Captain Atom #3 (May, 1987)

On an analogue for Nightline, Captain Atom appeared for a television interview, where he revealed his "secret origin." In actuality, he retold his Silver Age origin, and retconned his Charlton published stories into a government crafted cover story for public consumption. The major difference was that Captain Atom was supposed to have been acting in secret within the DCU for years, "training" to be a super-hero in his old gold costume. As his powers developed, he switched to a red and blue costume that incorporated his silver skin, and fought covert (fictional) villains like Dr. Spectro, Drako and the Fiery Icer. However, Atom retired for three years after meeting and loving a terminally ill wife, Eve. On her deathbed, she made him swear to go public as Captain Atom.

While the taped interview was being broadcast, military brass ordered Captain Atom to clean up after a nuclear submarine. Adam refused, using the incident as a bargaining tool to force Eiling into finally allowing him to be reunited with his children. His grandstanding called into question Eiling's control over the project in front of Admiral Place, but Eiling stood firm. "If the problem here comes down to your denying the Captain the right to see his children-- you're going to have some serious explaining to do to the Joint Chiefs!"

Goz found out the travel itinerary of Adam's daughter Peggy, and Captain Atom flew to Dulles International Airport to greet her as Captain Cameron Scott. Margaret Eiling no longer went by "Peggy," and wasn't interested in some military man trying to hit on the General's daughter. Adam was left standing alone, sickened by his own daughter having sized him up as dating material, all the while the spitting image of her dead mother.

Feeling naive and stupid, Captain Atom realized his kids were adults only a few years younger than himself. They had been raised by Eiling, and would never accept Adam as their father again. Feeling depressed and out of place, Atom journeyed under the ocean to take care of the submarine situation. However, he ignored Dr. Megala's warning about absorbing the energy slowly and from a safe distance...

"Blast From The Past" was by Cary Bates, Pat Broderick and Bob Smith. This was the true continuation from the first issue, with the best art and character development so far. Captain Atom's straight-faced b.s.ing of Ted Koppel on national television displayed a comfort with reshaping the truth uncommon in DC heroes. His willingness to play hardball with Eiling also spoke to previously unseen gravel in his guts. The reworking of Charlton continuity was equal parts clever and galling, as was the co-opting of recently minted storytelling innovations by Miller and Moore in service to an unapologetic super-hero plot. Exploring the loss of Adam's relationship with his still-living children offered much greater pathos than yet another hero kneeling at the gravestone of a loved one. At 28, Adam is old enough to have been invested in his family, but young enough to be attractive to his daughter and (by implication) return the sentiment while seeing what was essentially the reincarnation of his bride. Yes, it's icky, but it's also ambitious, a hallmark of this period that helped set Captain Atom apart from all the cosmic-powered Peter Parkers before and since.