Captain America: Civil War will be big - bigger than anything else coming out this year. If the reaction to the second trailer says anything, then it’s exactly that. And a huge part will be played not by the scale of the event, nor by the addition of Black Panther, nor by the heroes fighting each other (again) - a huge part in the success of the MCU's Civil War will be played by Spider-Man.
It’s only natural that the web crawler grabbed the greatest share of the viewers’ attention, but plenty of other things happen throughout the entire trailer. And, in combination with what we saw in the first trailer, as well as in the Super Bowl clip, it helps us to see the bigger picture - or, at least, to have a clearer understanding of what will happen during the Civil War.
So check out what we know about the third Captain America movie, as well as what we don't know just yet (and we will find out only when the movie hits the big screen). But be warned - this will be a spoiler-filled list!
Spider-Man
Let's start with the main reveal of the second Civil War trailer - Spider-Man, the superhero everybody wanted to see in the MCU ever since the idea of the MCU appeared. The character is portrayed by Tom Holland, who is the youngest of all actors to bring the web slinger to life. And this can be seen in the trailer, even if he appears just for a couple of seconds on screen.
Leaving aside his voice, Spider-Man seems to be like an average teenager meddling in the business of the grownups. How else can we say it when he snatches Captain America's shield and then, as if it were nothing, he says, “Hey, everyone”? It is made pretty clear that he is the young guy, the newcomer, the spoiled kid who now has the chance to play in the big leagues.
The suit may not leave such an impression at first. But the details are there, if you look closely. Besides borrowing elements from both Alex Ross and Steve Ditko, it is clearly a Tony Stark design, especially if we take into account the movement of the eyes, which make a mechanical sound when focusing. Pretty much like the sound an old camera makes when zooming in (yeah, Peter Parker sells pics of Spider-Man).
But the thing is that this won't be the only suit the web crawler will wear. Still unconfirmed, some rumors say that he will wear a suit he designed himself, only to have it upgraded (and by that we mean that it will be completely changed) when Tony Stark intervenes.
Mechanical web shooters, spare web cartridges on the belt, you know the drill - after all, the biggest genius in the MCU designed it.
MCU's Stamford Incident
In the comics, where the Civil War takes place in the US, the battle between the heroes begins when some wannabe superheroes provoke the deaths of several hundred civilians. Obviously, this won't happen in the MCU version of the storylines.
MCU's Civil War will be bigger - it will go global, as we’ve seen in the trailers, taking place all over the world, from Africa to Europe to America and maybe even Asia. Global, as said. So the entity requiring the heroes to register won't be the US government; it will be the UN.
And here is what happens: Someone (working for HYDRA, of course) blows up the UN building, leaving countless dead, including someone close to T'Challa. If the trailers are any indication, that someone is Crossbones - but the blame falls on the Winter Soldier. And, obviously, the heroes have all the more reason to hunt him down.
But this explosion is just the last straw. Apparently, the UN has watched over all of the superheroes' exploits so far, starting with the first Avengers events. And, apparently, just 177 civilians died in Avengers, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and Age of Ultron. But the biggest problem may be the total cost of all these adventures, which is around $500 billion dollars.
So, naturally, the Accords are written, and everybody must oblige.
We can say that it feels a bit weird to have the superheroes held responsible for all of these occurrences. In the first Avengers, they prevented an alien invasion. In Captain America: The Winter Soldier, an evil organization was stopped from taking over the world. Lastly, Age of Ultron would have brought the end of humankind, if it weren't for the superheroes.
So, ultimately, 177 deaths and $500 billion isn't such a big price to pay. But, hey!
The stakes of the Civil War
Civil War isn't just the first movie of Phase III. It is also the movie that could change the way Marvel makes its movies. And that is because now we see on the big screen that all actions bring reactions, and the Accords bring the biggest reaction of them all.
This third installment in the Captain America franchise demonstrates that the heroes need supervision, that their power needs to be checked, and that they need to be held accountable for their actions, even if their actions have saved the world.
And it is something we haven’t really see in the big screen MCU movies thus far, even if the third act always included a fight that brought ultimate destruction. Until now we were made to believe that the world heals itself via various organizations (such as Tony Stark's relief fund). But there was always someone watching in the background (even if, we presume, that someone is manipulated by HYDRA).
And now is the right time for the heroes to answer for their actions. What happens is an ideological disjunction between the heroes: Tony Stark believes that the heroes need to be kept in check (because this also means more resources, which falls in line perfectly with his dream of putting a suit of armor around the world), while Steve Rogers considers that those who supervise the superheroes are corruptible (as he saw during the Winter Soldier events).
