Interview: Jesse J. Holland on Sam Wilson's Legacy and Growth as Captain America
Before he takes flight in a brand-new MCU film, Captain America takes the spotlight in a brand-new anthology book. Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson unites 13 Black American authors to tell exciting new stories filled with action, intrigue, and danger.
It's been nearly a decade since Sam Wilson first shed his identity as the Falcon and traded it in for Captain America's red, white, and blue colors. Now Titan Books is putting out a new collection of stories that sees Wilson facing deadly supervillains and the struggles that come with being such an iconic symbol a divided nation. Writer and editor Jesse J. Holland took the time to discuss Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson and the hero's long and inspiring journey.
Screen Rant: Sam was one of the first Black superheroes in mainstream superhero comics. What do you think has given him his staying power over the years?
Jesse J. Holland: Sam Wilson was the first African American superhero in mainstream comics and that gives him name recognition, if nothing else. (Black Panther, whom I had the pleasure of writing in the first Black Panther novel, Black Panther: Who Is The Black Panther? and editing in the Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda anthology, was the first Black superhero in mainstream comics, but T’Challa is Wakandan, not American.) Sam’s from a place we all recognize – Harlem, does work we all appreciate as a social worker/community organizer and has struggles we can all appreciate trying to do the best he can when not everyone he’s fighting for appreciates it. If Black Panther is the hero and king we wish we can be, Sam Wilson is the hero we KNOW we can be, only by doing the right thing and working as hard as we can.
It was a big moment in Sam’s history when he finally donned the Captain America mantle. In your opinion, what does Sam as Captain America do that Sam as Falcon doesn’t?
Jesse J. Holland: Sam Wilson is Harlem’s hero as the Falcon. His whole identity is wrapped around being back part of “Captain America and the …” But when he’s Captain America, he’s THE hero. He’s no longer a neighborhood hero, a citywide hero or even a regional hero. He’s everyone hero. He’s finally the headliner, not the latter half of “Captain America and …” And of course, it says something that an African American man can proudly don the red, white and blue and represent a country like ours that has such mixed history with its Indigenous and minority population. It’s moving us as a society to a place where we can accept that the United States is for all of us, and any of us here in this country can stand up and be proud of it and represent it even despite the checkered history we have to struggle with. Sam Wilson as Captain America gives us chance to reckon with all of that while still being proud and acknowledging that this country is worth defending.
Let’s talk about the anthology. Tell us a little bit about how Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson came together.
Jesse J. Holland: I want to thank Marvel and Titan Books for coming up with the idea of Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson and bringing it to me to shepherd. Coming behind the success of Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda – still available everywhere – the first prose anthology to tackle the first Black mainstream superhero, it made sense to follow it up with the first prose anthology featuring the first African American mainstream superhero. Like Black Panther, Sam Wilson’s Captain America appeals to more than just comic book fans. He appeals to people across the board – Black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Indigenous, etc., who are interested in the symbols of this country and how we are seen by not only people around the world but by people who live here as well. It is good to see Sam getting his moment in the sun, and I’m glad I have a small piece in getting him the recognition that he’s due.
What made the 13 authors featured in this book the best suited to building this anthology?
Jesse J. Holland: Many of the authors in Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson are authors I worked with in Black Panther: Tales of Wakanda, so I knew they had stories to tell and things they wanted to say through the characters in the Marvel Universe. I knew they had the same love for Sam Wilson that I did and weren’t interested in reimagining him or recasting him into being the kind of hero he’s not. They had respect for the work that came before them, and were only interested in taking the character into new, different and exciting locations and experiences. And of course, I’m always scouring the newest and greatest literature out there looking for writers who only need a chance to break through to the next level and tackling a character like Sam Wilson, a guy on his second heroic identity, seemed to be the best place to give those authors a chance as well.
What was the most important thing when it came to the featured stories?
Jesse J. Holland: The most important thing was staying true to who Sam Wilson is. No matter the medium -- comic books, television shows, movies or novels – Sam Wilson is a good man trying to do the right thing. He’s not your streetwise, jive-cracking hoodlum with the heart of gold, or the hard-hearted loner trying to avenge the death of loved ones in a never-ending war against crime or a strange visitor from another planet. He’s a man, a proud Black man trying to do the right thing the best he can when he can. He’s fighting for us because he wants to do the right thing and he wants us to do the right thing as well. But even if we don’t, he’ll fight for us anyway because it’s the right thing to do. That’s what heroes do. And that’s Sam Wilson.
