The Daughters of Liberty stage a jailbreak in Captain America No. 11
By Alex Widen
Do the Daughters of Liberty Have a Solid Plan?
As this column has alleged more than once, Ta-Nehisi Coates has an uphill battle here. Plots involving Cap being framed for crimes and/or tarnished in the public by villains is old hat. It was virtually a standard plot for the character when he returned to the “modern” Marvel Universe in the 1960s. His challenge is to do this sort of story — where a noble jailbreak is a typical chapter — in a way which isn’t predictable. Unfortunately, Coates makes some awkward story choices.
Image by Marvel Comics
Chief among them is the jailbreak itself. While Sharon may have deemed it necessary to liberate Steve despite his wishes to prevent him from being killed within, her strategy with the Lady Liberators is overkill. If Invisible Woman, with the aid of a mole, was able to breach the security — and take Strucker down in three panels — why couldn’t she have merely freed Cap alone? Instead, Carter crippled the prison and not only led to a bunch of guards — who were only doing their jobs — getting hurt, but unleashed supervillains upon the populace.
Image by Marvel Comics
Not even Captain America seems to care so much that his friends are willing to essentially liberate the Masters of Evil in the name of rescuing him. The Wrecking Crew are hardly innocent; they’ve nearly murdered (and in the case of Piledriver, nearly raped) many of his superhero allies. The Mandrill’s entire power is based on dominating the wills of women — like Purple Man only uglier. For a so-called paragon of virtue, Steve seemed to embrace moral ambiguity a little too quickly. It’s convenient to tell himself about the “greater evil” when it means freeing himself from jail.
Image by Marvel Comics