What do you think?
Rate this book
Captain America (1968) #193-214, Annual #3-4
Captain America Omnibus Vol. 4
It's the return of the King! In 1975, Jack "King" Kirby returned to Marvel and his iconic co-creation Captain America. Serving as writer, artist and editor, it was Kirby unleashed! He created an intricate storyline that built month after month toward America's Bicentennial and CAPTAIN AMERICA #200. In the "Madbomb" saga, an aristocratic faction seeks to wrest control of the country by possessing the American people's minds - and driving them to insane outbreaks of violence! Then, the Falcon is lost in an other-dimensional asylum - that's run by the inmates! The tale of the Night People and Agron the Unburied One is a tense, sci-fi/horror thriller. And Kirby tops it all off with "The Swine," an action-packed adventure featuring the debut of Arnim Zola - and the return of the Red Skull! Collecting CAPTAIN AMERICA (1968) #193-214 and ANNUAL #3-4, MARVEL TREASURY CAPTAIN AMERICA'S BICENTENNTIAL BATTLES and material from F.O.O.M. #11.
656 pages, Hardcover
First published February 16, 2011
3 people are currently reading
208 people want to read
About the author
Jack Kirby
2,807 books478 followersJack Kirby (born Jacob Kurtzberg) was one of the most influential, recognizable, and prolific artists in American comic books, and the co-creator of such enduring characters and popular culture icons as the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, the Hulk, Captain America, and hundreds of others stretching back to the earliest days of the medium. He was also a comic book writer and editor. His most common nickname is "The King."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
February 28, 2024
After much anticipation, I was able to read Jack Kirby’s run on Captain America. Overall, it was pretty enjoyable to read. Kirby’s art shines through more so than other runs I have read of his. The writing is a little shaky at times but I do believe it gets better throughout the book especially with the bicentennial battles and the swine storyline. I wasn’t a huge fan of the Madbomb storyline. The introduction of Arnim Zola is an awesome inclusion to this run and definitely has some very freaky plot points. It was very obvious that Kirby had a lot of freedom on this run and for the most part, it pays off.
January 11, 2013
n 1976 and '77, The King of Comics, Jack Kirby, returned to Marvel, the publisher he carried on his back for a decade, and to one of his original characters, Captain America. This giant collection compiles a couple extra-length Annuals, the epic (and originally oversized) Bicentennial Battles, and his complete work on the monthly Captain America and The Falcon series. This is Kirby Unleashed, from the period where he was writing, drawing, and editing his books, and this run on Captain America is everything we've come to expect from him-- nutty dialogue ("I'm going to do what SHIELD expects of me--! But not before I've had a new hair-do!"), crazy villains and monsters, giant, beastly machinery, and delightful double-splashes all over the place. Cap and his buddy The Falcon tangle with The Night People, The Red Skull, and bio-engineer Arnim Zola (the man with an ESP Box for a head), and every page is a delight.
November 10, 2020
When Kirby returned to Marvel in the latter 70s, he was so far out of this world that I think Marvel just stepped back and let him go. Boy howdy is this book a ride. The only object here that people have really touched is Arnim Zola. Otherwise the book was too zany for anyone else to pick up and use themselves. Which sounds like an insult but it is anything but.
I would never hand this to someone who has no idea who Kirby is. Mid to late 60s nonwriting Kirby would better setup the reader to appreciate his brilliance, perhaps with a bit of coaching. But who else could pull off the madness in this book? This has been the best Cap of my present readings.
I would never hand this to someone who has no idea who Kirby is. Mid to late 60s nonwriting Kirby would better setup the reader to appreciate his brilliance, perhaps with a bit of coaching. But who else could pull off the madness in this book? This has been the best Cap of my present readings.
March 31, 2025
After his stint at DC crafting his strange and singular Fourth World, Jack Kirby returned to Marvel to create his own stories his own way, creating the bizarre cosmic gods the Eternals, but also returning to Captain America. To commemorate the Bicentennial, Kirby has the Buddha send Cap through different time periods, killing slave-owners with John Brown and urging the US cavalry and the Apache to all see each other as fellow Americans, discovering in the end the true meaning of America which is a bunch of kids believing in themselves and having a dream or something. It's reaching for a pretty lofty vision- explicitly rejecting the pageantry of nationalism in the face of the horrors and divisions of American history, but ultimately settles for a pretty banal conclusion, collapsing under its own contradictions. Pretty interesting nonetheless. The "Madbomb" storyline is kinda intriguing- Cap against a secret underground society of intransigent aristocrats with a psychic bomb that will make Americans get angry and start rioting. Again, a very clumsy attempt to explore radical 1970s politics through the very constrained medium of superhero comics. There are a bunch of weird storylines- asylum patients teleported to their own planetoid, an energy ghoul from the distant future, a psychotic Latin American dictator (who is probably propped up by SHIELD for his anti communist bonafides, although Kirby forgets to bring this up), the introduction of Arnim Zola, etc. There are a bunch of fun ideas here, but there is an aimlessness to the connecting plot, and Kirby really seems to not know what to do with Falcon as a character. He spends some time being basically lobotomized, but otherwise is just there, without much exploration of why he's Cap's sidekick or how he feels about all this crazy shit as a Black man in the 70s. Also Cap's love life is very hard to follow as new love interests keep being introduced but he also has Sharon Carter as his nagging ball-and-chain and it's really weird and off-putting.
