Spoiler Alert: 10 Ways Captain America: Civil War & Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Are the Same & Who Does It Better

The premier titles of the Marvel and DC Universes have hit theaters. Captain America: Civil War launched the summer movie season about a month and a half after Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice made it’s début. The two movies are eerily similar in many ways but one has to do it better than the other, right? (Warning: There are many spoilers throughout this post!)

1. Death of Innocents in Africa

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice: In the beginning of the movie, Superman saves Lois Lane in Africa when an interview with a warlord goes south. A shootout occurs before Superman arrives and innocent lives are lost. This turns out to be a Lex Luthor executed framing of Superman as he must know Superman’s secret identity and his relationship with Lois as he’s drawn to his lady in peril. Innocent lives are lost during the shootout as Superman takes out the bad guys but bullets fly and there’s collateral damage.

Captain America: Civil War: The Avengers are in Lagos to stop Crossbones from doing something nefarious. It turns out he’s there to steal a biological weapon and the Avengers assemble to stop at nothing to take down the evil plot. During the skirmish, the chase takes to the streets of Lagos and innocent lives are spared until the very end when Crossbones attempts to take out Captain America with a suicide bomb. Before it detonates, Scarlet Witch is able to throw Crossbones away from Cap but she launches him into the side of a nearby building which takes out a number of innocent lives.

Advantage: Captain America: Civil War

The stakes are higher, the loss of innocent lives is more fleshed out and emotional and the reason why the superheroes are in Africa is more believable. Intel puts the Avengers in Lagos while Superman is drawn to Africa because he hears that Lois is in trouble. In Civil War, you immediately are hit with the impact of the loss of innocent lives. In Dawn of Justice, you don’t really realize there were innocent lives loss in the fight in Africa until a Senate hearing alludes to it.

2. Opening With a Flashback With Huge Consequences Later

BvS: The origin story of Batman is told again in a flashback in Batman v Superman. The death of his parents in slow motion with an emphasis on the name of Bruce Wayne’s mother: MARTHA! (We’ll get to the “Martha moment later.”)

CW: In 1991, the Winter Soldier is activated to steal a mysterious package. He takes out a car on a back road and steals the package from the trunk.

Advantage: Captain America: Civil War

The scene in Civil War has layers of impact throughout the rest of the film. The scene in Batman v Superman has been done before ad nauseam. The Civil War scene creates intrigue while the one in Batman v Superman creates comparisons.

3. Are They Heroes or Are They Vigilantes?

BvS: There’s a flashback to Man of Steel during the battle between Superman and Zod. The difference is the scene is shown from Bruce Wayne’s perspective as he is on the ground in front of one of his buildings that is taken out when Superman and Zod crash into it. Debris rains down onto the street and Wayne runs into the cloud of dust and debris to see if he can save anyone. One of Wayne’s employees is crushed under a building. Later, there’s a scene where Superman (as Clark Kent) discusses the vigilantism of Batman and the scene where Alfred and Bruce have an emotionally charged back and forth about Superman which is capped off by the speech, “(Superman) has the power to wipe out the entire human race and if we believe there’s even a one percent chance that he is our enemy we have to take it as an absolute certainty and we have to destroy him.”

CW: The Secretary of State visits The Avengers Headquarters to discuss concerns over how dangerous their presence is for civilians and whether their activities can remain unchecked. He introduces the Sokovia Accords and urges The Avengers to sign the agreement to put their actions under government control or retire. Previous to that scene, a woman who lost her son in Sokovia gives his picture to Tony Stark and tells him she blames him for the death of her son in Sokovia.

Advantage: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

Both movies debate the issue of heroism vs. vigilantism but Civil War has the luxury of an established expanded universe to do so. Batman v Superman doesn’t have that luxury so the degree of difficulty is higher yet there’s more emotion and the stakes seem higher. In Civil War, the lines are drawn but the motivations of each character aren’t really invested while Batman is 100% concerned with how dangerous Superman is and sees him as a definite threat to the world. There are real consequences to our heroes’ actions in both films and Civil War does a better job of fleshing them out but Dawn of Justice’s intensity, specifically Batman’s intensity, is impossible to top.

4. The Puppet Masters

BvS: Batman and Superman may not like each other but it turns out much of their animosity is orchestrated by Lex Luthor. Although it’s never fully revealed, it looks like Luthor knows the secret identity of both superheroes and has framed Superman in Africa and subtly fueled Batman’s hatred of Superman. Later, Luthor plays a bigger role in their spat. What are Luthor’s motivations? Apparently, they are too complicated for us to be able to comprehend so let’s call him psychotic, even if that’s a three syllable word for any thought too big for little minds.

