Plenty of Marvel heroes have lived, died, and come back to tell their own tale, though few if any are so well known for these kinds of extraordinary reappearances as Captain America. It isn’t just Steve Rogers who has seemingly perished only to resurface years later, but nearly everyone in his orbit, including his adopted son. Of course, it was never really a question of if Ian Rogers was going to return, but rather when. Now that he has, he is wasting no time in leaving an impact on the world around him.
After a brazen daytime attack saw the prime minister of Mohannda assassinated on U.S. soil, Captain America: Symbol of Truth #7 (by Tochi Onyebuchi, Ig Guara, Jesus Aburtov, and VC’s Joe Caramagna) finds Sam Wilson determined to travel overseas to get to the bottom of it all. While no one is willing to stand in Captain America’s way, his government benefactors aren’t willing to let him go it alone, either. Luckily, Senator Mansfield knows just who to team Sam up with to ensure things don’t get out of hand. And, if they do, Nomad will be there to take care of them the only way he knows how.
Captain America’s Long-Lost Son, Ian Rogers aka Nomad, Has Returned
First seen in the pages of 2012’s Captain America #1 (by Rick Remender and John Romita Jr.), Ian was the genetically modified son of none other than longtime Marvel villain Arnim Zola. Developed from Zola’s DNA, Ian was rescued from his confinement as an infant by Steve Rogers during a mission to the dreaded Dimension Z. Unfortunately, the two became trapped before they could make their escape, leaving Cap to raise Ian as his own while time moved past them at blistering speed.
After over a decade in Dimension Z, Ian became its savior apparent as Nomad, a title which he would carry with him into the primary Marvel Universe. Upon reaching Earth, Ian teamed up with Sam Wilson to take on the forces of Hydra. It was during one of these battles with Baron Zemo that Ian seemingly lost his life, only to be revealed as having survived shortly after. This became something of a recurring theme in Ian’s life, as subsequent battles left him dead to the world, and his partner, all over again.
Nomad is on a Questionable Secret Mission
Sam might have a powerful ally once more with Ian’s latest return, but that doesn’t take away from the sting of finding out that he was alive the entire time. It also raises plenty of questions as to who was aware of Ian’s living status. It makes sense that the former Winter Soldier would keep his knowledge of Ian’s presence a secret to help safeguard his work against the remnants of Hydra left in the wake of 2017’s Secret Empire. But the fact that Ian has been tasked with culling those cells in the first place implies that there are even more secrets being kept from the people who need to know them the most.
On the other hand, having Nomad working in secret has clearly been working out for the most part. Especially now that Hydra’s former forces have been largely relegated to serving the likes of Ares or the Blasphemy Cartel, it would appear that Ian has been more than capable of keeping his old enemies from rising back up in any meaningful way. Then again, if Nomad has proved one thing over his lifetime, it is that appearances are almost always deceiving.
