Preview

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Captain America: Dark Designs

By: Stefan Petrucha, Marvel
Narrated by: Richard Rohan
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $20.00

Buy for $20.00

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Captain America has battled soldiers, terrorists, and villains of all kinds. Now he'll face a far more complicated enemy: his own body.

When S.H.I.E.L.D. discovers that Cap is harboring an extinction-level pathogen hidden in his cells for decades, Cap's greatest fear is realized: Until the virus can be cured, he'll have to go into deep freeze. But he won't be alone.

Years ago, Cap's greatest enemy managed the biggest coup of his career when he implanted his mind into a clone of Steve Rogers' body - virus and all. And Red Skull isn't the sacrificial type. Cap will have to put his archnemesis on ice - without exposing the virus. Can Cap stay alive long enough to capture Red Skull and return to his deepest nightmare? It's a battle for perfect symmetry in this original prose novel!

GraphicAudio® Production.

©2019 Stefan Petrucha (P)2019 Marvel
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about Captain America: Dark Designs

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    60
  • 4 Stars
    20
  • 3 Stars
    4
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    58
  • 4 Stars
    16
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    50
  • 4 Stars
    17
  • 3 Stars
    7
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great Cap story, maybe not the best COVID book

This was my first Marvel book, and is really good! I downloaded it to be a fluffy pallet cleanser during the pandemic, and want expecting the "Captain America in Quarantine" storyline (I guess I should have read the synopsis).
The story is classic Cap, with Sleepers, the Red Skull and a lot of tough decisions to make. The performances are good, and the background noise does a good job of seeing a scene without being distracting. My only real gripe is the B-plot kinda peters out at the end of the book. They probably could have done away with that part of the story altogether and still had a compelling enough narrative.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Incredible

This is one of the best graphic audio novels I have listened to. Very well written and performed. You can really see with your minds eye what is going on.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

great graphic novel

I loved this book. being blind I gave up on comic books, it's so great to listen to my favorite superhero in an audio format.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Distracting background sounds

Very well performed all the voice actors are good but there is frequently a great deal of background noise. Sometimes it's beeping medical machinery or people talking in a command room or other mechanical noises, as well as long bits of human screaming.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Definitely one of the best CA novels.

So far I'm 2 for 2 with Stefan Petrucha's Marvel books. The other is the Spider-Man novel, Forever Young- not yet available at Audible.

I'm not sure where the story falls chronologically in the history of Captain America vis the comic books- my guess is it's a different timeline that uses elements of the comics but isn't considered canon by readers and creators of the comics. I prefer that. I stopped reading Cap comics a few years ago based on the two words, "Hail Hydra." This story has a more Ed Brubaker feel, which is what we have come to expect and appreciate for one good reason: he's an amazing writer who defined Cap for the 20th Century. Petrucha nails the style, but builds on some "mythology" that is pre-Brubaker. The idea that Red Skull is now living in Steve Roger's body (a clone) is an idea that came from Cap 350- but Brubaker and Petrucha use it in magnificent ways. This whole book is based on that idea, and it's a terrific idea!

Cap's body has been carrying a virus for decades, as has Red Skull's. This has incredible effects on both of them, and at a time when Cap is needed to rescue the world! (As I write this most of the United States is quarantined because of Coronavirus, so the idea that Cap needs to isolate himself is acute) Fortunately he does what is right and hides out as much as he can.

Petrucha also brings back Arnim Zola- and if you only know him from the movies you will find something very different here. He's closer to the Jack Kirby character and his monstrous look. He also brings back the Sleepers in a dynamic and exciting way. Clearly the author knows his Captain America lore!

I have yet to listen to Liberty's Torch, but I'll get to it soon. What I'd really like to hear someday is Captain America: The Great Gold Steal by Ted White. It was written back in 1968 and published by Bantam. I don't think it's ever been republished, and the story is pretty darn interesting. You may find parts of it familiar, but the copycats (if they actually are copycats) were later. Part of Wolverine's character seems to have come from the process by which scrawny Steve Rogers became Captain America. There's also a scheme from this book echoed in Die Hard With A Vengeance. Coincidence? Probably, but that's okay.

The multi voice performances have always sounded better to me. I write audio dramas for a living, so this is closer to what I like. One voice reading a book is lame when you can have something like this. I can see it if you're listening to Homer or Kipling. For an action packed story like this the SFX and multiple voices are the way to go. These voices are quite good too.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great movie for your ears

They call it a movie for your ears (or something like that) and it’s absolutely true. Great performances from awesome actors/actresses. You absolutely feel like you’re resting on the couch while listening to a movie, but it’s done in such a way that you aren’t missing the visuals.

My only small complaint would be that sometimes the background music and noise is a bit too loud to understand the dialogue.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

great story but I LOVED THE EPILOGUE!!!!

great story but I LOVED THE EPILOGUE!!!! I would recommend this to just about everyone simply for that alone... it's takes you completely by surprise!!! I MEAN... YOU COULD LITERALLY LISTEN TO THIS ENTIRE BOOK OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND,,..... AND AS LONG AS YOU LIVE IT WILL SURPRISE YOU EVERY SINGLE TIME!!! ENJOY!!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Graphic Audio adaptation doesn't disappoint

I enjoy the Graphic Audio adaptations. While it has a bit of a "fast food" feel, it has great production value and accessible/fun/exciting listens. Nothing wrong with a really good cheeseburger.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Uneven offering but worth it for Cap fans!

I'm very mixed on this. The story was interesting, but a little underwhelming with Cap out of the action for a good portion of the story. I like that the author went back to the classic Lee/Kirby Sleeper storyline, and aspects of this were very thrilling. The interactions between Arnim Zola and The Red Skull were also very well done. Cap's voice was a little stiff, and the *spoiler*'s voice that you hear at the beginning of every chapter was horrible. The main narrator was very good however. He would have made a better Captain America to be honest. Overall it was uneven but still worth a listen for fans of Captain America comics. I will try another of this company's Marvel offerings next month.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

I love Cap But....

Not a great volume. The best thing about this performance is The Voice of The Red Skull.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!