Comic book superhero movies have been blowing up theaters for almost twenty years now. Marvel has been reigning champion for more than half that time, and DC has stepped up their game with their opening moves toward building a cinematic universe. What I'm saying is we've seen a lot of costumed heroes beating up on supervillains and foiling their plots at world domination/destruction/etc. at this point. To keep things fresh, the studios have to find ways to change it up and 2016 saw not one but two different films focused on superheroes turning their fists on their brethren (well, three if you include X-MEN: APOCALYPSE where Storm was temporarily on the villain's team). While Batman's battle with Superman failed to be the explosive intro to Warner's eventual JUSTICE LEAGUE they might've hoped it be (especially critically), the civil war in Marvel's cinematic universe went to show that you could put cram all of your existing superhero roster into a film, go so far as to introduce a few more new characters, give them all a reason to brawl, and still come out with box office gold. CAPTAIN America: CIVIL WAR is Marvel's most ambitious film to date and had every reason to fall apart, but the team behind the camera managed to put together one of the best entries in the studio's canon. It manages to avoid the increasingly cliché superhero storytelling tropes and also shakes up the inter-character dynamics amongst the dozen or so heroes we've come to know.

Civil War is the only run of comics I've made a point to read in its entirety. I read all of the core issues as well as all of the individual hero runs that went alongside it. Needless to say, I was beyond excited at the announcement that Marvel Studios would be tackling the story arc for the third film in the Captain America series, but I was also worried because there was just so much that happened in the comics that I feared a version boiled down to two or so hours wouldn't do it justice. In the end, having seen the finished product, I love it. It doesn't hold up as well under multiple viewings. On my first viewing, I thought it the best Captain America film and one of the top Marvel films period. Since then, I've come to accept that I was a bit blown away by the spectacle (that airport battle!) and I've adjusted my opinions and recognize that, while it's most certainly awesome, there are still better Marvel films. I have had some regrets with the film though. In the comics, it goes a little darker at the midpoint when the heroes on both sides realize the consequences of their actions (the movie pulls it's punches and there are no tragic long-term consequences of their in-fighting) and I still sort of wish they'd kept the original dramatic end from the comics (you know the onewith Captain America) because of the impact it would've left.

I understand their reasons for the changes from comic to screen (can't shake up the status quo in this money machine too much) but I would've really appreciated the studio showing it was willing to make a drastic change for dramatic impact in service of the series. Instead, injuries will heal and, while there's still a rift in our Avengers by the end of the film, we know they'll reconcile when it comes time to fight Thanos in INFINITY WAR. So, in the long run, their squabbles don't mean much but they do make for a great movie. And we got to meet some new characters! CIVIL WAR introduces us to Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) and the new Spider-Man (Tom Holland). Boseman gives a strong performance as T'Challa/Black Panther but isn't given a whole lot to do other than brood and chase vengeance; regardless, there's the seed of a great new hero for the cinematic universe and it's increased my interest for his upcoming standalone. Spider-Man, on the other hand, was the big draw for me. I know I wasn't alone in my excitement for his arrival in the MCU after the AMAZING SPIDER-MAN franchise fell to pieces. Tom Holland is pitch perfect as the web-slinger and the filmmakers have captured the spirit of the character better than both Sam Rami and Marc Webb ever managed. It's no surprise that Marvel themselves would be the ones to do the character justice, even if it's only for an extended cameo in the middle of the film.

Despite all the superhero-on-superhero violence and new hero introductions, this is still a Captain America film and the main through-line still focuses on Captain America and the Winter Soldier. It somewhat continues from WINTER SOLDIER in that Bucky Barnes is still a wanted international criminal, though he's recovered enough of his memories that he isn't a threat, and Steve Rogers still has his back. The Winter Soldier is accused of bombing a meeting of the United Nations and Captain America goes rogue to clear his name; meanwhile, a botched Avengers mission in Africa ends with civilian deaths and the United Nations moves to pass the Sokovia Accords, a program that would require government registration of all vigilante heroes. It's Rogers' willingness to disobey the Accords in an effort to clear Barnes' name that leads to the dispute between him and Tony Stark/Iron Man, whose guilty conscience leads him to give his full support to the Accords. So the spectacle and abundance of heroes are great, but this is still a Cap story at heart and CIVIL WAR is another home run from the Russo brothers, in what originally started as my least anticipated Marvel film franchise but has since become one of its strongest.