Final Confrontation
As there are two levels to the story, there are essentially two confrontations. Firstly, the Avengers address their collective difference of opinion in their big airport fight scene. Then, there is the more personal, gut-wrenching confrontation that follows, after Iron Man seeks to call a truce with Captain America.
Iron Man comes to realize the truth of what Cap has been saying about his friend Bucky Barnes, and the clear and present danger being posed by Helmut Zemo. As Cap and Barnes head to Siberia to take it up with Zemo in person, Iron Man catches up with them and agrees to work together to bring the incident to a close. However, Zemo has one more hand to play, and he reveals information that exposes a gaping, painful wound between Iron Man and Cap that can never truly be healed. The result is that Iron Man understandably loses all reason, and turns on Cap and Bucky – who he feels already turned on him.
In the space of a few minutes of screen time, we become very uncomfortable. We love Captain America, and we love Iron Man – but Iron Man has always been the character that has seemed closest to questionable morality. Here, however, Iron Man is the victim, and our hearts break for him. Our hearts break, too, because we see a whole different side of Cap – one that, just for a moment, seems capable of committing the darkest of acts.
As we see Helmut Zemo incarcerated in the same way that Barnes was, Joint Counter Terrorism Agent Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) taunts him through the glass – gloating that, for all Zemo’s efforts, his plan didn’t work.
“Didn’t it?” he sneers.
And we are left to wonder where the repercussions will end.