Virtual Roundtable: "Captain America: Civil War"

We here at The Underground kept our mouths shut for FIVE MONTHS following Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens. We didn't say a word, out of respect and courtesy for those who hadn't seen the movie and didn't want it spoiled for them. In retrospect, that was ridiculous. If a good movie comes out, we want to talk about it!

With that being said, an enormous blockbuster movie came out over a two weeks ago: Captain America: Civil War. Perhaps you've heard of it. Aaron has rounded up a crew of guest bloggers and they've got a whole lot to talk about.

IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR YET, THIS IS YOUR CHANCE TO GET OUT UNSCATHED. MAJOR SPOILERS FOR THE FILM WILL BE DISCUSSED BEYOND THIS POINT.

All right, if you've scrolled down this far, we assume you've seen the movie and want to discuss it. At this point, we'll welcome in our panel of bloggers for the very first "Virtual Roundtable," which will work as, basically, a podcast for your eyes. The Underground has compiled a list of questions and our bloggers will share their thoughts, feelings and predictions.

Before submitting their answers to the questions that will follow hereafter, with the possible exception of Amy and Cole, who are married and live together, none of the bloggers for this "Virtual Roundtable" discussed their answers with each other. This will make way for two possibilities: the conversation, admittedly, may seem a bit disjointed, but it also may provide some common threads among responses. [Editor's note: At minimum, you will notice that it will be quite obvious which characters were most and least popular among these five bloggers. Kind of interesting.]

But before we get to that, let's quickly introduce our bloggers:

Aaron Christensen - Main contributor for SotT: Underground, former journalist of Deseret News and Salt Lake Comic Con fame, the former college radio DJ forevermore known as "A-Town."

Cody Christensen - First-time contributor to The Underground. That's all he could think of.

Cole Morgan - First-time contributor. Newlywed. X-box user. A real-life hero. Also, one of the biggest Tony Stark lovers ever to walk the earth.

Amy Morgan - First-time contributor. Newlywed (see above). The one and only Christensen sister. Brought up in love by overprotective brothers.

Curtis Anderson - First-time contributor. Californian, which supposedly makes him a Golden State Warriors fan. But, overall and sports allegiance notwithstanding, a giant, lovable teddy bear.

All right, now. Let's get to it!

TOPIC 1 - EXPECTATIONS:

QUESTION: What expectations did you have for the movie? What were you expecting to happen?

Aaron: I had incredibly high expectations for Civil War. Not the same as Star Wars because Star Wars is Star Wars, but I couldn't wait for this movie to hit theaters. I honestly had no idea what was going to happen because, unlike Batman v Superman, where we all knew WAY beforehand that they'd fight for a second and then end up on the same team, I only thought there was about a 95% chance of Cap an Iron Man kissing and making up, so to speak, at the end of i.

Cody: I had fairly high expectations going into the movie because of the high bar that Marvel has set with its previous movies. I was worried about spoilers - seeing things like the commercials for Suicide Squad - I feel like that movie has kind of been ruined because they've shown so much about it already. I was worried that there was going to be a lot of publicity for Civil War, but I wanted to go in, not knowing very much about it.

Cole: I had some previous knowledge of the Civil War, not from the comicbooks, but rather from the video game "Ultimate Alliance 2." I was expecting to see Iron Man on the side of superheroes registering, and Captain America against the proposal. Although I am an Iron Man fan, I went into this movie with the belief of Captain America being in the right.

Amy: At first, I expected this movie to be really good. I haven't met a Captain America storyline that I haven't liked yet. I was a little nervous after watching Batman v Superman if I would like having two "good guys" pinned up against each other. It ended up being a good storyline, though, and it exceeded all of my expectations.

Curtis: As far as expectations are concerned, I tried to keep mine very realistic. Keeping in mind that I did think a major character was going to be killed off, I wanted to be very surprised, yet also didn’t want to be let down, so keeping mine at mid-range was appropriate. I did expect Thor to show up towards the end and warn them of the coming danger due to the Infinity Stones and the Ragnorak, thus kind of shifting the Avengers' focus from their debate to the real problem.

QUESTION: For starters, were your expectations met? Yes or no.

Aaron: Absolutely, yes.

