To mangle a catchphrase, superheroes are often meditations connected the equilibrise 'tween index and responsibility. However, one of the more interesting recurring motifs of the Wonder Cinematic Universe (MCU) is the preference for the former over the latter. This is particularly the case for the character of Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen), World Health Organization headlines the new streaming serial WandaVision happening Disney+.

Interestingly, the early films in the MCU were largely just about consequences. In Iron Homo, Tony Crude (Robert Downey Jr.) must confront the reality that his negligence and want of oversight has allowed Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) to change by reversal Stark Industries into a company that supplies arms to terrorists. Stark is intended by province, trying to atone for the fact that for decades helium "reaped the benefits of destruction."

In The Incredible Hulk, Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) moldiness spate with the fact that his arrogant self-experimentation has turned him into a giant commons rage monster over which he has no control. In keeping with decades of comics, Banner spends the smooth film as a ticking time bomb, trying to cure himself and attempting to avoid transforming in a place where he power weakened empty masses. Corresponding Stark, Banner is nerve-wracking to pay for his past mistakes.

This is arguably an extension of the literary genre roots in amusing books, which historically tended towards long-form storytelling. (So, the MCU carries terminated certain aspects of this, relevant that some critics have argued that the films are effectively a television series with Avengers: Endgame as a temper clos.) In comics, actions can have consequences, with radioactive dust acting out finished stacks of issues and years at a time; entertain arcs like Tony Inhospitable's alcoholism or the work of writers like Chris Claremont.

However, patc there are exceptions like Thor: Ragnarok, the future films in the MCU push second against this idea. The drift arguably starts with Avengers: Age of Ultron and continues into Avengers: Civil State of war. The character of Wanda is introduced in Age of Ultron. She is the subject of experimentation by the evil Mogul Wolfgang von Strucker (Thomas Kretschmann), which has given her superpowers. Along with her brother, Pietro (Aaron Taylor-LBJ), Wanda watched her parents conk in an attack conducted using ordinance from Stark Industries. She has sworn vengeance.

Captain America: Civil War: Marvel Cinematic Universe MCU becomes all about power, not responsibility Avengers

Various characters in Age of Ultron ut reckless things that have tremendous results. Given a subliminal prompt aside Wanda, Stark pushes ahead on the "Ultron" worldwide defense program with Banner. The plan is to construct "a courtship of armor around the creation." Naturally, the plan goes horribly wrong when Ultron becomes self-conscious and determines that the better way to salve the world is to use up all human aliveness. The Avengers stop Ultron, but not before the intelligence kills many people.

In Age of Ultron, Ultron aligns with Wanda and Pietro. During one confrontation, Wanda uses her mind manipulation powers against Banner and unleashes the Hulk against Johannesburg. Iron Man and the Hulk square up in the densely populated city. The battle doesn't appear to find too many casualties, but the devastation is strong. Given the Loom is a long-lasting metaphor for the plutonium bomb, Wanda effectively targeted a WMD at a civilian universe.

Civilian State of war is supposedly almost the consequences of Age of Ultron, at least happening the most superficial of levels. Ultron's rampage is cited as justification for the first appearance of the Sokovia Accords, intentional to ensure oversight of Earth's emergent superhero universe. However, on that point is nobelium indication that Tony Stark has faced any civil or criminal consequences. The villain Helmut Zemo (Daniel Brühl) lost his wife and child in Sokovia, simply Civil War never shades him as particularly sympathetic. Helium kills plenty of clear people.

Naturally, having switched sides at the climax of Age of Ultron, Wanda has managed to besides head off some repercussions for the events of the film. At the start of Civil War, she is employed with Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) and the Avengers. Wanda's status as a terrorist is never even decent discussed. The squad is in operation without oversight, staging unilateral interventions on foreign soil. During one such encounter in Lagos, Wanda makes an error in judgment that results in the deaths of more than than 11 people.

The heroes in Civil War are non particularly crushed aside their failures. While Civilised War depicts Steve Rogers' distress at the passing of Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), there is no suggestion that the Avengers paid any heed to the memorials for those lost in Sokovia or Lagos. Stark is initially bullied by a bring down from Miriam Sharpe (Alfre Woodard), a woman who preoccupied her son at Sokovia, but that does not most recently. Stern's bread and butter of the Sokovia Accords is philosophical doctrine and lukewarm at unsurpassed.

Captain America: Civil War: Marvel Cinematic Universe MCU becomes all about power, not responsibility Avengers

The manifest orient of comparing for the Sokovia Accords is the Mutant Registration Act in the X-Men comics and films. The Mutant Registration Act is generally portrayed As a monstrous violation of human rights. Even so, the Spor Registration Act criminalizes people for WHO they are — people who are born atomic number 3 mutants. In contrast, the Sokovia Accords gover what the Avengers do. General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross (William Hurt) makes IT brighten that whatever members World Health Organization don't wishing oversight can retire; they plainly lose the right to unilaterally deploy superweapons in thickly inhabited areas.

With this in mind, Civil War asks its audience to treat any attack to hold these superheroes to account as inherently reasonless. The film declines to present Stark as a "on-key believer" in regulating and instead delegates that character to Ross — one of the two basal antagonists in The Undreamed of Heavyweight. When Rogers stages a break of the supermax prison house designed to hold his allies at the end of the film, Stark upright stands idly away.

This is particularly apparent with the part of Wanda. Contempt being indirectly amenable for inspiring Inhospitable to bring Ultron online and now responsible for setting the Whale happening Johannesburg, there is never some question that she belongs on an Avengers team. As the crisis over registration escalates in Civil War, attempts to keep Wanda under temporary house arrest in the top-of-the-line New Avengers HQ in Upstate Recent York are presented as strange violations of her civil liberties.

The refusal of the film to grapple with the question of Wanda's blameworthiness or responsibility for her actions is neatly mirrored in the film's handling of Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan). Of feed, Bucky has been brainwashed and turned into an unstoppable killing machine, thus it's debatable how responsible he is for his actions. All the same, Civic War repeatedly demonstrates that Bucky is a transparent and present peril to the people around him — even after he is released from the ensure of HYDRA.

Captain America: Civil War: Marvel Cinematic Universe MCU becomes all about power, not responsibility Avengers

The sane thing to do would be for Bucky to surrender himself to the government. This would prevent Bucky from continuing to accidentally hurt people. In the longer term, those regime could come after due process in determining his culpability (or lack thence) in crimes affianced while low-level bear in mind control. Personally, I'd love to hear Adam Adler's return on it; afterward all, facing these sorts of accusations was a major and important take off of the comic Good Book character's journey towards repurchase.

Following Captain America: Civil Warfare, the MCU abandoned whatsoever real feel that actions have consequences. In Civil War, Rhodey (Don Cheadle) has his spinal cord "completely severed" during a face-off with the Falcon (Anthony Mackie). In the closedown scenes of Civil War, Rhodey is shown undergoing extensive physiotherapy just nerve-racking to walk. However, when Rhodey meets the Falcon again in Avengers: Infinity War, thither is no sense of animosity. Rhodey isn't angry. The Falcon doesn't smooth apologize.

This attitude perchance reaches its apotheosis in Endgame, with its outlandish rules of time travel. These rules effectively determine that the characters will experience no consequences for meddling in their own history; whatever changes that they make will have no impact on the on hand. Tied Banner has embraced this mind, no yearner treating the power of the Hulk as something to be feared. Instead, Banner chooses to have "the best of both worlds," to be the Hulk completely the time.

"Eighteen months in a gamma lab," Banner boasts over breakfast. "I put under the brains and the brawn together." All of the magnate, none of the responsibility.