WINTER SOLDIER #1 Announced In Fear Itself #7.1

Fear Itself reached its dramatic conclusion last month and we find ourselves in the middle of the fallout period. One of the first direct continuations is the Point One initiative for the series - Fear Itself #7.1, #7.2 & #7.3 will all see release this month and each will follow a specific characters from the event. Captain America's (#7.1), Thor's (#7.2) & Iron Man's (#7.3) stories see their conclusions in these one shots while setting up the future event by the issues end. It is a bold move and one that could go either way in the public's eye. Today see's the release of #7.1 (written by Cap regular Ed Brubaker) and reports have hit the internet that a new series will be announced in the pages of the book written by Brubaker. It will cause a dramatic shift in the life of one of the Captain America regulars and take them in a new direction. Needless to say MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD: For those not in the know, Bucky Barnes (The current Captain America and former assassin of Soviet Russia know as Winter Soldier) was killed in action during Fear Itself #3 forcing Steve Rogers to pick up the shield again. Since his resurrection in 2005 by Brubaker after being MIA for over 60 years, Bucky has become a fan favourite and was successfully transformed from a somewhat one note WWII boy scout into an A-list contender in the Marvel Universe. Brubaker developed the idea of Bucky being discovered by the Russians after his supposed death in 1944 for his run on Captain America. It was one of the most controversial moves of the past decade in mainstream comics and was welcomed with fan and critical acclaim. Ironically the Captain America series (2005) which ran for more than 60 issues (before it's relaunch) was always more focused on Bucky than it was Steve which shows the true strength of the character. His recent death was seen as somewhat controversial in fans eyes as it was not written by Brubaker (rather by current Fear Itself writer Matt Fraction) and the fact that the death had very little substance or meaning to the character outside of simply being a shock death for the event. Other details are scares and Marvel has yet to release a statement in regards to the series. For anyone who is a Bucky fan and had a bitter taste in their mouth after reading his death Fear Itself, It seem's our prayers have been answered. Winter Soldier #1 will see release in early 2012 by Ed Brubaker & Butch Guice... UPDATE 1: More images from the issue have hit the net, including an official teaser for the series: