Dillah810
Flat Girther
Very long read but interesting
If you were to poll the majority of comic book fans about which Marvel storyline they'd most want to see recreated on the big screen, the answer would overwhelmingly be for Marvel's epic Civil Warcrossover. Unfortunately, it's also been the one storyline that's been a virtual lock for the "never gonna happen" realm for a number of reasons.
Most journalists and fans, since the MCU's inception, have spent their time writing speculation pieces built around the Infinity Gauntlet storyline that Marvel has been threading through Phases 1 and 2, with Thanos as the big baddie behind the scenes pulling strings. Predictions as to what future movie the MCU might hold have focused solely on those films that can somehow fit into the current Thanos storyline, operating with the premise that it's the platform atop which the entire MCU is being built.
But I have grander visions - and I suspect Marvel does, too. In fact, I think Marvel Studios are clearing the way to make room for both the Infinity Gauntlet storyline and Civil War.
Now, I'm not saying this is 100% certain. In fact, it very likely won't work out this way. I have simply seen a lot of people saying it will NEVER happen without giving a fully thought-out, reasonable argument beyond the same few things we've all seen kicked about online. So I thought I'd offer a reasonable counterargument to show fans it's not as impossible to make this hypothetical a reality as it appears at first glance.
Yes, really. Here's why I think it's happening...and how they can pull it off.
BUT FIRST, THE BACKGROUND...
Brother against brother
Comic book fans aren't necessarily synonymous with comic bookmovie fans in 2014, so I'm not going to assume everyone reading this already knows what Marvel's Civil War is. Allow me to give you a quick break-down of what it's all about. I'm oversimplifying things a bit for the sake of brevity, but it's enough to catch you up to speed.
The main Civil War series itself was limited to only seven issues (written by comic book legend Mark Millar) in 2006-07, but it spawned numerous crossovers and tie-ins that spanned the entirety of the massive Marvel universe, with far-reaching repercussions and fallout that reverberated throughout. It's one of the most pivotal stories in all of comics, and its effects are still seen in the Marvel universe today.
one of the most iconic scenes in comic book history.
This is why he's always the leader.
HERE'S WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR...
There are two things on the internet that spawn more rumors and speculation than anything else. One is the Hollywood celebrity culture, and the other is comic book movies. Hypotheses about everything from future MCU films to what minor Easter eggs mean abound. It's hard to separate fact from fiction when rumors regularly pop up, are modified, get shot down, and are replaced by another rumor in the span of 24 hours.
Still, there are a few things we know for certain about the future of the MCU, and I believe it makes a case for Civil War.
MARVEL IS EXPANDING TO THREE FILMS A YEAR
In an interview from this year's SDCC with Comic Book Resources, Kevin Feige confirmed what we'd all assumed for a while now: Marvel is definitely making room for three movies per year on its release slate. Perhaps not every year from now on, but it will happen:
Well, I think if you look at some of those dates that we've announced, we're going to three in a few of those years. Again, not because there's a number cruncher telling us to go to three, do more than two pictures a year, but because of the very reason just laid out: It is about managing those franchises, film to film, and when we have a team ready to go, why tell them to go away for four years just because we don't have a slot? We'd rather find a way to keep that going.
Why does this matter beyond us simply getting more superhero movies? Because Marvel's ultimate end game is not just about superheroes.
Marvel Cinematic Universe: Now with more space!
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY WAS THE START OF THE MARVEL COSMIC UNIVERSE
Sure, when people think of Marvel, their first thoughts are of Iron Man, Captain America, Spider-Man, maybe the X-Men. Superheroes and mutants are at the forefront of public perception, and that's completely understandable. But what many people forget is that the phrase "Marvel universe" means exactly that - it's not just a world Marvel has built, but a universe.
Among the capes and spandex on Planet Earth, Marvel has also built up a vast cosmic universe. Space operas, laserbeams, aliens, spaceships, and intergalactic battles factor into Marvel's comics as much as any earthbound antics. Crossovers between the two regularly occur, but the sci-fi element of Marvel can stand on its own, and this is something Marvel wanted to make emphatically clear to audiences, and did, with Guardians of the Galaxy.
Guardians of the Galaxy 2,Doctor Strange, Ms. Marvel, even The Inhumans, which we know ismoving forward into development.
