Hauptmann Deutschland
Encyclopedia
Hauptmann Deutschland (German
for Captain Germany), also known as Vormund, is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics
universe
.
where the Schutz Heiliggruppe captured the Red Skull
and abducted him back to Germany
in an attempt to put him on trial for war crimes. Although they captured the Skull and subsequently his Skeleton Crew, they later surrendered the Skull to a false Thor
, Iron Man
and Captain America
, who were actually shapeshifting "bioplastoid" androids created by the Skull's lackey Arnim Zola
.
Realizing the deception, Hauptmann Deutschland followed the Skull back to America. After the obligatory brawl between heroes, he then teamed up with Captain America to track the Skull. They gave up the hunt when confronted with a false corpse of the Red Skull. The false Skull had been shot through the head, and appeared to have been killed by the Scourge of the Underworld
, who left his trademark "Justice Is Served" scrawled on the wall.
Vormund's next appearance was in a somewhat convoluted tale where he set out with Zeitgeist, another member of the Schutz Heiliggruppe, in order to investigate the slaying of their partner Blitzkrieger
, who had himself been slain while investigating the murders of multiple South American local superheroes. Although Vormund was framed for the murders, it was eventually discovered that Zeitgeist was actually a somewhat obscure American villain known as the Everyman
. While fleeing Captain America, Zeitgeist tried to stab Vormund with his sword. Vormund redirected the force of Zeitgeist/Everyman's stab and killed him.
Hauptmann Deutschland has not appeared since.
Due to a lack of coordination, when Hauptmann Deutschland next appeared in American comics, he was renamed Vormund, which means "legal guardian," "warden" or "custodian." Per Markus Raymond, a submitter to the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe, Vormund actually should be used only in reference to a "legal guardian for a child or somebody else who can't talk legally for himself."http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/schutzheiligruppe.htm.
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
for Captain Germany), also known as Vormund, is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
.
Fictional character biography
Hauptmann Deutschland is part of a team called the Schutz Heiliggruppe, which was a national superteam protecting Germany. He first appeared in a backup story in Captain AmericaCaptain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
where the Schutz Heiliggruppe captured the Red Skull
Red Skull
The Red Skull is a name shared by several fictional characters, all supervillains from the Marvel Comics universe. All incarnations of the character are enemies of Captain America, other superheroes, and the United States in general....
and abducted him back to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in an attempt to put him on trial for war crimes. Although they captured the Skull and subsequently his Skeleton Crew, they later surrendered the Skull to a false Thor
Thor (Marvel Comics)
Thor is a fictional superhero who appears in publications published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Journey into Mystery #83 and was created by editor-plotter Stan Lee, scripter Larry Lieber, and penciller Jack Kirby....
, Iron Man
Iron Man
Iron Man is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee, developed by scripter Larry Lieber, and designed by artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby, first appearing in Tales of Suspense #39 .A billionaire playboy, industrialist and ingenious engineer,...
and Captain America
Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
, who were actually shapeshifting "bioplastoid" androids created by the Skull's lackey Arnim Zola
Arnim Zola
Arnim Zola is a fictional character a supervillain appearing in the Marvel Comics universe. He is a master of biochemistry, and frequent foe of Captain America and the Avengers.-Publication history:...
.
Realizing the deception, Hauptmann Deutschland followed the Skull back to America. After the obligatory brawl between heroes, he then teamed up with Captain America to track the Skull. They gave up the hunt when confronted with a false corpse of the Red Skull. The false Skull had been shot through the head, and appeared to have been killed by the Scourge of the Underworld
Scourge of the Underworld
The Scourge of the Underworld is the name of a series of fictional characters that have appeared in various series set in the Marvel Comics universe....
, who left his trademark "Justice Is Served" scrawled on the wall.
Vormund's next appearance was in a somewhat convoluted tale where he set out with Zeitgeist, another member of the Schutz Heiliggruppe, in order to investigate the slaying of their partner Blitzkrieger
Blitzkrieg (Marvel Comics)
Blitzkrieg is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:Blitzkrieg first appeared in Marvel Super-Heroes: Contest of Champions #1 . He also appeared in issue #3 of the series ....
, who had himself been slain while investigating the murders of multiple South American local superheroes. Although Vormund was framed for the murders, it was eventually discovered that Zeitgeist was actually a somewhat obscure American villain known as the Everyman
Everyman (Marvel Comics)
Everyman is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Publication history:The Everyman first appeared in Captain America #267 and was created by J. M. DeMatteis and Mike Zeck...
. While fleeing Captain America, Zeitgeist tried to stab Vormund with his sword. Vormund redirected the force of Zeitgeist/Everyman's stab and killed him.
Hauptmann Deutschland has not appeared since.
Naming controversy
When the issues of Captain America containing Hauptmann Deutschland and the rest of the Schutz Heiliggruppe were to be published in Germany by licensee Condor Interpart, the names of the team were changed in accordance with the German taboos on references to Nazism, despite the team being distinctly anti-Nazi in behavior and the fact that Hauptmann Deutschland's name (which means simply "Captain Germany") contains no actual reference to Nazism. In Germany, Hauptmann Deutschland was renamed Freiheitskämpfer (Freedom Fighter).Due to a lack of coordination, when Hauptmann Deutschland next appeared in American comics, he was renamed Vormund, which means "legal guardian," "warden" or "custodian." Per Markus Raymond, a submitter to the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe, Vormund actually should be used only in reference to a "legal guardian for a child or somebody else who can't talk legally for himself."http://www.marvunapp.com/Appendix/schutzheiligruppe.htm.