"Following a catastrophic tragedy caused by superhumans, the US Government passes a Super-Human Registration Act that requires all super-powered individuals in the country to reveal their identities, disclose their powers and personal details, and register as government employees or risk indefinite incarceration. This causes a deep rift in the hero community, with some backing the Act while others oppose it." - Comic Vine

Holy [shiznit]! Did....did you....did you read that news...? Holy [shiznit] that's heavy (If you don't know what I'm talking about go here and then here). This came out of left field. Yeah a few minor rumors, and shot down fan theories popped up about this, but no one believed them. Now some fanboy is dancing in his seat saying "I TOOOOLLLD YOU!!!" repeatedly. Looking similar to this. 

We all know of the famous 2006 Marvel Comics story arc "Civil War", but a lot of us didn't expect/want it to happen in the MCU. Mostly because it involves characters owned by FOX and Sony that are integral to the story. Some fans still held on and believed that an adaption could be done without those characters if handled correctly. I always found myself in the middle on this one, but that doesn't seem to matter anymore as it's happening. 

Obviously this will have an affect on the MCU as it will "drive the plots of sequels and new franchises for the next seven years", but how exactly? That's what I'm here to theorize about, so....
 

1) Cohesiveness:

"drive the plots of sequels and new franchises for the next seven years" - I know I already used this quote, but who gives a flying duck!!!

As you can see above, this movie will have LONG term affects on the MCU. Lasting through 2023, possibly longer. At Marvels current rate, that means 14 films this affects. Most likely more considering Mr. Fiege has consistently stated that he'd like to ramp it up to 3 movies a year. This is huge. This not only means we can see this huge arc take shape over multiple films and not be rushed, but it introduces something new to the MCU.

This new thing is cohesiveness. In my opinion, the MCU does connect, but it doesn't come together. It feels like we're getting little tiny bits of a bigger universe. I think this over arcing storyline going through the films will provide for this coming together. Phase 1 seemed like Avengers build up. Phase 2 seemed like "let's try to show the affects of Avengers, but not go in to them too much". I think after this, it'll feel like the the MCU is like a row of dominoes that just knocks another piece over with each film. Instead of easter egg connections the plots role off of each other and one movie happens because of another. All of these movies, TV shows, and Netflix shows leading to the REAL Civil War. Cap 3 only introduces the Superhuman Registration Act, doesn't mean we have to see the world take sides. The public might not even know about it during this film. Only certain Government figures and superhumans. People say "THEY DON'T HAVE ENOUGH CHARACTERS!!!!!" I say "They might not start fighting til 2023 calm your tots".
 

2) Age of Ultron Will Be Big: 

One thing I took from this announcement was that AoU is big. This is most likely the tipping point. I believe something, if not multiple things, happen in Age of Ultron that causes the U.S. to finally greenlight the Superhuman Registration Act. This certain thing might not just cause the SHRA, but might also cause the picture below.

Hulk will do something big, catastrophic even, in AoU. This would lead to Iron Man busting out the Hulkbuster of course and maybe even Planet Hulk down the line (cohesiveness), but most importantly (for this article anyway) is that it would cause the public to lose trust in these heroes. Not only because the public sees Hulk as a monster vs the jolly the green giant, but because they see that these heroes might not always be on the same side. They'd want ot be able to trust that these heroes wouldn't turn on them, wanting them to openly choose a side. Registering with the Government would be a perfect way of doing that.

Another way to establish this is using Scarlet Witch in the way she's used best. Going crazy and doing something huge. I mean she's changed the universe before, she's powerful. I don't want her to do that much, but maybe she's the one to completely defeat Ultron, but spared some unnecessary lives in the process. The public never had the chance to establish a trust with her and her brother, so they might see her just like one of those other bad superhumans that pops up on AoS, but as a more powerful one. 
 

3) More Characters:

One hug complaint around the internet since the announcement has been "THERE'S NOT ENOUGH CHARACTERS!!!!" That would be a problem...if Cap 3 was coming out tomorrow and they were actually going have a Civil War then. The actual "war" will NOT happen in Cap 3. The seeds are just being sown. Who knows, the movie could end with the Superhuman Registration Act being passed. This means that there is PLENTY of time for them to introduce many new characters. We know we're getting Ant-Man and Doctor Strange (possibly Wasp). Then Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and Iron Fist. Plus Mockingbird on AoS. Then we have the speculated characters like Black Panther and Ms Marvel. With Deathlok as well and the opportunity to introduce WAY more characters in movies and Netflix shows, by the time a Civil War actually happens (let's Say Avengers 3) there would've been a large amount of time to introduce new heroes.
 

4) Other Story Arc Adaptions:

Yesterday the information about Cap 3 was revealed by Variety. Marvel, however, officially released some info too. This info was nothing more than an image. An image that shows Iron Man and Captain America pulling on Spider-Man, fully clad in his 2006 Civil War Iron Spider suit. Cap and Iron Man are both in the suits they wore during the Civil War era as well. This image not only has that but the words "Civil War", "Summer 2015", and is formatted like the Civil War covers back in the day. Now this isn't the only new series they've recently announced for 2015. They also announced "Secret Wars". This is a stretch, but Marvel is no strangers to placing things in the comics to help boost what's happening/going to happen in the MCU. In case you didn't know Secret Wars is a 1984/85 Marvel Comics story arc where heroes and villains of the Marvel Universe are transported to "Battleworld" to....battle. How would this play in to the MCU. Well remember that guy named Thanos? Yeah we can't forget about him. My theory is that Thanos would use the Infinity Gauntlet it's corresponding Jems to transport people across the galaxy that he sees as threats to one place, their death. He watches his enemies and targets from across the Galaxy kill fight each other to the death. Not only would this compile the Guardians with the Avengers, but could introduce new characters like Captain Mar-Vell, Nova/Richard Rider, and more. I think this will be the plot of Avengers 4 or maybe even 5. It would also be a great movie to have right after Civil War, as we'd have to see heroes that are separated come together.
 

5) What it Means for the Comic Book Movie Genre:

Thanks for clicking on this article and reading folks! Share your thoughts in the comments below. Do you agree? Disagree? Let me know why!!! Hit the big red glove down below and share your own speculations and theories. Thanks for reading again and until next time....