Had this question come to mind, when it comes to the Super-Soldier Serum is the effect of it genetic or does it simply embed itself in a cell so that it becomes self-replicating so that even though it isn't genetic per-say it can still be passed on to offspring? If it were inheritable like that while it would take time eventually the entire human race could effectively inherit it and become natural super-soldiers from birth.

I would say no it is not genetic... and explain it as such that there's no "Vita-Ray" radiation saturating the environment to catalyze the transformation at the genetic level for Cap's potential offspring.

Certainly Cap's physiology would be good to clone or extract mutagenic properties from to genetically engineer changes in others, but I think reproductively Cap's either shooting blanks or producing sperm that would make more scrawny, skinny runts.

Scrawny skinny runts that could survive the SSS transformation, mind you...

It is if the writer says it is.

ThatArtGuy Wrote:
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> It is if the writer says it is.

..and has someone bear Cap a physically perfect infant child that automatically knows how to fly a Quinjet.

ThatArtGuy Wrote:
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> It is if the writer says it is.

It seems like the writers in general seem to think that its impact on him extends to the genetic level. I haven't seen a what-if featuring kids for Cap (rare as they are) that hasn't shown his child or children being physically perfect.

I agree with DS

Cap is shooting blanks. His blanks can still stun and slam oppenents regardless of the target's endurance and he can shoot three of them in one round on a green feat.

Are their any comics or What-Ifs with him having kids? And didn't he lose the SSS once?

I think that most versions, the Super Soldier Serum fundamentally altered Steve Rogers on a genetic level, and it has been the balance of most writers (Including Mark Gruenwald) that Steve's children would inherit that uplifted physiology. I agree that it depends on the writer, but so far it has been shown to be a genetic thing as well as a benefit from the Vita-Rays.

I know that in the case of Ultimate Cap, the second generation of children born from the Super Soldiers were superior genetically than their parents, but Ultimate Cap sucks.

could be something like gen 13, for a creative writer you could have steave be the paramore for a new group of supers

thejackolantern Wrote:
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> I think that most versions, the Super Soldier
> Serum fundamentally altered Steve Rogers on a
> genetic level, and it has been the balance of most
> writers (Including Mark Gruenwald) that Steve's
> children would inherit that uplifted physiology. I
> agree that it depends on the writer, but so far
> it has been shown to be a genetic thing as well as
> a benefit from the Vita-Rays.

You won't catch me arguing with the prophet Mark Gruenwald (peace be upon him). If he said Cap's kids would be super-soldier enhanced, its set in stone,

> I know that in the case of Ultimate Cap, the
> second generation of children born from the Super
> Soldiers were superior genetically than their
> parents, but Ultimate Cap sucks.

Heh.

Abub Wrote:
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> I agree with DS
>
> Cap is shooting blanks. His blanks can still stun
> and slam oppenents regardless of the target's
> endurance and he can shoot three of them in one
> round on a green feat.

ROFLMAO!

Dead Sidekick Wrote:
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> thejackolantern Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I think that most versions, the Super Soldier
> > Serum fundamentally altered Steve Rogers on a
> > genetic level, and it has been the balance of
> most
> > writers (Including Mark Gruenwald) that Steve's
> > children would inherit that uplifted physiology.
> I
> > agree that it depends on the writer, but so
> far
> > it has been shown to be a genetic thing as well
> as
> > a benefit from the Vita-Rays.
>
> You won't catch me arguing with the prophet Mark
> Gruenwald (peace be upon him). If he said Cap's
> kids would be super-soldier enhanced, its set in
> stone,

Awww, that's so nice of you, posting a reply in memory of our departed forum member capo.

Nightmask Wrote:
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> Dead Sidekick Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > thejackolantern Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > I think that most versions, the Super Soldier
> > > Serum fundamentally altered Steve Rogers on a
> > > genetic level, and it has been the balance of
> > most
> > > writers (Including Mark Gruenwald) that
> Steve's
> > > children would inherit that uplifted
> physiology.
> > I
> > > agree that it depends on the writer, but so
> > far
> > > it has been shown to be a genetic thing as
> well
> > as
> > > a benefit from the Vita-Rays.
> >
> > You won't catch me arguing with the prophet
> Mark
> > Gruenwald (peace be upon him). If he said Cap's
> > kids would be super-soldier enhanced, its set
> in
> > stone,
>
> Awww, that's so nice of you, posting a reply in
> memory of our departed forum member capo.

Cap, not Capo LOL!

[I miss Capo as well...]

Dead Sidekick Wrote:
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> Nightmask Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> > Awww, that's so nice of you, posting a reply in
> > memory of our departed forum member capo.
>
> Cap, not Capo LOL!
>
> (I miss Capo as well...)

Well I don't miss his 'I'm the keeper of canon you must obey me' and taking the other side just to argue against me but when he wasn't behaving like that he did have some very good feedback and comments.

Well, he's not here to defend himself or offer counterpoints.

And it was cool when he was.

Dead Sidekick Wrote:
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> Well, he's not here to defend himself or offer
> counterpoints.
>
> And it was cool when he was.

I've never had a problem with people expressing differing opinions, everyone agreeing is boring and you go 'why am I here? I'm just hearing myself echoing', well except for those who like to hear 'yes you're the greatest' all the time but not of appeal to myself. Always glad to see people speaking up and contributing even if they disagree with me.