CW: Helmut Zemo is pulling the strings in Civil War. While it’s not immediately clear, he unleashes a plan to draw the Winter Soldier out of hiding and turn the Avengers against each other. What are Zemo’s motivations? He lost his entire family in Sokovia and blames the Avengers for it.

Advantage: Captain America: Civil War

There are serious doubts on how both Luthor and Zemo are able to pull off what they pull off. However, Zemo’s plan and subsequent execution of the plan is more realistic than Luthor’s. Also, the motivation behind Zemo’s actions are crystal clear and make sense.

5. The Introduction of an Important Character in the Future of the Expanded Universe

BvS: Wonder Woman is introduced in Dawn of Justice in glorious fashion. She interacts with Wayne (as her secret identity, Diana Prince) at a Luthor function and the pair even share e-mails. Later, when Batman and Superman square off against Doomsday, Wonder Woman joins the fray in spectacular fashion. It’s the scene-stealing moment of the movie.

CW: We’ve seen Spider-Man before but never like this. He’s a teenager that actually sounds like a teenager and has a Queens accent. Spidey joins Iron Man and friends to stop Captain America and his band of “vigilantes” in the epic airport showdown. Despite being completely in over his head, Spider-Man holds his own against pretty much everyone even at an incredibly immature stage of the development of his powers. While there are too many great moments in Captain America: Civil War for Spider-Man to steal the show, it definitely stands out.

Advantage: Push!

Both Wonder Woman and Spider-Man have set their stand-alone films up with huge anticipation.

5. Laying the Groundwork for the Rest of the Expanded Universe

BvS: Beyond Wonder Woman, Batman v Superman has the responsibility of introducing other characters to the expanded universe of DC. The rest of the future members of the Justice League are introduced via a fever dream and an e-mail. Through the e-mail sent by Batman to Wonder Woman, the audience meets Aquaman and Cyborg for the first time and gets a second glimpse at The Flash who was previously revealed at the end of one of Batman’s fever dreams. Speaking of Batman, the groundwork for a stand-alone Batman flick is laid.

CW: Beyond Spider-Man, Civil War also introduces Black Panther and incorporates Ant-Man into the expanse of Marvel’s cinematic universe. Black Panther bursts onto the screen out of nowhere and gets right into the fray. Before his reveal, he’s been kept out of the trailers which only amps up the moment. Ant-Man’s presence adds expected comic relief but also delivers a gigantic moment when Ant-Man becomes Giant Man (Uhhahahahahaha!) in the epic airport showdown. Civil War also keeps options open for Iron Man, Captain America, The Avengers and even alludes to the absence of Thor and the Hulk which adds curiosity to their whereabouts.

Advantage: Captain America: Civil War

Black Panther’s appearance on the screen with zero exposition is actually one of the best moments in comic book film history. He’s one of the best looking superheroes to date and plays a huge role in the film with very little explanation. However, the explanation you do get is clear, succinct and compelling. It sets the table for another franchise and since that franchise is in the hands of Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station, Creed), it should be huge! Speaking of huge, Ant-Man’s appearance actually made last year’s Ant-Man a more compelling movie. What seemed a little unnecessary at the time now ties into an expanded universe and serves a bigger purpose.

6. The Bombing of a Government Meeting to Further the Agenda of the Villain

BvS: Superman is summoned to a congressional hearing to speak about his actions and how they endanger civilians. The hearing is set up by Senator June Finch who is manipulated into holding the hearing by Luthor who then blows up the hearing through the wheelchair bound Wayne employee who is at the hearing as a witness but acts a suicide bomber. Countless lives are lost and Superman goes into hiding over his frustration for not being able to save people.

CW: At the signing of the Sokovia Accords in Vienna, a bomb is set off outside of the UN conference killing T’Chaka, the king of Nigeria. The bombing is an elaborate scheme by Zemo to frame the Winter Soldier and bring him out of hiding to further an even more elaborate scheme to tear apart the Avengers.

Advantage: Captain America: Civil War

The bombing that occurs in Civil War plays a more integral part in the progression of the storyline. In both cases, security lapses in allowing the bomb to be moved into place to do damage but in one of those two instances, there’s Superman who should be able to hear the bomb in the wheelchair and doesn’t he have X-ray vision? While both require an effort to buy their plausibility, the bombing in Batman v Superman seems less plausible.

