Captain America is one of the most popular characters in the entire Marvel franchise. Created in 1941, he became the symbol of the American dream and stood for freedom, hope, and a sense of duty.
He became an icon of American self-identity, influenced the public opinion, and ultimately helped to encourage the United States to enter World War II.
Steve Rogers made his mark on history as one of the most significant characters in the world of pop culture. He became integrated into the lives of many Americans as they idolized the way he took down the bad guys with his magnificent red, white, and blue shield.
However, just like any creation of the imagination, Captain America has his flaws.
When you look behind the shield and put him under a microscope of judgment, there are some things about his character that simply don’t make sense.
This list will focus on the inconsistencies, goofs, and straight-up nonsense that the MCU tried to hide in its movies. Although we will place emphasis on the movies, there will also be some hints to Captain America’s portrayal in the comics.
So get ready to break down his shield, because here are the 20 Things About Captain America That Don't Make Sense.
Why did he crash the plane in The First Avenger?
At the end of The First Avenger, Captain America sneaks aboard Red Skull’s plane and releases all the bombs conveniently labeled with their destinations in bright white paint.
He defeats all the Hydra combatants on the plane, eliminates Red Skull, and takes control of the plane.
There’s absolutely no further threat emanating from the Hydra plane. So why does Captain America decide to crash it?
The valiant Cap could have found a parachute and jumped his way to safety after redirecting the plane away from New York. He could have even simply hopped out, seeing how he’s nearly indestructible.
An escape from the plane would have saved Steve Rogers 70 years of his life. However, maybe that’s exactly what he wanted – Maybe Cap was simply avoiding that dance with Peggy Carter.
How old is he?
In the comics, Steve Rogers was finally able to join the military at the young age of 20. In the movies though, his age was increased to 21.
This means that Rogers was frozen at the age of 20 or 21, and therefore should be the same age when he’s thawed 70 years later.
However, in both the comic and the films, Rogers looks a lot older than a 20 or 21-year-old.
With his bulging muscles and mature beard, Chris Evans looks more like the 37-year-old he is, than Steve Roger’s 21-year-old self.
Throughout the films, we also don’t get to see Rogers grow up. He acts with a lot more maturity than a person of his age and sometimes we forget that he’s still basically a child.
His Pop Culture Knowledge
In Winter Soldier, Black Widow and Captain America visit S.H.I.E.L.D.’s nonoperational New Jersey base.
As Black Widow boots up one of the supercomputers, she says, “Shall we play a game?” and understanding the reference as a line from WarGames (1983), Rogers jokingly responds with “Love to. How about Global Thermonuclear War?”
However, wait a minute. How does Captain America know what WarGames is, but according to his pop culture list, has no idea what Star Wars or Star Trek is?
Steve Rogers has a very odd sense of pop culture.
Also, instead of brushing up on what he’s missed by visiting a museum about someone on his pop culture list, like Steve Jobs or The Beatles, he goes to visit a museum about himself – someone he already knows a lot about.
How did he know Bucky targetted Tony Stark's parents?
The events of Civil War led to an astounding revelation. Zemo unravels the mystery of the Starks’ demise by showing Tony Stark a video of the Winter Soldier taking out his parents.
What’s more surprising though is what happens after. When Rogers tries to stop Stark from taking action against Bucky, Stark asks him if he knew and Rogers simply says yes.
However, how did Cap know it Bucky was the perpetrator?
Although Cap could’ve made the connection that Hydra operatives took down the Starks, he didn’t know it was by the hands of his best friend.
Also, if he had known, or suspected Bucky of the crime, why not tell Stark earlier or shielded him from watching the video?
He could’ve also tried to soften the blow a little when Stark found out, instead of flat out saying yes.
Why does his shield make sounds?
In the films, Captain America’s shield is completely made out of vibranium. According to Stark, the shield works because vibranium makes it “completely vibration absorbent.”
Therefore, the metal is able to deflect against almost any type of force through absorbing its vibrations and energy.
However, sound is defined as the vibration of air molecules. So, if the shield absorbs all vibrations, why are we able to still hear it ping, cling, and hum whenever it gets hit in the movies?
Also, while the shield is made out of vibranium, the paint on it is not.
Therefore, we should see chips or wear and tear in the red, white, and blue paint unless someone is constantly adding a fresh coat of paint to the Cap’s shield.
Why are his disguises so good?
Clark Kent is constantly chastised for his cloak of invisibility. All it takes to hide his identity from the world is a simple pair of glasses.
However, Steve Rogers is also a master in the art of deception.
During Rogers’ countless run-ins with the law, he constantly turns to his handy dandy blue hat to deflect people from seeing his face.
Sometimes, like in Winter Soldier, he also puts on a pair of regular glasses as if the see-through frames somehow cover up his face.
Lucky for Rogers though, his disguise fools almost everyone throughout the movies. The only person that ever catches him is a little boy in the Captain America museum.
How is no one else able to identify Captain America in a museum full of pictures of himself? Is his hat really that powerful?