Cody: I feel like nothing got ruined for me beforehand, so yeah, I would say that they were met.

Cole: Yes, they were.

Amy: Yes.

Curtis: Overall, I would the say the expectations were met as a whole. 

TOPIC 2 - #TEAMCAP, #TEAMSTARK AND REAL-WORLD CONNECTIONS:

QUESTION: Going into the movie, had you already determined whose team you were going to be on?

Cody: I think that I went into it pretty open-minded, as to a team, but as the movie developed, it solidified who I liked more.

Amy: #TeamCap

Aaron: Last summer, I read about a third of the extended "Civil War" storyline in the comics, so, if the movie was going to end up anything like the comics, I knew I'd be #TeamCap.

Cole: I went into this movie as a staunch and proud Iron Man supporter.

Curtis: Going into it, I was on Team Iron Man.

QUESTION: While watching the movie, did your opinion of which team was in the right change at any point?

Cody: I think it solidified my choice more than it changed it.

Amy: Sort of. I could see why each party felt like they were right and my opinion was swayed a few times during the movie. I didn't agree with having the government controlling the Avengers, necessarily, but I ended up agreeing that the group needed to be in check.

Aaron: It's tricky. No, I'd say my opinion didn't change. I was in Cap's corner the entire time, but I can see valid arguments for each side.

Cole: My opinion did change. I expected to side with the morals of Captain America, but I was drawn towards the side of Iron Man. One of the many reasons that I love Iron Man is his ability to change. Tony Stark is known as the arrogant, egotistical and prideful billionaire, but that’s all a cover. The whole basis of Iron Man is Tony taking responsibility for what he had done in the past. He learns from his mistakes. This is what led him to shut down the weapons development at Stark Industries and to pursue villains.

Curtis: I did feel the struggle of trying to choose a side to be on, although my position on Iron Man’s side was solidified throughout the movie. That being said, I do see right and wrong opinions from both sides.

QUESTION: Were you sympathetic to the other team, even for a moment?

Cody: I felt sympathetic toward Iron Man toward the end when we found out about his parents, but I wasn't sympathetic toward the cause; I was more sympathetic toward the person.

Amy: Yes, I was. I felt like Tony Stark's point of view was valid. I feel like it was a real wake-up call for him when that woman confronted him about her son's death after his presentation to the college students. He found out that fighting with the Avengers was doing more harm than he thought. It was something I hadn't considered before. People were getting hurt or killed in the process of the Avengers saving those cities.

Aaron: Yeah, I think so. I thought the film did a great job of showing the frustration and desperation of the ever-confident Tony Stark. (His "Come on, man" plea stood out to me.) He seemed like a pretty frustrated dude and yeah, it made me feel kind of bad for him. It was almost like Batman v Superman, in the sense that I can understand why both Tony Stark and Bruce Wayne would have been really upset about their circumstances. Understanding someone else's perspective makes it hard to be like, "Kick his trash! Get him!"

Cole: I ended up siding with Iron Man, but not the government. I think that Tony doesn’t want to become a government employee - there would have been many debates on what restrictions could be placed, and I’m hoping that the council that would have had oversight over the Avengers would have been made up of politicians and superheroes. For this reason I also had sympathy towards Cap and his crew. Cap saw the worst in this bill, and he also had more knowledge of the context behind the bombing at the UN (information that nobody else had), so I think that both sides acted in what was right, based upon the information they each had.

Curtis: I would say I was more sympathetic to the characters, rather than the team as a whole.

QUESTION: Obviously, it's fictional, but what do you think "Civil War" teaches us about the role of government in today's society?

Cody: When we found out about the Sokovia Accords, it showed how corrupt the government can be, because, like Captain America was saying, once the government takes sides, it shows the government's true agenda. It goes to show how people react when they are given ultimate power, as opposed to checks and balances.

Aaron: If we learned anything from the Hillary's America trailer that preceded the actual movie last night, we learned that government can be a scary thing. I understood why Secretary Ross and the United Nations wanted to pass the Sokovia Accords, but it seemed to me that, despite all the good I'm sure they had intended, there were going to be a lot of dangerous consequences if the Avengers got their hands tied. (The audience's reaction to the end of the "Hillary's America" trailer was HILARIOUS, by the way. We only laugh to keep from crying because we all know it's coming. Heaven help us.)

