Speaking of messy politics, the whole Civil War comic book is pretty much just a heavy-handed metaphor for the post-9/11 environment it was produced in, when the real-life American government was trying to push forward draconian laws like the Patriot Act. For a nation terrified about the next potential terrorist attack, giving up basic freedoms like the right to a fair trial and the like seemed like a decent trade off, just as the Superhero Registration Act seems in the story. Mark Millar admitted that "the political allegory is only for those that are politically aware. Kids are going to read it and just see a big superhero fight." Honestly, though, at the time the allegory was obvious to everyone. Even kids, probably. What'll be interesting is how that's integrated into the movie version of Civil War, since global politics has moved on significantly since 2006 (in some ways, at least), and Marvel don't really like to rock the boat. It was pretty daring of The Winter Soldier to touch on the NSA spying allegations that came out prior to its release, but don't expect any such radical commentary from a blockbuster of the sort of size Civil War would be. They could barely handle Edgar Wright wanting to make Ant-Man look different. They won't allow a Paul Greengrass-style takedown of US politics in the next Avengers flick.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
