Marvel Teases New Character in the Iron Patriot Suit

Marvel is putting a new character in the Iron Patriot armor. The cover to Captain America #23 features the Iron Patriot prominently, but it isn’t Norman Osborn, James Rhodes, or Toni Ho inside. The solicitation for the issue doesn’t confirm who is wearing the armor, but it looks to be Sharon Carter. The current Captain America series sees Cap still trying to redeem his reputation after his Hydra doppelgänger conquered America. Sharon Carter and the Daughters of Liberty helped break him out of prison. Since then, he’s learned that the villain Selene stole a piece of Sharon’s soul. Though Steve Rogers left the Captain America persona by the wayside, he may need to reclaim it if he’s to win the day.

Brian Michael Bendis and Mike Deodato created the Iron Patriot persona. Its an amalgam of Captain America’s star-spangled costume and Iron Man technologically-advanced armor. Norman Osborn was the first Iron Patriot, donning the suit as the leader of the Dark Avengers during the Dark Reign era. James Rhodes, aka War Machine, wore a version of the Iron Patriot armor for a time. The most recent Iron Patriot is Toni Ho, who took on the persona as a member of Bobby Da Costa’s USAvengers squad.

The solicitation text for Captain America #23 teases, “A restoration! A resurrection! A bit of redemption! And the return of Cap’s number one foe!” The issue is the next chapter of the “All Die Young” storyline that leads up to the milestone 25th issue of Ta-Nehisi Coates’ Captain America run. The storyline revealed that the Daughters of Liberty leader, the Dryad, is Peggy Carter, Cap’s old flame whom he believed long dead. Now it seems that Steve may have to choose between Peggy Carter and Sharon Carter in his fight against Selene and her allies. Readers also learned in the most recent issue of the series that Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross is not dead, as the series suggested in earlier issues.

What do you think of the new Iron Patriot? Let us know how you feel about it in the comments section. Captain America #23 goes on sale in September. Official solicitation text follows.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #23
TA-NEHISI COATES (W) • BOB QUINN (A) • Cover by ALEX ROSS
CAPTAIN AMERICA TIMELESS VARIANT COVER by ALEX ROSS – APR201030
ALL DIE YOUNG! Continues!

A restoration! A resurrection! A bit of redemption! And the return of Cap’s number one foe!

32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99
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