September 4, 2021
A hefty 600 page compilation of Jack Kirby’s final run on Captain America from issues 193 to 214, with America’s Bicentennial thrown in the middle back in 1976. The debut came 5 years after Jack had left Marvel with a comeback of one of the best comic covers of all time. Jack wrote and illustrated the multipart Mad-bomb storyline, then the very patriotic Bicentennial oversized Treasury edition, followed by the Night People, Swine and Arnim Zola storylines. This edition includes two annuals, Foom fanzine and other material as well. I appreciated that they included the controversial letter pages and some retrospective.
Kirby sure did love to create monsters and aliens for sure! But while admiring his never ending creativity, Some of the stories and plots not only were very independent from the rest of the Marvel universe but even his characters (like Donna Maria) and own important plot lines left undeveloped or not even shown. Still a great collection for Cap and Kirby collectors.
Kirby sure did love to create monsters and aliens for sure! But while admiring his never ending creativity, Some of the stories and plots not only were very independent from the rest of the Marvel universe but even his characters (like Donna Maria) and own important plot lines left undeveloped or not even shown. Still a great collection for Cap and Kirby collectors.
March 21, 2012
PEAK KIRBY! It just doesn't get better than that! 'Nuff said.
November 15, 2023
It's almost impossible to mention Jack Kirby without fandom blowing a gasket over how he was/was not screwed over by Marvel, or how Stan Lee did/did not help co-create the characters which served as the foundation of the Marvel Universe. People get passionate, tempers flare, Internet arguments ensue. I won't even go there, but I will say that Kirby was a terrible businessman. He came back to Marvel and freely created even more characters for them after his perceived mistreatment the first time around. I wouldn't have given them shit if I were as mistreated as Kirby claimed he was.
I recall many comics fans bashing Kirby in the '80s. Indeed, looking at his then-current work I thought that he sucked ass when I was a kid. It wasn't until I got a Fantastic Four Marvel Treasury Edition in 1985 (which collected '60s FF) that I began to appreciate his work. The point of this statement is that it is considered sacrilegious to utter that something that Kirby did, anything that Kirby did, was not art of the highest order and unparallelled creative genius. This only became a way of thinking after he died, of course. Until then, those same folks who utter statements like this were still busy bashing his work.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that this run on the title is not very good. I imagine if you were 8-12 when these issues were originally released then these are some of your all-time favorite comics. When I read this, I see Kirby past his prime as an artist, with occasionally nauseating dialogue, going batshit crazy. Kirby trips over himself trying to makes things over the top explosive. Issues that begin in the middle of a scene or forgetting where he's going by the issue's end. It's painful at times. Some of these issues are way fun, though, and his artwork occasionally rises to his past greatness. I began reading this during the winter immediately following the completion of the Silver Age Captain America Omnibus which collected the classic Stan Lee/Jack Kirby run. To go from Kirby at the peak of his powers to this caused me to put this book down and leave it alone on and off over the past 7-8 months.
Marvel Treasury Edition Featuring Captain America's Bicentennial Battles completely sucks ass. It's Kirby at his ham-fisted worst. People can debate about who did what, but this story makes it abundantly clear who wrote the better dialogue: Stan Lee. Kirby's scripts are painful at times, and him being his own editor was an even bigger mistake. The Madbomb arc (issues 193-200) is abysmal. Kill-Derby (issue 196) sees Kirby ripping off Rollerball, much like he ripped off Planet of the Apes and Ka-Zar a few years earlier when he “created” Kamandi, The Last Boy On Earth. The gem of this run is his creation of Arnim Zola.
The Night People arc was very good, a welcome change of pace from the Madbomb debacle. Kirby goes way off the deep end here, though, taking Cap not only off planet but out of this dimension altogether. Texas Jack was another stupid, cheesy character Kirby inserted into the proceedings in a nonsensical manner. Things then sort of float between readable and good until the end of the book. Annual 4 sees Cap taking on Magneto and a rather uninspired new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Kirby's characterization of the Falcon is good, even if his “street” dialogue with him and his “Mama” is embarrassing to say the least.
So while many fans proclaim their love for the genius of Kirby, I will say that this book does not help that argument one bit. If you want to show someone why Kirby deserves a spot on the Mount Rushmore of comic book creators then show them his '40-60s stuff. This stuff is best seen as a curiosity item and is recommended for completists only.
