Captain America: Civil War

David: Hello everyone! Welcome to our 25th Blogiversary! Thanks so much to all our devoted readers - this blog wouldn’t be flourishing without your support. We thought we would give you all a special treat and do something different on a very big movie of the moment: Captain America: Civil War. Shannon, do you have anything to say to our readership before we get started talking about the film?

​Shannon: Like David said, thank you for your continued support each day as we build our blog and review the movies that you suggest us to watch. We hope that you enjoy reading our blog posts each week and will tell all your friends to subscribe so they can enjoy as well. I am exciting for this 25th blogiversay post on Captain America: Civil War. David, please start the discussion!

David: Well ok then. So I’ll come straight out and say it: I loved Civil War. I thought there was a terrific mix of action and humor, along with some pretty good interpretations of comic characters and the famous Civil War comic book story-line. Shannon, let me ask you two questions here: first, did you enjoy the movie from the point of view of a non-comic book nerd? Second, what did you think of the new characters in this one; specifically, Black Panther and Spiderman?

Shannon: Well David, I too enjoyed the movie, which I’m pretty sure you already know. Everyone should know by now that action, explosions, and fighting  make for a pretty awesome movie in my opinion. I thought the new characters were a nice touch. I would have to say Antman is definitely my favorite of the newest characters in this movie. Black Panther was pretty cool with his suit made out of vibranium, though his motivation with revenge did not sit well with me. I thought Spiderman was a nice, comical touch. I will say that I’m so over Spiderman in the sense that there are way too many different franchises already started in the past, and now there’s going to be a new one? What do you think about this?
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David: I think Spiderman is one of those characters that will never go away - much like Batman, Superman, the X-men (especially Wolverine). They have been so popular for so many years, and  made movie studios boatloads of cash. Given time, they will all be rebooted once more. I do agree though, having 3 different Spiderman franchises in the last 8 years has been a bit taxing. ​However, I think going forward we will be looking at something very different now that he is apart of the Marvel Universe.

It gives me hope that some other fan favorite Marvel characters will eventually have their rights returned (or at least loaned) back to Marvel. I really liked the idea of actually casting a young teenager in the role of Peter (though I can’t necessarily say the same about Marissa Tomei as Aunty May - time will tell). I thought Tony and Peter had some great scenes, and am looking forward to their interactions in Spiderman:Homecoming.

Speaking of Tony, I’m starting to notice a recurring pattern. It seems that the Tony Stark of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is suffering from PTSD. However, it doesn’t really seem like any of the other characters know or even notice. Shannon, am I the only one picking up on this?
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Shannon: Yes, I think you are the only one picking up on this. I did notice that he regrets some things that happened in the past Avenger’s movie, but I feel like they all do. Other than that, I didn’t notice any PTSD for Tony, though that surely does not mean it’s not there. One thing I did notice is that Captain America: Civil War is kind of the same thing that Batman V Superman was all about. People upset that their love ones are dying during the battle scenes, blaming the superheroes for their death, the government trying to take control, and obviously a “war” against heroes. I know we are talking about two competing comic franchises so similarities are bound to happen, but to me they are very, very similar in their storylines, right up to the point of Ironman’s parents' death. Did you notice these similarities?

David: Yes, actually I did. There were a lot of people who thought that the storylines were copied from each other, though I think each individual franchise has set up to this point well. I’m a little ashamed since I am obviously a DC fanboy at heart (love of Supes and all), but Marvel did a much, much better job at this movie than DC. In some ways, they are polar opposites. In Batman v. Superman, the entire movie builds up to a giant climatic battle with lots of explosions, and a giant fight between lots of characters. Civil War, on the other hand, almost goes backwards. We get the climactic fight with all the characters in the middle, and then it ends up just getting down to the main two characters duking it out. I think this leaves the story on a much more personal note.

What did you think of the villains or side characters in this movie? They were shunted a bit to the side for this one, and some are almost a blink and you’ll miss them. There is General Thunderbolt Ross (from the Hulk series), Baron Zemo (the main bad guy), Crossbones (the guy Cap fights in the beginning that causes the entire thing with Scarlet Witch), Sharon Carter, and Everett K. Ross (played by Martin Freeman). Heck, even Black Widow seems like she doesn’t get enough screen time (I’m really jonesing for her to have her own film).
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Shannon: This is technically a Captain America movie, so I would suspect the other characters to get pushed to the side a little bit. I thought the General was a complete asshole so I’m glad I didn’t see him to much, and I don’t really remember the others - I guess that

answers your questions - with the exception of Sharon Carter. I will say that I am a fan of Emily vanCamp. I am however, a little weirded out by the whole love story… I mean Steve and her AUNT were a thing and now he’s just moving on to Sharon? I know.. The whole being frozen in time thing and now Peggy is like a hundred years old and Sharon is not, but it’s still really weird. And with your statement about Black Widow, I totally agree with you. Scarlett Johannson is not my favorite actress, but I am a fan of girls that kick ass (hence the reason Mulan is my favorite Disney movie) and would totally watch a Black Widow movie. I feel like a lot of people agree with us and eventually, I’m sure, that Marvel will realize they should make a movie with her as the star because it would be a big hit. It may be kind of hard now that the story-line has progressed so far, but I’m confident. Also, I am very upset that Thor wasn’t a part of this movie… he’s my favorite.

David: Well who isn’t a fan of that man with his shirt off. Ya, I see your point about Sharon, but I still wish there was more. I mean, we didn’t get to see any of Bruce Banner at all, and he was such a fan surprise in the original Avengers movie. Oh well, such is the life of the movies. The movie was close to two and a half hours, and I still want more. Well, Shannon, I feel like we could talk about Civil War all day (I mean we haven’t said a single word about Bucky, and the film practically revolves around him), but I don’t think our readers will continue to keep putting up with us. I already alluded to my rating earlier, but I think Civil War is an “A+”. For me, it’s just must watch film-making, especially if you have followed the MCU in its entirety. However, the reason it is so good is that you could watch this movie all on its own and be very entertained. Shannon, what would you rate it?

Shannon: There were some points where I felt like the story-line was going to end, but it just kept going. Two and half hours is very long for me to sit and watch a movie, but I still agree with you David, this movie was very entertaining. I’m giving it a “Loved It" and recommend it to pretty much everyone. 
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Thank you everyone! Happy 25th Blogiversary!!