Civil War has hit the theaters, and it’s becoming another smash Marvel hit! But, before it was a big movie it was a big comic story. It spanned several Marvel series and greatly changed up the Marvel Universe in the comics. Here’s some things to look for that serve as nods to the original storyline.
BUT, BE WARNED THAT THERE ARE SPOILERS AHEAD! IF YOU’VE NOT SEEN THE MOVIE YET KNOW THAT YOU WILL HAVE SOME OF THE STORY SPOILED.
Good to go? Okay, here we go….
Zemo
The villain of the film is Zemo. He seems like a random guy from Sokovia. But, he is all but random for the story. In the comics he’s known as Baron Zemo, and is one of Cap’s top villains. Though he doesn’t cause the Civil War in the comics, he still plays a pivotal part of a plot against Captain America. In fact, he executes a plan to assassinate Steve Rogers and succeeds. I’ll also mention that Crossbones/Rumlow was the assassin hired by Zemo in the comics. A bit of a nod is at the beginning of the movie when Crossbones nearly kills Cap with a bomb on him.
Vision and Scarlet Witch
It seems like Vision has feelings for Wanda in Civil War. Yes. Yes he does have feelings for her. Comics-wise they get married and somehow have kids (this is due to Wanda having more magic based powers). Both have a lot of issues though and keep hurting each other, kind of like in the movie. They’re relationship is a little doomed, but they’re still one of the more known couples of the Marvel Universe.
And, I need to point out Vision’s home outfit at the Avengers HQ. That may seem like a nice attempt to be a human, but it’s a nod to the new series from Marvel Comics where Vision creates other androids and tries to have a normal family life.
Deaths and Injuries
There are some close calls of deaths in the movie that are close to the comics. The most known and looked out for is Captain America’s. But, it doesn’t happen. Next is having to do with a character named Goliath. Goliath is a name that was passed on to a few characters, one of them being Hank Pym. But, during the Civil War story of the comics, it was to Bill Foster. The character was able to grow to be a giant, and was killed by a Thor clone during one of the battles. His death made the whole war escalate and evolve. In the movie, Ant-Man shows off his ability to grow huge during the pivotal battle. It seemed like it could be his demise, but was not.
But, a similar event took place with James “Rhodey” Rhodes AKA War Machine. In the movie he gets severely injured to the brink of paralysis. In the comics, nothing like that happens during Civil War. But, something similar happens to him overall. War Machine suffers terrible injuries, even losing limbs, during a mission. Tony Stark comes to the rescue, but essentially makes him a cyborg. Eventually Rhodey gets “transferred” to a clone body, and becomes War Machine again. How is this all reflected in the movie? At the resolution of the film, Rhodey has some very technologically advanced apparatuses on his legs to help him walk. And Stark is there helping him. I think this to be a nod to the comics cyborg Rhodey. It’s clear these devices are helping him walk when the movie is saying he should be paralyzed. Coincidence? I think not.
Spider Signal
If you stay until the end of the credits we find Peter Parker back in his room playing with his web shooters. What appears is a bright light with an emblem of his face on the ceiling. What is this? It’s the Spider Signal! In the comics, Parker creates this light to shine on villains, and to help him see in the dark. The movie version seems to come from Stark and we’ve yet to see what Parker does with it.
And, while we’re at it, how does Spidey’s appearance fair with the comics? In Civil War the comics, Spider-Man/Peter Parker is a pivotal player of the war. Iron Man does create a suit for him, and enlists him on his side. But, Spidey goes over to Cap’s side once he sees how far down a dark path Stark is willing to go to make that version of the accords a reality. The movie doesn’t have Spider-Man switch sides, but it does play up the fatherly role Iron Man has with Spidey, and how much Parker looks up to the billionaire.
That One Scene
The last bit of nod to the comic was one picturesque scene between Cap and Iron Man. It’s easily caught when you see the picture below.
