Marvel Cinematic Universe's Phase III will begin with a bang - Captain America: Civil War will debut next year, on the 6th of May.
Adapting a fan-favorite comic book storyline has never been easy, with any studio having to find a way around character, events, and even subplots. It cannot be done any other way, since (usually) the comics have too many important characters inserted in them.
So, besides greatly reducing the number of superheroes, what changes will be made in Marvel Cinematic Universe's Civil War?
There is no Registration Act
This is the most important change for the Marvel Cinematic Universe version of the storyline. It is a change that completely discards the premise of the comic book storyline.
In the comics, the US government decided to regulate anybody having any kind of superpower. In a way, the superheroes were going to become superpowered police officers, allowed to act only of the government said so.
But in order to do that, the government needed to know who these superheroes were - and this is where the focus of Marvel's Civil War: revealing the superheroes' secret identities, with the most famous reveal being the one of Spider-Man.
However, the Marvel Cinematic Universe won't go in this direction, since people already know who all the major superheroes are: Captain America is a celebrated war hero, Iron Man is Tony Stark, Thor is the demigod from another realm, while Hulk was revealed during the events of Age of Ultron. So things need to be changed for the MCU"¦
Is this a good thing, changing the premise of the storyline? Head on to the next page!
This change cannot do any harm
While there are still superheroes who wouldn't want their identities revealed (such as Hawkeye, who keeps his family a secret, or the Winter Soldier and others who used to be bad guys), the whole Secret Identities stuff from the comics wouldn't work so well in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. So there is no point in bringing it on the table.
However, a replacement is found in the Accords - which are, basically, an agreement between the nations of the world. How can this work? What if a dictator finds a way into the council and stops the heroes interfering in his country? What if one of the members of the council is corrupted or even a HYDRA mole? Head on to the next page and find out how this can play out in the Marvel Cinematic Universe!
Marvel Cinematic Universe's Accords
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the governments of the world reach an agreement, deciding to regulate all superhero activities. They need to do that after the fall of SHIELD - who watches the watchmen?
By having the Accords, the governments of the world are certain that the superheroes will go only where they are sent. Which is a good thing, since civilian casualties will be, most likely, reduced to a minimum. For example, the Avengers won't have a Green Code any longer when confronting a villain in a city, because this could lead to disastrous events, as seen in Avengers: Age of Ultron. But there is more to this - superheroes, who are supposed to have super-moral codes, shouldn't be at the whims of politicians, right?
Well, this is where things get interesting in Marvel Cinematic Universe's Civil War. Head on to the next page for the main difference between Iron Man and Captain America!
A clash of principles
After everything is said, but not done just yet, Marvel Cinematic Universe's Civil War is all about a clash of ideas.
On one side, there is Captain America, who saw firsthand the disastrous effects of having a higher power regulating a peace-keeping force. The events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier speak for themselves - HYDRA used the people's need for safety to its own ends, becoming a threat like no other (literally, it had the most chances to succeed in conquering the world, even greater than Loki's).
On the other side there is Iron Man, who was granted a vision during the events of Age of Ultron. From his point of view, the Avengers are helpless in the face of an alien invasion. So gathering all superheroes under one banner and under one command will become useful when the moment comes.
Even as a spectator, it is pretty hard to choose between one of these two sides. Steve Rogers has experienced firsthand what it means to answer to a corrupted power, but has no idea what bigger threats are coming from the outer space. Tony Stark has seen those threats, but has no idea what danger the Accords brings.
Both of them want to protect the civilians, and this is pretty clear. But they will eventually clash, in Marvel Cinematic Universe's Civil War. Which brings us to another question, concerning both the Accords and the parties involved in the conflict.
Head on to the next page for more!
Fighting for a greater good?
Fighting for peace - this is one ironic statement, even when the villains and the heroes are clearly distinguished. But what good can come out of a fight between two genuinely good superheroes? This is the question the Marvel Cinematic Universe needs to ask and answer at the same time.
And that is because the actors involved in the Civil War have long lasting relationships (Black Widow vs. Hawkeye), have no reason whatsoever to become involved (Black Panther and Winter Soldier), have no reason to actually fights other superheroes (Vision and Winter Soldier). What could push these characters into taking part in Marvel Cinematic Universe's Civil War?
We do understand the position of other superheroes (such as Iron Man, Captain America, Falcon, War Machine, and even Scarlet Witch). But why? What greater good could they believe to achieve by fighting each other and possibly killing each other? Wouldn't this throw over board the very principles of the Accords, of gathering all superheroes under one banner?
There are two reasons I can think of. One is a major (although, not that big) death, which would convince Tony Stark to support the Accords. And the other one involves a hidden player. Head on to the next page for more!
What role could Baron Zemo have in all of this?
Over the course of years, Marvel Cinematic Universe's HYDRA has dismissed any open confrontation with the superheroes (or with Captain America, for that matter, who is their biggest enemy). So they remain hidden, manipulating anyone opposing them and killing anyone who cannot be manipulated.
And this is where Baron Zemo comes into play (unless he has a small role, much like Baron Strucker in the events of Age of Ultron). He may be a mole in the council, he may even be one of those who initiates the marvel cinematic Universe's version of the Registration Act. Eventually, he may be the one to force the superheroes to fight and potentially kill each other - which brings us to him orchestrating the death of a close friend of Tony Stark.
But this is just a speculation. What do you think? What could bring two superheroes in such a state that they could kill each other?
Of course, he could just have a mole inside each of the warring teams… And we have a pretty good idea who that is when talking about Captain America…
