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In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, during the elevator scene when a team of Hydra soldiers try to take down Steve, he is tased multiple times and he doesn't seem to be anywhere near being affected by it.

So, in the comics too, is Captain America immune to electric shocks in general? (up to a certain limit of course but obviously beyond a normal human's capacity)

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  • Is your scope limited to just MCU/comics (are there animated shows?) or anything canon to marvel?
    – Edlothiad
    Apr 3, 2018 at 11:38
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    @Edlothiad As it's already done in the MCU movies, I am looking for instances in comics and animated shows (canon and otherwise).
    – Shreedhar
    Apr 3, 2018 at 11:43

2 Answers 2

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More than the average human, yes. Actually immune, definitely not.

Captain America gets zapped a lot. Most of the time, by powerful villains/heroes, which could probably have killed your average Joe. But it's Captain America, so, he gets back up anyways... though each time it hurts badly.

Here's a compilation by chronological order. Grab popcorn!

By Electro (Ivan Kronov)

The first one appears in Captain America Comics #78 (1954). Communist agent Ivan Kronov was transformed into the Electro creature, "the most fearsome and horrible dealer of death the red enemies have ever devised for the destruction of Captain America". (nota: he's another Electro than Spidey's foe. We'll get to that later)

His power of electricity is supposed to "combat all the strength of Captain America", and he's indeed sent after Cap (and Bucky). He tries to kill them as fast as possible, since a flaw in his design requires him to recharge his body's electric charge every 24 hours.

Anyway, upon meeting him for the first time, Cap advices Bucky to look out, due to a "short circuit".

Captain America VS Ivan Kronov

Captain America doesn't get zapped "properly" (Bucky does, though), but if he was immune, given the 50s depiction of the character, I'd expect him to charge head in and punch Electro. Since he doesn't, my guess is that he knows very well he would be slowed down by the electric shocks.

By Electro (Maxwell Dillon)

Behold The Amazing Spider-Man #178 (1978). Cap rescues a kidnapped child. The kidnapper appears from behind, hidden in the shadows. Captain America grabs him, however it turns out the kidnapper is Electro. Zap!

Captain America gets electrocuted by Maxwell Dillon

By Electro (Maxwell Dillon) again!

In issue #3 of the 1984 Falcon miniseries, Falcon is defeated by Electro while he was looking for The Legion, a New York street gang which just kidnapped the President. The next (and final) issue features Captain America going out to help his partner. Electro and Captain America meet, and Electro zaps Cap and renders him unconscious for a while (he's only back on his feet some pages later). Definitely not immune.

Captain America gets electrocuted by Maxwell Dillon again

By Electro (Maxwell Dillon) yet again!

In Avengers: Deathtrap - The vault (1991) (reprinted as Venom: Deathtrap - The vault in 1993), the security of a jail for superpowered beings is compromised and the Avengers, as well as Mystique's Freedom Force, get there to settle the mess.

Once again, Captain America deliberately avoids having to deal with electrical current, implying he knows it might incapacitate him.

Captain America uses his shield against Electro

By Electro (Ivan Kronov) again!

Captain's got a thing with Electros... In Captain America Annual #13 (1994), Ivan Kronov is brought back to life by Red Skull, and his purpose hasn't changed: kill Captain America! And Cap keeps on dodging the electrical waves, which is not something you do if you can handle them just fine.

Cap dodges an Electro attack

Cap plays the good old "shield throw" move, only for it to be caught by Electro, loaded up with juice, and thrown right back at his chest. Captain America being defeated there is probably not just due to the shield's impact (Electro was three meters away, tops), but to the shield being charged with electricity.

Cap is hit by his own shield

By Iron Maniac (Anthony Stark)

In Marvel team-up #24 (2006), Captain America, along with other heroes, fights against Iron Maniac, the local evil version of Iron Man. Iron Maniac activates his electrical shock device, and the air suddenly smells like roasted Captain America.

Captain America VS Iron Maniac

By War Machine (James Rhodes)

In issue #4 of Ultimate Avengers arc "The next generation" (2010), Captain America flees from Hulk, Red Wasp, S.H.I.E.L.D., and War Machine. To do this, he tries diving into the sewers; but War Machine electrifies the water, neutralizing him. That looks like it stings.

Cap zapped in the water


A clarification on Cap vs Iron Man instances

Depending on what writers need, Captain America and Iron Man are either best buds or mortal enemies. These two have fought each from times to times. You'll encounter panels like this one, where Cap gets shot by Iron Man's blasters/beams/stuff. However, these are not always electrical: they've been particles-based, plasma blasts, microwaves, and many other fancy scientific-sounding things.

Given that I'm not sure which ones are definitely only electrical, I did not include any (except for Iron Maniac above). But they exist. And Cap often gets recked in the process.


Bonus time

Upon reading Captain America Comics #2 (1941), I would have thought Captain America could get electrocuted when he used telephone lines as a catapult, but roommates say there's not enough power in those for you to get zapped. If it's wrong, please point it out! Still worth pasting it there.

Cap uses phone lines as a catapult

Also worth noticing that Cap's shield is resistant to electricity. It was hit by Thor's lightning and came out just fine. One could think having the shield made so that it can handle electricity shows that Cap isn't immune to electric shocks, but I'd rather say it's for the sake of the shield itself. It is Cap's main weapon, after all; wouldn't want it to be destroyed.

Cap's shield resists Thor's lightning

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    For the record, I don't like Captain America, so trust me when I say I had a lot of fun writing this :p
    – Jenayah
    Sep 23, 2018 at 20:05
  • See here for info about why he was fine when using the phone wires.
    – phantom42
    Sep 24, 2018 at 16:08
  • @phantom42 not quite, I reckon. One has to consider that even if Cap's not grounded, he's in contact with a metallic conductor (assuming vibranium does conduct electricity) which touches several wires; I'd have thought power would take the "easiest path" and go through the shield, effectively zapping a hand at least
    – Jenayah
    Sep 24, 2018 at 16:25
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No, Captain America is not immune to electric shocks.

However, he of course has a larger tolerance than an average human. A normal-powered taser isn't enough to bring him down.

He isn't immune to anything.

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    And what is your evidence for this?
    – TheLethalCarrot
    Apr 3, 2018 at 14:20
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    @TheLethalCarrot Well, the actual process that gave him his 'powers' was designed purely to strengthen him, make him more powerful and make his body much more durable than a normal human. There was no exotic element to his transformation. Apr 3, 2018 at 15:27
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    @TheLethalCarrot Steve Rogers is seen visibly grimacing in the scene. I believe he cries out, and yells a few times as well. It seems clear that the tasers are inflicting PAIN at the very least, they're just not enough to knock him out. In theory, that means a bit enough surge ....
    – DariM
    Apr 3, 2018 at 22:16

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