Fallen (Fictional) Soldier - UPDATED!

As most people have read by now, Steve Rogers, the fictional character known for over 50 years as Captain America was shot and killed by an agent of his arch foe, the Red Skull. There’s been a ton of media coverage of the event:

Shocking event for Captain America (CNN)

Pow! Thwack! Captain America dead at 89 (AFP via Yahoo)

Iconic superhero Captain America shot dead – maybe (Reuters via Yahoo)

Interview with Cap writer Ed Brubaker here (Newsarama)

Jeph Loeb on the fallout – Fallen Son (Newsarama)

How long until he’ll be back? There used to be a time when a few comic deaths meant something. I mean, sure, we all expect Jean Grey, Psylocke, and Magneto to die and come back every year or two. But in a comic environment where Captain Marvel and Colossus return, when Jason Todd and Bucky are alive and badass, in a world where an alternate Uncle Ben is wandering around, and Hawkeye stays dead for about six months, you know it won’t be long before Cap is back (especially because they are working on a Captain America movie).

So what should Marvel do with mantle of Captain America? In 1993, DC comics killed off Superman and replaced him with four knockoff copies until the real man of steel returned:

The Man of Steel: John Henry Irons was an ironworker and ex-weapons designer for the military who wears a suit of armor and wields a hammer. He did not claim to actually be Superman, but rather to represent the spirit of Superman and continue his legacy. Any else think that Iron Man/Tony Stark is game for this?

The Man of Tomorrow, also called the Cyborg Superman, arrived with augmented Kryptonian technology. He was scientifically proven to be Superman but claims amnesia in explanation to his part-mechanical nature. The cyborg Supes was basically a Deathlok rip-off, so why not let Deathlok be the new Cap?

The Metropolis Kid, who hated being called Superboy, is a reckless teenage clone of Superman. They cloned Thor, why not clone Cap? Call him Kid America, or something lame like that. Plus there’d be the inevitable run-in with Patriot of the Young Avengers.

The Last Son of Krypton was a visored, energy-powered alien who dealt with criminals lethally. He claims to have memories as the original Superman’s but his emotional distance makes Lois uncertain. We know that the Punisher looks up to Cap in a weird hero-worship sort of way, and didn’t he pick up Cap’s shield at the end of Civil War?

Update: Some commentary from Jeff:

"Ah, very nice, but you’re missing out on one vital piece of information:

The Cyborg Superman was originally the mock Reed Richards back when DC was ripping on the Fantastic Four. Ergo, I see Marvel’s plan as it truly will be:

Mr. Fantastic commits suicide over the guilt he feels for being responsible for Goliath’s death. However he is rebuilt Million Dollar Man style by SHIELD. He then goes crazy, and with the help of Thanos (standing in for Mongol in Marvel continuity) is responsible for the destruction of oh let’s say Hank Pym’s home town (which will lead to him going crazy and killing millions of people in a future mega crossover event that will destroy all comic continuity) and is only stopped when the original Cap is reborn ( in some weird Antarctic crystal birthing chamber that makes absolutely no sense) and destroys him.

And if we can throw in Doomsday for any reason at all, that’ll work too."

Who needs Doomsday when you have Clor, I say?