Heartwarming / Captain America: Civil War

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Pre-Release

• Natasha asking Clint if they are still friends, from the D23 Trailer, which shows that despite the current conflict and both being in different sides during the Civil War, she still cares for her friendship with Clint.
• The entire trailer establishes the strength of Steve and Bucky's friendship, to the point that Cap's willing to go against the whole world to save his friend.
• At one point in the trailer, Natasha calls Steve trying to warn him not to do something stupid.
• According to interviews, Spider-Man develops a bond with Iron Man in the film (possibly similar to one they had in the comics). Tony even gives him an Affectionate Nickname: Underoos.

Movie

• The look on Steve's face when he realizes that not only does Bucky remember him but that he's gotten his best friend back.
  Bucky: Your mom's name was Sarah. [smiles] You used to wear newspapers in your shoes.
• Steve and Bucky reminiscing on old times in New York.
  Steve: You blew three bucks trying to win that stuffed bear for a redhead.
  Bucky: What was her name again?
  Steve: Dolores. You called her Dot.
  Bucky: She's gotta be a hundred years old right now...
  Steve: [claps Bucky on the shoulder] So are we, pal.
• Scarlet Witch and Captain America's dynamic through the movie:
  • Her fighting on Cap's side, after his protectiveness of her and her brother during Age of Ultron. It might also have something to do with Hawkeye being on Cap's side, after that little Rousing Speech he gave her in Age of Ultron.
  • Likewise, after the Lagos bomb blows up, Wanda is extremely crushed for being partially responsible and continuously watches the news report that deems her responsible. Steve just turns the TV off and assures her that she's not to blame wholly, and she shouldn't wallow in guilt. Really shows that Cap has really grown as her Big Brother Mentor after the passing of her own brother.
  • Also what finally convinces Cap not to sign the Accords? Finding out that Tony had Wanda essentially locked up at the compound, with her new best friend as her jailer.
    Tony: I can think of worse ways to protect people.
    Steve: [outraged] Protection?! This is what you call it?! Protection?! It's internment!
    Tony: [defensive] She's not a U.S. citizen and they don't grant visas to weapons of mass destruction!
    Steve: [furious] Oh give me a break! SHE'S A KID!
  • Given the origin of Wanda and Steve's abilities, it's no surprise that they have the sort of kinship present in the movie. Back in Age of Ultron, he had already mentioned that she and her brother had the same motivation that made him participate in Project Rebirth.
    Maria Hill: File says they volunteered for Strucker's experiments. It's nuts.
    Cap: Right. What kind of monster would let a German scientist experiment on them to protect their country?
• Just like with Bucky and Steve's friendship, Tony and Rhodey's Undying Loyalty to each other is shown to be just as strong, with the latter standing right at Tony's side through everything. Similar to Cap's stance, Rhodey will follow Tony to hell and back in order to protect him.
• Natasha visiting Steve after Peggy's funeral. At first it looks like she's there to get him to go with her to Vienna, so they can attend the official signing of the Sokovia Accords. Turns out she just wanted to make sure Steve was okay - she didn't want him to be alone. They even hug.
• T'Challa and T'Chaka's relationship. It's clear from even as little as an amount of time as we get that father and son have such a warm, loving relationship, with the headstrong T'Challa never disrespecting his father's more moderate stance and T'Chaka never expressing anything but the utmost pride in his son and heir. Which makes T'Chaka's death all the more heart-breaking, and Black Panther's wrath all the more understandable.
• Steve's first kiss with Sharon. Sam and Bucky are more than happy to witness it. Doubly heartwarming for Bucky, since he always remembered Steve struggling with women and this was probably the first time, since serving in World War II and becoming the Winter Soldier, that he has smiled for real.
  Sharon: That was...
  Steve: Late?
  Sharon: [laughs] Damn right.
• When Scott Lang (Ant-Man) is recruited by Captain America, Scott is clearly pleased to finally meet the man himself and geeks out; he's so excited that he mixes up his words and acts utterly Adorkable as he thanks them for thinking of him to help them. He turns toward Wanda and says "I know you too, you're great!", causing Wanda to smile happily in response, which is especially heartwarming considering what she had gone through in Age of Ultron and it's probably the first time someone genuinely compliments her. In the movie itself, it also adds another beautiful layer to it, Wanda has just been declared a public menace by the world at large after her attempt to stop Rumlow's bomb in Nigeria had gone terribly wrong. Scott Lang is the first person she comes across besides the Avengers themselves who treats her in a friendly manner and sees her as something else other than a dangerous witch.
  • The fact that Steve also takes the time to explain to Scott what's going on and warn him that they'll be outside the law. These are his allies, and he will treat them with respect and tell them the truth.
• Scott is a bit nervous about seeing Sam again after what happened during their first meeting. Sam assures him there's no hard feelings (though still warns him it will never happen again) and calls him "Tic-Tac". Later on, when Scott successfully goes into Giant-Man mode, Sam cheers and congratulates him on pulling it off.
  Falcon: Way to go Tic-Tac!
• After Spider-Man says hello to everyone, he tells Cap he's a big fan and salutes him. Later in the fight, Cap compliments Spider-Man on his spirit. He also asks where Spider-Man is from, and is pleased find out they both came from New York City. Clearly, he sees a lot of himself in the young hero.
  Captain America: You've got heart, kid. Where you from?
  Spider-Man: [while holding up a jet bridge] Queens!
  Captain America: [smiles] Brooklyn.
  • Even better because it calls back to Steve's first meeting with Dr. Erskine, except that here, the roles are reversed.
