10 Things Fans Will Love About Captain America: Civil War (Spoilers!)
It’s out! Marvel’s long-awaited event and an event it is. Captain America: Civil War is one of the best films Marvel has released. Sure it has some political undertones but at its heart, it is a film about friendship. The story is basically this: After the mayhem and destruction caused by Avengers-fighting-bad-guys activity in New York, Washington, D.C., Sokovia, and then in Lagos, Nigeria, the world’s governments have had enough. Over 100 governments have come together at the United Nations demanding oversight and control over super-powered intervention: The Sokovia Accords. Captain America a.k.a. Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and his fellow Avengers are given a choice: sign the accords and give up their autonomy to an oversight committee or retire. What’s Steve Rogers to do? He is a professional hero and believes in doing what is right, regardless of political considerations. Many of his fellow Avengers feel the same way. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is pro-accords and struggles with making Rogers understand that giving up control is for the best. Some Avengers rally behind Stark. But all of these heroes are friends first and have fought alongside each other in many life or death situations. How will this be resolved and to what ends will each side take to prevail? It’s a great story, taken right out of Mark Millar’s 2006 Marvel limited series, Civil War, with various other crossover issues. But we all know that many Marvel films don’t follow the comics exactly; there are some creative changes always made. What follows are ten things fans will love to see in the new film, most taken right out of the comic!
#10 The Airport Fight Sequence
You saw it in the trailers, the awesome airport fight sequence. It’s what you expect when you go to a superhero movie! This fight sequence, arguably the best yet seen, appeared to have come right out of the pages of a comic. Fight choreographers Sam Hargrave and James Young have delivered an incredible sequence that will have you staring in awe at the intricate action that unfolds on screen; it’s epic. Each character’s powers and abilities are showcased and intermixed with others giving the viewer what can only be described as a “war” between superheroes. I say this was the best fight sequence in any Marvel film.
#9 Chemistry Between Vision and Scarlet Witch
In the comics, Vision (Paul Bettany) and Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) fall in love and get married. So far, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they hardly know each other, having been introduced in last year’s Avengers: Age of Ultron. However, by the time the events in Captain America: Civil War take place, our budding couple has had a year to get to know each other and form a relationship, albeit only a friendly one as of yet. Nevertheless, there are glimpses of where there current relationship could lead in future films. First, both are connected by the Mind Stone. It is the source of their powers with Baron Von Strucker using it as part of Loki’s scepter to experiment on Wanda, and later by Ultron to power his “Vision” of a perfect being. The couple bond over their connection and mutual wish to understand what created them. Secondly, during the epic airport fight sequence, a defeated Scarlet Witch is comforted by Vision. When his help is requested by James Rhodes, War Machine (Don Cheadle), Vision acts but inadvertently severely wounds Rhodes. When the normally precisely-actioned Vision is confronted by Stark on how he could have made such a mistake, he responds that he was “distracted.” Surely, Wanda is causing Vision to experience emotions he didn’t think he possessed. It will be interesting to see what future films hold for this budding relationship (has to be easier to watch than this whole Natasha-Hulk thing…).
*****
#8 Black Panther
Making his Marvel Cinematic Universe debut is Prince, then King, T’Challa of Wakanda, also known as the fearsome Black Panther. Portrayed by the talented Chadwick Boseman, (42, Get On Up), the character has already been green-lighted for a solo film in 2018.
The mid-credits scene this time around focuses on the regal warrior setting up this future film. We are shown Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan), still sans mechanical arm (hopefully, you’ve seen the film already, if not, shame on you!), getting prepped to go into a cryogenic sleep in a very futuristic-looking lab. His hope is that soon someone will find a way to delete the Winter Soldier programming out of his head so he can’t be unwittingly triggered into becoming a deadly killer again. Until that time, he, and Steve Rogers are putting their trust in King T’Challa to protect his sleeping body. With Wakanda being probably the most advanced nation in the Marvel Universe, if there is any way to cure Bucky, the answer would surely be found there. The scene pulls out to reveal the lush Wakandan landscape as Rogers informs the King that if anyone were to find out Bucky was in Wakandan care, they would come for him. T’Challa defiantly remarks that they are welcome to try as the camera pans over to a massive, imposing statue of a black panther. If this is setting up the conflict and setting for the solo film, we are in for a wild ride.
#7 Spider-Man
I think fans will be pleased. Tom Holland and the Russo brothers have done what Sony struggled to do – give us a Spider-Man that is equal parts smart, naïve, fun, powerful, and done correctly. His introduction in the film is played just right, not an origin tale, maybe a line or two about what has transpired in his story up that point, and then where up to speed as he joins Tony Stark in his attempt to curtail Captain America. His full costumed reveal, spoiled in the trailer, leads to some great quips during the fight scene as only an inexperienced teenage superhero can do.
The end-credits scene has been devoted to Spider-Man and appears to be setting up his long-awaited Marvel 2017 solo film outing: Spider-Man: Homecoming. There are no hints of the plot just an extra minute or two of time to spend with Peter Parker as he nurses a shiner that he tells his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) he got from a guy named Steve from Brooklyn, ahem, otherwise known as Captain America. He also tinkers with a cool gadget that Stark has given him that emits a Spider-Man logo.
