-  Captain America and Bucky were trapped by the evil Baran Zemo in a London RAF Depot during the waining days of the war in Europe(around late April, 1945). Zemo was beaming that he had caught the legendary duo and wanted them to witness the launch of a stolen robot fighter drone that the British government was testing. The Baron planned on programming the plane to fly into 10 Downing St., home of Prime Minister Wintson Churchill. However, Captain America and his trusted sidekick freed themselves, hopped aboard a nearby motorcycle and raced the drone down the tarmac just as it was about to take-off. The Captain couldn't hold on to the robotic plane and flew through the air. Bucky had a better gripe and climbed to the warhead in hopes to disarm it,  but he never made it. The bomb exploded prematurely killing the young man instantly. Captain America fell into the near frozen waters of the North Sea and, in an incalcuable turn of events, became perfectly frozen inside a solid block of ice.

  Nineteen years later, four super-heroes found the star-spangled ramrod, thawed his seemingly lifeless body and made him an Avenger. The rest, as they say, is history. But, a problem has accured. One that wouldn't be explained until the late 19070's and not even in the same universe(the 'What If...' universe to be exact). If the real Captain America fell into the ice cold waters only to be fished out in 1964 and the poor Bucky never to be heard from again, then who helped  finish off the war against Imperial Japan? Who helped form the All Winners Squad? Who were those dynamic twosome in the 1950's?! The answer was not easy to come by.

  Marvel Comics would have you believe that a mysterious super-hero named the Spririt of '76 took Steve Rogers' place as Captain America and a young batboy for the New York Yankees became the new "Bucky", only to have the Spirit/Cap II die a year later and the hero called the Patriot replace him and play Captain America III unitl 1949. Then Marvel would also have you believe that a fanatical hero worshipper doned the Captain America costume and convince the government to play the part during the 1950's only to eventually become more and more hardline until eventually becoming the leader of a neo-Nazi terrorist group some twenty-five years later.

  The one major setback to this story is that the Spirit of '76 didn't come into existance until the Invaders(vol.1) series was published in the mid-1970's. And what is even more damming is that the story of first the Spirit and then the Patriot becoming Captain Americas in their own respect only showed up in the 'What If..' series, meaning that they weren't suppose to be part of the original cannon at all! Yet Marvel has slowly made it a well known truth.  Since my website deals only with the Marvel universe prior to January, 1971, the whole thing doesn't and shouldn't exist. What I will attempt to do is put the pieces of Captain America's life from that fateful day in London 1945 to the Arctic Ocean in 1964. An alternate explination to Marvel Comics and , hopefully, make it seem more plausible. Of course, these characters are Marvel's and if they want it to be that way, who am I to disagree? 

  It's been known to the public since 1964 that something happened to both Captain America and Bucky, but the government knew since early 1945 that the two went missing and feared dead. Rumours, for decades, spoke of their lack of sightings in the Pacific and that they had disappeared. But they were only rumors. However, by 1964 that all changed when the Avengers docked at New York harbor and Captain America stepped out of the Avenger's submarine.

  Shortly after Captain America and Bucky vanished, the uS government put into action the race to find their replacements and suppress any stories that said that they perished. At this time in the war it seemed the most dangerous, even though Nazi Germany was on the ropes. A wounded dog is at it's most ferosious, and the recent death of President Roosvelt was enough of a blow to the people. Finding out that the living embodiment of the American fighting spirit was gone could've caused the GIs' moral to lower, in turn cause the war to gone on even longer.

  With DR. Reinstein dead of an assasin's bullet in 1940, taking the secret of the Super Soldier serium with him to his grave, re-starting Operation Rebirth was out of the question. What the government needed to do was look through a mirrad of papers gathered about the known super-heroes that were fighting for the Allies. Although many were powered, most were not and even though an their own these heroes were excellent fighters of freedom, to be Captain America ment to be almost Super in nature. He would have to the ultimate human specimen. After narrowing it down, I believe that the only choise was a certain John Steele.

