Check it Out! - Captain America: Civil War

Every time you see a new Marvel movie, you wonder, "Wow, how can they top that one?"  And amazingly, they always come up with a way to not disappoint with their next venture.  That doesn't mean that the next one always tops the previous one, but at least they are all always really good.  And that's the way I felt when I finally got to see "Captain America: Civil War".

While I wouldn't rank it as high as "Avengers: Age of Ultron", and it definitely didn't have the same magnitude, it was still a very well-done, satisfying movie.  I will admit that it took me a bit longer to get sucked in to this one than most of the previous movies, but that's probably because they had to set a lot of emotionally frustrating, not-as-entertaining groundwork before all the exciting, fun stuff could happen.  It definitely had a more somber beginning than most of the movies in the Marvel saga (that I've seen, anyway.  I still haven't watched any of the Iron Man movies).  But once you get into it, it still has that classic, enjoyable Marvel charm and adrenaline.  And it has one interesting, unique characteristic in that it is the first movie where the bad guy is in reality a minor character.  He's a well done character, and definitely has his impact on the movie, but he's more of a behind-the-scenes bad guy than any other Marvel bad guy (that I've seen) to date.

I'm not going to bother going into any of the debate about which side was right; if you want to read or hear a good discussion on that, I would recommend Plugged In's movie review and vodcast.  They both do a very good job looking at both sides of the Civil War from a Biblical standpoint, showing how both sides have good, moral truths behind them as well as fallacies.

I'm going to do this post like I've done all my other posts about these movies, in a character-analysis format.  I figured I might as well do this by team, starting with Cap's team.  I mean, after all, it is HIS movie.  So, here we go!  :)



Team Cap

Steve Rogers, aka Captain America: What can I say about him that I haven't already said?  He's still...wonderful.  And you can understand why he takes the stance he does.  Not only is his oldest, closest buddy being targeted, but he has also seen how governmental power can be abused and misused, not just in WWII but also more recently with the Hydra-infested Shield.  And he never, ever falters in his convictions, which is the main reason why you have such high respect for him.  And he still has his down to earth, slightly dorky side that makes you just want to hug him like a teddy bear because it's so cute/sweet.  :)

Bucky Barnes, aka Winter Soldier:  WE FINALLY GET OLD BUCKY BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!  It takes a while, but we do finally get the dedicated, trustworthy, loyal-to-the-end best friend from "The First Avenger" back again.  The first moment where you get a glimpse of that is when he fights so hard against being re-brainwashed (yay!!!!!  And then of course it doesn't take Cap and Falcon long to get him back out of it again).  And I have to admit that if I had to pick between Bucky and Cap, I couldn't decide.  It's just impossible, he is that great.  Of course, you see him struggle with his past, which really hurts to watch and makes you want to hug him and tell him that everything will be ok, it wasn't his fault.

Sam Wilson, aka Falcon:  Falcon is still the steady, reliable guy we came to love in "Winter Soldier".  He's the soldier's soldier, sticking by his commander through every situation and doing what is asked of him, even when he isn't too thrilled about it.  It's also pretty cool that he now has a "sidekick" in Red Wing.  I can kind of understand why Falcon isn't too happy at first about having Bucky on their team.  I mean, after all, Falcon's been Cap's wing-man for more than five years (according to "Age of Ultron"), so naturally having Cap's original wing-man come back on the scene would be a little unsettling.  But no matter how the two of them feel about each other, the combo of Falcon and Bucky is priceless.  :)

Wanda Maximoff, aka Scarlet Witch:  You really get to know her better in this movie, and I've realized that if I wound up having super powers I'd probably handle it the same way she does.  I'd zealously use them to defend my friends, then be devastated at what the side effects were.  She is learning how to better use them, but you also see more of her sensitive, kind personality, that she really doesn't want to hurt anyone and really takes it to heart and blames herself whenever she does, either intentionally or unintentionally.  She really brings out the "mom" (or, in Cap's case in one scene, "dad") instinct in you.  And it's really weird that she is actually a teenager.  I'd gotten the impression from "Age of Ultron" that she and Pietro were both in their twenties.  Oh, well, whatever.

Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye:  My one complaint about the movie has to do with Hawkeye; there isn't enough of him in it.  Like, not even close to enough.  Basically all he does is babysit Wanda and give Tony a bit of a chewing out, both of which are important, but neither one gives him enough screen time.  You still do get to see some of his dry, sarcastic humor, but there isn't nearly enough of him.  :(

Scott Lang, aka Ant Man:  While I haven't actually seen the entire "Ant Man" movie, I have gotten to see about an hour's worth out of the middle of it, so I feel that I seen the main points and filled in the rest with what I read on Wikipedia.  And I like Scott.  He's just an average, everyday guy who doesn't have a fake bone in his body.  He blurts out exactly what he (and everyone else) is thinking, whether it's positive, negative, or downright embarrassing on himself.  He's so easy to identify with, especially when he's freaking out over meeting Cap.  We all know that we'd be reacting the same way.  ;)

Sharon Carter:  She isn't "technically" a member of the team, but since she risks her job to help Cap find Bucky and then helps him even more after they're on the lam, she's basically a member even if she doesn't take part in the big fight between teams.  And I really like her.  The scene where she and Cap bond while talking about Peggy is really sweet.  I'd be ok if something really does wind up develop between the two of them.  Cap needs some kind of bright spot in his life, and she could be it.  And I'm not alone in that thinking, either...

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Team Iron Man

Tony Stark, aka Iron Man:  You can see where Tony comes from with his side of the issue, too.  He has seen what can happen when power is used without any kind of check, and as we saw in "Age of Ultron", the realization of what kind of destruction his power can do has him a little scared.  And it really is a great responsibility.  He wants to do the right thing just as strongly as Cap does, he just has a different view of what that is because of his different background (although he does come to understand a bit more of where Cap is coming from near the end of the movie).  He is much more vulnerable in this movie, as well as you see more about his background (and a flashback of sorts to a teenage Tony!!!!!!  That scene was crazy/cool).

Natasha Rominoff, aka Black Widow:  Like with Tony, you can understand why she chooses the side she does because of her background as an international spy/hit woman.  But at the same time, she really struggles with her loyalty to Cap.  After all, the two of them have been through more together than any of the other Avengers have (other than her and Hawkeye, anyway, but we don't know as much about what those two have been through together, regretfully).  She tries to protect Cap by giving him plenty of warnings against what he's planning on doing, but at the same time you get the idea that she knows that he isn't going to heed them, because she knows the kind of guy he is.  And of course she also struggles with the fact that she's actually AGREEING with Tony on something...(say what???)

Prince T'Challa, aka Black Panther:  This guy is pretty cool, at least from the superhero power standpoint.  And as a character he's pretty interesting, too.  He kind of agrees with the idea of the Accords, but at the same time he goes out and tries to hunt down Bucky on his own without the approval of the Council.  And when it gets near the end of the movie, while Cap, Bucky and Iron Man are having their three-way fight, HE is the one who really shines in how he handles the bad guy as he realizes how he has been looking at the situation with the wrong perspective/attitude.  I'm a fan.  :)

James Rhodes, aka War Machine:  This is the first movie that I've seen where there's really been any decent amount of Rhodey in it, and I like him.  He's just the kind of wing-man Tony needs.  He'll back him up 100%, but also does a great job at keeping him humble in a friendly way.  I'm glad he didn't die in the movie like there had seemed to be a bunch of hints at.

Peter Parker, aka Spiderman:  I'm not exactly sure what I think of the new kid.  He's funny, sure, but at the same time I can understand why some of the other Avengers, even on his own team, were finding him annoying during the fight with his constant chatter.  I do like the dynamic between him and Tony, though, with the way Tony kind of takes him under his wing and helps him with learning about this whole "being a legit superhero" thing.  And some of his gangly newbie-ness is kinda cute, a bit reminiscent of Cap's fish-out-of-water moments sometimes.

Vision:  It's rather interesting seeing Vision try to understand what it's like for his human companions.  He truly is a compassionate character, especially to Wanda, but at the same time since he isn't a human he doesn't really have the ability to make decisions for himself and, as a result, does what he is programmed/ordered to do.  That causes probably the biggest conflict between members of the opposing teams (outside the actual battle, of course).


While this might not be the #1 best Marvel movie ever made, it DEFINITELY is the one that ends with the biggest cliffhanger!!!  While the end of "Thor: the Dark World" did leave us with some questions (which aren't going to be answered until later next year!  :(  ), it doesn't leave us with half as many as "Civil War" does by a long shot.  What the heck is going to happen to the team now???  *sigh*  Oh, well, I was able to hang in there between when "Age of Ultron" and this movie came out, so I guess I'll be ok until "Thor: Ragnarok" comes out.  And what will help a little is...


BONUS!!!

You know I couldn't do a post like this without including a funny moments clip.  ;)  For some reason the bloopers from this movie (and the past couple, actually) haven't been all that great, in my opinion, with the only real good one from "Civil War" being Jeremy Renner cracking up over the way Scarlett Johansson was looking at him (there we go with Hawkeye being wonderful again).  BUT...the interview combo of Sebastian Stan and Anthony Mackie is pure gold.  They both are really funny, and they play off of each other so well.  It's just a joy to watch.  Have fun!

Character Comparision - "Alias Smith & Jones" v. "The Wild Wild West"

Sorry it's been forever since I've posted on here.  I guess I just need to accept the fact that I am going to be a very, very sporadic blogger.  Other things keep interfering (like having a busy life away from the computer, and the fact that I'll start on an article and then realize that it's not really that interesting).  Anyway, I think I've finally come up with another good post.  Since my character comparison between "Hogan's Heroes" and "F Troop" was pretty popular by random blog follower standings, I thought I'd give another one a shot, this time by comparing the main characters of two buddy-style Western TV shows.

As I've blogged about previously, I am a pretty big fan of the show Alias Smith & Jones from the early '70s.  It is a show about Hannibal Heyes and "Kid" Curry, two Western train robbers who decide to go straight and are told they have to earn their amnesty by staying out of trouble AND not getting arrested until they have "earned" it.

Until recently, Smith and Jones was my only go-to for a fun, action-packed Western with some good humor mixed in.  But that changed a few months ago on my last birthday, when my mom gave me the first season of The Wild Wild West, which is a show set in the 1870s about James West and Artemis Gordon, two US secret service men who go all around the States (primarily west of the Mississippi) breaking up gangs, overthrowing evil plots, and generally saving the good ol' United States of America from all kinds of destruction.  It's a James Bond-meets-John Wayne kind of show.  And I have to admit, I was hooked within two episodes.

There are several similarities between the two shows, which is probably why I like them both.  They both have action, suspense, a hint of mystery, good humor, and really good chemistry between the two main stars.  And of course they both have horses, historical tidbits, and guys in stetsons.  But there are two main areas where the shows differ, with each show having one negative over the other, as well as one positive, which kinda winds up evening things out.

Apparently Wild Wild West was removed from the air after the fourth season because its fight sequences had become "too violent" by '60s standards.  As far as the first season goes, there's only been a couple episodes that had fight scenes or other material that made me wince, so either it got a lot more violent as the show progressed or society's (and mine along with it) definition of what is violent has changed a lot.  But there are definitely a lot of fight scenes and some villains with twisted, almost insane, minds, much more so than in Smith and Jones, where pretty much all you encounter are some bloodless shootouts and greedy landowners/bankers who aren't above working behind the law to get what they want.   Because of this, the story lines of the Smith and Jones episodes are generally more "feasible" and easier on the emotions.

On the other hand, Wild Wild West has a more positive message behind it.  Its stars are two guys who are determined to do what is right and protect their country no matter what the cost, while in Smith and Jones, the primary objective for the two main characters is much more self-centered.  It is admirable that they are trying to go straight, but in all honesty, the main reason they even considered the possibility is because being an outlaw was becoming too difficult.  Their main motivation is to protect their own hides until they can earn their amnesty so that they don't have to spend more than half their lives in prison.  They do wind up risking their amnesty, and occasionally even their lives, for the good of others at times, even saving the life of a bounty hunter who was after them in one episode, which does show that the boys do have a compassionate, selfless side that can come out when they'll let it, but it is not the first thought on their minds like it is with the Wild Wild West fellas, who risk their lives for the good of people they don't even know in every episode.

As I started thinking about doing a comparison post with these two shows, it hit me that, unlike my last one, there are no really obvious counterparts between the two shows other than their basic role as "head guy" or "sidekick", and even those lines get blurred at times in Smith and Jones.  It's implied in some episodes that the Kid is Heyes' second in command, but in other episodes they treat each other as equal partners.  So this has been a very interesting character study.  And here's what I've come up with...