He Doesn't Seem to Know Anything about Being in the Military
Captain America joins the military after being rewarded for his determination, bravery, and quick smarts. However, it seems as though he was never taught anything about military protocol.
In The First Avenger, he wears his Combat Infantry Badge (CIB) below his ribbons, but they’re actually worn on top.
He also uses his social security number in the movie, but during WWII, military personnel used a service number rather than an SSN.
After coming back to camp, Rogers salutes Colonel Phillips as a good soldier does.
However, he ends the salute before the Colonel salutes back. According to regulation, a soldier has to hold a salute to a superior officer until he salutes back.
Rogers also wears hats indoors on multiple occasions, which is a no-no for military personnel.
Why can't he get drunk?
In The First Avenger, Captain America tells Peggy Carter that he can’t get drunk because his cells regenerate too fast and therefore his metabolism runs four times faster than the normal human.
However, that doesn’t mean that it’s impossible for him to get drunk. He simply has to drink stronger alcohol in a faster amount of time.
One typical glass of beer has less than an ounce of pure alcohol in it, which Cap would be able to process in less than 15 minutes.
However, if he drank eight or ten beers in an hour, he would be able to feel the alcohol feeding into his system and give him a slight buzz. Any more than this, or switching to whiskey, could get the Cap drunk.
If Thor and the other Asgardians can get drunk, then so can Captain America.
His magical Hulk pants
The most powerful item in the Marvel Universe isn’t an infinity stone. Instead, it seems to be a couple of pairs of pants.
When scrawny little Steve Rogers is injected with the Super Soldier Serum, he is wearing khaki colored pants. They fit the small kid quite perfectly but seem to also magically fit his buff alter-ego.
Despite gaining all kinds of muscles throughout his body and drastically increasing in size, Rogers’ pants are still able to hold on.
They don’t rip and they seem to fit the Cap just as well as they did prior to the injection.
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants better watch out because they have some competition in the MCU. Just like Hulk’s incredibly powerful pants, Steve Rogers’ pants are also pretty magical.
Why did he stop using guns?
During The First Avenger, we see Captain America wielding a gun on many occasions. He’s not only using the firearms, but he also has a lot of skill shooting them.
However, this is the last time in the movies that we see Cap significantly using a weapon other than his shield.
Although we see Rogers use an M-16 style rifle briefly in The Avengers and a knife at the beginning of Winter Soldier, we never really see him use the weapons that he was trained to use in the military.
Is this because of his newfound morals or because he’s no longer fighting a war?
Is it because he's around more civilians nowadays, or is it a cinematic effect to put emphasis on the effectiveness of Caps’ shield?
Why can't he afford a place in Brooklyn?
In Age of Ultron, Sam Wilson asks Steve Rogers if he’s found a place in Brooklyn yet. The Cap responds by saying “I don’t think I can afford a place in Brooklyn.”
However, hang on a second. Why can’t Rogers afford to rent out an apartment in Brooklyn?
He’s a celebrity working in a highly-funded secret government agency as one of their top agents. He surely gets paid well enough to afford rent.
Not only would Rogers receive money from S.H.I.E.L.D, but he should also be collecting government money.
He was missing in action for 70 years after saving the US from Hydra, which means he’d definitely have decades worth of back pay from the US government.
If that wasn’t enough, Rogers could ask his buddy Tony Stark for some extra dough or make money doing public appearances and inspirational speeches.
Why does the state require schools to watch his motivational videos in Spider-Man: Homecoming?
Captain America makes an interesting cameo in Spider-Man: Homecoming. During Peter Parker’s gym class, we see the glorious American soldier on an outdated television introducing the Captain America fitness challenge.
Although this scene is a hilarious jab at how outdated and underbudgeted some schools are, it also makes no sense.
Captain America was likely hired as the Fitness challenge’s spokesperson because of his great American values.
However, since the events of Civil War, he has become a fugitive of the law.
The gym teacher even recognizes this by saying “Pretty sure this guy’s a war criminal now, but whatever, I have to show these videos. It’s required by the state.”
But wouldn’t the state have lifted the requirements for watching the video as soon as Captain America became an enemy of the government?
Why does he go on a USO tour rather than fight in the war?
After taking down the Hydra spy Heinz Kruger in the streets of NYC, Rogers proved that serum worked wonderfully.
However, instead of sending him overseas to fight the bad guys, the military sent Rogers on a USO tour to boost the nation’s morale and promote the purchase of War Bonds.
This makes absolutely no sense. He’s clearly an amazing asset, but instead of helping on the frontlines, he’s reduced to parading around in a costume.
When deciding who to bring with him to the war, Colonel Phillips says “I asked for an army and all I got was you. You are not enough.”
However, we weren’t asking Cap to go in alone. It would’ve helped to have a super soldier in the war and the military could’ve hired someone else to act as Captain America for the USO tour.
