1) There Are Real Stakes
A frequent complaint about the MCU has been that there are no real stakes, but Civil War shatters that notion. Keep in mind, having stakes does not simply mean that characters are constantly being killed off. It means that the events that unfold have long-lasting consequences and are not simply reset by the time the credits roll, and that’s definitely the case with Marvel’s latest.
Hell, the movie actually has the guts to conclude without the team having reformed. There is a division at the center of this group that will take years to repair, assuming it’s possible to repair at all. On a more practical level, a brief scene results in Rhodes’ suffering a grave injury, making clear that these people can’t just fly around avenging all day without someone getting hurt.
With Phase 3 being the most colossal yet, it’s crucial that Marvel sees the importance of treating big events with solemnity and making the audience feel that the drama is having an impact. After all, that will be necessary once we get to Infinity War, as the Thanos conflict must seem like a massive crisis and not simply another instance of a big bad alien trying to take over the universe and standing no chance against our heroes. We must feel the heaviness of it.
Luckily, after Captain America: Civil War, it’s clear that Marvel can craft a movie that’s both enjoyable to watch but that also has palpable consequences. That will, it appears, be the overarching theme of Phase 3, and we couldn’t be more excited to see what’s next.