Tell us some of the stories fans can expect in this anthology. The solicited information sounded wild!
Jesse J. Holland: The writers in Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson really put him through his paces! Captain America fights alone and with heroes from throughout the Marvel Universe and against some villains you may have heard of and against some villains that were created just for this anthology. Some of the stories I was simply amazed at: wait until you see what happens when Captain America goes to a concert, or falls through a portal back to World War II, or has to face down the Kingpin or Sabretooth. These stories are WILD. But throughout, it’s Sam: a man doing the best he can at being the nation’s hero. (Oh, and another secret: If you’re a fan of Misty Knight, you’ll love this anthology. She shows up at Cap’s side a couple of times!)
Any continuities readers should worry about, 616 or otherwise?
Jesse J. Holland: If you love Sam Wilson from the comic books, you’ll recognize him in these stories. We wanted Sam Wilson and that’s who the writers gave us. No need to break your brain trying to figure out the continuity, just sit back and go on a ride with the new Captain America. I promise it’ll be worth the trip.
When we look at the Captain America legacy, what does Sam’s growth mean, and where do you see this taking his character?
Jesse J. Holland: Sam Wilson’s time as Captain America is just the beginning of his character arc, not the end. Now that his legacy has spread, he is now indisputably Captain America. There are decades of stories that could be told with Sam Wilson as Captain America and we’re just lucky that we’re the first out of the gate on the prose side.
What do you hope readers take away from the stories compiled in Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson?
Jesse J. Holland: I hope readers leave Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson with the same love and respect I have for Sam Wilson and the incredibly tough job he has as Captain America. These writers were able to shine a spotlight on how tough it would be for any man – not just a Black man but any man – to be the living symbol of this country. Yet Sam Wilson does it with a grace -- and may I say a panache – that makes us cheer for his success and sympathize with his losses. He’s not perfect but he's trying. That’s us in America in a nutshell: We’re not perfect but we’re trying. That’s what makes Sam Wilson the best person to represent us. I hope everyone enjoys these stories and the hero that Sam Wilson is trying to be. He’s worth it, and we’re worth it.
Titan Comics also shared an exclusive excerpt fromCaptain America: The Shield of Sam Wilsonwith Screen Rant. The following excerpt comes from Gar Anthony Haywood's story "By Any Means Necessary".
SAM HADN’T seen Carmen Hall in a long time. Before he was Captain America; before he was the Falcon; before he was the Sam Wilson he was today. They’d been a thing in high school, two kids fighting to keep their heads above water in the murky, turbulent seas of Harlem, New York. They both wanted out but only Sam made it.
Carmen put down roots she couldn’t tear loose and Harlem was where she’d remained. They lost track of each other, the way old friends do. Sam heard Carmen had gotten married some years back and had a son. That was all he knew.
When she wrote to him via Avengers headquarters two weeks ago, not knowing how else to contact him, he didn’t waste any time answering back. Her letter said she was in trouble and needed his help, and Carmen Hall wasn’t the kind of lady to ask for a hand if she wasn’t actually desperate for one.
Now she was living in a one-bedroom apartment on 139th Street in Central Harlem. Sam found her cooking something on the stove when he arrived at the agreed-upon time, twelve noon on a Tuesday in May. The years hadn’t been cruel to her, but they’d left their mark; Sam could see the charismatic Black pixie he used to love behind the tired eyes and weary demeanor of this full-figured mother and matriarch, but he had to look hard.
“I thought you’d be in uniform,” she said, smiling sheepishly. “I was kind of hoping to see you in all that red, white, and blue.”
“And the shield?”
She laughed. “Yeah. And the shield. It ain’t every day Captain America comes by the crib to see a girl.”
“Is it that bad, Carm? You need Captain America’s help and not Sam Wilson’s?”
“Both.” The smile vanished from her face. “I need you both.”
They sat in the living room while she explained. Whatever she was cooking simmered on a low flame, smelling like the best part of Sam’s past in this place he’d wanted so desperately to escape forever.
