Marvel’s The Avengers has become a box office phenomenon – and DStv is bringing it to your television screens on BoxOffice.

One of the most well-known Avengers is the all-American, blond, blue-eyed Captain America. Played by Chris Evans, the former art nerd is now one of the most respected and feared of superheroes.

Read on to know more about the man dubbed "The First Avenger".

The man behind the armour

Steve Rogers grew up in Manhattan during the Great Depression as the son of Irish immigrants. His alcoholic father died when Steve was a child and pneumonia claimed his mother’s life years later.


Tall but frail, Steve was a fine arts geek appalled by the Nazis' atrocities during World War II. He then enlisted in the army, determined to defeat the Nazis, but failed to make it in due to his scrawny frame.

How he came to be

After his attempt to join the army, Steve is presented with the opportunity to volunteer for a pilot programme called Project: Rebirth. The aim? To create super soldiers.

With Steve as the first test subject, the process is a success, transforming him into a stronger, more agile being. He soon becomes Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty and is sent to defeat the Nazis. During one battle he is flung into the freezing waters of the Atlantic, where he freezes to death (it’s presumed).

In actuality, the super serum he received during the Rebirth has made him, well, invincible. In the 2010 movie, Captain America: The First Avenger, Rogers awakens in a hospital room several decades later, receiving an invite to become one of the Avengers.


His superpowers   

Captain America really has no superpowers as such. Because of Project: Rebirth he’s the apex of human potential. He’s strong, fast, self-healing and durable.

While in a fictional African country called Wakanda, Cap befriends its leader, who gives him a rare metal called Vibranium. The metal is used for Cap’s shield, which is impossible to penetrate and impossible to duplicate.

Be sure to catch Captain America and the rest of Marvel’s The Avengers when they come to DStv’s BoxOffice on 29 August.

Source:
Marvel