Cole: Oversight is good, but not if it restricts us from doing what is right. If oversight is necessary, then the overseers must be extremely qualified.

Curtis: That it can be too involved and not set on a moral basis, per se. I would have signed, but only because I agree with Tony that we have to accept limitations or we aren’t any better than the bad guys. I do agree with Cap that agendas do change, but it is our moral responsibility to disobey an unjust law. However, it has to be a law first in order to tell its true nature.

QUESTION: There was some talk about standing for your beliefs, despite what others or "the world" might pressure you to do or say. Did you see any religious parallels in the movie?

Cody: Similar to the War in Heaven, there was a decision that needed to be made - there were two options: either everything was going to be decided for you and if you didn't do it, you were going to be punished, or the other option was that you were given the opportunity to choose for yourself and deal with the consequences accordingly. I think that both sides have their merit in this movie, however, one is more understandable to follow than the other.

Amy: Now that you bring this up, yes. With the world's values changing, the right decision is usually the unpopular one. Despite what our friends may think or do, we need to be willing to make a stand for our beliefs.

Aaron: Yeah, I'm always looking for hidden religious messages in the stuff I watch, so I did find it interesting to listen to the "sometimes I want to punch you in your perfect teeth" conversation between Steve and Tony. Cap argues that the Sokovia Accords take away the Avengers' right to choose and act for themselves. Sounds like Satan's plan to me! Also, I thought Agent 13's speech at the funeral was good. I liked the part about standing tall when the world tells you that what you're doing is wrong, even though you know it's right. "No, you move." Nice.

Cole: Captain America is always right. It’s in his nature, and his ideals on the place of personal accountability are very similar to LDS beliefs on agency. We all have a choice, we should do our part and have faith in people that they will do the same.

Curtis: Absolutely. Can you truly believe in God without recognizing and following certain lines of conduct or order, in a sense? Maybe it comes from living in Europe and having immigrant parents and also being raised in a faith, but you can't sit on the fence between the world and God. Sides have to be chosen in almost everything we do and say.

TOPIC 3 - CHARACTERS:

QUESTION: Aside from Captain America and/or Iron Man, who was your favorite character in the movie? Why?

Curtis: Black Panther, hands down, without a doubt. He was so focused on his mission, but never so focused he couldn’t listen to reason, and could therefore end up making the right choice. He was very thought-provoking due to his nature and the dialogue that character had.  And he isn’t white… finally!

Cole: I loved Ant-man. His humor made the movie so much more enjoyable and he’s so excited to be doing what he thinks is right. I was also stoked to see the emergence Giant-Man.

Cody: Ant-man. I think he is very underrated. When he had screen time, he didn't disappoint.

Aaron: Ant-man was great. That guy is hilarious. It's funny... the first time I saw Ant-man, I thought it was all right. (I went in with really low expectations.) I watched it again on Blu-ray and liked it much more than the first time around. And, as time goes on, the more and more I like him. I love that he's just a regular, star-struck dude with a sense of humor and some awesome super powers. Flying on Hawkeye's arrow? Are you kidding me??

Amy: Ant-man! He is so real and people can relate to that! I think it's hilarious how star-struck he is when he meets Captain America mainly because I know I would do the same thing. I also appreciate his humor. Ant-man continues to impress me.

QUESTION: Which character was the most surprising to you?

Curtis: Truth be told, Cap was the most surprising for me. Before the movie, I slightly understood what was going on, as far as the dilemma, but didn’t fully grasp the entire thing. I really thought Cap would be the last one to say that we don’t need limits. I do see where he is coming from, that agendas do change and so do the people with those agendas, but, then again, Cap himself has changed. He really cannot live without a war or some kind of fight. Not accepting limits is the eventual rise of a warrior who doesn’t have to answer for what was done, whether it be good or bad.

Cole: Spider-man blew me away. I’m excited to see a him portrayed as a young kid.

