Steven Rogers


 * For other uses, see Captain America

"Not just a perfect soldier but a good man."

- Abraham Erskine

Captain Steven Rogers was the only successful test subject of the Super Soldier Serum developed by Abraham Erskine during the Second World War. He was given the title of Captain America and fought the Nazis during the war. Rogers was frozen for nearly seventy years and awoke in the twenty-first century, where he joined The Avengers.

Captain America: The First Avenger
Steve Rogers was born in Brooklyn, NY during the Great Depression. His father was a soldier who fought and died in the First World War and his mother became very sick. He had a close friendship with James Barnes, whom he affectionately nicknamed "Bucky". Before WWII Rogers was an artist. After the United States entered the war, Rogers enlisted in the US Army to fight in Europe against the Nazis, but he was rejected for his poor health. Allied German scientist Abraham Erskine admired the spirit and tenacity of Rogers, and kindly signed him up for "Project: Rebirth".

"Project: Rebirth" was designed to create the perfect soldier to fight the Axis powers. Rogers underwent regulartory military training and was selected when he proved to be brave, and was willing to sacrifice his life by throwing himself on a dud grenade (which he believed was live). The experiment was successful and Rogers was pushed to the peak of human ability. After the operation, a HYDRA sabuteur, called Heinz Kruger, assassinated Erksine and henceforth prevented the creation of any more super-soldiers. Rogers felt passionate about Peggy Carter, an English military officer overwatching his progress. He was denied recruitment into the army and was used as a propaganda tool, until he saved Allied soldiers from imprisonment under his nemesis, the Red Skull.

Rogers would later assemble a team, the Howling Commandos, to battle HYDRA across Nazi-occupied Europe, during which his friend Bucky fell to his supposed death. A final battle with HYDRA in the Alps saw Captain America's final struggle with his nemesis, who essentially dissappeared when grasping hold of the Tesseract, a mysterious powerful artifact allegedly forged by the Asgardians. Rogers crash-landed the Red Skull's jet into Antarctica before it could destroy cities around the world, leaving him preserved in the ice for almost seventy years.

After seventy years, Rogers was defrosted and kept in a simulated 1940s environment to try and ease him into what was happening. When he awoke he quickly realised it wasn't real and escaped into the streets of New York. Met with the world of the 2010s Rogers was calmed by Nick Fury who took Rogers back to S.H.I.E.L.D.

The Avengers
After a top secret Super-Soldier program transformed frail Steve Rogers into the powerful and heroic Captain America, his amazing WWII exploits made him a living legend.

Steve saved New York City and turned the tide of the war, but crashed into the Arctic during his final mission. Awakening in the modern day, Steve learned that he had spent decades frozen in the icy tundra. Now, Steve Rogers finds himself alone in a modern world that he hardly recognizes. When Nick Fury, director of the international peacekeeping agency S.H.I.E.L.D., calls on Rogers to help save the world again, he quickly suits up as Captain America, taking up his iconic shield and bringing his strength, leadership and no-nonsense attitude to The Avengers with Iron Man, Thor, The Hulk, Clint Barton and Natasha Romanoff to stop a threat thought to be too great for one of them to defeat alone.

Character traits
Steve Rogers has always had a noble and honest spirit, intolerant towards injustice and abuses of power. Since he's always been weak and small, he has learnt on his own skin what true strength is, and vowed to protect defenceless people at the risk of his own life. Despite being transformed into a perfect human by the Super Soldier Serum, he mantained his original spirit and character, often resulting goofy and shy, even in his new shape.

As a Super Soldier, Steve Rogers possesses peak human abilities, such as formidable strength, speed, agility, stamina, dexterity and reflexes, as well as a healing factor that prevents him from being drunk. He's a highly trained soldier, expert in combat. As a weapon of choice, he uses a Vibranium special shield, round shaped, which can become a throwing weapon and is able to absorb any kind of impact; in war, Rogers uses also canon weapons like guns and other firearms.

Steve Rogers likes drawing, teaching and long motor bike rides on roads less travelled.

Quotes

 * Abraham Erskine: "Do you want to kill Nazis?"
 * Steve Rogers: "I don't want to kill anyone, but I don't like bullies."


 * Red Skull: "What makes you so special?"
 * Steve Rogers: "Nothing. I'm just a kid from Brooklyn."


 * Erskine on Rogers: "A weak man knows the value of strength.".


 * USO's tagline for Captain America: "The Star Spangled Man with a Plan".


 * Tony Stark: "I don't play well with others."
 * Steve Rogers: "Big man﻿ in a suit of armor. Take that away and what are you?"
 * Tony Stark: "Uhhhh genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist."

