Captain Britain
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Template:Superherobox Captain Britain (Brian Braddock), also briefly known as Britannic, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero in the Marvel universe.
The Captain Britain character first appeared in Captain Britain Weekly, a Marvel UK title written by Chris Claremont in 1976. The character is especially notable for a memorable run by Alan Moore and Alan Davis when both were at the start of their careers.
He is also a regular character in Marvel's X-Men spin-off title, Excalibur.
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Publication history
In 1976 Marvel UK had only reprinted existing US material, it had never produced any new work for the British market with the exception of some new covers for its various weekly reprint titles. It was decided that a new character would be created for Marvel UK and on October 13th, 1976, the first issue of Captain Britain Weekly appeared complete with a free gift (traditional for any new British weekly title) of a Captain Britain mask. Image:Capbritain1.jpg
The title strip was written by Chris Claremont and drawn by Herb Trimpe, providing back up were reprints of Fantastic Four and Nick Fury stories from Marvel US. It was unique in being the first Marvel UK comic to substantially use color, with both Captain Britain and Steranko's Nick Fury being run in full-color.
The title was initially successful but the quality of these stories was generally considered to be poor and sales dipped. With its 39th issue it was cancelled and combined with Marvel UK's Spider-Man title. The title, now called Super Spider-Man and Captain Britain ran from #231-253 before Captain Britain vanished into comic book limbo. During this time the character made his first US appearance in Marvel Team-Up #65, co-starring with Spider-Man, in 1978. Reprints of his UK adventures also popped up in various US Marvel titles and were the first time UK material had been reprinted by the parent US Marvel.
Meanwhile in the UK, the character didn't see light again till during the Black Knight strip running in Marvel UK's Hulk Weekly title. This time round he was part of a lengthy story involving the King Arthur legend called The Otherworld Saga.
Also this was the first time the character had a completely British creative team including John Stokes and Steve Parkhouse. Captain Britain proved a popular addition to the story and showed to then Marvel UK editor-in-chief, Dez Skinn that he could return in his own strip. Initially, this was done by the quest begun in the Black Knight strip diverging into two separate strands, with Captain Britain and the Black Knight taking different paths, and Captain Britain getting his own strip, accompanied by Jackdaw the Elf.
Captain Britain finally came into his own in issue 377 of Marvel Superheroes (the monthly incarnation of The Mighty World Of Marvel), complete with a new costume. This time his exploits were written by Dave Thorpe and drawn by Alan Davis in a story called The Crooked World Saga. Thorpe wrote the stories till issue 386 but he wanted to introduce political elements into the strip, particularly to do with the troubles in Northern Ireland. Thorpe's plot was interrupted half way through and so when Alan Moore took over with issue 387 he managed to tie up Thorpe's plotline and adapt it to fit his own concepts.
Marvel Superheroes (The Mighty World Of Marvel) was cancelled with issue 398 but Captain Britain continued in the pages of The Daredevils, another Marvel UK title. It was during the 11 issues of The Daredevils that Moore and Davis found their feet individually and as a creative team. It is during this run (called the Jaspers' Warp story) that Moore and Davis introduced many of the ideas and concepts that still follow the character to the present day.
Moore left the writing duties when he started writing Swamp Thing and his workload duly increased. So Jamie Delano assumed writing duties (at Moore's recommendation) with Alan Davis starting with issue 14 (volume two) of The Mighty World Of Marvel. After that title was cancelled, Captain Britain once again had his own title, this time monthly instead of weekly. This run lasted 14 issues before being cancelled, these stories were later reprinted in the first Captain Britain trade paperback.Image:Capbritainmonthly1.jpg The character quickly found a new home in the pages of Excalibur, an X-Men spin off written by Chris Claremont and drawn by Alan Davis. The series ran 125 issues plus specials and crossovers and included a notable run written and drawn by Alan Davis. The title has returned in November 2005, this time called New Excalibur and includes Captain Britain in its lineup.
In 1990 saw Knights of Pendragon #1 being released. This was a superhero team book written by Dan Abnett and John Tomlinson with art by Gary Erskine. It mixed super heroics and Arthurian themes and featured Captain Britain as a regular member. It lasted 18 issues before restarting again with volume two, this time without Captain Britain making an appearance.
There have been two trade paperbacks collecting Captain Britain stories. The first one released contained the Jamie Delano and Alan Davis material from Captain Britain Monthly. This caused some confusion with US readers as it was a continuation from Alan Moore's work, however Moore was in dispute over the use of his characters by Marvel and refused permission for his work to be reprinted. This caused a dispute with Davis as he wanted their work to be reprinted in the U. S. Moore refused as he was still in dispute with Marvel over their reprinting his strips from Doctor Who Magazine without his permission. Although Moore's work did receive a reprint in X-Men Archives during the mid-1990s, it was badly colored and done without Moore being credited for copyright for his characters.
