Steve Rogers grew up in Brooklyn during the Great Depression, a scrawny kid protected from neighborhood bullies by his best friend "Bucky" Barnes. Horrified by newsreel footage of the Nazis in Europe, Rogers was inspired to enlist in the Army around the time the United States entered World War II. However, because of failing the physical test, he was rejected. Refusing to work at the factories, he reattempted enlistment several times. His luck changed during another visit to Recruitment Center when Military Sergeant Dugan recruited him for Project: Rebirth after hearing Rogers pleas. After voluntarily subjecting to surgery, steroid treatments, and other experimental treatments supervised by Doctor Erskine, Rogers became the first genetically-enhanced super-soldier. During the final treatment however, he noticed a suspicious soldier focusing on him instead of standing guard. The shady man revealed himself as a Nazi spy sent to murder Rogers in the event he survive the entire experiment. Nearly sabotaging the entire experiment, Rogers stopped him, but not before the spy murdered Doctor Eskine and a few American soldiers who attempted to stop him. Fully committing himself to the American war efforts, Rogers bid farewell to his sweetheart Gail becoming "Captain America".
For the next three years, he underwent numerous covert operations, often accompanied by Bucky, now a war photographer, and sometimes alongside "Lucky" Jim Howlett (later the X-Men's Wolverine). During World War II he came into battle with the alien Chitauri Herr Kleiser, who introduced a prototype A-Bomb that was made with alien technology meant to target the White House. However they were too late to stop the bomb from launching, but Captain America managed to get to the bomb as it is launched. In a successful attempt to stop it in mid-air, he fell into the sea and was presumed deceased to all; however, he survived. By a combination of his super soldier physiology and the arctic cold put Captain American into a cryogenic state for over 50 years.
Years after, the body of Captain America was found in the Arctic Ocean, frozen in a block of ice. When scientists analyzed him, it was as if he hadn't aged a day; it has yet to be known whether cryogenic preservation or the super soldier serum prevented his aging. When he thawed out and awakened, he thought S.H.I.E.L.D. was a group of Nazi soldiers who had captured him, but eventually realized that he was in a different time after seeing modern New York City. He found out his best friend, Bucky Barnes, had married to his fiancée and that all his loved one's were dead.
After catching up to his new era, the Ultimates were faced with the Hulk. Rogers was able to put down the Hulk briefly during combat. When he was about to inject the Hulk with the antidote, Hulk made a surprise attack and broke the needle and Hulk then began beating Cap, until Thor came to the rescue. After Hulk had reverted back to Banner, Cap knocked him out and had him taken back to the Triskelion.
After learning his teammates Hank and Janet Pym's domestic quarrels had left Janet hospitalized and nearly dead, Rogers tracked the now-fugitive Hank Pym to a bar and engaged him in combat, emerging victorious. He brought Janet flowers and other gifts afterwards, but she was not amused by his actions and rejected his gifts. Rogers soon discovered that his nemesis, Herr Kleiser, had survived World War II due to his alien abilities. This was why he would always seem to survive, as Cap had previously stated that he had killed Kleiser "twice". When Kleiser resurfaced, Captain America and Kleiser resumed their 60-year-old rivalry.
During the Chitauri invasion, Rogers fought Kleiser in combat, but was unable to defeat him due to his regenerating capabilities. When the Hulk was dropped into their battle, he convinced Hulk that Kleiser was "hitting on Betty", causing Hulk to mutilate and then eat Herr Kleiser. Ending Kleiser once and for all. After the successful battle against the Chitauri, Rogers danced with Janet Pym and a relationship between them bloomed (though the relationship soon became sour as Roger's 1940s personality created a generation gap between them and leading the Wasp to secretly return to her ex-husband).
During the Ultimate War, the Ultimates battled with the X-Men after Magneto was found alive. Cap was then reunited with "Lucky Jim" Howlett, who is also presently known as Wolverine. During the battle between the Ultimates and the X-Men, Captain America called Wolverine by his given name, causing Wolverine to become disoriented. Cap then fired a machine gun into Wolverine, rendering him unconscious.
Captain America led the Ultimates in the arrests of Electro and Kraven the Hunter. Later those two – along with the Sandman, Doc Octopus, and the Green Goblin — escape from S.H.I.E.L.D. He becomes very disheartened when he finds out that these villains were all a result of trying to duplicate the Super Soldier serum. During an attack on the White House lawn Captain America wrestled with Spider-Man with neither out-powering the other. He then explained the truth to Spider-Man that his aunt was safe with S.H.I.E.L.D. Captain America then fought the Green Goblin landing several hits while not being hit once.