Abilities
Super Soldier Serum: The serum metabolized and enhanced all of Steve body natural abilities to the peak of human potential. Colonel Chester Phillips describs the Strategic Scientific Reserve (SSR) program as the means of creating the first in a new line of 'Super Soldier' to win WWII. Dr. Abraham Erskine chose Steven Rogers as the first test subject. With the aid of a machine and Howard Stark, Dr. Erskine injects Rogers with the serum and dosing him with "vita-rays". It's transformed a frail Steve, he emerges from the machine taller and muscular. (Note: Steve Rogers in the MCU displays an combination of abilities displayed by both the Classic MU and the Ultimate Universe Captain America.)

Super Soldier Abilities

 * Peak Human Strength: Steve's physical strength is enhanced to the very peak of human potential. Steve is capable of lifting 2 tons. His strength is among the most displayed of his Super Soldier abilities in the movie. After his transformation and after running Kruger down and chasing him to his escape mini-sub, He punched through the solid glass of Kruger's mini-sub and threw him out of it and back onto the docks in one throw. While escaping the HYDRA facility when he went on his first solo mission and after Bucky got across one of the metal bearings before it collapse, near the stairs before he leapt over to where Bucky was at, he bend an section of the railing to make space. On his last mission to attack the final HYDRA base, he threw an HYDRA trooper into the air and threw one out of the hangar bay of the Red Skull's plane. Also, upon his waking up in the hospital room set, he was about to be approached by two S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and proceed to threw them through the set wall, hurting them in the process. In the post credits of the movie, before Fury approached him, he was working out his frustation of his reawakening by beating on a punching bag before delivering a final blow that destroyed it. Also in the movie, an combination of his strength, his shield and his hand-to-hand combat skills made him an devastating opponent to HYDRA troopers who tried to attack him.
 * Peak Human Speed: Steve can run and move at speeds that are superior to the finest Olympic athlete. Upon his transformation and after Kruger killed Eskerine, he gave chase to Kruger, easily keeping up with him, showing he can run at speeds of up to approximately 30 miles per hour (48 kilometer per hour), and could probably run a mile in little over a minute when under duress (which would roughly be a little less than 60 miles per hour).
 * Peak Human Stamina: Steve musculature produces less fatigue toxins during physical activity than the musculature of an ordinary human. Roger's body eliminates the excessive build-up of fatigue-producing chemicals in his muscles, granting him exceptional endurance and lung capacity. As seen in the movie, Steve could catch up with Kruger's sub while swimming under water.
 * Peak Human Senses: Steve senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch are at the highest possible limits of human potential.
 * Peak Human Agility: His agility is greater than that of an Olympic gold medalist. He can coordinate his body with balance, flexibility, and dexterity. He also has the ability to leap 50 yards out in a single bound and 20 ft into the air without a running start, which he displayed while chasing after Kruger, clearing an large fence in one leap. Also, while the first HYDRA base exploding, Steve leapt to the other side to reached Bucky.
 * Superhuman Reflexes: Steve reflexes are similarly enhanced and are superior to those of the finest athlete.
 * Peak Human Durability: His bones and muscles are denser and harder than normal, to the highest human potential, which makes him very durable compared to a normal human. He has survived full on combat with Red Skull on two ocassions, during the last confrontation between the two, Skull hit him with his own shield and show no signs of being completely hurt by it (no bleeding or broken bones).
 * Peak Human Mental Process: His mental performance has been greatly enhanced, allowing his mind to operate in the most efficient and rapid manner possible.
 * Peak Human Healing: Rogers' healing speed and efficiency is at the highest limits of human potential, which means he can heal faster than most humans. His healing preventing him from getting drunk; And let him survived being frozen for almost 70 years. Even he did survive and was found, it is quite possible he may age slowly than that of normal humans and might have been the same even up to now. So it is quite possible that Steve may still age slowly than that of a normal being. It is unclear at this time if the serum also helps extend his lifespan but it may be possible.
 * Peak Human Aging: Steve Rogers was frozen in ice for nearly 70 years before waking up in the 21st century. It is believed that the serum is responsible for keeping him alive all that time because any other normal human would be dead. It is also theorized that the serum dramatically slows Roger's aging due to extensively healthy cells.

Other Abilities
 * Master Combatant: Captain America has mastered numerous martial arts like hand-to-hand combat, boxing, and maybe some other forms of martial arts. (It is more than like he probably learned from some of the members of the Howling Commandos). Nonetheless, as stated above, an combination of his strength, his shield and his training has made Steve an formidable combantant.


 * Master Shield Fighter: Over time of training and experience with his unique shield, as well as its physical properties, allow him to accomplish amazing feats with the item. Aside from bashing foes and blocking incoming attacks, he is able to throw it with nearly perfect aim. Rogers can hit multiple targets with the same throw by means of ricochet, and could even achieve a boomerang-like return effect, allowing him to strike enemies from behind or retrieve the shield without objects to ricochet from.


