assetandmission:

It bugs me that in Civil War, we know what the public thinks about Tony, but we have no idea what the public thinks about Steve. That’s where the Sokovia Accords plotline felt weakest, for me – the lack of public opinion, and how insular Steve’s story was as a result.

The film quickly filled us in on what Tony has been doing since AoU: that he’s mostly given up the suit and has become a philanthropist. He’s giving commencement speeches, working on his technology, and is handing out grants to MIT students. He’s also friendly with the government and is working alongside them as a prominent public figure. For the most part, people like him. Tony has worked hard to make people like him again, after Sokovia.

But we have no idea what the public thinks about Steve – especially since finding out that The Winter Soldier is Steve’s infamous WWII pal, Bucky Barnes. General Ross vaguely mentions that people think the Avengers are vigilantes, but we never see that directed at Steve. We never see people being angry at Steve, the media attacking him, or mobs screaming outside of the Avengers facility. We don’t see anyone except Tony and the government arguing that Bucky needs to be put down, either. We don’t see Steve in context like we do with Tony – he’s only seen in relation to Bucky (and Wanda) in the film. 

In fact, with the exception of Wanda’s fireball, we don’t really see much public opinion at all. And when we’re dealing with an official government document drafted to control superheroes, I feel like the public’s opinion should have been more prominent, especially in regards to Steve’s side (…since it’s a Cap film). I would love to know how Americans feel about Steve now, after he attacked the ‘government’, destroyed Washington, and went rogue in CATWS. I’d love to know if they still see him as their symbol of honour, bravery, and sacrifice. Was his museum exhibit shut down? Is CNN debating if he’s out of touch with modern American ideals? What do they think about his relation to Bucky? And what does Steve think of the public’s opinion, if they no longer believe in his morals? Has he been involved with the public at all since AoU?

I need more info! I think that’s why Steve felt so subdued in this film – his plotline is very isolated compared to Tony’s, so the audience had little insight into what everyone in the MCU thinks about Captain America at this point in time. We had no frame of reference, and Steve felt very muted as a result.