Wherever you sided in “Captain America: Civil War,” one thing is certain: the Marvel franchise outdid itself.
The best parts of “Civil War” are also the dominant socio-cultural features of life in the United States: diversity, political tension and free exchange of opinions and viewpoints.
And if the main plot points were resolved by characters shooting each other with missiles, that’s probably pretty in character for us, too.
Steve Rogers, the most milquetoast Avenger on paper, has become the vehicle for the two best Marvel films in recent years: “Civil War” and “The Winter Soldier.”
During the past few years, the formerly idealistic kid from Brooklyn has had to grow up and lead the Avengers in both saving the world and grossing huge amounts of money at the box office.
In large part, this is because the films don’t rely on the medical miracle to carry entire films by himself.
Instead, both movies called in a huge cadre of supporting characters who darkened up the moral tone of the movies and introduced viewpoints that clashed — or shattered — Rogers’ rose-tinted glasses.
As is only fair, sometimes these characters also get to operate outside of the movie formula for superheroes: take one white actor — with even whiter teeth — and add muscles, hair product and a form-fitting outfit, and give him a shiny accessory with which to hit or shoot people.
“Civil War” allows the genre to explore questions of autonomy versus regulation and what that means to people with and without the means to make a living elsewhere.
Hollywood has a well-documented problem with diversity.
The 2015 Hollywood diversity report stated, unsurprisingly, white actors and actresses still dominate leading movie roles.
Historically, film studios have not trusted big-budget movies to racial, gender or sexual minorities because they assume (straight, white, male) viewers will only flock to screens with other straight white guys on them.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is certainly not an outlier — it will be 2018 before Black Panther headlines his own cinematic debut.
Until T’Challa was introduced in “Civil War,” all of the Avengers were white, though Sam Wilson and James Rhodes remain strong secondary characters in Cap and Iron Man’s movies.
And after moving “Ant Man and the Wasp” to 2018 as well, the studio’s Powers that Be pushed “Captain Marvel,” the franchise’s first female lead, to a 2019 release.
At this rate, DC’s Justice League is going to win the representation race without even trying.
However, as supporting characters in other franchises, women and black men are finally getting a chance to shine in the Marvel universe — and they’re mainly doing so in Captain America movies.
Both Black Widow and Scarlet Witch spent “Civil War” exercising their autonomy, as two of the most specialized superheroes in the Avengers lineup.
Instead of giving each woman a storyline to share with a man (Quicksilver, the twin, or Bruce Banner, the love interest), the two characters get to develop as individuals in their segments of the movie.
If any character gets stuck in the role of love interest, it’s Vision, whose near-omniscient brain apparently couldn’t detect his crush on Scarlet Witch.
Black Panther, or T’Challa, also has a pivotal role in the proceedings of “Civil War.” Although he initially takes up the superhero mantle for revenge, he alone has the moral high ground at the end of the movie.
Chadwick Boseman’s portrayal of the African prince solidifies the lesson: in the superhero civil war, the best person to side with is not American at all.
In an insecure world of superpowered individuals, only T’Challa appears to want to balance his duty to his country with his global obligation to protect.
It’s a strong, individual stance, and one the Marvel universe would do well to hurry to the screen.
Anne Halliwell
ahalliwe@indiana.edu | @Anne_Halliwell
