I feel like Civil War is a series that could've had a lot of potential, but between the lack of communication between writers, a clear plan, and blatant favoritism for certain characters (regardless of how badly written they are), it comes off as a mess. But the potential was there, as for all its flaws, the Civil War event has sparked plenty of discussion over the rights of a superhero as the years went by. I just think it could've been done a lot better.

One big glaring flaw is that there was no concrete grasp of what the Superhuman Registration Act, or the SHRA, even was. It wasn't even known between all the writers in Marvel, leading to different tie-ins going from the most benevolent version (you don't have to sign for the SHRA if you don't use your powers) to the most fascist one (you have to become a child soldier by force), and everything in-between. Also, they didn't chicken out from it and just chalk it up to being the plot of supervillains. For three years, it was the Marvel Universe status quo across the board, and hell, I wouldn't be surprised if the intention was for it to last longer than that.

Considering this was the status quo for three years and the basis for Marvel's big defining event, it should've been something that was well-defined from the start. They said "we wouldn't understand it", but it really comes across as lazy.

Everyone should've been on the same page with this stuff. A good way to look at it is that the Marvel Universe is like an RPG, and the ones making the events (Mark Millar and the higher staff) are like the Game Masters, and they're playing as their own characters in the wide world. Imagine playing an RPG where everyone has a different idea of the rules, and the GMs don't bother to explain! That would suck.

Here is where I'm asking what the SHRA is supposed to be, in hopes that I can find some answer.

  1. It requires mandatory registration of superhumans. This means that superpowered individuals who don't want to fight crime, including teenagers, are conscripted into being costumed soldiers. And the problem is that Millar said Iron Man was in the right for leading the side that enforces this. I get the idea behind it, because let's be real, a world where you don't know if someone is superpowered and can level a city in a moment's notice is very scary. But the thing is, most superhumans don't have the kind of power to the point where they need to be controlled in such an invasive way. Yet superhumans all the same are to be sent to boot camp and made government sponsored superheroes against their will, or be put in a special prison. Think this is a good thing? Tell that to poor Cloud 9, she gets sent to boot camp and becomes a cold sniper all because she wanted to fly. The least strict definition would be that one who is superhuman but doesn't use their powers would be exempt, and those who do would receive special training. But you see S.H.I.E.L.D agents breaking into people's homes and conscripting them by force, so that's not it at all. Again, Millar said Iron Man was right, and not the "both sides are right, both sides are wrong" that it should be, was advertised as, and portrayed far better in other media.
  2. Related to the above, what are the boundaries of the act? For example, Hawkeye (Kate Bishop; Clint was elsewhere at the time) isn't superhuman. She's just a really athletic teenager who's a damn good archer, but she's no more superhuman than a really physically fit high school girl. Yet she's expected to sign for the SHRA, and so are other non-powered superheroes. So does wearing a costume and fighting crime make you liable to the act? Also, what about people who use fancy equipment but have no powers? What's the standard?
  3. All crimefighting and lifesaving by non-registered superheroes is illegal. How does that work? If someone with powers sees something bad happening, like a mugging in an alleyway or worse, should they be expected to just walk away from it? That seems really, really messed up.
  4. Also messed up is that Pro-Reg side seems perfectly fine with hiring the Thunderbolts to fight on their side. Who seriously would be in favor of letting people like Venom, Bullseye, and Lady Deathstrike roam the streets because they have the approval of the registered superheroes?
  5. How does this affect mutants? The mutant population as a whole, barring a few exceptions, were neutral in the war itself because they thought it was someone else's problem (plus, after the Decimation there just wasn't very many left). I think I remember hearing they were exempt, but I didn't read all the tie-ins and it's been a while, and I don't care much to read through the entire event 14 years later.
  6. Seriously, what were the limitations of this act? It seemed to be in effect before it was passed, and in the worst cases it seems like people just didn't even have rights when it came to this stuff. That's not how the law works!
  7. How does this even affect the non-American heroes? There are actually a lot of heroes who aren't from the United States, so that would mean having to do something different for them. What's funny is that Black Panther was held to the law, who not only isn't American, but is a head of state and thus should logically be exempt. Hell, why not just have Cap and all the Anti-SHRA people relocate to somewhere like the UK with the Excalibur until the whole thing blows over, or even better, move everyone to Wakanda under the protection of BP, and operate worldwide? Seems like a good loophole. The MCU version got around this by making the Sokovia Accords a UN bill, which is what they should have done if they wanted this to be believable.

There's probably more but I've gone on long enough. There was so much potential, and while some of it was entertaining, there were huge flaws and is rather dated to its time (the whole "conscript teenage superhumans against their will and have it treated as a good thing" fits much better with the 2006/7 outlook than today). It's a story more important than good, placing the Avengers at the heart of the Marvel Universe, but overall it was just so sloppy for an important event.

Let me know what you guys think, and what answers are available, and discuss.