#6 The Friend vs Friend Drama
We’re no stranger to Robert Downey Jr.’s flashy performance Tony Stark. His one-liners have become some of the most memorable parts of the Iron Man and Avenger films. For Steve Rogers to go head-to-head with Stark story-wise would be a daunting task. If not portrayed correctly, the whole film would’ve seemed flimsy. Chris Evans really delivers an incredible performance that has you really pulling for him and his view that fighting for justice should not be curtailed by regulation and oversight. Despite that fact that Stark’s side has logic and probably some real-world truth to it, the audience does indeed end up pulling for Team Cap. Chris Evans has done his job superbly and shows his character’s evolution. Captain America is no longer a man out of time, he knows who he is and what he stands for and he will not compromise; even if his position puts him at odds with his friends and his government.
At the center of this story is Bucky Barnes, The Winter Soldier. Captain America will not allow his old friend to be hunted down and possibly killed. He will do anything, including breaking international law and endangering the lives of his fellow Avengers, to save him. The final all-out battle between Iron Man and Captain America, as a vengeful Stark tries to outright kill Winter Soldier, is emotional and incredibly action-packed and leaves everyone involved visibly devastated. It’s a powerful sequence and even the Black Panther, who was watching from the shadows, decides to sit this one out. It really shows the lengths that Captain America will go to for friendship.
#5 The Iron Man Armor Learns Cap’s Moves
Tony Stark is one of the most brilliant men in the Marvel Universe. He has dedicated his life to developing and improving technology. If you’ve ever read Mark Millar’s Civil War #3 (July 2006), you already know that Tony Stark improved his Iron Man armor so that it would stealthily record and analyze Captain America’s fighting style. He has recorded every kick, every punch, every battle tactic used, so that his armor can predict Cap’s next move before he even has a chance to do it. A cool trick in case you have to go up against your brother-in-arms.
In this film, fans will notice right away when Captain America is getting the upper hand. Iron Man is just unable to keep up and has his trusty new A.I., Friday, analyze the attack and deploy “countermeasures.” Instantly, Iron Man switches “on” and begins pummeling the old war horse quicker than he can respond, leaving Captain America bloody, bruised, and exhausted; however, he refuses to give up, quipping, “I can do this all day.”
#4 The Cameos
What would a Marvel movie be without a quick appearance by Stan “The Man” Lee? In Captain America: Civil War, fans will not be disappointed. Lee pops up near the end as a delivery driver with a package for, “Tony… Stank?,” much to the amusement of James Rhodes. The Russos have gone on record that they didn’t just want a Stan Lee cameo for the sake of having one. They wanted his cameo to fit in the story and it did. The package Lee delivers is from Steve Rogers and contains a letter apologizing to Stark about keeping Bucky’s past secret from him. A phone is also included in the package along with a vow by Rogers to always be there if he needs him.
Another cameo came in the form of Marisa Tomei as Aunt May. Obviously this is a younger version of Aunt May than we’re used to seeing as Tomei is only fifty-one, though the beautiful Tomei looks way, way younger! Wow, can you believe it, fifty-one? Regardless, she makes a surprise appearance as the aunt and guardian of our webslinging Spider-Man, Peter Parker (Tom Holland). The cute scene also features Downey Jr.’s Stank, uh, I mean Stark, remarking how attractive May is which is fun when you realize that Tomei and Downey Jr. were a couple way back in the 1990s, and actually starred together in a few films.
#3 Steve Rogers Finally Gets the Girl
Well, not really, but he finally gets to kiss his first woman in over half a century! Agent 13 is revealed officially in this film as being Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp), niece to Captain America’s old love-interest, Peggy Carter. The two were obviously attracted to each other in Captain America: Civil War, but are brought closer when Rogers learns who she is after she delivers the eulogy at Peggy Carter’s London funeral (not that it would be creepy to have a thing with the guy who had a thing with your aunt). Regardless, Carter helps Rogers by first furnishing him some information on Bucky Barnes’ whereabouts, and then later retrieving for him his shield and Sam Wilson’s Falcon gear. In her last scene in the film, just before Rogers is about to head into the fray against his former teammates, the pair shares a romantic kiss, much to the delight of onlookers, Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) and Bucky Barnes. With the film ending with Captain America a fugitive, Sharon Carter is most assuredly as well for helping him, so I’m not sure if this budding relationship will continue but I am optimistic that we haven’t seen the last of Sharon Carter.
#2 Giant Man!
Oh, the naysayers! How they all were so sure that no Giant Man would be seen in this film. The shock and cheers I heard in the theater as Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) punched his wrist-button and became the aforementioned hero was great! In the comics it was actually Ben Foster’s Goliath who fought and was subsequently killed in the civil war, but canonically Ant-Man also dabbled as the super-sized Giant Man. The awe was equally represented on screen as Iron Man’s anti-Cap team was not prepared for the giant-sized, or even the tiny version, of Lang. He infused some welcomed humor into the action sequence.
#1 Secret Avengers
In the final scene of the film, not including the mid or end-credits scenes, we see numerous guards battered and unconscious in the control room of the super-secret prison, The Raft. We then see Sam Wilson standing in his prison cell, his back facing the camera as he turns around and slowly smiles. In a reverse shot we then see, emerging from the shadows, Steve Rogers. We are not shown this but are led to believe that Rogers has broken his compatriots, Clint Barton (Hawkeye), Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch), Sam Wilson (Falcon), and Scott Lang (Ant-Man) out of prison. In Avengers: Infinity War, are we going to see Tony Stark use that phone Rogers sent him? Is he going to call for help from the fugitive Captain America and his Team Cap, known in the comics as the Secret Avengers? Unknown, but Captain America as much as told Stark that he can’t stop doing what he thinks is right. So, theoretically, there will be two operating Avenger teams: the U.N.-sanctioned team led by Stark, and the fugitive Secret Avengers led by Rogers. Could we see both these teams fighting alone and then unite against Thanos in the Infinity War? It is an exciting time to be a geek!