-in the Avenger's Next movie the SSS passed on to the Captain America/ Black Widow offspring, James Rodgers. Who may recall was featured later in the Avengers Heroic Age book prehaps you recall it? The art was awesome. Thank you John Romita Jr.
So based on this I am gonna say it would.
Hope this help NM

I'd treat the Super-Soldier Serum as an Induced Mutation. It seems to be genetically stable, as Rogers has never had a plotline where his enhancements were fading.
Can Rogers breed with a normal woman?
If this were an SF novel, I'd say no, citing rabbits and hares, frogs and toads.
But this is comics, so why not?
We have seen one offspring of Rogers, Reb Brown as Steve Rogers Jr in the 1979 CBS pilot "Captain America." Not canon, of course, and he still needed an injection of the S3 to attain the familiar physical enbhancements.
I'd allow Rogers can produce offspring BUT the offspring will be infertile. Think of the interesting offspring of horses and zebra.





Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/06/2011 05:12AM by DavidEMartin.

I thought he did there for a while lose the SSS effects. I maybe just thought I heard that cause all my comics are old dollar books.

Abub Wrote:
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> I thought he did there for a while lose the SSS
> effects. I maybe just thought I heard that cause
> all my comics are old dollar books.

Marvel overreacted to some idiot who said 'Cap's a steroid freak!' and had a storyarc where he was exposed to Meth and it supposedly bonded to his SSS leaving him requiring a total blood replacement to cure the problem. Then he spend a few issues having to work out constantly to maintain himself but didn't take long for a writer to go 'well Steve it looks like your body naturally produces the SSS now and you've completely replenished your normal levels of SSS since the transfusion'.

Nightmask Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Abub Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > I thought he did there for a while lose the SSS
> > effects. I maybe just thought I heard that
> cause
> > all my comics are old dollar books.
>
> Marvel overreacted to some idiot who said 'Cap's a
> steroid freak!' and had a storyarc where he was
> exposed to Meth and it supposedly bonded to his
> SSS leaving him requiring a total blood
> replacement to cure the problem. Then he spend a
> few issues having to work out constantly to
> maintain himself but didn't take long for a writer
> to go 'well Steve it looks like your body
> naturally produces the SSS now and you've
> completely replenished your normal levels of SSS
> since the transfusion'.

Or maybe the meth mutated Cap further to begin producing the SSS....

Odd that Marvel would seek to dispel the Roid theory with a blood scrubbing.

I wonder about this recently, since this was posted 11 years ago... what about blood transfusion/

Maybe a less effective version of the SSS. - Didn't Nick Fury have a " watered down " version?

Quote
MajorSteel
I wonder about this recently, since this was posted 11 years ago... what about blood transfusion/

I seem to remember that supposedly a transfusion from someone with a variant of the serum gave some kid hero who was descended from the recipient the benefits of the SSS but haven't actually read that to be sure. I am curious if that's something that'd work permanent or if it'd act like a temporary deal and require repeated transfusions to maintain.

Quote
G.A.W.
Maybe a less effective version of the SSS. - Didn't Nick Fury have a " watered down " version?

Yes, something called the Infinity serum I think, mostly to extend lifespan and maintain physical abilities as one ages. But apparently it's also a secret and I seem to remember a storyarc of someone wanting to catch and drain Nick to be able to replicate the pure formula as his body after repeated exposure started to naturally produce it.

With the many formula and character that have the SSS in them without the vita rays, one may think it possible now. In any case maybe a direct offspring might but not grandchildren.
but that i think is the negative side effect of having so many non vita ray treatment of the SSS they done through out the comics, that it not a key component anymore.

Nick Fury Jr. inherited the Infinity Serum's effects from his dad.

Marvel seems to be a bit hesitant to really answer that question for the 616 universe. Other Universes do have Meta-children from Meta-parents (MC2 for instance has a whole host of them). In 616 we do have Franklin and Valerie Richards. It would suggest to me that that would make them Mutants, but Marvel keeps side-stepping, back-tracking, and dancing around that.

As I understand; In Marvel Lore, The Celestials came to Earth a million years ago (give or take) and experimented on our predecessors (probably Homo heidelbergensis). They created Eternals (Homo immortalis), Deviants (H. descendus), and added into the H. sapiens genes the ability for us to become meta-humans (rather than, say, get hit by radiation from a Gamma Bomb and instantly die!). And they also added the X-Gene, creating Mutants (Homo superior).

Going by that lore and logic, I would say it's totally possible that Captain America, and really any meta-human,would be able to pass down their superpowers. Whether they would be considered H. superior, or something more like a "Breed Mutant" along the lines of the Inhumans (inhomo supremis) or Atlanteans (h. mermanus), is an open question. I'd argue that if they pass-on their specific powers - like, say Captain America's physical perfection or Spider-Man's spider-powers (or Nick Fury's superior physical abilities and retarded ageing), then they'd be the first of a line of "Breed Mutants". But, if the children just randomly gained metahuman abilities, then they'd be classified as H. superior.

But that's just how things work in MY Marvel Universe (Marvel 9653). Your mileage may differ.

The real question is what is the resource/reason FEAT required to replicate the serum perfectly along with Proto-Adamantium.