7. Superhero vs. Superhero

BvS: Hell, it’s in the title! Thanks to Batman v Superman, not only are Batman and Superman sharing cinematic screen time, they square off… for a few minutes. For most of the movie, the battle is an ideological one and the fight scenes between DC’s two behemoths are unsatisfyingly short. Also, the second confrontation doesn’t even feel necessary as it happens because Superman can’t find the right words to keep Batman from kicking his ass. Huh?

CW: It’s also in the title of this film (You didn’t think they were going back to 1861, did you?) as lines are drawn (Seriously, in one scene, Vision actually draws a line in the concrete! He also wears a sweater in another but that’s not important here.) and superheroes must choose sides. In Civil War, there’s the epic airport showdown and another fight that takes place between Captain America and Iron Man.

Advantage: Captain America: Civil War

The Batman/Superman showdown feels like a shell game as the two barely square off. In Civil War, the fight at the airport is an epic battle and while you can tell both sides are pulling their punches a little, there are real consequences as Rhodey is partially paralyzed in the fight. Then, there’s the bonus of Captain America (with an assist from the Winter Soldier) against Iron Man.

8. The Villains Have Acquired a Super Weapon

BvS: While Superman is in hiding, Luthor has access to the Kryptonian ship. Luthor uses the ship’s technology and Zod’s dead body (which he also has access to) to make Doomsday. The killing machine is hellbent on ridding the world of Superman and Luthor unleashes the beast to do so after his attempt to have Batman and Superman kill each other fails.

CW: Zemo heads to the HYDRA base in Siberia after learning of it’s location from the Winter Soldier. There he has access to five elite soldiers even more powerful than Bucky. He has the means to control them and unleash them on the world to exact the revenge he wants for the death of his family. Instead, Zemo kills them while they are frozen so their power can never be freed to commit death and destruction. Zemo has other ideas on how to get revenge.

Advantage: Captain America: Civil War

The only thing that might have tipped you off this was coming in Captain America: Civil War was the fact that none of the soldiers were played by actors you’ve ever seen before. Zemo choosing to not utilize these soldiers as a weapon but rather take them out of the equation gives the character depth. It’s a depth the Luthor character lacks.

9. Let’s Remind the Superhero About Mom

BvS: Remember that flashback scene in the beginning where Zack Snyder gives us his vision of the murder of the Waynes? Well, it’s payoff is now known as the “Martha!” moment. As Batman and Superman duke it out, Batman overpowers Superman as he has the assist of Kryptonite and Superman is more in defense mode as he actually needs Batman’s help. As Batman gets ready to strike the death blow, “Martha!” happens. A stunned Batman is reminded of his mother and Lois Lane shows up out of nowhere to fill in the gaps and turn off Batman’s rage and put him on the trail of rescuing Martha Kent from Luthor.

CW: Remember that flashback scene that seemed to be setting up the activation of the soldiers Zemo killed? Well, it was actually a set-up of what turns out to be the death of Tony Stark’s parents at the hands of the Winter Soldier. The reveal by Zemo sends Stark into a fit of rage that leads to the Captain America vs. Iron Man battle.

Advantage: Captain America: Civil War

There were audible laughs in the theater during the “Martha!” moment and audible gasps when it was revealed that Bucky killed Tony’s parents. The intense moment was a surprise and led to a fight with real tension as you were never sure how far either Captain America or Iron Man would go. It was at the end of the film so either one being taken out wouldn’t have been a surprise but the only casualty was the Winter Soldier’s metal arm.

10. The Villains End Up Behind Bars

BvS: Luthor is locked away in the end but there’s a visit from Batman. Batman assures a now bald Luthor he’ll be watching his every move. Luthor sets the stage for further mayhem in the future as Luthor explains that the bell cannot be unrung once it’s been rung and that God is dead. Unlike previous criminals, Batman refrains from branding Luthor and leaves as Luthor continues to maniacally babble on about the danger coming.

CW: After his suicide attempt is thwarted by the Black Panther, Zemo is imprisoned. There’s a glimpse of Zemo being interrogated by Everett Ross who asks him how it feels to have his elaborate scheme fail? Zemo just smiles.

Advantage: Push!

The wrap-up of both villains sets the stage for the future but both have their problems. Why does Luthor know so much? What is coming and how does he know? If Zemo’s plan was to off himself, the smile leading you to believe he knows something we don’t doesn’t make a lot of sense.