Cody: I'd say Scarlet Witch because she was more confident in herself. In the second Avengers movie, she was very unsure of her powers, but in this one, she's more confident, more understanding of her role, and now, in this movie, she just needs to learn about the consequences of her powers. It gave us a greater opportunity to see the person that she can develop into.

Aaron: I actually really liked Bucky. The Winter Soldier was always kind of a baller, but I really liked seeing Bucky fight with the good guys. I don't think I was expecting that.

Amy: Spider-man - He was so much younger than previous Spider-man actors and I liked that a lot. He looks like he actually belongs in high school. He was a little awkward and nerdy and I also thought it was funny how he was looking for Tony Stark's approval for everything he did in the fight. "What do you want me to do, Mr. Stark?"

QUESTION: Which character were you most disappointed by?

Curtis: I think this one goes to Cap, as well. I think, just as the question before, not accepting limits proves the reality of true self. I wanted them to sign as a group, but, honestly, even I would go help someone, even if I was told I couldn't enter that situation. Papers are pure formality and I think they saw the bill as an ultimate decision. I was just a little surprised to not see Cap be the one to sign. 

Cole: I was not all that impressed with Black Panther. I thought he was cool and he’ll be a great fighter. I just don’t really care much for the way he was introduced into the universe. He just seems angry. However, he did seem to change by the end of the movie. I’m hoping for greater things.

Cody: I would say either Black Panther or Vision. I think both of them are cool. You don't really see them very much in this movie, however, Vision got little-to-no screen time and Black Panther... I think he has a cool back-story, but the entire time, he was on a manhunt and he kind of got the wool pulled over his eyes. You can see how vengeance really took control of his character. Vengeance destroyed his credibility with me.

Aaron: Black Panther. Sure, he's a pretty good fighter, but I just wasn't super impressed by him. I think most of my problem stems from the fact that he was wrong for like 90% of the movie. He kind of redeemed himself a bit there toward the end, once he realized that Zemo had duped him, but yeah... He didn't blow me away. It's just hard when they introduce a character that I'm supposed to like on a team that I'm not cheering for.

Amy: Black Panther. I didn't like how he was consumed by revenge for so much of the movie when he's supposed to be a superhero. That's a characteristic for a villain, in my opinion.

QUESTION: Who gets the "Most Improved Avenger" award?

Curtis: I’m going to say Spider-man, due to the fact that the previous movies have been letdowns and the character fulfillment has never really hit is peak. I always felt that Spider-man (due to writing and cast) was always more of a lower/mid-level hero. This new rebooted Spidey has really set the bar high. I’m excited to see how they go with him in the future. 

Cole: I give this award to the Scarlet Witch. She seems to have put a lot of her irrational emotions aside and is turning out to be a valuable fighter.

Cody: I'd say Falcon or Bucky. You see Bucky re-develop his memory in this movie and you see how someone who had so much evil potential turn it into good. I think with Falcon, he developed more as a character - not just as Captain America's sidekick like he was in Captain America 2, where he was just a "yes-man," but here he developed into a hero.

Aaron: Tough question. The first to come to mind would be Falcon. He stepped it up big time since Cap 2. I like the drones and you can tell that he's more of a leader and less of a sidekick now, so that's good. Scarlet Witch also had some cool moments and there were a few times with Vision where I thought, "Now that's just not fair!"

Amy: Surprisingly, Black Widow. I don't like her because she always has one cool fight in the movie and then she stands by for the rest of the movie. This time she had a few more fight scenes so I felt like she was less pointless. Congratulations, Black Widow... *slow clap*

QUESTION: Which character did you think deserved more screen time?

Curtis: Aunt May… We all know why...

Cole: I wish that we could have seen more of Hawkeye. I was so excited when he showed up and he’s turning into one of my favorites. I also think he could have weighed in more to the conflict seeing as he is the only “family man.” His opinion would have been quite valuable as I think it relates more to the "normal" people.

Cody: Vision.

Aaron: Hawkeye.

Amy: It's a toss up between Hawkeye and Ant-man. I've always liked Hawkeye because his super power is being super good at archery - not because he was exposed to gamma rays or injected with some cool serum. He seemed to be passionate about the cause in this movie. And then for Ant-man, I really just like his humor.

QUESTION: Did watching the movie decrease your opinion of any of the Avengers?