 * Advanced Tactician and Strategist: He is an accomplished strategist. He is able to formulate battle strategies and his brilliant tactical sense allows him to alter any strategy to fit the changing need of the situation. A prime example is when he formulated the plan to go in first by himself in "the front door" of Skull's hidden base and then after they bring him in, the assault team and then the full force of the SSR came in.


 * Advanced Military Operator: Rogers is well-versed in all Armed force disciplines including intelligence gathering, escape arts, demolition, survival tactics, swimming, moutaineering, march or drill skills, map making, map reading, communication systems and vehicles used in armed forces.


 * Expert Marksman: Rogers can throw most projectile weaponry with great aim and is well-versed in the use of firearms like the military-issued Colt 1911 or the Tommy Gun during WWII and eventually modern firearms


 * Expert Vehicular driver: He is proficient in driving motorcycles and piloting various aircrafts such as one of the bomber/jet planes and the Red Skull's plane.
 * Expert Sketch Artist: Rogers enjoys drawing and does so with his free time. He even adds humor and irony to his drawings as he sketched himself as a monkey in the original Captain America uniform.

Equipment

 * Uniform: Rogers and Howard Stark both design the suit. It is made of carbon poylmer and it offers a medium level of resistance to gunfire. The helmet also served as a mask. And allows for a sidearm. The shield can be attached to the back.
 * Shield: A concave disk about 2.5 feet in diameter, weighing 12 pounds painted in its familiar red-white-and-blue pattern with a five-pointed star design in its center. Constructed by Howard Stark and made from Vibranium. The Vibranium alloy can absorb kinetic energy from impacts therefore making it nigh-indestructible. The shield's shape makes it a superb throwing weapon. It can cut through the air with minimal wind resistance. It is also able to bounce off solid objects, such as walls and floors, when struck on its edge and can be ricocheted off of multiple surfaces.
 * Motercycle: Steve rides a specially designed, high-tech motorcycle during WWII. The motorcyle was designed by Howard Stark and Strategic Scientific Reserve. The motorcyle had rocket launchers, a side carrier for a standard issue rifle, and Rogers usually places his shield on the handle bars to protect him from on coming artilery.

Friends and Allies

 * Bucky Barnes - Sidekick, Partner and best friend.
 * Peggy Carter - Love interest.
 * Abraham Erskine - The scientist who created him.
 * Chester Phillips - Former comander.
 * Nick Fury - SHIELD director and current commander.
 * Dum Dum Dugan - ally.
 * Montgomery Falsworth - ally.
 * Jim Morita - ally.
 * Gabe Jones - ally.
 * Howard Stark- weapons producer.
 * Thor - Avengers teammate.
 * Tony Stark/Iron Man - Avengers teammate, Rival.
 * Bruce Banner/The Hulk - Avengers teammate.
 * Hawkeye - Avengers teammate and SHIELD ally.
 * Black Widow - Avengers teammate and SHIELD ally.
 * Maria Hill - SHIELD ally.
 * Phil Coulson - SHIELD ally.

Enemies

 * Red Skull - archenemy.
 * Arnim Zola - enemy scientist.
 * Heinz Kruger - personal enemy (the man who killed Dr. Erskine).
 * Loki

Behind the scenes

 * Digital processing was used to make Chris Evans look small and skinny for the pre-Super Soldier Serum scenes in Captain America: The First Avenger.
 * Regarding the extent of the character's abilities Evans remarked, "He would crush the Olympics. Any Olympic sport he's gonna dominate. He can jump higher, run faster, lift stronger weight, but he can be injured. He could roll an ankle and be out for the season. He's not perfect, he's not untouchable. So a lot of the effects, if I'm going to punch someone they're not going to put them on a cable and fly them back 50 feet, but he's going to go down, probably not getting back up, which I think humanizes it. It makes it something that, again, I think everyone can relate to a little bit more, which I really like."
 * Evans stated that Steve Rogers is much darker in The Avengers explaining, "It’s just about him trying to come to terms with the modern world. You’ve got to imagine, it’s enough of a shock to accept the fact that you’re in a completely different time, but everybody you know is dead. Everybody you cared about... He was a soldier, obviously, everybody he went to battle with, all of his brothers in arms, they’re all dead. He’s just lonely. I think in the beginning it’s a fish out of water scene, and it’s tough. It’s a tough pill for him to swallow. Then comes trying to find a balance with the modern world."
 * Regarding the dynamic between Captain America and Tony Stark, Evans remarked, "I think there's certainly a dichotomy—this kind of friction between myself and Tony Stark, they're polar opposites. One guy is flash and spotlight and smooth, and the other guy is selfless and in the shadows and kind of quiet and they have to get along. They explore that, and it's pretty fun".
 * Joss Whedon stated that The Avengers takes place mostly from Captain America's point of view. "I set out with a very simple problem There is no reason for these people to be in the same movie. So that's what my movie has to be about. So much of the movie takes place from Steve Rogers' perspective, since he's the guy who just woke up and sees this weird ass world. Everyone else has been living in it."
 * Chris Evans comments on where 'Captain America' essentially stands in The Avengers. "I don't think he's the coolest guy—he's far from it. He's a straight- shooter. He's probably pretty boring as far as a character goes, but I feel like he grounds things. When you have these giant personalities and egos, there needs to be someone who brings them back down and reminds that this is a team, not the individual show."

