Warning: Contains spoilers for Sam Wilson: Captain America #2!

Just as Sam Wilson’s Captain America soars back into cinemas with his latest MCU outing, the Avenger adds a surprising hero to his ing cast in the comics, possibly the biggest in Captain America lore since Bucky Barnes’ Winter Soldier. While Bucky had to overcome brainwashing in his role as the Winter Soldier, a returning character’s new role sees him help others open their eyes to injustice - including Cap.

Sam Wilson: Captain America #2 – written by Greg Pak and Evan Narcisse, with art by Eder Messias – depicts the fallout of Sam’s battle with Maverick’s Red Hulk and the shady corporation orchestrating the attack. With Sam and Joaquín Torres imprisoned, Josiah X reveals his new superhero identity as Shadow Soldier, stepping in to rescue Captain America and Falcon.

In the issue, Josiah details his history and why he’s taken up the new mantle, explaining that he wants to fight for the people in the shadows. Though the name is somewhat reminiscent of Winter Soldier, the characters are total opposites.

Introducing the Shadow Soldier: Marvel Gives The Captain America Franchise A Very Different Take On The Winter Soldier Formula

Sam Wilson: Captain America #2 – Written By Greg Pak & Evan Narcisse; Art By Eder Messias; Colors By Fer Sifuentes-Sujo; Lettering By VC’s Joe Caramagna

The son of the first Black Captain America, Isaiah Bradley, Josiah X has been missing in action for years, but his Marvel Comics return officially gives him a new codename and mission moving forward. Before Bucky Barnes was revealed as the Winter Soldier in 2005, Josiah al hajj Saddiq made his debut in 2003’s The Crew #1, but disappeared shortly after. Now that Josiah has finally returned, with a snazzy new costume and alias that calls back to his time spent serving in the Vietnam War, he’s become a similarly-positioned inverse of the Winter Soldier.

Josiah was teased at the superhero cookout and birthday celebration for Isaiah in the series’ first issue, and Sam Wilson: Captain America #2 re-introduces the character with not only his new moniker, but an interesting dynamic with Cap. After freeing Sam and Joaquin from Eaglestar’s prison, Shadow Soldier discusses some of his ideological differences with Cap and implores him to be less naive. Where Steve Rogers had to fight to wake Bucky up from his Winter Soldier mind control, Josiah’s Shadow Soldier contrasts that by reminding Sam to stay vigilant and helping him uncover the truth about Eaglestar’s evil plot.

The History Of Josiah X & The Bradley Family In Captain America Lore, Explained

Shadow Soldier's Long Lineage

Though Isaiah Bradley’s story in the Marvel Universe dates back to the 1940s, he first appeared just a year before his son in Truth: Red, White, and Black. In that series, he eventually took the mantle of Captain America for himself as an unwilling test subject for the Super Soldier Serum, and the government imprisoned him for 17 years after he took Steve Rogers’ costume. Isaiah had various health issues arising from the military’s depraved experiments, and they even orchestrated the birth of his super-powered son through a surrogate, as revealed in The Crew.

Sam Wilson: Captain America #1 revealed that, though the veteran turned Muslim minister reconnected with his family in The Crew, Josiah has been as absent to the Bradleys as he’d been to Marvel Comics overall. In his last major appearance, Josiah had seemingly come to with the Stars and Stripes after ing Rhodey’s ragtag team, but his all-new superhero identity confirms that there’s a lot to his story that’s been left untold over the years. As the Shadow Soldier, Josiah could finally reunite with his family again and challenge Sam or Steve to be better versions of Captain America.

Fan excitement about Josiah's return in the series' first issue proved that Marvel absolutely made the right decision by plucking the character out of creative limbo and bringing him back to the forefront of Captain America lore. Now, Sam Wilson: Captain America #2 makes it clear that Marvel is ready to invest time and energy into the character, by giving him a new character design and a new superhero identity – and emphasizing that there is a lot more to Josiah's story left to tell, past, present, and future.

Josiah Deserves His Marvel Comeback – And He Would Be Perfect For Captain America 5

Shadow Soldier Could Be Exciting Spin On "Captain America: The Winter Soldier"

Despite limited appearances, Josiah holds an important place in Captain America lore, and his new Shadow Soldier is more than worthy of the spotlight in Marvel Comics and beyond. Although the character almost entirely disappeared after Bucky returned, Josiah’s comeback makes his new superhero mantle the antithesis of what the super-spy assassin Winter Soldier represents, as the Shadow Soldier fights for individuals instead of government and exposes the truth. With Sam Wilson getting his first solo movie in Captain America: Brave New World, also featuring Isaiah Bradley, Josiah should be next to make the leap from comics to the MCU.

As Josiah X makes his long-awaited return to comics and reveals himself as an all-new kind of super soldier, the Captain America franchise will never be the same.

Since Steve Rogers’ second solo outing in the MCU revolved around his relationship with the Winter Soldier, Sam Wilson’s budding relationship with the Shadow Soldier could influence his future in the comics and more. For now, the potential of their rivalry or friendship will seemingly be a major factor in the future of the Sam Wilson: Captain America series, with both heroes impacted by the disturbing cliffhanger ending in the latest issue. As Josiah X makes his long-awaited return to comics and reveals himself as a different kind of super soldier, the Captain America franchise will never be the same.

Sam Wilson: Captain America #2 is available now from Marvel Comics.