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Brubaker Reveals the Mysteries Behind SECRET AVENGERS

And what was REALLY going on with the death of Captain America.

I almost titled this 'The Secret Avengers' Secrets'
I almost titled this 'The Secret Avengers' Secrets'

Ahhhh… elusive mainstream press recognition. The amount of times you see a paper like USA Today reporting on an actual comics storyline (rather than, say, a movie adaptation) is a rare enough occurrence that the novelty never really wears off. Why, I can even remember when an eight-year-old lil’ Tommy P was so excited to see a double-page write-up of GENERATION X in ’94.

Anyway, with some choice quotes from Ed Brubaker, the article outlines how SECRET AVENGERS will be Steve Rogers' strike team for some covert ops. It seems like the SA’s MO is going to be a lot like the Thunderbolts’ was under DARK REIGN, although they’ll be working for good, not evil. Also, with the exception of Beast, astute fans may have noticed that its line-up - - War Machine, Valkyrie, Moon Knight, Black Widow, Nova, Ant-Man & Sharon Carter - - consists of characters with military backgrounds. And that isn’t a coincidence.

Brubaker also offers an interesting behind-the-pages tidbit about the last few years of Cap storylines. Apparently, Steve Rogers was supposed to be return only six issues after his assassination in CIVIL WAR. However, the buzz the event created was so great (why, I think it might have even been reported in USA TODAY) and the sales were so high, Marvel asked him to extend the storyline. Luckily, he was already having a bout of inspiration - - enough to plot three years worth of Rogers-less Cap stories.

I recall that something similar happened with the DEATH OF SUPERMAN, as well. It was originally meant to be a three month storyline, but the response was so overwhelming that DC editorial decided to explore all the adventures of the Eradicator, Cyborg Superman, Superboy and Steel. Seems like comics history repeats itself.

-- Tom Pinchuk is the writer of UNIMAGINABLE for Arcana Studios and HYBRID BASTARDS! for Archaia. Pre-order the HYBRID BASTARDS! hardcover now on Amazon.com.