But there is something else as well, something which will make the heroes fight even harder against each other. And this is an event which, according to Tony Stark, is an actual declaration of war.
A death
The turning point of the comics' Civil War, when everybody realized that they’d gone too far, was the death of Goliath. At that point, everybody (well, not everybody) said that the ideological fight had become too violent. But it was too late to stop.
As we’ve seen, we do have a corresponding Stamford Incident in the MCU version. Could we have a meaningful death that enrages one of the superheroes even more? Well, we have, even if many believe that it won't be so.
And that is because that death belongs to War Machine. People say that it is weird to have such a big plot point (and death) revealed in the first trailer. But maybe that is why Marvel will go ahead with it. It gives Tony Stark the reason he needs to go morals off against Captain America and, maybe, provoke some casualties himself.
But who kills War Machine? The second trailer is cut in such a way that it suggests that the Winter Soldier did it. But is that true? No. While Bucky is a master marksman, he still uses regular guns, whereas Rhodey is brought down by an energy blast.
Now we know that all the tech-enhanced/based heroes are on Tony Stark's team. So who might have done it? Is it yet another hint at HYDRA?
Not necessarily. We know nothing about how Scarlet Witch's powers work. All that we know is that she can bring Vision to his knees (and not to propose or something), because the origin of their powers is the same. So what we want to say is that, maybe, the energy blast came from her. It is a pretty thin supposition, especially since her manifested powers are, well, red. But what if?
Also - Scarlet Witch beats Vision. And it is awesome, even if it’s only temporary!!!
Black Panther
Black Panther is the other newcomer to make his first appearance during the Civil War. And, apparently, the movie will also be his origin story - in a way. As said before, he has a very personal reason to get involved, since we do see him crying over someone's body, right after the UN explosion.
Going back to when they began shooting the movie, it was said that T'Challa and his father were pretty angry about the whole Sokovian mess. After all, it all happened because someone stole vibranium from Wakandan stashes. So they attend the UN meeting, maybe trying to find those responsible.
But things don't go as planned and the father dies, leaving the prince in mourning. So he becomes the new Black Panther and he goes after the one he believes responsible (the Winter Soldier). It was said that his role in the movie would be an important one, especially since he sees the bigger picture - could this be it?
We totally dig the suit, which seems to be bulletproof, which in turn suggests that it is entirely made from vibranium. The character also seems to be very fluid in his movements, which will make the fight scenes even more interesting - obviously, we are very eager to see how Black Panther will do against Steve Rogers and against the Winter Soldier.
It’s been said quite a few times that Civil War is a psychological thriller. Black Panther gets involved because of his father's death, Steve gets involved because his old friend needs him, and Iron Man goes all out because War Machine has most likely died.
The Winter Soldier
According to the directors, Captain America: Civil War is not an Avengers movie because of Bucky Barnes. He is at the center of the (emotional) conflict and he may be the one to take the shield after Steve's death (if that happens - but more on that later).
So what can be said after two trailers? It is all pretty weird, especially after this last one. What in the world is he doing back in the cryo chamber? And what is that blue light on his chest? Was he again brainwashed by HYDRA? It sure appears so, especially since he fights Steve Rogers, as well as Agent 13. We won't even mention the fact that he shot point-blank at Tony Stark (yeah, they are on different sides of the barricades, but still!).
And since we mentioned that chamber (which seems to be in Russia, hence on the Asian side of the Civil War), there is another scene in which the Winter Soldier is involved, together with Captain America and Iron Man. It is that scene when Tony kicks Steve in his perfect teeth.
If you look closely, you can see that in the background there is some sort of containment cell, with someone strapped to a chair. And if it is indeed a scene in a HYDRA laboratory, that person sitting in the chair has had his or her mind erased. So who could that be?!?
We believe that it is a woman sitting there. And if that is Agent 13, this gives Captain America more reasons to be there, while it also explains why Bucky fought her. But if it is her, this doesn't explain why Tony is there and why he is trying to prevent the two from freeing her.
Does this mean that Tony Stark tries to use the same brainwashing technology to bring enemies over to his side? It sure appears so.
There is another possibility - what if Scarlet Witch indeed shot War Machine down, and she is now in the chamber? Tony has all the more reason to brainwash her, while Steve and Bucky try to keep her on their side (since, well, she is the strongest on the team).
Lastly, there is one more thing to be said about the Winter Soldier. We don't know how his confrontation with Black Panther will end. But we do know that he will lose badly against Iron Man, even if Captain America is on his side.
