Sharon Carter, alias Agent 13, is a fictional character, a secret agent in the Marvel Comics universe. She is an ex-field agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. under Nick Fury and the girlfriend of Captain America.
In original continuity, Sharon was said to be the younger sister of Peggy Carter, the wartime love interest of Captain America, but she was later retconned as Peggy's niece because of the unaging nature of comic book characters. She was portrayed by Emily VanCamp in the film <i>Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
Publication history
Created by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, and Dick Ayers, Sharon first appeared in Tales of Suspense #75 (March 1966).
Carter was apparently killed in Captain America #233. The character was revived in Captain America #444 by Mark Waid, who commented, "The reason she works so well with Cap is because she's a complete cynic and he's a complete idealist."
Sharon Carter appeared as a supporting character in the 2010-2013 Secret Avengers series, from issue #1 (July 2010) through issue #21 (March 2012).
Fictional character biography
Sharon was born in Richmond, Virginia, the daughter of two wealthy Virginians, Harrison and Amanda Carter. She grew up with the stories of her aunt (Margaret "Peggy" Carter) who was a freedom fighter with the French Resistance during World War II. Inspired by her aunt's adventures, Sharon joined the international security agency S.H.I.E.L.D., and was assigned the code name "Agent 13". By this time, Steve Rogers, the patriotic hero known as Captain America, had been revived from suspended animation, and during one of Sharon's earliest missions, he came to her aid when she came under attack by a mercenary known as Batroc the Leaper. The two of them crossed paths again and again, teaming up on several missions against A.I.M., HYDRA, Red Skull, and many others.
Over time, Sharon and Rogers eventually fall in love; the dangerous nature of Sharon's work constantly puts a strain on their relationship, with Rogers wanting Sharon to give up her life as a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.
While working as a S.H.I.E.L.D. liaison with the New York Police Department, Sharon investigated and infiltrated a white supremacist terrorist organization known as the National Force. During one of the National Force's battles with street criminals in Harlem, the National Guard was sent in to put an end to it. Under the effects of a mind-altering gas, Sharon apparently activated a self-destruct device in her National Force uniform and committed suicide. Rogers was shown the event on videotape.
It was later revealed that her death had been faked so that Sharon could be free to go on a top secret mission for S.H.I.E.L.D. The mission did not go well, and Nick Fury, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Executive Director, believed her to have been killed in action. Captain America was therefore not informed of the true circumstances of her "death".
Return
Sharon was not dead, but had been left behind in enemy territory, a captive of the dictator Tap-Kwai. Escaping, she spent several years working as a mercenary, until she came across a group of Neo-Nazi extremists known as the Kubecult. Learning that they were planning to use the Cosmic Cube to return Adolf Hitler to life, Sharon joined forces with the villainous Red Skull to stop them, but they also needed Captain America.
At this point, Rogers was suffering health problems: the Super-Soldier serum that gave him his abilities was breaking down and had placed him in a coma. As the Red Skull was currently occupying a cloned body of Rogers himself, a transfusion of the Skull's bloodâ€"with an uncontaminated Super-Soldier formulaâ€"was able to restore and revive Rogers. Rogers was shocked to find Sharon alive, and over the course of the mission to topple the cult discovered that her years out in the cold had given her a more ruthless, grimmer personality.
The two of them did not renew their relationship, but a certain amount of romantic tension continues to exist between them when she rejoins S.H.I.E.L.D. She teases him about his naivete, such as letting a family of squatters stay in his apartment (they had moved in when he was missing, he did not wish to kick them out). The two battle such foes as Count Nefaria. Sharon assists Captain America in battling the cosmic powered Red Skull. The Skull was in control of a cosmic cube, which could do whatever he wished, as long as he concentrated on it. Sharon and Captain America argue many times about killing the Skull, Sharon urging him to use his energy-based shield, a device which Sharon had given him. Sharon would try to kill the Red Skull, and fail. The Red Skull was soon defeated through trickery. The energy shield was lost in the time-stream.
Soon afterwards, Sharon assists Captain America in several cases of patriotic Americans going on violent rampages. The supernatural entity Nightmare had found a way to influence this dimension through the 'American dream'. Sharon and Cap would battle many patriotic people, including a temporarily insane U.S. Agent. Ultimately, Sharon has to face down an affected Captain America.
21st Century
Sharon served a brief term as Executive Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., during the absence of Nick Fury. She then became a field agent once more, reporting directly to The Head of Special Internal Operations - Director Jacob Strzeszewski (Agent 10), and then to the new Sub Executive Director Maria Hill as a liaison officer specifically assigned to support and report on Captain America's activities. While investigating the whereabouts of Jack Monroe, she was abducted by the Winter Soldier, and used as bait to lure Captain America to a trap set by General Aleksander Lukin. She and Captain America later resumed their relationship while on a field mission investigating the activities of the Winter Soldier.
Sharon was initially a supporter of the Superhuman Registration Act. She was averse to actually aiding in the capture of her lover, Captain America, who is the leader of the "Secret Avengers" opposed to the Act. At the same time, it was also revealed that she is in some way an unknowing pawn of the Red Skull and his associate Doctor Faustus. She later fell into contact with Nick Fury's underground organization, even as she was reassigned to the S.H.I.E.L.D. task force charged with locating Fury. She also switched her allegiance to Captain America, citing the death of Goliath as the primary reason; it is unclear how much of this results from Faustus' influence.
In a follow-up in Captain America #25, Steve Rogers is shot in the shoulder by a sniper on his way up the steps to the Federal Court. In the ensuing crowd chaos, he is shot three times in the abdomen with a pistol, and later appears to die of his injuries. It is later revealed that the plan was orchestrated by the Red Skull; the sniper was Crossbones, and Sharon Carter, under a hypnotic suggestion by Dr. Faustus, was the person who had shot Rogers in the abdomen.
It has been revealed that she is still under the influence of Doctor Faustus, who uses her to disable Black Widow and Falcon, before having her join the Red Skull's organization as a minion. It has also been revealed that she is apparently pregnant with Rogers' child. During several attempts to escape the Red Skull's control over her, she loses her baby in the process during a fight between her and Sin. Later dialogue suggests that she, not Sin, stabbed her womb, and caused the miscarriage. She says that she did it to keep the Red Skull from getting his hands on anything of hers. Later Doctor Faustus made her forget ever being pregnant, and he also gave her the tools for her rescue. Sharon frees herself, and kills Aleksander Lukin (narrowly missing killing the Red Skull himself), before being found by Black Widow and the Falcon. Iron Man and Falcon decide to tell her about her pregnancy at a later date, after sufficient recovery time. As a result, Sharon decided to leave S.H.I.E.L.D.
Sharon Carter was later featured in the storyline Captain America: Reborn where she found out how she killed Captain America and planned to figure out a way to revive him. Unfortunately, Norman Osborn planned on the same thing, so that he could complete the Red Skull's plan to transfer his consciousness into Steve's body and have him lead his Avengers to increase his popularity. He had already framed Sharon as an accomplice in Rogers' murder and threatened to kill the second Captain America if she didn't turn herself in. She did and was brought to Latveria, where the same machine she was attached to brought Rogers' back, but with the Red Skull controlling his body; Mr. Fantastic determined that Sharon had chronal tracers in her blood meant to pull Steve to her. Turning herself in to Norman Osborn in order to save the life of Bucky (who, unbeknownst to her, had already escaped), she is handed over to the Skull and Dr. Doom, who use her to retrieve Steve, with the Skull's mind in control. Sharon ultimately escapes, with the help of Henry Pym, and uses the Red Skull's own ship to blow him up. Reconciling with Steve (who was able to assert control over himself), they take some time off at her Virginia estate.
Sharon had been a member of an Avengers team, the Secret Avengers, in Ed Brubaker's series of the same name.
Sharon has apparently sacrificed herself to stop Arnim Zola's massive flying fortress from invading Earth. However, revealed that Sharon was in fact alive in Zola's captivity was found by Falcon and Jet Black.
Powers and abilities
Sharon is a trained athlete and martial artist. She is highly trained in the ways of espionage, weapons, firearms and computers.
Other versions
Earth X
In the alternate future of Earth X Sharon Carter has fallen victim to 'Hydra', which in this case is a squid-based alien life form that absorbs minds and people to expand.
Marvel Mangaverse
Sharon Carter is introduced into the Marvel Mangaverse continuity as the supposed orchestrator of the decimation of almost the entirety of the Marvel Mangaverse's superhuman population. She herself turns out to have been under mind control. She became the director of S.H.I.E.L.D when Nick Fury supposedly died.
Ultimate Sharon Carter
In the Ultimate Marvel continuity, Carter is also an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., but is much closer to the environment of Ultimate Spider-Man. She often appears as one half of a wise-cracking team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, the other half of whom is the Ultimate Jimmy Woo. She can display humor at times, but mostly keeps her mouth shut in public. As seen in Ultimate Spider-Man #46, she is a practicing Christian and has a strong set of morals, most of which point to not wanting S.H.I.E.L.D. to take individuals such as Otto Octavius and 'lock them away for poking', but to destroy them. Carter and Woo survived the Super-Villains escape that occurred in Ultimate Six; Carter is seen next in the Silver Sable arc and Woo in the Hobgoblin arc. Carter was later involved with the Clone Saga arc telling the people that were evacuated from Peter Parker's neighborhood that all was well, and Agent Woo was later seen in the Death of a Goblin arc, letting Carol Danvers know the Goblin's most recent murder.
At one point, Sharon is the acting head of SHIELD. She calls in the Fantastic Four to investigate a confusing situation at Project Pegasus.
In other media
Television
- Sharon Carter appears in an episode of the 1966 Captain America Series. Her name is not mentioned but it is said she works for S.H.I.E.L.D. Cap sees Sharon in the episode and mistakes her for his war time love whose name is never mentioned but it is assumed it is Peggy Carter.
- A red-haired S.H.I.E.L.D. agent resembling Sharon Carter appeared in several episodes of Spider-Man: The Animated Series as "Agent 1" or "Agent X", Nick Fury's second in command. She was voiced by Rachel Davies.
Films
- The 1990 Captain America film features a love interest named Sharon "Cooperman" portrayed by Kim Gillingham.
- Emily VanCamp portrays Agent 13/Sharon Carter in the 2014 film Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Agent 13 is initially tasked by S.H.I.E.L.D. to protect Steve Rogers and goes undercover as a nurse named Kate who lives next door to him. After the dissolution of S.H.I.E.L.D., she enlists in the CIA.
Video games
- Sharon Carter appeared in the Ultimate Spider-Man video game voiced by Jane Hajduk. She first appears with Nick Fury at the scene where Beetle releases Green Goblin from his prison. She later appears with some S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents to take Green Goblin back into custody.
- Sharon Carter appears in the video game Marvel Heroes. She appears as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. who goes missing.
References
External links
- Carter, Sharon Marvel Directory: Sharon Carter (Agent 13)
