Deadpool & Captain America's Relationship, Explained

Long before Wade Wilson was Deadpool, he idolized Captain America. Even after he became the Merc with a Mouth, Deadpool never really outgrew his childhood fascination with Steve Rogers. When he finally got to meet his idol face-to-face, Wilson eventually found a peer, a friend, and a fellow Avenger. However, that friendship ultimately led Deadpool into his darkest era before redeeming him as an Avenger once again.   

Now, let's take a closer look at Deadpool and his enduring respect for Captain America by breaking down their unlikely bond as well as the dark days that nearly shattered their friendship. While Captain America and Deadpool may not appear to have much in common, they both found in each other a resilient friendship built on mutual respect.

HOW DEADPOOL MET CAPTAIN AMERICA

Long before they even met, Deadpool and Captain America were connected by their mutual links to the Weapon Plus Program, a secret government operation dedicated to creating the perfect Super-Soldier. After the Super-Soldier Serum turned Steve Rogers into Captain America, Weapon Plus retroactively referred to him as Weapon I. Wade Wilson joined the Canada-based tenth incarnation of Weapon Plus, Weapon X, and he was transformed into Deadpool after scientists implanted samples of Wolverine's healing factor in him. 

In their first unseen encounter, Deadpool was too starstruck by Captain America to express his admiration for the Avenger. In their first chronological meeting, a time-traveling Deadpool met Captain America during World War II in CABLE AND DEADPOOL (2004) #45 by Fabian Nicieza and Reilly Brown. While teaming up with Captain America and Bucky to take on Arnim Zola, an unusually serious Deadpool spoke with his hero about his role as a national icon. 

Although that conversation was erased from Captain America's mind, Deadpool encountered Steve Rogers again decades later in DEADPOOL (2008) #28 by Daniel Way and Carlo Barberi. After taking down some criminal Avengers clones, Deadpool worked with the Secret Avengers to capture Doctor Bong, which earned him the respect of Commander Rogers.

DEADPOOL AND WOLVERINE AND CAPTAIN AMERICA

The friendship between Deadpool and Captain America truly came into its own when they teamed up with their mutual friend, Wolverine, starting in DEADPOOL (2012) #15 by Gerry Duggan, Brian Posehn, and Declan Shalvey. In "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly," Deadpool learned that a former Weapon X scientist called Butler had quietly been drugging him and harvesting his organs for an experiment that turned several prisoners into Super-Soldiers modeled after the X-Men. 

Butler also captured Captain America and Wolverine, and he held Deadpool's ex-girlfriend, Carmelita, and his daughter, Ellie, captive. While Deadpool defeated Butler and freed numerous prisoners alongside Rogers and Logan, he discovered Carmelita had died during her imprisonment. Additionally, Ellie remained missing by the end of their mission. 

That incident cemented the friendship and mutual respect between Deadpool and Captain America, and the heroes reunited shortly after Wolverine died in DEATH OF WOLVERINE: DEADPOOL & CAPTAIN AMERICA (2014) #1 by Duggan and Scott Kolins. Rogers asked Deadpool to steal a knife that had a sample of Wolverine's blood on it to stop A.I.M. from cloning the X-Man. As Deadpool successfully completed his mission, he bonded with Rogers by telling him about his daughter and sharing their memories of Logan.

HOW DEADPOOL JOINED THE AVENGERS

Deadpool grew even closer to his childhood hero when Steve Rogers' Super-Soldier Serum was neutralized, causing him to age rapidly. Since he had stepped out of active duty as Captain America, Rogers used Deadpool as his personal field agent. Once they had a solid working relationship, Rogers offered Deadpool a spot on an Avengers team in an ALL-NEW, ALL-DIFFERENT AVENGERS (2015) #0 story by Gerry Duggan and Ryan Stegman. 

Deadpool officially joined the Avengers Unity Division, a team that included mutants, Inhumans, and human heroes, in UNCANNY AVENGERS (2015) #1 by Duggan and Stegman. With Rogers as their leader, Deadpool and his teammates dealt with threats like the Super-Adaptoid and the Shredded Man. 

Shortly after Rogers helped Deadpool deal with the unpredictable Madcap, the former Captain America was replaced by a younger imposter who was secretly an agent of Hydra. While posing as the real Captain America, the imposter helped the team take on Ultron before ordering the group to disband. When that group drifted apart, the imposter Captain America recruited Wilson to be his personal agent once again.

DEADPOOL: SECRET EMPIRE

Due to his unquestioning loyalty to Captain America, Deadpool carried out the imposter's increasingly aggressive orders in the lead-up to SECRET EMPIRE (2017). When several time-travelers tried to stop the imposter, Deadpool helped the fake Captain America kill them in DEADPOOL (2015) #27 by Gerry Duggan, Sean Izaakse, and Salvador Espin. S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson eventually realized Rogers was an imposter, leading Deadpool to hunt him down and execute him on the evil Captain America's orders in DEADPOOL (2015) #31 by Duggan and Matteo Lolli. 

Despite some hesitation, Deadpool remained loyal to the Captain America imposter as he took over the United States in the name of Hydra. Deadpool also joined several other corrupted heroes on the Hydra imposter's Avengers team in SECRET EMPIRE (2017) #1 by Nick Spencer and Steve McNiven. Although Deadpool had a relatively comfortable place under Hydra's reign, he had to fight one of his closest friends, cybernetic S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Emily Preston, and lost the respect of his daughter. 

As part of Hydra's empire, Deadpool was tasked with taking out an anti-Hydra resistance movement called the Underground. While he brought in a few minor Underground members, Deadpool hid their main base from Hydra and helped the heroes by passing on valuable information. When the original Captain America returned, Deadpool's role in bringing down Hydra was kept secret and he became a fugitive for killing Coulson.

DEADPOOL VS. CAPTAIN AMERICA

Following his experience with the imposter Captain America, Deadpool came to hate the real Steve Rogers and vowed to kill him. Despite their initial bond, Deadpool believed that Captain America was just another person trying to control him and use him as a weapon, like the Weapon X Program had. Deadpool went on a murder spree to save his daughter from Stryfe until Captain America caught up to him, and the pair fought in DESPICABLE DEADPOOL (2017) #296 by Gerry Duggan and Matteo Lolli. 

As Rogers tried to bring him in, Deadpool repeatedly embarrassed him before asking him to repair Agent Preston. Although Captain America had Preston repaired and tried to apologize to Deadpool, Wilson erased his recent memories in a misguided effort to spare his friends from the violence of his life.

After regaining his memories, Deadpool killed the Monster King, who had led a monster invasion of Staten Island, New York. As the new King of Monsters, Deadpool tried to give the monsters a peaceful place to live before Captain America asked him to move the monsters away from New York in DEADPOOL (2019) #2 by Kelly Thompson and Chris Bachalo. 

The former allies had a tense conversation, where Deadpool reaffirmed his admiration for Captain America. After violently teleporting him off the island, Deadpool doctored footage of Captain America to fake his endorsement of the monsters and their ultimately short-lived occupation of Staten Island.

DEADPOOL AND THE UNCANNY AVENGERS

Despite his actions under the imposter Captain America and his brief reign over Staten Island, Deadpool settled back into his role as a mostly heroic mercenary. When Sam Wilson began operating as Captain America, Deadpool teamed up with him to escape a Latverian prison in CAPTAIN AMERICA: SYMBOL OF TRUTH (2022) #2 by Tochi Onyebuchi and R.B. Silva.  

After the mutant-hating group Orchis launched a devastating worldwide campaign against mutants, the original Captain America reformed the Avengers Unity Squad in UNCANNY AVENGERS (2023) #1 by Gerry Duggan and Javier Garrón. Feeling that Deadpool was wronged and deserved another chance to be an Avenger, Captain America brought him onto a team that also included veteran X-Men and Avengers. 

Deadpool and his teammates faced the imposter Steve Rogers, who had since stolen the identity of a mutant hero called Captain Krakoa. Despite everything that happened between them, Deadpool reaffirmed his commitment to Captain America and defended him when the X-Men wondered if Rogers should lead the team. 

Although the imposter Captain America taunted both heroes, Deadpool and Captain America played key roles in stopping him from detonating a nuclear bomb in New York. With their faith in each other restored, Deadpool and Captain America left this group as friends and fellow Avengers.

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