It wasn't until Joe Quesada became editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics in 2000 that Moore's work received a trade paperback reprint in 2002. Moore accepted Quesada's pledge that the Marvel he once knew was different and personally assured Moore that he would be fully credited. Sadly there was a printing error and Moore's copyright credits were missed from the first printing of the book. Moore disowned the book and although Quesada issued a public apology and ensured future printings contained the copyright notice, Moore made it clear he would not consider working for Marvel in any form again.
In 2005 Captain Britain has also featured in the reprint title the Mighty World of Marvel (vol. 3) from Panini Comics. They also published the first new Captain Britain story produced by a British company in over 15 years in March 2005. This was published in Spectacular Spider-Man #114 (UK Edition) and was created by Jim Alexander, Jim Haward and John Stokes.
Biography
Born in the small town of Maldon, Essex, it was not until a motorcycle accident that physics student Brian Braddock was recruited by Merlyn and his daughter, the goddess Roma, to be the superhero Captain Britain, a role he felt himself unsuited for. He joined forces with Spider-Man and the Black Knight early in his career, then returned to Great Britain, first as a lone hero and then as part of Excalibur.Image:Captain Britain.jpg
Every Earth in Marvel Comics' multiverse has its own Captain Britain who is expected to defend that version of the British Isles and uphold its local laws; they are collectively called the Captain Britain Corps. For example, on one Earth the Nazis won World War II, so its Captain Britain ("Hauptmann Englande") upholds the Nazi regime. On another Earth, mutants have been eradicated and Captain Britain runs a league of enforcers who hunt down any remaining mutants. In some of these alternate universes Captain Britain is the alternate version of Brian Braddock, in others it is someone completely different. The Earth of the "normal" Marvel Universe is called "Earth-616".
Brian has two siblings: his twin sister Elizabeth (Psylocke of the X-Men), and his older brother Jamie, once a playboy, and secretly a gunrunner, now a shady criminal committing atrocity in foreign countries. He is married to Meggan, an empathic shapeshifter. At one point he learned that his father, like Merlyn, was originally from another dimension, alternately called "Avalon" or "Otherworld". It has been suggested that Brian, like his siblings, is a mutant. However, the Official Handbook to the Marvel Universe states that Captain Britain is not a mutant, that his powers are derived from magic.
During a significant period of the Excalibur series Captain Britain struggled with being an alcoholic; though that time period corresponds with a subtled curse placed on him by Roma to weaken him (revealed in Excalibur #50) to ensure that the team was not pulled apart by his strong personality. The curse was lifted after her father, Merlyn, was defeated. Brian now professes to be a teetotaler.
Eventually, after Roma's ascension to another plane of existence, he assumed the throne of Otherworld, and recently transferred the powers and mantle of the Earth-616 Captain Britain to a woman named Kelsey Leigh, remaining the ruler of Otherworld (with the powers imbued by that role). Captain Britain was forced to come back to Earth to stop the House of M reality from coming into existence. During this time, his wife Meggan apparently sacrificed her life to save a rip in time from destroying the Earth. This had resulted in Brian becoming active as Captain Britain again and the formation of the all new Excalibur, along with Pete Wisdom, Sage, Juggernaut, Dazzler and Nocturne.
Alternate Versions
Age of Apocalypse
In the Age of Apocalypse, Brian Braddock never became Captain Britain, and is one of the members of the Human High Council, alongside Moira Trask, Bolivar Trask, Emma Frost and Mariko Yashida. Braddock is also the most vocal advocate for the extermination of mutants, much to the weariness of Yashida and Frost, who seem to have much less fanatical beliefs. However, Braddock is also the victim of a mind control device and is forced to act as a mole for Donald Pierce and his Reavers, all servants of Apocalypse. Under the control of Pierce, Braddock proposes the assembly of the entire Council fleet to attack Apocalypse's capital. Braddock dies at Pierce's hands when he overcomes the mind control and refuses to kill Emma Frost.
Ultimate Captain Britain
In Ultimate Marvel continuity, Captain Britain is a member of the European Defense Initiative (the EU equivalent of the Ultimates), with Captain Italy, Captain France and Captain Spain, all of whom have similar powers. All four of them developed their powers from the same source: a super powered exo-suit developed by Doctor Braddock, Brian's father.