Her son Leon was dead. Just nineteen years old. His body had been found in the early morning hours one month ago in Jackie Robinson Park. It was the way Carmen had for years been afraid he would wind up; he’d been a thief and a drug abuser since his early teens and the crimes he’d been willing to commit to satisfy his demons were only getting worse. But he hadn’t simply lost his life to another thug or a cop, with a knife blade embedded in his chest or a bullet in the head. He’d been torn apart. Arms and legs ripped from his torso like he were a giant doll, left on the park’s dewy grass in bloody, shredded segments.
“Wait,” Sam said, beginning to understand. “I’ve heard about this. There’s some crazy vigilante up here doing this to people. He calls himself Mission—”
“Critical,” Carmen said, nodding. “The police say Leon was his fourth victim.”
It wasn’t the kind of news that could escape an Avenger or anyone associated with S.H.I.E.L.D. The accounts of the four killings Sam had come across hinted at a mass murderer with superhuman powers. NYPD was downplaying the possibility, suggesting the mutilations were merely the work of multiple killers, rather than just one with the strength of five, but Sam’s instincts told him this was wishful thinking.
Still, there’d been no official call to investigate. Sam was here on his own, for reasons that were strictly personal. Were he to ask Steve Rogers, the former Captain America would be right there at his side but this wasn’t the kind of mission a man from the 1940s would be particularly useful for. Rogers was on an undercover mission with a covert Avengers undercover squad.
People never expected anyone who was an Avenger to care about anything that was a street-level threat—only tackling marauding super villain teams and invading aliens, Sam thought. His government contacts would probably advise him to hold off on getting involved until more intelligence could be gathered. They’d warn him that Captain America couldn’t be going after every homicidal maniac roaming the streets of New York, like Daredevil or Spider-Man seemed to do. But, Sam knew there was nowhere else he should be and nothing that would be more important.
This was Carmen asking, and this was Harlem being preyed upon. Sam could not deny either one.
Neither could Captain America.
***
SAM SPENT the next three nights on watch. He’d made a map of Mission Critical’s crime scenes and was sticking to those areas. Flying from one perch above the city of his birth to another, watching. On the streets below, Harlem writhed and howled, lights of every color flickering to the drumbeat of music and sirens, laughter and outrage. It was both beautiful and sorrowful. People scraping by to build a life, some struggling to rise above it all, others going under willingly, making victims of whomever was handy just to feel a dollar richer today than they had the day before.
Sam watched and waited, reminded yet again why he’d chosen the career path he had, why he’d first donned the Falcon’s uniform and now that of Captain America. Somebody had to stop the madness that had taken both his parents. Enter the fray to save the innocent from the predators in their midst, rather than turn and look away. You could be a hero just for trying, but if you could try armed with powers and weapons beyond those of average men, you could make a difference. One victim at a time, or by the thousands. Sam had been blessed with such powers and weapons and he wasn’t going to squander them.
Somewhere down there, a monster was lurking, thinking of Harlem as his own private hunting ground, and Sam Wilson was going to find him.
***
ON THAT third night, Sam did almost call Steve Rogers for help. Theirs was a symbiotic relationship, after all. The man with the wings and shield, bolstered by the voice of wisdom in his ear, originating from the control-room to end all control-rooms, where information of every kind could be drawn at a moment’s notice. Steve would have been happy to assist, if only after he’d delivered a brief scolding for not having been consulted earlier about Sam’s mission, but Sam had become eager to rely on Steve only when circumstances demanded it. A Captain America who could never get things done on his own was a Captain America in name only.
So tonight he held off, standing on rooftops and crouched on hi-rise window ledges, surveilling Harlem alone. And eventually, as the clock was approaching 3 a.m., his patience was rewarded. A dark, lithe figure slipped in and out of shadow along a half-mile stretch of Frederick Douglass Blvd, moving like no average person could move. Clothed all in black, two jagged white stripes running shoulder to inner-thigh, it propelled itself in leaps and bounds, low to the ground and fast. To Sam’s mind, it was like a miniaturized version of the Hulk’s favored form of forward momentum, only more graceful and less powerful.
Sam swooped down to get a closer look, taking care not to be detected. As he suspected, his target was on the scent of his next victim. Sam watched the dark figure turn into an alley off 147th and stop near the entrance, yards from where two people were engaged in combat, too intent on killing each other to notice another presence. Hovering above in silence, like a kite riding the air currents of night, Sam recognized the nature of the pair’s altercation immediately, having seen this ballet too many times in the past to mistake it for anything else. Fights over money—especially drug money—had a look and sound all their own.