Cap and the Ultimates were later under fire from the press and public due to the belief that Thor had revealed that Bruce Banner was indeed the Hulk. In a meeting with Thor, Thor brought up the fact that Captain America killed many people and still goes to church, saying that he's confused with his morals. The Ultimates fought Thor and eventually captured him when his power belt was removed by Quicksilver. From then on the Ultimates became more involved in foreign affairs wherein America attempted to control natural resources from Third World countries. The Ultimates' actions ultimately led to several nations secretly forming their own superhuman team, dubbed "the Liberators". Captain America was framed by Black Widow for the assassination of Hawkeye's family and was hastily subdued and arrested when he was visiting Bucky for consoling after his relationship with Janet Pym ended bitterly for Steven. He was imprisoned in the Triskelion. When the Liberators attacked, he was freed by the Wasp and defeated the Schizoid Man while escaping the prison. He and the Wasp soon reached the White House where they met with Hawkeye, Nick Fury, the Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. Captain dueled with his Liberators counterpart, The Colonel and emerged victorious after stabbing the Colonel in the chest with one end of the double-bladed energy sword that the Colonel used.
After the Liberators were defeated, Steven Rogers somberly watched the Colonel's body being removed by S.H.I.E.L.D. and remembered his words about America's current role in the world. Seeing that the Ultimates role as of "policing" the world for the US Government would lead to more Liberators-style outcomes, Rogers and his team decided to leave S.H.I.E.L.D. and work as an independent team.
Before the events of the Liberators' attack, Steven befriended T'Challa, the Black Panther, and trained him in for membership in the Ultimates. As the team's deputy leader, Rogers was uncomfortable with the notion of working with a man that he knew so little about. After Steven discovered that T'Challa's throat was heavily damaged, causing muteness, he pressed Fury for more information. Fury lied about the origin of T'Challa's scars, and about T'Challa's history with the Weapon X Program, while also stating that everything about the "Black Panther" was classified.
Captain America eventually established a communication with T'Challa and learned of the man's desire to return to Wakanda to see his father. Since no one but Cap had ever seen T'Challa's true face, Steven adopted the role of the Black Panther in the Ultimates, enabling the real Black Panther the chance to return home.
Following the Ultimates' severance with S.H.I.E.L.D., Rogers secretly adopted the identity of the Black Panther from his teammates as he was overburden with being unworthy for the title "Captain America" given the Liberators' invasion and how the public would view him. Eventually his secret was revealed when Juggernaut literally beat off Rogers' costume.
Captain America drowned when Magneto's Ultimatum Wave hit New York. While in Valhalla, Thor appeared to save the life of his love, Valkyrie, and traded his own life for Valkyrie and Steve Rogers. Cap then lead a team of Ultimates and X-Men against Magneto and vowed to not let Thor's sacrifice be in vain.
Months after Ultimatum, Captain America and Hawkeye fought a group of AIM terrorists at the Baxter Building who were stealing the building's valuable and powerful technologies. After defeating a majority of the terrorists, Cap encountered the Red Skull, who easily beat Steven. The Red Skull then shockingly revealed to Steven that he was his own son before throwing him out of a helicopter, which Cap was saved by Hawkeye.
After learning that the Red Skull was indeed his son by Gail Richards, Captain America decided to personally confront his son. He abandoned the Ultimates and attacked S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in the process. Rogers later infiltrated the Army's computer database and discovered the truth about the Red Skull. Sometime later Captain America was in Paris, France for his own reasons. Rogers created a plot to placed tracers on Nick Fury's Avengers, who were coming to capture him. Following the tracers would allow him to later find his son, who the Avengers were also chasing. After a brief fight, Cap managed to place tracers on War Machine, Red Wasp, and Black Widow. Cap was subsequently subdued and captured by the Avengers.
Escaping the French S.H.I.E.L.D. guards, Cap jumped into a tele-plane (a jet which teleports), to where the Avengers were fighting the Red Skull, in Alaska. When he arrived, Red Skull, who was wielding the Cosmic Cube, subdued Rogers' jet. However, Cap ordered Hawkeye the coordinates for the Red Skull's position in which he had the jet to charged and fatally impale his son on the tele-plane's nose. After the Red Skull was in custody, Rogers emotionally bear witness to Gail Richards to be briefly reunited with her dying son.
The Defender's Theft & Loki's Revenge
Steve Rogers is currently a member of the new version of the Ultimates, aptly named the New Ultimates. Steve helped Valkyrie, Zarda, Iron Man and Hawkeye fight off an attack from the Defenders, but they managed to steal Thor's Hammer before they retreated.
Later he confronted Valkyrie about her involvement with the Defenders, and threatened to kick her off the team if she didn't talk. Later when Valkyrie is under the Enchantress power he fights Valkyrie, where she destroys his shield. When Thor is revived, Rogers tries to reason with him, but in his rage Thor attacks the Ultimates and Loki's forces. After Valkyrie calms Thor down and convinces him protect the earth again Thor gives Steve a new shield made in Asgard.
Current Version:
Captain America
Former Version:
Black Panther