Powers and abilities
Brian Braddock has superhuman strength, the ability to fly, and near-invulnerability. Brian can lift approximately 90 tons under optimum conditions and his mystical link with Britain also enhances his stamina and reflexes to superhuman levels. The energy that powers his abilities is drawn from inter-universal space.
His power of flight allows him to fly at a maximum speed of 770mph and renders him immune to the atmospheric effects of flying at high speeds. His near invulnerability is provided by a force field closely over his skin. This force field can stand a bazooka shell without any deformation. It is currently understood that repeated impacts will weaken the field and eventually penetrate it.
However, the exact weakness of the force field has altered, partly because of a poor grasp of continuity by writers and editors. Originally it was completely impenetrable, but required continued concentration on Brian's part to maintain it. Subsequently a weakness was introduced by Alan Moore within the plot that established there was a very small, but vulnerable point near the left shoulder; and also that some highly advanced technology could be used to pierce the field. Since then it has been breached in a variety of ways. During Excalibur it was more or less forgotten, and was at one point demoted to a force field to protect him from atmospheric conditions when flying. There also seems to be confusion as to whether the force field is projected by Brian or part of the suit. Strictly speaking since The Daredevils it is an ability he personally possesses, however it may be that he is not yet aware of this fact, and still believes it is an inherent part of the suit. After all in a later issue of Excalibur he specifically refers to the suit as generating the force field.
Brian is also the twin of Betsy Braddock - because of this they are immune to each others powers and the two share a strong psychic bond.
For a time, all of his abilities were localized to Britain; if he went abroad for too long a time without wearing his costume, his powers eventually diminished to nothing. His costume acts as an antenna and battery, allowing him to retain his powers wherever he goes. Again this idea has not been consistent and during the appearance of Excalibur in Quasar he states that both Meghan and he will lose their powers outside of the UK although he is wearing his costume at the time. Indeed, the whole device of Brian and Meghan's powers fading outside the UK seems to flatly contradict episodes in Captain Britain monthly where they consecutively visited Africa, Russia, and ancient South America without any apparent diminution of their abilities.
He is also a scientist, though he rarely has the opportunity to exercise his training as a physicist.
When he and Meggan destroyed the Otherworld energy matrix at Roma's prompting, however, the energies that allowed him to retain his power within the UK without his costume were dissipated. Hence, to retain his powers anywhere on Earth, he must wear the costume at all times.
Originally, his powers were linked to the Amulet of Right, worn around his neck, and he depended on a mace-like Star Scepter to fly. Later on Merlyn changed his costume just before he entered an alternate Earth (Earth-238), removing the Amulet and the Scepter placing the powers in his new costume. Not long after that he was killed by the Fury and had his body remade by Merlyn, who chose this point to make his powers innate and stronger, with his costume merely serving as a "battery" and amplifier.
Appearances in other media
Captain Britain was briefly seen in the third part of the Phoenix Saga from the X-Men animated television series. Psylocke mentions him during Beyond Good and Evil, though she merely says "my brother", hinting also he's a mutant in this continuity.
Bibliography
List of titles
Collections
- Captain Britain (2002) (ISBN 0785108556) reprints Marvel Superheroes, #387-388, The Daredevils, #1-11 and The Mighty World Of Marvel, volume 2, #7-13. All stories are written by Alan Moore and drawn by Alan Davis.
- Captain Britain (1988) trade paperback reprints The Mighty World Of Marvel, volume 2, #14-16 and Captain Britain Monthly, #1-14. All stories are written by Jamie Delano and drawn by Alan Davis.
UK published titles
- Captain Britain Weekly, #1-39
- Super Spider-Man and Captain Britain, #231-253
- Hulk Weekly, #1-63
- Marvel Superheroes, #377-388
- The Daredevils, #1-11
- The Mighty World Of Marvel, volume 2, #7-16
- Captain Britain Monthly, #1-14
- Knights of Pendragon, volume one, #1-18
- Recently Panini Comics have reprinted Marvel UK's Captain Britain monthly material in The Mighty World Of Marvel (vol. 3). They have also produced new material in Spectacular Spider-Man (UK edition) #114.
US published titles
- Excalibur: The Sword is Drawn (also known as Excalibur Special Edition)
- Excalibur, Vol. 1, #1-125
- Excalibur: Mojo Mayhem
- Excalibur: Weird War III
- Excalibur: The Possession
- Excalibur: Air Apparent
- Excalibur Annual, #1-2
- Excalibur #-1
- Excalibur Vol. 2 #1-4 - a mini series solicited as Excalibur: Sword of Power, and occasionally called by that name.
- Marvel Team-Up, #65-66
- New Excalibur, #1 onward (new series starting from November 2005)
- New Mutants, annual #2
- X-Men Archives, #1-7