  John Steele had strength above some of the strongest on Earth. Not only that, but Steele's stamina, endurance, and agility was also above the peak human range. Also, John Steele was already in the Army, he would be the perfect Captain America. Not only that, but since he was a on the government payroll, he would do just about anything he was ordered to do.

  Sadly though, the government couldn't condone the use of young teenagers in life-threatening missions. But some young man did find his way into becoming the second Bucky. I offer an interesting probability, Bucky II was really a very short and thin 17 or 18 year old. Perhaps an eager 4F deemed too frail for regular duty which is ironic since he couldn't go to the front lines but could parachute behind enemy lines and destory some super weapon designed to destroy New York City. With all that said and done, the new duo was shipped off to the PTO to made short work of Tojo.

  Witnesses only saw the red, white and blue of their costumes, but some took notice that Captain America and Bucky didn't look the same. Perhaps it was the originals' friends the Human Torch and Namor, maybe up close, some GI met them earlier in Europe and noticed the differences, whatever the seed was that gestated to the rumors of these stories it wasn't known. If the Human Torch or Namor did figure it out perhaps they were encouraged to keep silent for the same reasons that the government did. To help keep the spirit alive even if the real Rogers and Barnes weren't. Maybe they even became friends and didn't want to make waves. Whatever it was that kept the truth from coming out didn't seem to bother anyone too much since all of them desided to stay together after the war ended and form the All Winners Squad.

  Captain America's famous shield was one of a kind. Being the sole recipient to a mysterious combination of adamantium and vibranium, when the second Cap needed a new one, like the serum given to Steve Rogers, it could never be duplicated. What the military did have was plenty of steel, some aluminum to help keep the new shield light, and vibranium. This combination was nothing like the first shirld, but it did the job well enough and that was okay for everyone involved.

  After the war ended, Captain America II and Bucky II turned to fighting evil at home. They also were able to keep America's newly formed atomic energy secrets out of the hands of criminals and what would be concidered domestic terrorists today. With Cap II and Bucky II still employed by the military, it's conceivable that they were transfered to work for the FBI as a prevention measure from those who would gain vastly from using or selling atomic serects along with massive criminal elements and underground black marketers and crime syndicates. Which is consistant with the comics of that time.

  This was the norm for Captain America II and Bucky II  until 1948 when Bucky was shot and hospitalized. Captain America was paired up with the Golden Girl(another FBI sponcered super agent?) until both Cap and GG fell off the face of the earth a year later. What happened to them? Perhaps John Steele retired from the life of Captain America and the Golden Girl joined him to live a life of seclusion or perhaps they both were lost during an assingment. Whatever the reason was, the government wasn't all too eager to find another replacement.

  But, the rising threat of communist world domination seemed to come to a boil in 1950. Even during the Korean War no sign of super heores, save Marvel Boy, were spotted. But after the war, the Human Torch, Toro, and Namor came out of hiding to fight the good fight once more. But where was America's best heroes? Perhaps the government faced the same problem in 1953 that they faced in early 1945. This time around one person was available that wasn't during World War II, the Patriot. Jeff Mace was the Patriot from 1941 to 1946 and then retired. Perhaps he was convinced that the USA needed Captain America once more to fight commies.

  Many things from the second Cap came back. Most notably was the shield. Was it the same shield as Captain America II, perhaps but a new couldn't have been too hard to make. What is clear is that a new Bucky was needed. was this the same Bucky from 1945 to 1948? I don't know although he would've only be in his early to mid-20's by 1953 so it's quite possible. Who this Bucky II/III was mattered little since they were around for only a mere 10 months.

  Perhaps the need for super-heroes that worked for the government wasn't seen as a worthwhile project to continue. Maybe the funding changed from costumed adventurers to spy satillites and spy planes and the young CIA.

  BY Marvel's Silver Age the true Captain America would emerge from the deep and the mysterious history of the other Captains and Buckys fell into obscurity until now.