United we stand. Divided we fall.
As Marvel fans know all too well, that’s the evocative tagline that was attached to Captain America: Civil War back in 2016, when Joe and Anthony Russo placed Earth’s Mightiest Heroes on a collision course with one another. When the dust settled from Marvel’s superhero event movie, and the Winter Soldier was granted asylum in Wakanda, it looked certain that Steve Rogers was ready to walk away from his iconic shield and essentially drop the Captain America title for good. But there’s more to this arc than meets the eye.
That’s because it’s been heavily rumored that Avengers: Infinity War will see Chris Evans’ icon make the transition to Nomad, a character that gained popularity through Dimension Z from Rick Remender’s recent run. In the comics, Rogers turns his back on a corrupted U.S. government, and decides that his days as the Sentinel of Liberty are long behind him.
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, however, it’s a little different; in the fallout of Civil War, it seems Rogers has essentially been branded as a war criminal, and there’s even a throwaway line in Spider-Man: Homecoming that refers to Evans’ character as such. And though it’s unlikely that Rogers will don Nomad’s blue and yellow uniform in Avengers: Infinity War, Evans (and Sebastian Stan!) have now all but confirmed the transition, as they both signed a fan’s shield this weekend at Ace Comic Con and made a point to include Nomad in their message – which you can see in the gallery below.
Given that Rogers’ faith in the government has taken a knock recently, due to S.H.I.E.L.D.’s corruption in Winter Soldier and Civil War‘s Sokovia Accords, it really does seem that the MCU is heading for its own version of the Nomad storyline. Which has led fans to theorize about it coming into play in Infinity War. But are Evans and Stan just poking fun at this rumour with their signatures here, or are they referencing an actual plot point from the film?
Time will tell, but we should know soon enough, as Avengers: Infinity War is poised to shake the MCU down to its very foundations on May 4th, before Avengers 4 ushers in a whole new era in 2019. Rumor has it that the latter tentpole will wander down the route of hard sci-fi (read: time travel, alternate realities…that kinda’ thing), though a newly-unveiled photo suggests otherwise.