And here's where the three movies a year thing becomes important: That is a hell of a lot of Marvel movies to put on screen in the next few years, and Marvel's model is that while each movie can be watched and enjoyed in and of itself, each movie builds in some small way off of or moves toward the larger picture. Right now, that main storyline is the aforementioned Infinity Gauntlet arc, and that story is currently unfolding in the Marvel Cosmic Universe. Think about it: Right now, we know of three Infinity Stones (or Gems) revealed, along with the Gauntlet, and all four pieces are in the Cosmic end of things. The Tesseract, along with the Gauntlet, are secured in Asgard. The Collector has the Aether from Thor: The Dark World housed in his collection in Knowhere (we'll assume it wasn't destroyed in the explosion), and the Orb from Guardians of the Galaxy is now in the hands of what's left of the Nova Corp. That means there are three more to find in the MCU, assuming the "One down, five to go" tally by The Collector in the mid-credits scene of Thor 2 is correct. It's all but certain that one of the remaining Stones will be the focus of Doctor Strange, and that the last two will also be found in space, not Earth.
The Aether in The Collector's possession...
As the Infinity Gauntlet storyline is moving from Earth to the Marvel Cosmic Universe, that means another main storyline needs to replace it for our heroes and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents of the (mostly) Earthbound half of the MCU. That story very much appears to be the grittier, far more human story that was central to Captain America: The Winter Soldier and is set to continue in Ant-Man (and was touched upon inIron Man 3). There are no gods and cosmic entities here, no magical rocks and mystic portals, only the shadowiness of a government that can no longer entirely be trusted and the growing threat of powers that fall into the wrong hands. And less obvious but no less important, two Avengers starting to diverge along very different paths.
On one side, a vulnerable Tony Stark whose unchecked experiments and actions have come back to haunt him in the form of superpowered villains, a paranoid Tony Stark who regularly suffers PTSD flashbacks from the destruction of New York, a more sober Tony Stark who destroys his suits in a decision to spend more time with Pepper...and also because he knows his suits can no longer be trusted not to be exploited.
On the other, a conflicted Steve Rogers who is quickly becoming disillusioned with his government and critical of the ways in which it polices its own people, a moral Steve Rogers who increasingly chafes at the idea of working for a government agency he can no longer trust, an independent Steve Rogers who looks to the measures being taken to protect the American people and sees them only as a source of fear, not freedom.
The seeds of their opposition have been there all along. What we all laughed off as a scene included just to build dramatic tension in The Avengers is actually the first clear evidence of the way in which their ideologies directly clash:
And we've recently learned that divide will only continue to get wider by the end of The Avengers: Age Of Ultron.
If you were to poll the majority of comic book fans about which Marvel storyline they'd most want to see recreated on the big screen, the answer would overwhelmingly be for Marvel's epic Civil Warcrossover. Unfortunately, it's also been the one storyline that's been a virtual lock for the "never gonna happen" realm for a number of reasons.
Most journalists and fans, since the MCU's inception, have spent their time writing speculation pieces built around the Infinity Gauntlet storyline that Marvel has been threading through Phases 1 and 2, with Thanos as the big baddie behind the scenes pulling strings. Predictions as to what future movie the MCU might hold have focused solely on those films that can somehow fit into the current Thanos storyline, operating with the premise that it's the platform atop which the entire MCU is being built.
But I have grander visions - and I suspect Marvel does, too. In fact, I think Marvel Studios are clearing the way to make room for both the Infinity Gauntlet storyline and Civil War.
Now, I'm not saying this is 100% certain. In fact, it very likely won't work out this way. I have simply seen a lot of people saying it will NEVER happen without giving a fully thought-out, reasonable argument beyond the same few things we've all seen kicked about online. So I thought I'd offer a reasonable counterargument to show fans it's not as impossible to make this hypothetical a reality as it appears at first glance.
Yes, really. Here's why I think it's happening...and how they can pull it off.
BUT FIRST, THE BACKGROUND...
Brother against brother
Comic book fans aren't necessarily synonymous with comic bookmovie fans in 2014, so I'm not going to assume everyone reading this already knows what Marvel's Civil War is. Allow me to give you a quick break-down of what it's all about. I'm oversimplifying things a bit for the sake of brevity, but it's enough to catch you up to speed.
The main Civil War series itself was limited to only seven issues (written by comic book legend Mark Millar) in 2006-07, but it spawned numerous crossovers and tie-ins that spanned the entirety of the massive Marvel universe, with far-reaching repercussions and fallout that reverberated throughout. It's one of the most pivotal stories in all of comics, and its effects are still seen in the Marvel universe today.
one of the most iconic scenes in comic book history.
This is why he's always the leader.
HERE'S WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR...
There are two things on the internet that spawn more rumors and speculation than anything else. One is the Hollywood celebrity culture, and the other is comic book movies. Hypotheses about everything from future MCU films to what minor Easter eggs mean abound. It's hard to separate fact from fiction when rumors regularly pop up, are modified, get shot down, and are replaced by another rumor in the span of 24 hours.
