Captain America Is Body-Horror Nightmare Fuel as His Powers Finally Go Haywire

New art of Steve Rogers’ Captain America sends his powers haywire, illustrating his dark legacy in the Marvel Universe and the very real way in which becoming a Super-Soldier ruined Steve’s life. The gut-churning art is Captain America as fans never see him, and confirms that even the Avengers’ Boy Scout has some inner darkness worth exploring.

Shared on Instagram by Peach Momoko, the art shows a grotesque Steve Rogers, whose body is sprouting multiple heads that are screaming and trying to escape. Seemingly, the unnatural physique created by his original Vita-Ray treatments is finally turning against him. The art will appear on select issues of Captain America #4, from J. Michael Straczynski, Lan Medina, Matt Hollingsworth and Joe Caramagna.

While Captain America is a stalwart hero who has inspired generations of Marvel’s crime-fighters, his creation has a complex legacy that Momoko’s art lays bare.

Related: Captain America’s Gross Secret Redefines His Origin

Captain America Nightmare Art Demonstrates Steve Rogers’ Identity Issues

Peach Momoko’s Covers Reveal Marvel’s Darkest Truths

Momoko’s art is part of Marvel’s ‘Nightmare’ variant cover initiative. While some of these covers have already been shared by Marvel, others are still under wraps, with 26 comics getting their own twisted art over December, all from superstar artist Peach Momoko (Star Wars: Visions – Peach Momoko, Ultimate X-Men.) The issues will be released as follows:

Marvel states that “the Marvel Universe is home to epic super hero adventures, but beneath its bright surface lies dark terrors” and that Momoko’s art “will highlight the unsettling truths of your favorite characters.” But what “truths” is Steve Rogers hiding that are represented in this grotesque art? First, many comics over the years have confirmed that Steve Rogers would rather not be Captain America.

While Steve considers embodying the American Dream an honor and a matter of duty, it’s also stopped him living a normal life – most literally by ripping him away from the 1940s, only to wake up in an unfamiliar future. Notably, when Scarlet Witch gave Steve Rogers his deepest wish in House of M‘s warped reality, he retired as Captain America after WWII, marrying Peggy Carer and going on to become the first man on the moon. It’s easy to see Peach Momoko’s art as Steve Rogers’ nightmare of trying to escape the ‘Captain America’ persona, only to find himself unable to be anything else.

Captain America’s Creation Began a Legacy of Horror

Project Rebirth Began Weapon X’s Experiments

There’s also the fact that while Steve Rogers is a heroic Super-Soldier, his creation kicked off a global genetic arms race. The Project Rebirth operation that created Cap went on to become Weapon I – the first real success of the group who would go on to be known as Weapon Plus (or Weapon X) and perform horrifying experiments on Wolverine. With the exact method of his creation lost thanks to the death of Doctor Erskine, the next few decades saw every shady group experimenting on humans and mutants to recreate the success. Momoko’s art shows monstorus new beings growing from Captain America – an accurate depiction of the age of monsters that followed his creation.

Peach Momoko will soon be taking the helm of Marvel’s revamped Ultimate X-Men, creating the mutant corner of its new Ultimate Universe. If her ‘Nightmare’ art is anything to go by, X-Men fans can expect some major body horror, but also – as this Captain America art shows – some deep insight into what makes Marvel’s heroes tick.

Captain America #4 is coming December 13 from Marvel Comics.

Source: Marvel, Peach Momoko