Clearly, Mission Critical recognized it too. Sam saw his body tense and then spring into action, bounding in a single leap to pounce upon the more aggressive of the two Black men in the alley, the big one swinging a knife with bad intent. Sam dove down to intervene as the other man fell back against the alley wall, eyes agape, and then scrambled off and away, certain he would be next on the costumed man’s menu if he stuck around to watch.
The man with the knife was screaming, Mission Critical holding his throat in a right-handed vise, when the shield of Captain America shot into view. It slammed off the would-be killer’s ribcage, separating him from his victim, and then returned to Sam’s grasp in a series of ricochets just as he touched down. Sam closed in quickly on the man in black, expecting little resistance from someone who’d just taken a blow from a near-indestructible shield, and nearly paid for his overconfidence dearly.
Mission Critical was up and on top of Captain America in the blink of an eye. Sam was on his back, fighting to keep the costumed assassin from tearing his head from his shoulders. This villain had strength equal to Sam’s, and along the outside edges of both gloved hands, blades sharp enough to cut Sam to ribbons.
“Well, now,” Mission Critical said gleefully, behind a full-face mask that hid a grin Sam could feel if not see. “Captain America. Version three-point-oh. What an honor!”
He tried to pierce Sam’s costume with a combination of quick slashes aimed at the hero’s torso, but Sam avoided the attack, managing to take flight at the perfect instant and land a knee to his opponent’s chin. The attack stunned the other man, who fell to the floor like a bag of bones, then immediately rose as if he’d landed on springs. Sam had seen all he needed to see. Mission Critical was not one to be taken lightly. He needed to finish this fast.
But a swift defeat was not in Mission Critical’s plans. He gave Sam everything he could handle, the killer’s razored hands and Captain America’s shield leaving mark after mark on the other man. The man with the knife, like his friend before him, was long gone, Sam barely noticed.
“Who the hell are you?” Sam demanded, astonished.
“I’m the answer to our people’s problems you only pretend to be,” Mission Critical said. “I am the solution! I am the cure! I am the warning that evil will be met with even greater evil until this city is made safe again. Washed clean again.”
Sam leaped into the air again, hoping his aerial abilities would give him an advantage. His wings propelled him directly at his foe with a burst of speed. But Mission Critical anticipated the move, raising his armored arms to block the incoming attack. Sam’s shield met the exoskeleton with a resounding clang, the force of the impact sending shockwaves through both combatants. The difference was, Sam was expecting it. Mission Critical slid back slightly but maintained his footing, his eyes narrowing in focus in time to see Sam lunging forward again. Mission Critical blocked, wildly and instinctively. With the brunt of the impact on his arms, he was again knocked back.
Tired of playing defense, the villain lunged forward, the blades on his gloves slashing through the air with deadly precision. Sam dodged to the side, his wings folding close to his body as he maneuvered around the attack. He swung his shield in a wide arc, aiming for Mission Critical’s exposed side. The villain twisted his body, the exoskeleton whirring as it adjusted to avoid the blow. The shield grazed his armor, leaving a shallow scratch.
Until finally, inevitably, the realization seemed to dawn on Sam’s combatant that he could not win. Sam had called a pair of red-tailed hawks down upon his head and their attack proved to be all the pain and humiliation Mission Critical could endure. He was up against a greater, more determined force and so was doomed to lose. Finding one last reservoir of strength, he struck Captain America with a body blow that, like the impact of a charging rhino, could not be easily shaken off. Sam went down in a heap and did not get up, conscious but dazed.
Had approaching police sirens not chosen this moment to assert themselves, Mission Critical might have tried moving in for one last chance at a kill, but he chose to flee instead. Sam gathered himself just in time to toss a small object at the retreating man’s back, a silver disk the size of a coin that, only on close inspection, could be recognized as a miniature version of Captain America’s shield. It was a new toy from Nick Fury’s skunkworks, a tracking By Any Means Unnecessary 101 device that bonded to any surface and could be used to pinpoint its location within a three-foot radius.
Mission Critical limped off into the night, his bounding gait slowed by pain and injury, unaware that Captain America would be able to follow him wherever he chose to hide.
Captain America: The Shield of Sam Wilson is available now from Titan Books.
