Lot # 1728: 1949 Timely Comics Captain America Comics #71 - CGC 4.0

The end of Bucky, the start of the Trickster, and retaliation against comic book criticism, are all found in this 3/49 Timely Comics Captain America Comics #71 issue. A top team of artists fleshed out the stories in this vintage comic, including the lead tale, which marked the final Golden Age appearance of Captain America's longtime sidekick Bucky Barnes. Shot in issue #66, Bucky recovered and returned for this #71 issue, but this was his curtain call. The Trickster made his first appearance, and an editorial took a stance against the preaching of Fredric Wertham, a psychiatrist who believed comic books were contributing to the rise of juvenile delinquency.

Wertham's book "Seduction of the Innocent" paved the way for the creation of the Comics Code Authority, which was established in 1954, to tone down the gory and risqué aspects of comic books. CGC has graded just fifty-three examples of this issue to date, and the one offered here falls in the middle of the pack, with a respectable CGC grade of 4.0, Tan to Off-White Pages. Label notes are "Gene Colan, Al Avison, Ken Bald, Syd Shores and Jack Binder art, Al Avison cover. Last Golden Age appearance Bucky Barnes. 1st appearance of the Trickster. Witness story. Anti-Wertham editorial.".