Spirit of '76 (Marvel Comics): Difference between revisions
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#REDIRECT[[List of Marvel Comics characters: S#Spirit of '76]] |
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{{Short description|Marvel comics superhero}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2016}} |
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{{Redirect category shell| |
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{{notability}} |
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{{R from merge}} |
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{{Infobox comics character <!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics--> |
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|character_name = Spirit of '76 |
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|image = spiritof76-comics.jpg |
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|converted = y |
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|caption = Art by [[Jack Kirby]] |
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|alter_ego = William Naslund |
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|publisher = [[Marvel Comics]] |
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|debut = ''[[Invaders (comics)|The Invaders]]'' #14 (March 1977) |
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|creators = [[Roy Thomas]]<br>[[Frank Robbins]] |
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|species = [[Human]] |
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|alliances = [[Crusaders (Marvel Comics)|Crusaders]]<br>[[Invaders (comics)|Invaders]]<br>[[All-Winners Squad]] |
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|aliases = [[Captain America (set index)|Captain America]] |
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|supports = |
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|powers = Brilliant athlete<br>Superb hand to hand combatant<br>'''As Spirit of '76''':<br>Wears a cloak made of an unknown bulletproof and fireproof material<br>'''As Captain America''':<br>Carries a steel shield |
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The '''Spirit of '76''' (real name '''William Naslund''') is a <!--Do not add "fictional" as it is tautological; superheroes (and characters in general) are by definition implied to be fictionalized to some extent.-->[[superhero]] appearing in [[American comic book]]s published by [[Marvel Comics]]. Created by writer [[Roy Thomas]] and artist [[Frank Robbins]] as part of a [[World War II]]-era [[superhero]] team, the [[Crusaders (Marvel Comics)|Crusaders]], and patterned on the [[DC Comics]] group the [[Freedom Fighters (comics)|Freedom Fighters]], the character [[first appeared]] in ''[[Invaders (comics)|The Invaders]]'' #14 (March 1977).<ref>{{cite book |last1=DeFalco |first1=Tom |last2=Sanderson |first2=Peter |last3=Brevoort |first3=Tom |last4=Teitelbaum |first4=Michael |last5=Wallace |first5=Daniel |last6=Darling |first6=Andrew |last7=Forbeck |first7=Matt |last8=Cowsill |first8=Alan |last9=Bray |first9=Adam |title=The Marvel Encyclopedia |date=2019 |publisher=DK Publishing |isbn=978-1-4654-7890-0 |page=350}}</ref> |
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The Spirit of '76 was the equivalent of Freedom Fighters member [[Uncle Sam (comics)|Uncle Sam]], originally a [[Quality Comics]] character.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.internationalhero.co.uk/c/capamer1.htm | title=Captain America (Spirit of '76)|work=International Hero|date=July 16, 1945|access-date=January 9, 2011}}</ref> In the stories, the character briefly assumed the role of Captain America after the original – Steve Rogers – was presumed dead. However, he was killed in action. |
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==Publication history== |
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Marvel's Spirit of '76 appeared as a member of the short-lived superhero team the Crusaders in ''The Invaders'' #14–15 (March–April 1977). In a [[Canon (fiction)|canonical]] portion of a story in issue #4 (Aug. 1977) of the [[Multiverse (Marvel Comics)|alternative universe]] series ''[[What If (comics)|What If?]]'', Naslund succeeds Steve Rogers as [[Captain America]], the first of three official replacements until Rogers resumed the role years later. This [[retcon]] became necessary after Marvel's conflicting accounts of Captain America in 1950s and 1960s comics had created a discrepancy. |
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==Fictional character biography== |
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William Naslund was born in [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]]. An athletic young man, hoping to help the Allies' World War II efforts in a unique way, he develops exceptional fighting skills and learns to copy some of the moves Captain America employed with the discus-like shield that he carried. He is recruited by a mysterious man called "Alfie" to become a costumed hero in the new team of adventurers called the [[Crusaders (Marvel Comics)|Crusaders]], alongside [[Dyna-Mite]], [[Ghost Girl (Marvel Comics)|Ghost Girl]], Thunderfist, [[Captain Wings]], and Tommy Lightning. The team eventually learns that Alfie is a German agent, but not before he has manipulated them into fighting the Allied super-team the [[Invaders (comics)|Invaders]]. Upon learning how they had been duped, all the Crusaders but Naslund left costumed adventuring.<ref>''The Invaders'' #14–15 (Mar–April 1977)</ref> |
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When the original Captain America, Steve Rogers, and his sidekick, [[Bucky Barnes|Bucky]], went [[missing in action]] in 1945, U.S. President [[Harry S. Truman]] recruited Naslund and a young man named [[Bucky (Marvel Comics)|Fred Davis]] to become the new Captain America and Bucky.<ref>''What If'' #4 (August 1977)</ref> Alongside [[Namor]] the Sub-Mariner and the original [[Red Guardian#Aleksey Lebedev|Red Guardian]], the new Captain America stopped a Nazi plot to destroy the Potsdam Conference.<ref>''Namor, the Sub-Mariner Annual'' #1 (1991)</ref> They briefly fought alongside the post-war [[All-Winners Squad]], battling [[Isbisa]]<ref>''All-Winners Comics'' #19 (Fall 1946)</ref> and, with the [[Blonde Phantom]], fought to prevent a criminal attempt to steal the atomic bomb, encountering a time-traveling [[She-Hulk]] during this mission.<ref>''The Sensational She-Hulk'' #22 (December 1990)</ref> Naslund was killed in 1946 in the line of duty when he was crushed to death by a robot serving the [[android (robot)|android]] named [[Adam II]] while warning the rest of the All-Winners Squad of Adam II's attempt to kidnap or kill then-Congressional candidate [[John F. Kennedy]] in Boston. Naslund was succeeded as Captain America by [[Jeffrey Mace]], formerly the superhero [[Patriot (comics)|Patriot]].<ref>''What If'' #4 (August 1977; canonical story)</ref> Naslund was later brought through time by the [[Contemplator (Marvel Comics)|Contemplator]] to battle an [[Adam II]] of an alternate world alongside the original Captain America, Jeffrey Mace, and the [[Grand Director|1950s Captain America]].<ref>''Captain America Annual'' #6 (1982)</ref> |
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==Powers and abilities== |
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William Naslund had no superhuman powers but was a brilliant athlete and a superb hand-to-hand combatant. As the Spirit of '76, he designed and wore a cloak made of an unknown bulletproof and fireproof material. As Captain America, he carried a steel shield, approximately 2.5 feet in diameter and fashioned by the U.S. government after the design used by the original Captain America. |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist|30em}} |
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==External links== |
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*[http://www.marvel.com/universe/Spirit_Of_%2776 Marvel.com: Spirit of '76] |
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*[http://www.marvel.com/universe/All-Winners_Squad Marvel.com: All-Winners Squad] |
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*[http://www.comics.org/details.lasso?id=30854 Grand Comics Database: ''The Invaders'' #14] |
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{{Captain America characters}} |
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[[Category:Captain America characters]] |
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[[Category:Characters created by Frank Robbins]] |
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[[Category:Characters created by Roy Thomas]] |
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[[Category:Comics characters introduced in 1977]] |
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[[Category:Fictional characters from Philadelphia]] |
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[[Category:Fictional shield fighters]] |
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[[Category:Fictional World War II veterans]] |
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[[Category:Incarnations of Captain America]] |
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[[Category:Marvel Comics military personnel]] |
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[[Category:Marvel Comics superheroes]] |
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[[Category:United States-themed superheroes]] |
Latest revision as of 22:35, 25 September 2023
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