Curtis: A little, yes, but not to the point where I would not see them in some sort of positive light.

Cole: The movie actually made Vision seem a little less powerful to me. He has this mindstone which apparently can destroy the world if used properly, and yet he didn’t even seem to be able to fight with much power.

Cody: It did for War Machine and Iron Man. War Machine has always been a sidekick and now I feel like he'll never be anything more than that. And like Black Panther, now Iron Man is driven by vengeance at this point.

Aaron: War Machine annoyed me so bad. He's like a yappy little chihuahua - obviously not the big dog (that would be Iron Man), but still running his mouth like a tough guy. Not a good 146 minutes for Rhodey.

Amy: As I've talked to Cole, I've realized I'm a little disappointed in both Captain America and Iron Man. Captain America, because he knew a pretty big secret that Bucky killed Iron Man's parents. Of course he decides to tell Iron Man at the worst possible time. I would feel disappointed and mad at one of my good friends if they were keeping something like that away from me. I wish that Iron Man would have realized that Bucky was not in control of himself at that time though. In my opinion, the last fight scene between Cap, Bucky, and Iron Man was epic and almost too real for me. I had to close my eyes when Cap took off Iron Man's helmet because it looked like he was going to kill him. I was glad that the letter Captain America sent at the end of the movie helped to resolve things, though.

QUESTION: Did it improve your opinion of any of them?

Curtis: Not so much increase my opinion as it did increase my empathy for them from both sides.

Cole: I’ve never been a fan of Black Widow, but she seems to be growing on me after this movie. Don’t get me wrong, she’s still my least favorite, by far, but she is getting more trustworthy and likable. It may be her relationships with the newer characters and also her ability to fight.

Cody: Scarlet Witch - you see her grown into her own. She becomes a hero.

Aaron: Scarlet Witch, probably. She didn't do much in Age of Ultron, but she definitely pulled her weight in "Civil War." Also, you can tell that she really does care about the people they're protecting. She was devastated after blowing up the building in Lagos.

Amy: Again, Hawkeye has impressed me. He came out of retirement and away from his family because he wanted to stand up for what he felt like was right. I think Hawkeye might be the most under-appreciated Avenger.

QUESTION: How did you feel about the introduction of the rebooted Spider-man?

Curtis: I loved it... pure joy, for sure. The new Spider-man will be amazing, especially since this actor is visibly much younger than any of the others. My only worry is they will do the same old villains as they have in the past. I'd actually like to see them have Daredevil and the new Spidey join up once in a while - more so as a Daredevil cameo in a Spider-man movie. But, in reality, I would like to see Spider-man have more Avengers-oriented villains than the ones we've seen in his previous films.

Cole: I think that the new Spider-man is going to be really good. He’s an actual high school aged kid, which adds some diversity, and I felt like Tony Stark designing his suit made a lot of sense. He also added a lot of humor which I think helped the movie.

Cody: I'm kind of sick of Spider-man, to be honest. The fact that this is going to be the third version of this character... I'm not thrilled that it took them five movies to get to this point. Like the Fantastic Four, they rebooted it and it sucked both times. I'm sure that once you start seeing "Infinity War," I'll be ok with him, but for now, I'm just sick of him. I'm sick of the Uncle Ben spiel, but dude... Aunt May is hot! I wouldn't mind seeing her in another Spider-man movie. I'd go just for her!

Aaron: I thought Tom Holland did a good job. ... And THANK THE MAKER that we aren't going to have to see him get bit by another spider or witness the death of Uncle Ben for a third time. Tobey Maguire is still THE Spider-man, in my opinion, but I'd almost basically trust Marvel and Disney with my life, so we'll see how things go with the reboot.

Amy: I felt like it was perfect. Tony Stark recruiting him was brilliant! That way, it wasn't Spider-man just randomly showing up to this fight he wasn't really involved with. It was a good way to introduce Spider-man to the Avengers, in my opinion.

QUESTION: At any point, did you think a major character was going to be killed off?

Curtis: I thought during the ending fight that Cap was going to be killed or severely hurt to the point of no resistance, but I was always hoping that Bucky would be killed off. 