I recall many comics fans bashing Kirby in the '80s. Indeed, looking at his then-current work I thought that he sucked ass when I was a kid. It wasn't until I got a Fantastic Four Marvel Treasury Edition in 1985 (which collected '60s FF) that I began to appreciate his work. The point of this statement is that it is considered sacrilegious to utter that something that Kirby did, anything that Kirby did, was not art of the highest order and unparallelled creative genius. This only became a way of thinking after he died, of course. Until then, those same folks who utter statements like this were still busy bashing his work.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that this run on the title is not very good. I imagine if you were 8-12 when these issues were originally released then these are some of your all-time favorite comics. When I read this, I see Kirby past his prime as an artist, with occasionally nauseating dialogue, going batshit crazy. Kirby trips over himself trying to makes things over the top explosive. Issues that begin in the middle of a scene or forgetting where he's going by the issue's end. It's painful at times. Some of these issues are way fun, though, and his artwork occasionally rises to his past greatness. I began reading this during the winter immediately following the completion of the Silver Age Captain America Omnibus which collected the classic Stan Lee/Jack Kirby run. To go from Kirby at the peak of his powers to this caused me to put this book down and leave it alone on and off over the past 7-8 months.
Marvel Treasury Edition Featuring Captain America's Bicentennial Battles completely sucks ass. It's Kirby at his ham-fisted worst. People can debate about who did what, but this story makes it abundantly clear who wrote the better dialogue: Stan Lee. Kirby's scripts are painful at times, and him being his own editor was an even bigger mistake. The Madbomb arc (issues 193-200) is abysmal. Kill-Derby (issue 196) sees Kirby ripping off Rollerball, much like he ripped off Planet of the Apes and Ka-Zar a few years earlier when he “created” Kamandi, The Last Boy On Earth. The gem of this run is his creation of Arnim Zola.
The Night People arc was very good, a welcome change of pace from the Madbomb debacle. Kirby goes way off the deep end here, though, taking Cap not only off planet but out of this dimension altogether. Texas Jack was another stupid, cheesy character Kirby inserted into the proceedings in a nonsensical manner. Things then sort of float between readable and good until the end of the book. Annual 4 sees Cap taking on Magneto and a rather uninspired new Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. Kirby's characterization of the Falcon is good, even if his “street” dialogue with him and his “Mama” is embarrassing to say the least.
So while many fans proclaim their love for the genius of Kirby, I will say that this book does not help that argument one bit. If you want to show someone why Kirby deserves a spot on the Mount Rushmore of comic book creators then show them his '40-60s stuff. This stuff is best seen as a curiosity item and is recommended for completists only.
January 13, 2025
This return of Jack King Kirby was a special thing for Marvel, but his run on Captai America was very controversial. I rarely, if ever, read the letter pages because I find I don't agree with most people. I think that too many people believe they "should" like something (like a popular movie or an award winner) without thinking for themselves. Today's world is worse because because of the internet and everyone has an opinion. I remember watching a play at the New York Shakespeare Festival that the New York Times raved about. The review was blown up in the lobby, and people were buying ti kets because of that review. My thoughts were that it was all claptrap elitist and junk. I stood and watched and listened to people leaving talking about it, but they all stopped to read the review, whispering, " Is that what this Play meant? Oh, now I get it, it was wonderful!" They didn't get it because there was nothing to get. It was empty and pretentious.
So, what does that incident have to do with this omnibus? Well, I am sure that Kirby wasn't being pretentious. He was telling stories that he wanted to tell. The stories were new, fresh, weird, different, but had Captain America, a symbol of us--the American people. Yes, at times, the stories felt like 50's and 60's B movie plots, but still inspired, creative characters and villains. Science fiction is not a bad plot. Is it typical Cap? No. But who cares. Was the dialogue perfect? No, but did you read Stan Lee's? He has cringe-worthy moments, too.
The art was very later Kirby. Thick, multi lined images, but his two-page spread were downright, stunning.
If Steve Gerber had written this comic, it could have been a lot stranger than Kirby's
I liked them. I didn't love them, but they took me places others than another Nazi, or henchman, or Batrac story. (By the way, Red Skull, Batrac, and other old villains of Cap are over done).
So, what does that incident have to do with this omnibus? Well, I am sure that Kirby wasn't being pretentious. He was telling stories that he wanted to tell. The stories were new, fresh, weird, different, but had Captain America, a symbol of us--the American people. Yes, at times, the stories felt like 50's and 60's B movie plots, but still inspired, creative characters and villains. Science fiction is not a bad plot. Is it typical Cap? No. But who cares. Was the dialogue perfect? No, but did you read Stan Lee's? He has cringe-worthy moments, too.
