Marvel held their latest Next Big Thing online chat to announce some big news for Captain America.  Lets see what news they have for us today!

“At the core of this book is Steve Rogers. Even though tonally you can expect a bit of a shift, the character still shines true. We’re taking a drift into science fiction. Visually it will be pretty crazy. John is plugging away on issue #3 and it looks gorgeous.” – Rick Remend

“It’s a large step away from the espionage spy stuff Ed Brubaker has been doing, but it’s the same core character dropped in a new situation.” – Rick Remender
John talking about how colorist Dean White is taking a sepia approach they used on Black Panther a few years back and refining it.

“I’m onto issue #3 and feel like I’m on the parkway. #2 was the entrance ramp, now I need to get over into the fast ramp ASAP.” – John Romita Jr.
“Rick asked for a scene with a human Arnim Zola walking into his lab and then it’s 1960’s horror movie gore. I had a moment of thinking I was drawing Kick-Ass and had gotten my books confused.” – John Romita Jr.
“There are human heads on other things and so on. It gave me the willies. That doesn’t happen a lot.” – John Romita Jr.

“We’re establishing Zola and who he was in his early days in one page. You can do it visually with the right artist. John does it.” – Rick Remender

“Arnim Zola is established as terrible in one scene.” – Rick Remender
“Mainstream books can be the best ones to take a turn into horror or science fiction because it’s unexpected. It meets its rating, but it’s very inspired by EC Comics from the 50’s or Bernie Wrightson on Frankenstein.” – Rick Remender
“It’s an action book. It’s high adventure. Cap throws some fists. The villain is villainous. A hero is only as good as his villain, and wait until you see what John and Dean have done with Zola.” – Rick Remender

“Arnim Zola is one of those characters who because he was such a bizarre design and because people who weren’t Jack Kirby drew him, he became almost a comical figure. That’s all going to go away.” – Tom Brevoort

“When Rick and I first started talking about doing Cap stuff, for all the high adventure and sci fi, there was an element of what Frank Miller did to Daredevil in Born Again, tearing him down and taking everything away to build him back up. We’re throwing Cap down into a place where he’s completely out of his element, where the idea of America has no relevance. We’re stranding him on a metaphoric desert island and getting to the core of what drives this character. We’ll learn one new thing about him that really drives the first year.” – Tom Brevoort

“Running parallel will be the story of Steve Rogers’ early days. We’ve always said he was Captain America without the physique before the super soldier serum, now we’ll see that. We’ll see the things that made him the guy he is today.” – Tom Brevoort
“When I’m writing it, I can already envision it because it feels very similar tonally to Man Without Fear which John drew.” -Rick Remender

“It was important to show Steve earning the tenacity and heart, because you’re not born with that. What you learn from your parents and the people around you informs your decisions and choices that define who you become.” – Rick Remender

“We’re so far removed from the Great Depression that it gets eclipsed by World War 2. You’ll get to see Steve as a fighter of a different sort in a different environment. You’ll see him tempered into being the right guy to be Captain America.” – Tom Brevoort

“Back then, you had to be a lot tougher than the average human being. I think Steve Rogers would have become a cop, gone into the military–somehow been more than the guy on the street even without the super soldier serum. He would never have been just the average joe.” – John Romita Jr.

The scene in ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ where he jumps on the grenade nails it.” – Rick Remender

“You can be a Navy SEAL or Army Ranger just because you go to the training. You have to be special and have something in you. Steve Rogers does.” – John Romita Jr.

 
“I’ve read up and done research on the Great Depression, a lot of recounts of amazing stories where people rose up and had hope that it would end even five years in. The optimism of Captain America is something I’m excited to write.” – Rick Remender

“Today is nothing compared to the Depression. There was no parachute. If you couldn’t get food, you died. Visually, I’m able to get that, but emotionally, we can’t convey it like going through it did.” – John Romita Jr.

“Rick is an artist, so sometimes I get the feeling he goes ‘I can do this, so I’ll make Romita do it,’ then he adds a million more characters to it.” – John Romita Jr.

“Because Rick is an artist, I can’t not consider his suggestions, they have weight. Tom knows art. Klaus Janson is a brilliant artist. So is Dean.” – John Romita Jr.

“It’s John Romita Jr., Klaus Janson and Dean White. It’s the best. I probably over describe scenes, but they can cherry pick what they need. It’s great to have collaborators who are tolerant of my hand holding.” – Rick Remender

“Zola doesn’t come out of this with anybody ever thinking he’s a joke again. He’s a high level madman, the top boss and the focus. But as always, there are henchmen. We’ve got Dough Boy, who is Jabba the Hutt as designed by Jack Kirby. When you see what John does with Zola’s mutates and their weapons, it’s wonderful, incredible big and exciting.” – Rick Remender

“Zola is the villain for the long haul. We will get to know his plight.” – Rick Remender
“At the last con I was at, I had a guy come up to me and go ‘I think you suck, but could you sign my book anyway?'” – John Romita Jr. “Yeah, that’s a comic convention.” – Rick Remender

“John’s anxiety and lack of complacency is what keeps him great.” – Rick Remender

“I don’t want to give away too much of our hand, but Sharon Carter is involved. Hank Pym will give Steve his gadgets. I do think the important thing here is for the new characters to define this era of Cap. When we get into the second year…nothing you see is as it seems.” – Rick Remender

 

“I know the story I want to tell in the first year and know the Depression stuff will juxtapose well with modern day Steve Rogers. Beyond the first year, I don’t know if we’ll go back. It remains to be seen. I don’t see myself going back to World War 2 much. It’s been mined terrifically. If we continue to reflect back, it will be because there’s a part of Steve from that era I want to unearth.” – Rick Remender

We’re going into a lightning round!

“Yes street toughs, no hats.” – Rick Remender

“Bucky is a conversation for the third or fourth arc. Once we get a better idea of the landscape of Marvel NOW! and Winter Soldier’s role in it, I’m excited to have these two in each others’ lives.” – Rick Remender

“Falcon is full-fledged in Jonathan Hickman’s Avengers, he won’t be in the first year of Cap.” – Rick Remender

“When I pick up a book, I always try to take the relationships and move them to the next stage. There will be a big Steve-Sharon progression in issue #1.” – Rick Remender