 Hannibal Heyes (aka Joshua Smith) v. Capt. James West

     

Similarities:  - They are both very sharp, intelligent fellows, and they typically have great composure/poker faces when things get tight.
- They trust almost no one, especially women.  The people they DO truly trust can be counted on one hand.
- They both have something of a silver tongue, which they use to their advantage when they need something, especially if it's from a woman or from their at-the-time reluctant best bud.
- They're tall, dark, handsome, and they have pretty good taste in fashion.
- They both like black horses.

Differences: - The way they handle tight situations is very different.  While Heyes is the ultimate strategist, almost over-analyzing situations at times, Jim jumps right into the middle of a situation and uses his brilliant cunning to get himself out of it unscathed.
- While both of them are smooth talkers, Jim is way more of the "ladies man", using his charisma more often than his smooth tongue, while Heyes has the stronger talking-himself-out-of-things skills.  Heyes also hardly ever gets romantically involved with any of the ladies he encounters.  He enjoys their company, sure, but he only sets out to woo only a handful. And on a couple of the occasions where he does, he winds up getting emotionally attached, which Jim never, ever does.  Ever.
- To be perfectly honest, Heyes has more personality than Jim.  While Jim is always the true, noble, dedicated guy who always knows the right thing to do and always does it with courage and the occasional glimpse of humor, Heyes is more complex.  He shows when he's annoyed, you see him backpedal and regroup when he's thrown a curve ball, he alternately jokes around good-naturedly and uses sarcasm, he sometimes shows biases and you see him struggle to make a decision between following what he knows is right and his own selfish desires.  He's more...human, I guess.
- Jim is always getting into fights, while Heyes typically does what he can to avoid violence.  He will draw his gun when he needs some extra motivational help, but he only punches a couple of people through the show's run, while it's a rare episode where Jim doesn't have at least one fistfight.

Jed "Kid" Curry (aka Thaddeus Jones) v. Artemis Gordon

                                                                  

  

Similarities: - They are both very loyal, even to the point of being willing to get beaten up for their buddy.  Artie does this more often than the Kid, but in at least one episode Kid purposely starts a fight to buy Heyes time to complete a job.
- Both of them can be worriers and get fussy with their partner fairly regularly.  The reasons they get fussy might on the surface seem different, but at the base of it, it's because they are concerned about something or someone.
- Both are more susceptible to women's charms than their partners and are more inclined to give a woman the benefit of the doubt in a situation unless she has done something to prove her true bad colors.  After that happens they immediately put her on their permanent black list.
-They are both more likely to provide the comic relief in a situation, both intentionally and unintentionally.  In either one of those situations, they can easily produce a pretty on-point wisecrack.
- They both can pull off a very smooth Southern gentleman impersonation.  ;)

Differences:  - Their fighting styles are very different.  While Artie swings quite a few punches (although not half as many as Jim, and he hardly ever comes out on top in any of his fights), Kid almost always uses his fast-draw to get his point across.  Of course, he usually doesn't have to fire in those cases, and he only kills one person during the show's three seasons (and that was in self defense).
- While Artie is a very inventive, intelligent fellow who can match Jim in brains (and is actually the better strategist when you get down to it), Kid's mind works in a very practical, everyday man, down-to-earth way that sometimes runs in the opposite way from Heyes'.  Fairly often when he hears one of Heyes' schemes, he responds with a "Say what?" and is usually very pessimistic about their feasibility.
- In a related vein, while Artie as a former actor has a somewhat classy, educated demeanor, Kid is obviously of the working class.  The level of his literacy and manners fluctuates between episodes, but at his best he usually reaches Artie's average casual demeanor and never his level of education.
- About the only kind of impression you see Kid perform is his Southern gentleman impression, while Artie has all kinds of impressions he pulls off, at least one different one in each episode (he did over a hundred during the run of the show).


It would be impossible to pick a top favorite among these four guys.  They each have their own endearing qualities, as well as their own personal foibles.  That's why the two teams offset each other so well, I suppose.  The strong points of one character balance out the weaknesses of his partner.  And in both shows it's obvious that both sets of characters really care for each other like brothers and don't see each other as "just a coworker".

I know it could have never happened since the shows were aired about five years apart, but I think it could have been fun if they'd had a crossover episode between these two shows.  They could have brought the actors who played Jim (Robert Conrad) and Artie (Ross Martin) to be guest stars in Smith and Jones, even if they weren't playing the same characters.  But, they didn't, so we'll never know what that would have been like.  It's neat to think about, though.   :)