The art was very later Kirby. Thick, multi lined images, but his two-page spread were downright, stunning.
If Steve Gerber had written this comic, it could have been a lot stranger than Kirby's
I liked them. I didn't love them, but they took me places others than another Nazi, or henchman, or Batrac story. (By the way, Red Skull, Batrac, and other old villains of Cap are over done).
January 1, 2022
When I was a young lad I read these Kirby Issues of Cap and the Falcon ... and was frequently confused by the out of character dialogue and frequently bizarre plots and settings, but yet they had an energy all of their own.
NOTE: One scene stayed with me to this day - the sheer cruelty of forcing a starving man to eat until his stomach burst internally. Reading it again was just as horrific as my ten year old brain remembered.
Now, over 40 years later I’m reading them again and finding these stories even more unique than I recalled ... and the art is relentless in sheer kinetic impact. Issues inked by Frank Giacoia and lettered by the legendary Gasper are breathtaking in what comics art should be.
Now, are these stories for the casual fan? Probably not. Even lifelong fans such as myself admit these issues are a mixed bag.
But if you want to spend hours with a unique creative force unencumbered ... check out this Omnibus.
NOTE: One scene stayed with me to this day - the sheer cruelty of forcing a starving man to eat until his stomach burst internally. Reading it again was just as horrific as my ten year old brain remembered.
Now, over 40 years later I’m reading them again and finding these stories even more unique than I recalled ... and the art is relentless in sheer kinetic impact. Issues inked by Frank Giacoia and lettered by the legendary Gasper are breathtaking in what comics art should be.
Now, are these stories for the casual fan? Probably not. Even lifelong fans such as myself admit these issues are a mixed bag.
But if you want to spend hours with a unique creative force unencumbered ... check out this Omnibus.
September 29, 2025
3.5/5
Jack is back! And he takes Cap on a series of sci-fi inspired adventures that deviate a lot from what he had been up over the prior 100 or so issues.
Kirby's "Madbomb" saga is fantastic, but the rest of this book is ultimately just "ok". Not Jack's best work, but it was fun to see him back with the character he created in the 40s again.
Jack is back! And he takes Cap on a series of sci-fi inspired adventures that deviate a lot from what he had been up over the prior 100 or so issues.
Kirby's "Madbomb" saga is fantastic, but the rest of this book is ultimately just "ok". Not Jack's best work, but it was fun to see him back with the character he created in the 40s again.
March 14, 2021
Never been a Captain America fan, and I got this to read more of Kirby's work. I enjoy his art and his writing. Now I just need to find a hero that I like that he worked on.
February 15, 2013
The ideas kept pouring out of Jack Kirby's active, fertile mind. Returning to Captain America, Kirby presented lunatic fringe within the country trying to overthrow individuals' rights (hmmm...), went beyond physical combat, beyond chemical warfare and into madbombs - psychic battle! That was his first story arc, from Captain America #193-200.
This volume oddly starts with the Treasury Special, Captain America's Bicentennial Battles and Captain America Annual #3. These, as well as the concluding tale reprinted from Captain America Annual #4 were stand-alone tales that did not fall into even the continuity of Kirby's run in #193-214, but these are odd placements to be sure. (I prefer the sequence in the 3 trade paperbacks, putting all three together between #200 & 201. Ah, well.)
Extras include the covers from the aforementioned TPBs and 5 covers in pencil form, 2 more than the softcovers. The reprinted bio of Kirby that was in the third volume is missing, but it was sparse anyway. The letters columns are not included, which is nice; the editorial slant from the assistant who did not like Kirby's work here slanted the columns with negative comments and do not make for good reading.
All in all, a wonderful collection of some of Jack's final work for Marvel Comics.
This volume oddly starts with the Treasury Special, Captain America's Bicentennial Battles and Captain America Annual #3. These, as well as the concluding tale reprinted from Captain America Annual #4 were stand-alone tales that did not fall into even the continuity of Kirby's run in #193-214, but these are odd placements to be sure. (I prefer the sequence in the 3 trade paperbacks, putting all three together between #200 & 201. Ah, well.)
Extras include the covers from the aforementioned TPBs and 5 covers in pencil form, 2 more than the softcovers. The reprinted bio of Kirby that was in the third volume is missing, but it was sparse anyway. The letters columns are not included, which is nice; the editorial slant from the assistant who did not like Kirby's work here slanted the columns with negative comments and do not make for good reading.
All in all, a wonderful collection of some of Jack's final work for Marvel Comics.
January 14, 2013
Marvel did a solid job putting this together - Kirby's stories are thrilling, particularly Madbomb, although you can feel Jack straining against the constraints of Cap's "world." After the total freedom of New Gods, Kamandi, OMAC and the grandiose sci-fi mythological scope of Eternals, Kirby's Captain America feels oddly in-check.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews