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EDITORIAL: What ever happened to Arnim Zola?

What do you think happened to him after the event of Captain America: First Avenger.

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By Paulley - 2/20/2012
The human form of the Nazi/HYDRA scientist, Arnim Zola featured in last years Captain America: First Avenger movie where he was played by actor Toby Jones.

In the film Zola worked with the Red Skull to harness the Cosmic Cube's power (known in the film as the Tesseract). When he was eventually captured and interrogated by SSR (what would become SHIELD), it was noted that he didnt want to die and in exchange for protection he gave up information on HYDRA.

My question is that the modern day SHIELD organization is putting so much of its budget and man-power into getting the energy out of the cube when they presumably have a scientist who accomplished that feat 70 years ago in their custody.

Which leads me to believe that something happened inbetween.

A brilliant scientist and engineer (far superior to Howard Stark), that seemed to enjoy designing fantastical things and making them but had no desire to use them in anger but rather for self preservation, Zola most likely began working in the United States after the war for SHIELD but obviously never got the cube working for them.

This could either be because the cube somehow changed when it teleported Red Skull, or that Zola deceived the Americans and never completed the work. Maybe just like Tony Stark he was building something else while in captivity.

As we all know Marvel's Arnim Zola transferred his consciousness into a andoid body, and even in the film there are at least three references to Zola's comic counterpart and his willingness for survival it sounds like a safe bet too assume he faked his own death and got out of his forced emloyment.



Will he return in mechanical form one day, who knows.
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13 Comments
CraptainAmerica - 2/20/2012, 8:27 AM
Strucker and Zemo emerge as the modern day heads of HYDRA. The former saved Zola from the clutches of the US...theorising
jessepostal - 2/20/2012, 8:30 AM
Haha I heard he was selling women's shoes in Chicago
Orphix - 2/20/2012, 8:38 AM
I have often wondered if Tony Starks Mk I armour was based on alot of ideas that he got from his dad - who in turn got them from Zola.

Some aspects of the HYDRA weaponary - particulary the flamethrower guys - are reminescent of the Mk I armour Tony builds. As well as the similar sound the HYDRA weapons make to Ironmans repulsors.

I have a sneaky suspicion that if Howard Stark was toying with the ideas of a exo-skeleton armour powered by a minituraised arc reactor he got a lot of inspiration analysing what Zola was up to.

If Zola managed to buy his freedom with the SSR he would have probably spent the rest of his days helping them.
Paulley - 2/20/2012, 9:06 AM
Yea there are lots of similarities to Howard Starks later work on ARC reactors and Tony's Early Iron Man stuff... even Zola produced a few Exo-Skeleton Mechs in First Vengeance.. Even Howard noted that his designs were way beyond anything he was making.

Oh Orphix we should swap emails some time id like to discuss further with you on some points in the timeline and stuff
CraptainAmerica - 2/20/2012, 9:44 AM
Nice point Orphix
headlopper - 2/20/2012, 12:09 PM
@yossarian- Heh.

He's a part-time Gynecologist specializing in hermaphrodites.
Supes17 - 2/20/2012, 2:18 PM
He died
Wildaniel - 2/20/2012, 4:29 PM
In the movie Phillips tells him if he complies and tells them where Red Skulls main Hydra base is, he would let him go to Switzerland. It never shows Zola telling SSR where Red Skull is but its obvious Zola did tell them.

My guess is he went to Switzerland and built his andoid body. He will be in Captain America 2, I hope.
Supes17 - 2/20/2012, 5:49 PM
Or, he will be dead for 70 years
jessepostal - 2/20/2012, 6:41 PM
@wilddaniel,sorry man but no he didn't, they sent a message saying they were rerouting zola to Switzerland and that he fully cooperated with them, knowing that hydra would decode the message and to think he was in Switzerland.Zola had no choice cuz skull would have killed him either way for knowing too much So zola would still be in custody
fangz - 2/20/2012, 6:45 PM
@Orphix - i like that. never made the connection, but it sounds totally right on.

i'd love to see movie Zola survive in Swizerland, working on American led projects against the Soviets thru the Cold War but secretly still loyal to the 3rd Reich. probably covertly contacting Zemo too.

in the late 60's, S.H.I.E.L.D. would finally move in to arrest him and he would 'die' in the process. of course, he would have had his robot body prepared for such a possibility, and he would disappear until he re-emerged as one of the head architects behind A.I.M.

i think it'd be a great idea to have him pop up briefly in Iron Man 3. like have it open with a 15 minute action scene of Tony busting some arms sale between A.I.M. and the 10 Rings. they could have Zola and Zemo both involved and escaping. then focus the rest of the film on Mandarin and the 10 Rings.

A.I.M. could then be used again in Captain America 2. they could either make them the main villains, with flashbacks establishing Zemo in WW2.
or even better, i think, have them be a lead in to the Red Skull. i like this idea a lot, cuz i think they really set up a great revenge scene in the first Cap movie. cuz u know that Zola would be on the top of Red Skull's sh^tlist if he ever returned. it could be something about how all the surviving villains from Steve's past in WW2 start turning up dead.
Orphix - 2/21/2012, 3:46 AM
Hiya Paulley.

I sent ya my email addy.
DrDoom - 10/28/2012, 2:09 PM
This happened



Hopefully.

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