Cole: I had read in some obscure website months ago that Civil War was going to be the end of Captain America and that Bucky would then step in, but I was glad that it didn’t happen.

Cody: Genuinely, I thought that Bucky was going to die in that final fight. Everyone was out for Bucky and everyone wanted him dead. Iron Man wanted him dead, Zemo wanted him dead and the people just wanted him dead, but I knew for a fact that Iron Man wouldn't die.

Aaron: I thought I saw a spoiler the night before we saw the movie that mentioned characters being killed and the name "Scarlett," so I was pretty sure Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) or the Scarlet Witch would die. I was so mad when I glimpsed that comment. I wasn't heartbroken over the possibility of Black Widow dying because I don't like her character, but I was livid that a major death had supposedly been spoiled for me. Neither of those characters ended up being killed, so whatever I thought I saw was apparently just some idiot trying to be funny, but I was really relieved. Toward the end of the movie, I thought they might actually kill off Iron Man, which would have been shocking, but that didn't happen, either.

Amy: I thought Cap was going to kill Tony at the end...

QUESTION: If you had to change the story and kill off one of the Avengers, which would it have been?

Curtis: I'd kill Bucky, hands down, mostly because he is the problem child of the whole scenario. There were other options besides freezing him. He needed to answer for what he did, but I don’t think prison was the answer.

Cole: I don’t want him to die, but I feel like if War Machine would have been killed (not by Vision), then that would have enhanced the story. War Machine is cool, but not that necessary. It would have further sparked the conflict and I think that it would have given Tony a better reason to fight.

Cody: War Machine.

Aaron: War Machine.

Amy: I would typically say Black Widow, but she was decent in this movie... So I would say Black Panther; he really didn't do anything of value until the mid-credits scene.

TOPIC 4 - MOMENTS:

QUESTION: What was the funniest moment of the movie?

Cody: I think one of the funniest moments was when Captain America kisses Agent 13 and turns around and Falcon and Bucky are nodding at him. Either that or when Ant-man meets Cap and says, "Thinks for thanking of me."

Amy: This is off the top of my head: 1) When Agent 13 and Captain America kiss and the camera pans to Falcon and Bucky just chilling in the car, looking proud of Cap. 2) Peter Parker saying he can't help fight because he has "... homework." Tony's reaction was priceless! "I'm going to pretend like you didn't say that." #TearsOfJoyEmoji

Curtis: Oh, for sure, the introduction of the new Spider-man, but that scene also has some really pretty perks...

Aaron: Either Ant-man's new power, which was hilarious, or Falcon and Bucky in the car. "Can you move your seat up?" "No."

Cole: Tony Stark listening to Ant-man rant, and then responding, “Who are you?”

QUESTION: In your opinion, which one or two scenes were the most exciting?

Cody: The airport scene. That and the fight scene after Iron Man found out that Bucky killed his parents. That was intense.

Amy: The airport scene. Also, I think that last fight scene was really exciting and almost a classic battle scene. It was cool to see Iron Man take on these two genetically enhanced soldiers but, again, it was a little scary to watch because things got so intense. I think that's what made it so exciting for me.

Curtis: Excitement was the emotion I had the whole length of the movie. The peak for me, though, was that last fight. The accumulation of all the struggle and emotion came down to one moment and it was intense. Also, Aunt May...

Aaron: The airport scene, obviously, and I also liked the sequence where Cap and the Winter Soldier bust out of Bucky's apartment and fight Black Panther for the first time.

Cole: The airport fight because there was so much going on. Also, the moment when Ironman is firing directly at Captain America’s shield. It was a very iconic image. It raised my heart rate and lead me to wonder, “Who will come out on top?”

QUESTION: Which was better: the airport fight in Civil War or the Battle of New York in The Avengers?

Cody: I think they both have merit. I think the Battle of New York kind of established the Marvel universe - that the Infinity War is possible, that there's an alien race out there that's coming for the Avengers. The airport scene shows that the Avengers don't always agree on things and it shows their true colors as individuals. If I had to choose, though, I'd choose the airport scene.

