grandma drag. Also, apparently Captain America can knit.
5. HE CAN RUN A MILE IN ONE MINUTE.
In the opening scene in Captain America: The Winter Soldier, we see Cap running around Washington D.C. when he first meets Falcon. In this scene, he’s able to leave Sam Wilson in the dust. According to the Captain America: 65th Anniversary special, Steve Rogers can run a mile in one minute when he’s at his top performance level. Generally, he runs about 29 mph but can sometimes go faster.
4. HE WASN’T ACTUALLY A MEMBER OF THE ORIGINAL AVENGERS.
While everyone today thinks of Captain America as one of the original Avengers along with Iron Man, Thor, and Hulk, he actually wasn’t a founding member. The first ever team included Iron Man, Ant-Man, Hulk, Thor, and The Wasp. He didn’t join the team until the Avengers happened to find him in the ice, and, once he was defrosted, he joined as an Avenger. Even if he wasn’t technically one of the originals, he’ll always be seen as one of the most important Avengers.
3. BEFORE THE SERUM, STEVE WAS ALWAYS SICK.
The MCU has some mention of this fact in The First Avenger. Fans can briefly see Steve’s information on the enlistment form and see that he suffers from many illnesses and conditions such as asthma, high blood pressure, and anxiety. The serum cured him of all of these illnesses, however. Along with this, he also ages slower than your average person. While he does age, his cells work at peak performance meaning that the aging time is slower. The exact rate of his aging isn’t explained.
2. HE WAS A WEREWOLF AT ONE POINT
This might be one of the weirder comic book versions of Captain America out there. With comics about Cap running for around 50 years, there are bound to be some strange moments that are a little off the wall. In a comic book run called Captain America: Man & Wolf, Captain America’s friend and personal pilot (who is also a werewolf) goes missing. Cap goes to find him and ends up injected with a werewolf serum himself and becomes the leader of the captured werewolves.
1. CAP CAN BECOME AN EXPERT IN ANY WEAPON IN SECONDS
This is a little-known fact that is actually really cool. This detail is revealed in a lesser-known comic called Moon Knight when Beast (from X-Men) explains that Steve Rogers who can master any weapon in just seconds. Along with being able to take up any weapon and learn it in seconds, Captain America has also been worth enough to wield Thor’s hammer multiple times in the comics. It seems like there’s very little that Captain America can’t do.