Still, there are a few things we know for certain about the future of the MCU, and I believe it makes a case for Civil War.
MARVEL IS EXPANDING TO THREE FILMS A YEAR
In an interview from this year's SDCC with Comic Book Resources, Kevin Feige confirmed what we'd all assumed for a while now: Marvel is definitely making room for three movies per year on its release slate. Perhaps not every year from now on, but it will happen:
Well, I think if you look at some of those dates that we've announced, we're going to three in a few of those years. Again, not because there's a number cruncher telling us to go to three, do more than two pictures a year, but because of the very reason just laid out: It is about managing those franchises, film to film, and when we have a team ready to go, why tell them to go away for four years just because we don't have a slot? We'd rather find a way to keep that going.
Why does this matter beyond us simply getting more superhero movies? Because Marvel's ultimate end game is not just about superheroes.
Marvel Cinematic Universe: Now with more space!
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY WAS THE START OF THE MARVEL COSMIC UNIVERSE
Sure, when people think of Marvel, their first thoughts are of Iron Man, Captain America, Spider-Man, maybe the X-Men. Superheroes and mutants are at the forefront of public perception, and that's completely understandable. But what many people forget is that the phrase "Marvel universe" means exactly that - it's not just a world Marvel has built, but a universe.
Among the capes and spandex on Planet Earth, Marvel has also built up a vast cosmic universe. Space operas, laserbeams, aliens, spaceships, and intergalactic battles factor into Marvel's comics as much as any earthbound antics. Crossovers between the two regularly occur, but the sci-fi element of Marvel can stand on its own, and this is something Marvel wanted to make emphatically clear to audiences, and did, with Guardians of the Galaxy.
Guardians of the Galaxy 2,Doctor Strange, Ms. Marvel, even The Inhumans, which we know ismoving forward into development.
And here's where the three movies a year thing becomes important: That is a hell of a lot of Marvel movies to put on screen in the next few years, and Marvel's model is that while each movie can be watched and enjoyed in and of itself, each movie builds in some small way off of or moves toward the larger picture. Right now, that main storyline is the aforementioned Infinity Gauntlet arc, and that story is currently unfolding in the Marvel Cosmic Universe. Think about it: Right now, we know of three Infinity Stones (or Gems) revealed, along with the Gauntlet, and all four pieces are in the Cosmic end of things. The Tesseract, along with the Gauntlet, are secured in Asgard. The Collector has the Aether from Thor: The Dark World housed in his collection in Knowhere (we'll assume it wasn't destroyed in the explosion), and the Orb from Guardians of the Galaxy is now in the hands of what's left of the Nova Corp. That means there are three more to find in the MCU, assuming the "One down, five to go" tally by The Collector in the mid-credits scene of Thor 2 is correct. It's all but certain that one of the remaining Stones will be the focus of Doctor Strange, and that the last two will also be found in space, not Earth.
The Aether in The Collector's possession...
As the Infinity Gauntlet storyline is moving from Earth to the Marvel Cosmic Universe, that means another main storyline needs to replace it for our heroes and S.H.I.E.L.D. agents of the (mostly) Earthbound half of the MCU. That story very much appears to be the grittier, far more human story that was central to Captain America: The Winter Soldier and is set to continue in Ant-Man (and was touched upon inIron Man 3). There are no gods and cosmic entities here, no magical rocks and mystic portals, only the shadowiness of a government that can no longer entirely be trusted and the growing threat of powers that fall into the wrong hands. And less obvious but no less important, two Avengers starting to diverge along very different paths.
On one side, a vulnerable Tony Stark whose unchecked experiments and actions have come back to haunt him in the form of superpowered villains, a paranoid Tony Stark who regularly suffers PTSD flashbacks from the destruction of New York, a more sober Tony Stark who destroys his suits in a decision to spend more time with Pepper...and also because he knows his suits can no longer be trusted not to be exploited.
On the other, a conflicted Steve Rogers who is quickly becoming disillusioned with his government and critical of the ways in which it polices its own people, a moral Steve Rogers who increasingly chafes at the idea of working for a government agency he can no longer trust, an independent Steve Rogers who looks to the measures being taken to protect the American people and sees them only as a source of fear, not freedom.
The seeds of their opposition have been there all along. What we all laughed off as a scene included just to build dramatic tension in The Avengers is actually the first clear evidence of the way in which their ideologies directly clash:
And we've recently learned that divide will only continue to get wider by the end of The Avengers: Age Of Ultron.
Civil War