Amy: This is a tricky question... The Battle of New York was fantastic because this was their first big fight together as the Avengers. When the Avengers' theme song comes on combined with all the action, you get chills. It's just so well made. The airport fight was more comical, which I appreciated! It was hard to see all these superheroes fight against each other, until they showed Hawkeye and Black Widow fight and they joked about how they're still friends, as long as they don't hit too hard. Then I realized this wasn't really a personal fight but they were just sticking up for their beliefs.

Curtis: Civil War, I believe, is just better all around, as far as a good fight.

Aaron: I think I've got to go with Civil War. The Battle of New York was so great because it was the first time we had seen that many heroes fighting together, but the airport scene was nuts because they were fighting EACH OTHER! Nobody cared about the Chitari, and Loki isn't some magnificent gladiator, so watching 10 characters that you actually do care about duke it out like that was nothing short of awesome.

Cole: Tough call, but I’d say New York. I miss the Hulk and Thor and I liked seeing the Avengers use their powers to complement each other more than finding weaknesses.

QUESTION: What did you think were a couple of the most shocking plot twists?

Cody: When Zemo brainwashes Bucky, because it causes him to require going back into cryostasis. Also the fact that the Avengers are split up and aren't all on the same team anymore.

Amy: When we find out that Bucky, as the Winter Soldier, brutally murdered Tony Stark's parents. Everything was fine until that point... And then we find out that even Cap knew. That was rough to watch and also it made a ton of sense. That was just straight-up crazy.

Curtis: Other than Bucky being the assassin of the Starks, I think Black Widow turning sides and helping Captain escape. It really does leave Tony with just Vision and Peter Parker on his side, due to Black Panther also changing sides.

Aaron: There was an army of Winter Soldiers!! I understand why Zemo did what he did, but, man, that would have been a heck of a battle to watch. Another one was Black Widow stopping Black Panther to let Cap and Falcon escape. Did not see that coming. Oh yeah - I was also shocked that Agent 13 actually did something in this movie.

Cole: Bucky killing the Starks. I was freaking out in my seat.

QUESTION: Let's talk about the bomb that was the assassination of the Starks... Thoughts?

Cody: I did not see that coming! When they finally talk about the events of December 1991, that's when I became sympathetic to Iron Man. Then, hearing that Captain America didn't say anything about it for his own selfish reasons, I think that would have been extremely difficult for Tony.

Amy: :( Too soon... But really, it was sad to watch that scene. Watching Tony go through what he wished would have happened the last time he saw them at the MIT conference was sad enough but then for him to relive it again was rough. I wonder how Cap felt about it, though. He worked with Howard Stark quite a bit in the first movie. Was it just as hard for him to realize his best friend had killed the man who helped Cap become a lot of who he is as a superhero?

Curtis: It was needed to fulfill the story line of the movie. Plus, it finally allows Tony to understand his past (what happened to his mom and dad), therefore allowing him to move on if he chooses to do so. If it were me, I know it would be hard, but I know eventually I'd face the facts, move on and focus on the greater good.

Aaron: Dang, dudes. Like I said earlier, I understand how that would have absolutely crushed Tony Stark's world - and the fact that Cap knew about it and didn't say anything? Oof. Wow.

Cole: It’s tough for me to debate this. I know that the Winter Soldier was not able to control himself, but would any of us react differently to watching our parents getting punched repeatedly in the face? I mean, the man just watched them get BRUTALLY murdered, and then to find out that the man who he thought was his friend hid it from him? I’d be pretty pissed, myself. I think that I would have wanted to punch Bucky, too.

TOPIC 5 - THE FUTURE:

QUESTION: What did you think about the post-credits scenes?

Cole: I thought that the mid-credits scene sets up the Black Panther movie, and the final one was just neat. Neither one was that important, but they were cool to see.

Cody: At the beginning of the movie, I was very indifferent toward Black Panther, but it made me excited because now it ties Bucky into the plot line of Black Panther.

Curtis: I love the direction that the new Spider-man is taking, or at least the direction that the ending scene is implying.

Amy: The first one was interesting - how Bucky decided to put himself under - but it was for a good reason. He didn't want to be a threat anymore. I think it sets up the Black Panther movie nicely. The second one wasn't that spectacular, in my opinion, and I think they could have done away with it.