Appearances/Actors

 * Canon (3 films)
 * Captain America: The First Avenger (First appearance) - Chris Evans
 * The Incredible Hulk - (Referenced only)
 * The Avengers - Chris Evans

Trivia

 * Before Chris Evans was cast as Captain America, Sam Worthington and Will Smith were in early talks for the role of Captain America. Later on Garrett Hedlund, Channing Tatum, Scott Porter, Mike Vogel, Sebastian Stan, Wilson Bethel, John Krasinski, Michael Cassidy, Chace Crawford and Jensen Ackles were on the final shortlist for the role. Kellan Lutz, Ryan Phillippe and Alexander Skarsgård carried out auditions in case Evans wasn't going to do the role. Stan were later be cast as Bucky in the film.
 * Chris Evans almost turned the role down.
 * In Iron Man, a prototype of Captain America's shield is visible in the background in the scene where Pepper Potts discovers Tony Stark is Iron Man.
 * In an alternate opening to The Incredible Hulk which can be found on the DVD, Bruce Banner can be seen attempting to commit suicide on top of a glacier, instead transforming into The Hulk before he can do it, smashing the Glacier. A freeze frame shot of the crumbling glacier shows Captain America in the ice.
 * The Super Soldier Serum is a main plot element in The Incredible Hulk, giving Emil Blonsky his powers. The 'one successful test subject' (Captain America) is also referred to in the film.
 * In Iron Man 2, Phil Coulson finds another prototype of Captain America's shield in Tony's house.
 * In the movie the goverment doesn't want Steve to be in the field, instead they wanted him to be a preformer to inspire the soldiers. But when he hears that his good friend Bucky and many more soldiers had been captured and were being held by Hydra he breaks out with the help of Howard Stark to go rescue the captured troops.
 * In the film, before Rogers gets his signature trademark circular Shield. He seen through the film using three different shields. The first time he uses a garbage can lid as a shield when he's getting beat up by a bully in the ally. The second time he uses a cab door as a protective shield when Heinz Kruger fires a gun at him. The third time he uses a triangular shield during a musical tour and later ends up using it as a weapon on his first mission.
 * In The Incredible Hulk General Ross refers to the Super Soilder formula.
 * Due to the Super Soldier Serum, his metabolism burns four times faster than the average person. Therefore, he can not get drunk.
 * Steve Rogers originally drinks the Super soldier formula, while in the movie Steve is transformed into Captain America with a whole special equipment, designed by Abrahm Erskine and Howard Stark.
 * Steve Rogers was an artist before becomig Captain America, Hitler was an artist too before he became Führer of the Third Reich.
 * In The Incredible Hulk, when Tony Stark is talking to General Ross, Stark says the Super Soldier program was "put on ice", referring to Captain America's frozen body.
 * In the movie, many kids and a soldier are seen reading Captain America Comics #1, the first Captain America comic ever published.
 * When Bucky takes Steve to the World's Fair near the beginning of the film he says, "We're going to the future" - a foreshadowing that Steve Rogers will actually go to the future at the end of the film.
 * According to Steve's WWII enlistment form, his birth date is July 4th 1918, making him twenty-five in 1943. Decades later in 2011, when he wakes up after almost seventy years, he is ninety-three (in Earth years). However, due to being frozen for so long and his fast metabolism, he still appears young.
 * When Steve wakes up for the first time in almost seventy years in the '40s-style 'recovery room', he hears the archive remains of a vintage Ebbets Field game from May, 1941 on an old-fashioned radio and knows because he was there. This is actually a reference to a real baseball game played at Ebbets Field on May 25th '41, where Pete Reiser of the Brooklyn Dodgers hit the park grand slam. Sportscaster, Red Barber, is believed to have been the game's announcer (as heard by Steve on the radio) because he was with Ebbets Field at the time. Also, since Steve's birth date is July 4th 1918, he was twenty-two at the time of the game since he turned twenty-three on July 4th '41. Alltogether, this is two years behind '43 when Steve became Cap at twenty-five.
 * During Project: Rebirth, Erskine explained that the "vita-rays" would be used to stimulate Steve's growth, giving him his superhuman strength. When Steve woke up in the present time, his height likely remains the same as it was back in the '40s.