The Prison
Tony Stark left the Avengers at the end of Age of Ultron. But now he is back, most likely being the first superhero to support the Accords. And he is bringing his toys back, including a new type of suit (that seems to be the Bleeding Edge). But he also brings something else.
In the comics, the supervillains and all those who were against the Registration Act were sent into the Negative Zone, to Prison 42. The prison was designed by Tony Stark, Hank Pym, and Reed Richards. Since Marvel doesn't own the rights for the latter (and for the Negative Zone, for that matter), a change was made for the MCU's Civil War.
It is a prison built underwater by Tony Stark alone, since Hank Pym is not his friend in the MCU. And we see him beaten down, weary, with a broken arm, and we might even say upset. And that is because the prison is intended especially for his fellow Avengers and, we believe, he now regrets doing that.
Is this his way of saying that it wasn't worth it?
The MCU, for the moment, lacks supervillains. But this could also be a nod for the things to come, since such a large facility is simply too much for just a bunch of guys, no matter how powerful they are.
Black Widow and other allegiances
The second trailer made it very clear - if there is one character who will switch sides, then that character is Black Widow. Not only do we get to actually see her behind Captain America, opposing Stark, but she actually warns Tony that he should watch his back.
Of course, this change of mind can be traced back to the previous movies, even starting with Iron Man 2, when the character was introduced. But we do believe that her change of mind has something to do strictly with the events of Civil War. And we believe that she is just the first one to defect, once Tony Stark completely loses it.
So yes, we actually expect for things to go from bad to worse in this movie.
Black Panther is also most likely to switch sides (if we can say so). Once the misunderstanding is cleared, he will have no reason to stick with Tony any longer and he will mostly likely go against HYDRA.
Vision and Scarlet Witch can also be taken out of the equation. As we can see, Scarlet Witch is pretty shaken up when watching what happens in Sokovia. So, realizing the tremendous powers she possesses, she will most likely retreat from the battle. The same goes for Vision, who already stated that he values life above all else. Plus, he might actually fall for Scarlet, even if they had a pretty rocky start.
Lastly, we have Spider-Man. And the biggest question is: will he switch sides, just like in the comics? We guess he will. And he will do so simply because he is a teenager who doesn't know better (so to speak). Yes, Tony gave him a new suit. But, above all else, he cherishes Captain America. So even if he won't side against Iron Man, he will still leave his team.
Hawkeye and Ant-Man
They did it! They revealed the iconic scene in which Hawkeye shoots Ant-Man through the air on an arrow! And it was epic! But do you know what could have been even more epic? Showing a giant-sized Pull Rudd.
Of course, at this point, this is just a rumor based on the merchandise - a Lego set had Ant-Man becoming Giant Man and, potentially, being revealed as the heavy hitter of Team Captain America. But we understand - the studio wants to keep something for release day.
And they do keep plenty of things. One other is Zemo, who is supposed to be the hidden baddie of the Civil War, the mastermind behind the entire conflict. He surely knows that Steve will come to Bucky's rescue, so it is all just a matter of manipulating Iron Man and his team.
Back to Hawkeye and Ant-Man"¦well, there isn't too much to say. Ant-Man has a new suit, Hawkeye comes with some upgrades, but, other than that, they do seem to be the least used superheroes in the Civil War (even if Ant-Man is way cooler than Hawkeye). We guess we’ll see"¦
The future
Will Captain America die at the end of Civil War, just like in the comics?
This is actually the biggest question of them all - and we'd rather not have him die, just to be resurrected for one of the Infinity War films (since Chris Evans has one more movie on his contract with Marvel). We'd rather have him go into hiding or something like that, instead of witnessing another fake death.
But everything points to that. Bucky Barnes has been teased quite a few times as a worthy successor - in both the first and the second Captain America movies. And, in the comics, he actually took the shield, until Steve came back.
As mentioned previously, there is a particular scene in which someone is seen in a background chamber, with Iron Man, Captain America, and Winter Soldier fighting each other. And, as said, that someone could be Agent 13. If she is indeed in there, then someone is trying to brainwash her. We said that it could be Tony.
But it might just as well be Zemo, to use her later on to kill Steve Rogers. And this will be similar to what happens in the comics, where she was also brainwashed, but by the Red Skull (still HYDRA, though). Will it happen this way?
There is one other hint that it will be exactly this way - Tony Stark recognizing that he was wrong about Bucky Barnes (it is either this, or it’s Tony realizing too late that he was being played by Zemo)
UPDATE: Check out the next page, for the first trailer, the Super Bowl spot, the final trailer, and the final trailer with extra footage from Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards!
New Civil War footage!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00OV9_OoHqM
All the screenshots from this article are taken from here.
