The Evolution of Captain America (Animated)
Captain America seems to change his look with every new line of toys, but just how has Steve Rogers evolved on-screen through the decades? Let's go through his live-action evolution… animated!
In the 1944 Serial, District Attorney Grant Gardner secretly fights crime while sporting a tight suit, rubber gloves, and a cowl with a giant A, turning him into Captain America. Instead of a shield, this Cap uses a gun to thwart a plethora of hired goons leading to an evil museum curator.
In 1973, Turkey got their own bootleg Captain America, donning a spandex suit and rubber gloves, with added boots, and a cowl with an overly long neck piece. He and Luchador Santo fight crime-boss Spider-Man and his many clones.
Back in America, Cap would get two 1979 TV movies, in which Steve Rogers reluctantly wears tight spandex, with vertical torso stripes, and added stars on his boots and gloves. He also wears a bulky helmet and goggles.
His second suit is a lighter blue color, with abdominal torso stripes, hiked up belt, white on his arm sleeves, and starless gloves and boots. Also, His goggles are replaced with a cowl, and his helmet adds plastic wings and a larger A. He also yields a flimsy plastic shield. But most importantly, he rides a jet boostered motorcycle, with an attached hang-glider for short flights.
Fast forward to 1990, and a new super-soldier Steve Rogers now dons a seamless rubber costume with glued on rubber ears, a more comic-accurate shield, and a cowl with wings. He faces off against Red Skull, but gets frozen in ice, and thaws out 50 years later. Then, in partnership with the President of the United States, he finally defeats the now non-red Red Skull.
2011's MCU Captain America would first appear as a brave, but weak, Steve Rogers, who is given a super-serum that makes him tall and muscular. First wearing a cloth costume with short shorts, a heater shield and a winged cowl for war-time entertainment. He later changes into a combat outfit with an added helmet to fight in World War 2. After proving himself in battle, he's given a carbon polymer suit with less saturated coloring, gray accents, leather gloves, utility pouches and a new vibranium shield, while his cowl is wingless and has an added chin strap. Ready for action, he faces off against Hydra Leader Red Skull, accidentally sending him into a wormhole, and flies a ship carrying explosives into the Arctic, freezing himself and missing out on a date.
70 years later he's recovered, and recruited to the Avengers. His new nomex and kevlar suit is more streamlined, with a brighter color scheme, silver accents, and padded boots and gloves. All suited up, he helps lead his fellow Avengers in a battle against reptilian aliens.
In the Winter Soldier, he wears a darker Stealth Suit, with horizontal chest stripes, muted red side accents and fingerless gloves. His Shield also gets a stealth upgrade. Later, he wears a near replica of his original combat suit, but with an updated, brighter color scheme. He faces off against a mysterious Hydra assassin, who happens to be his brainwashed former friend.
In Age of Ultron, his suit resembles his Stealth Suit, without the chest stripes, additional red and white details, his boots and gloves get an update, and his pant seams are altered. Oh, and his new gauntlets can now retrieve his Vibranium shield. With his new look, he helps his fellow heroes defeat intelligent robots, and then gets ready to train a new batch of Avengers.
In Civil War, the suit has more blue, the seam pattern on the torso and pants is altered again, his gloves are smaller, and he’s got a fancy new belt and darker boots. After a political disagreement within the Avengers, he takes off his shoulder logos and clashes with Tony Stark, breaking up the Avengers and becoming a fugitive.
But in Infinity War, Cap is back! This time, with a rugged beard and a torn and dirty suit with an additional red stripe down his pants and his sleeves rolled up. His belt buckle and shoulder straps are reshaped, his chest star is removed, and he’s wearing longer gloves. He's also sporting not one, but two Wakandan Vibranium shields. He comes out of hiding to help stop Thanos from snapping away half the universe... but ultimately, Thanos proves victorious.
In Endgame, Cap sports a Civil War looking suit with scaling, a green army uniform, and a black, red, and grey Quantum Realm suit with an occasional helmet. After Thano's snap is reversed, Cap volunteers to return the Infinity Stones to their rightful time periods. With that job done, Cap decides to stick around in the past and get that date he missed out on 70 years ago. Having lived a full life, he then hands his shield off to Falcon, bringing an end to the Steve Rogers MCU story. Oh, and he can also yield Thor's hammer now.
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