Apparently Cap can run 60mph, Bucky had a secret war girlfriend, and they keep trying to make Cap/Sharon happen. ( )

I wasn't quite prepared for this book - the first issue's worth of story is a villain brutally torturing a young woman in order to make her remember she's also a villain (she's been brainwashed by the good guys). It was...well, it was nasty. The rest of the main plot was good, but didn't seem quite up to the standard of [b:Captain America: Winter Soldier Ultimate Collection|8067175|Captain America Winter Soldier Ultimate Collection|Ed Brubaker|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1271737455s/8067175.jpg|12763413]. I did, though, really dig the final flashback story showing us Cap and Bucky during the war - and the present day scene afterwards, which gives me promise that this is all going somewhere good. I'll be sticking with it for volumes two and three. ( )

I am torn between ranking this book with three or four stars. Four because of its quality, and three because of its length. I know, I can rate it three and a half, but I refuse to open the door on half star ratings for my library. It's much too complicated.

Marvel had split WINTER SOLDIER into two volumes, but there it was much more natural. Here we are only treated to a hint of the plot hatched by Crossbones to deprogram Red Skull's daughter, Sin, and make her his partner. Then comes the entertaining but otherwise unrelated "Captain America 65th Anniversary Special." Frankly, the two RED MENACE volumes are short enough to be made into one.

That being said, Crossbones' strategy with Sin was interesting, and Ed Brubaker maintains the tense pace that made WINTER SOLIDER so interesting. The search for Bucky begins here, and his movements are bringing up some interesting questions about what Nick Fury is doing and how much is he still involving himself in these sorts of situations. ( )

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