His Hair Never Moves Moves and His Suit Magically Repairs Itself
Despite riding a motorcycle or fighting off a Chitauri invasion, Captain America’s hair is always perfectly intact. The wind never ruffles it and the bad guys tend to leave it alone.
However, the Cap’s hair isn’t the only thing that remains perfectly conditioned.
Many fans have spotted instances throughout the movies where Captain America’s suit magically repairs itself.
For example, during the Chitauri fight scene at the end of The Avengers, Cap is shot by a blaster bolt.
When Thor lifts him up, Cap is holding his wound and we clearly see that his suit is badly charred and damaged.
However, a couple of seconds later, the damage is completely gone. It’s as if his suit has the power to magically stitch itself up.
Why does he know hand-t0-hand combat?
During the first twenty minutes of The First Avenger, we see Steve Rogers getting beat up in an alley after speaking up against a rowdy movie viewer.
We also see him point out every place that he’s taken a beating as he rides with Agent Carter to receive his new abilities.
So clearly, Rogers isn’t very good at fighting or hand-to-hand combat. However, then why is Captain America one of the best fighters in the MCU?
The Super Soldier Serum that Rogers was injected with, enhanced the human body and mind.
It gave Rogers enhanced strength, speed, durability, stamina, healing, and senses. However, it didn’t teach him how to fight.
So how is Rogers instantly able to take down trained Hydra soldiers and some of the toughest assassins in the business?
How can he summon his shield?
Captain America is so skilled with his shield that he’s able to throw it with such precision that it always ricochets back into his hand.
However, at some points in the movie, it appears like he can summon his shield in a similar fashion to how Thor summons his Mjolnir.
This doesn’t make sense prior to Age of Ultron. However, in Age of Ultron, Stark created a magnetic device on Cap’s uniform that allows him to call his shield.
However, why is Stark able to manipulate vibranium and create a device that attracts the metal without the help of Wakandans? Also, why doesn’t Cap’s magnetic gloves attract other metal objects in the vicinity?
The magnetic device also only seems to be used in Age of Ultron. By the beginning of Civil War, Cap is back to using non-magnetic gloves.
His jog in Winter Soldier
In Winter Soldier, Captain America just happens to meet a very helpful friend on his morning jog. However, nothing about this encounter makes sense.
First off, Cap doesn’t have to run to keep in shape. That’s what the serum is for. Secondly, their jogging route has seemed to stump many DC natives on the internet.
Based on the images of the Inlet Bridge, Reflective Pool, US Capitol Building, and the Jefferson and Lincoln Memorial, the route has been established to be 4.615 miles long.
Since Cap passed Wilson three times, this is in line with the statement Wilson makes saying that he ran “like 13 miles in 30 minutes.”
However, DC natives have been quick to point out that there’s no loop in the route. It doesn’t include any closed circuits and therefore there’s no way that Cap could pass Wilson even once.
His Relationship with Bucky
Throughout movie history, love has always been considered a weakness. According to Harley Quinn, “it’s like inking a bull’s eye on your heart and giving some rando a crossbow.”
This is why many superheroes like Spider-Man and Superman try to distance themselves from the ones they love. Love causes heroes to act irrationally and ultimately puts the world in danger.
Apparently, Steve Rogers never got the memo. His one flaw is his incredible devotion to his best friend, Bucky Barnes.
Cap’s relationship with Barnes forces him to throw away everything he stands for and believes in. Particularly in Civil War, Rogers puts everything on the line for his best friend.
However, this is very much against the ideals of Captain America and causes him to make irrational and senseless decisions throughout the films.
Why was he the only one strong enough to block Thanos in Infinity War?
At the end of Infinity War, we see all the Avengers and Guardians join forces to try and stop the Mad Titan. However, Captain America is the only one that has the strength to match Thanos.
Rogers throws in a couple of punches and when Thanos retaliates, Rogers grabs his Infinity Gauntlet-wielding fists and pushes back.
In this moment, the audience believes there’s hope for the Avengers and even the Mad Titan himself looks at Captain America with utter shock and disbelief.
However, how is Captain America able to hold off the Mad Titan and why is he the only Avenger that is able to do so?
Thanos is easily able to break the Tesseract with one hand and in the comics, the Mad Titan can break Cap’s shield with a backhand slap.
Why is he called The First Avenger?
Based on the name of his first film, Captain America is known as “The First Avenger.” However, how did he get this nickname?
Captain America is not the first superhero in the movies or the comics to join the Avengers.
In the comics, Thor, Iron Man, Giant-Man, Wasp, and Hulk all joined in 1963 through the Avengers #1 comic. Then, Captain America joined in Avengers #4 released in 1964.
Some fans say that Cap is known as the First Avenger because he’s the oldest member of the team. However, that’s not true either. As an Asgardian, Thor is a lot older than the 20-year old born in the 1920s.
The reason he’s called the First Avenger could be because he’s the first Avenger to ever appear in a comic. However, this is a very roundabout way to get a nickname.
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Do you know any other things about Captain America that make absolutely no sense? Let us know in the comments!