Aaron: I thought the Black Panther scene was the best one. I can now actually say that I'm excited for his movie because it looks like we know what's going to happen - somebody's coming for Bucky!

QUESTION: So what happens next?

Cole: I think Iron Man should have another movie, and in that movie he should find himself even more humbled and in need of the rogue Avengers. This way they can mend the rift between them. As for Bucky, I don’t know what should become of him. I’m curious. Does he come out to fight? Or should he just be frozen for a good, long while?

Cody: I wish that they would finish the other movies that they have planned. I wish they would finish the "Thor" movies because I feel like that ties directly into the "Infinity War" movies, since that's what Thor is hunting. But right now they're doing all these other movies like "Doctor Strange" and "Black Panther," and they're starting new franchises when they haven't finished the ones that are already started.

Curtis: I marry Aunt May... but, in reality, the next Thor movie will tie in more heroes, and that will be the big reshaping of the Marvel universe. I expect a few people will die and everyone will come back together and maybe join a few new characters to fight the Infinity War. Civil War, as a movie, was a great plot, but I don’t think it reshaped anything in its entirety. 

Amy: Well... "Spider-man will return" and I think the Black Panther movie will definitely have to do with the Black Panther protecting the unconscious Winter Soldier.

Aaron: Seems like we haven't had a Thor movie in forever.

PREDICTION: Make a bold prediction about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, moving forward.

Cole: Cap will die, and then Bucky will surface. I know that’s found in the comics, but it happened during Civil War. I think that Cap needs to be murdered to strengthen the avengers moving forward.

Cody: I think that one of the main characters that they've already established is going to die before the end of the second "Infinity War" movie. I don't think that there's any way that all of them come out of that alive.

Curtis: Thanos wins and all the heroes die in the Infinity War... but Aunt May lives.

Amy: I wonder if they will follow the Marvel Comics at some point. In the Civil War comics, Captain America died and Bucky kind of took over the role of Captain America. I would be intrigued to see if that will happen. I mean, I'm sure Bucky will come to consciousness in future movies. It's more of a thought than prediction, but that's all I've got.

Aaron: At least one of the Guardians of the Galaxy will show up in Thor: Ragnarok.

TOPIC 6 - CONCLUSION:

QUESTION: Any other thoughts you'd like to share?

Cole: I’ve been mulling this over and working it out in my mind. I was disappointed to see Tony throw the first punch before the final fight scene. I just felt like there wasn’t quite enough there for Iron Man to brutally attack the Captain, BUT I had to put myself in Iron Man’s shoes.
Iron Man’s fury towards Captain America can be backed with a few arguments:

1. Captain America never felt the need to tell Tony Stark how his parents really died. 
2. Iron Man did not understand that Bucky couldn’t control himself, and Siberia was not the time to break that news to him.
3. Steve Rogers was good friends with Bucky, but is that old friendship worth more than what he’s been through with Iron Man over the course of the past four years?

It’s not just that he was lied to, but Captain America won’t look out for Tony in the slightest. He appears to only be loyal to an old friend. I’d feel pretty betrayed too if I were Iron Man. The man you called a friend won’t even hear you out, and is actively fight against you, that’s messed up.

QUESTION: In closing, is Captain America: Civil War the greatest superhero movie ever made? And if not, which movies would you rank higher?

Aaron: Top three, for sure, alongside The Avengers and The Dark Knight. But yeah. It was incredible and I definitely want to see it again soon.

Cody: I'd say it was the greatest compilation of superheroes in one movie. It was definitely better than Batman v Superman, in my opinion, where they also had multiple superheroes. Movies that have multiple superheroes in the future are going to have a hard time because this is what they'll have to compare to. Overall, I'd say this is easily top three, along with Iron Man and The Dark Knight Rises.

Cole: I’d say the most real. In ties into our lives so much, but I’m not sure that I’m ready to say it was the greatest.

Curtis: Yes.

Amy: Absolutely. I would be willing to see it in theaters some more before it's released on video.

There you have it! Have you seen the movie yet? (We certainly hope so if you've made it this far!) Did you have a favorite moment? Who would you have wanted to be killed off? What did you think about the Winter Soldier assassinations? Join the conversation in the comments section below!
And, until next time...
Avengers...