• When Cap and Spider-Man begin to fight, Cap tries to calmly explain to him that there are things going on there that he doesn't understand rather than just simply attacking the young web-slinger.
• During the airport fight, Iron Man warns Spider-Man against fighting and proposes that he keep his distance and web the opposing side up. After being accidentally hit by a falling Giant-Man's hand, Spider-Man is sent spiraling into a pack of boxes. Iron Man stops his pursuit of Cap and Bucky to send Spidey home, even as he tries to further prove his usefulness. Good to see Tony hold himself accountable for bringing a Kid Hero into the fray, even if Spidey ends up being a big help for the Pro-Accords side. There's an added layer to Tony's actions there. Miriam Spencer's words blaming him for her son Charlie's death in Sokovia were probably still fresh in his mind, and here's Peter Parker, younger and equally if not more brilliant, recruited by Tony, and drafted into a titanic battle of heroes he's never met. So when he takes that hit, Tony MUST have thought in those immediate seconds, "OH GOD, NOT ANOTHER ONE."
• The way Tony tells Peter Parker he's taking him home, sounding like a concerned uncle.
• Tony introducing the story of the young man whose grieving mother he met after his speech on the Campus to his fellow Avengers.
• Worth noting during the airport fight that none of the heroes^note Save for Black Panther when it comes to Bucky are actually fighting to kill. Black Widow and Hawkeye are explicitly pulling their punches when they fight each other.
  Natasha: We're still friends, right?
  Clint: (joking) Depends how hard you hit me.
• When Rhodes is crashing, Falcon breaks off his escape to try to help Tony save him. He doesn't make it, but he could have easily gotten away with Steve and Bucky if he didn't. Later, when Tony visits the imprisoned members of Team Cap, they each take turns giving him a "The Reason You Suck" Speech. All except for Sam, whose first words are: "How's Rhodes?"
  • Sam also trusts Tony when he admits his mistake, and after making Tony promise to go 'as a friend' tells him Steve's location. Quite a show of faith in Tony's good intentions and morality even if it goes wrong.
• Vision cradling Wanda after their fight, apologizing to her. After he blows off Rhodey's arc reactor, causing him to crash, Tony asks him what happened. His answer? He was distracted.
  • Earlier, even though he's basically holding her prisoner, he attempts to cook for Wanda (a dish from her home, no less) to lift her spirits. Their subsequent conversation is awkward but adorably sweet, and ends with him giving her a declaration that is downright romantic: "[I wish] For people to see you...as I do."
• Tony's response to Giant-Man grabbing Rhodey out of mid-flight? Immediate shouts that the other man needs to give his friend back, right now. Despite the film's focus on Bucky and Steve's friendship, it's important to remember that Tony is almost as loyal and protective of his best friend as Steve is.
  Tony: Give me back my Rhodey!
• Tony admitting to Rogers he was wrong for not believing him when he tells him about Zemo framing Bucky and he wants to help him which Rogers happily accepts. Too bad it was short-lived once Zemo revealed the truth about the death of Stark's parents.
• When Steve starts to say he sometimes wishes he could ignore the urge to do what's right, Tony is very quick to cut in with the blunt assertion that, no, he doesn't. Compare this to Tony's insult in The Avengers of how everything special about Steve "came out of a bottle" to understand just how well he's since come to know what Steve's real strength is.
• At the end of the film, Steve sends a letter to Tony to apologize about hiding the truth that the Winter Soldier was behind his parents' deaths, admitting the mistake that he did it not because he didn't want to hurt Tony, but because he wanted to protect his own conscience, then tells him that he wishes that everything could've turned out better between them and that he put the rest of the Avengers in his hands, but also notes that he cannot leave the other half of them who are imprisoned in the Raft behind (a Heartwarming Moment in itself). That same letter comes with a flip phone on which Tony can contact them if he needs them. Tony then receives a call from Secretary Ross that the Raft is under assault, but Tony instead puts the call on hold and continues reading the rest of Steve's message, showing that he's still willing to hear him out despite everything that had happened. The scene cuts to Falcon in his cell smiling happily as he sees Steve emerging from the darkness to rescue him and the rest of the imprisoned heroes. What makes that scene extra heartwarming is that Sam was already smiling even before Steve stepped out of the shadows. He already knew that his friend was coming for them. No matter what, no matter where, when his friends needs him, Steve Rogers will get to them.
• Tony helping Rhodey to walk again with his technology. Slides into a Funny Moment when Stan Lee appears later with a package for "Tony Stank", which Rhodey will not let go. Extra heartwarming, Tony lets him have it, laughing along with Rhodey. A little ego bruising is a small price to pay for a moment of real happiness while Rhodey recovers.
• Black Panther agreeing to let Bucky go back to cryostasis in Wakanda until they find a way to fully free him from HYDRA's control, and promising to protect him in the meantime. That after spending most of the movie trying to kill him, because T'Challa believed the Winter Soldier had caused the explosion which killed his father. In fact, the very first thing he confronts Zemo about when he meets him isn't his father, but the fact that Zemo nearly caused him to kill an innocent man.
  • Zemo, for his part, seems remorseful T'Chaka had to die, calling him a good man with a dutiful son.
• Howard Stark's first concern after he and his wife are ambushed by the Winter Soldier is trying to get someone to help his wife first. And even though it ends with him getting beaten to death, the fact that Howard Stark remembers Bucky after all these years, even in his messed up state, shows that he remembers every friend or employee who had fallen in battle during World War II, not just Steve. Him addressing Bucky by his rank is sweet, too.
• After his accident leaves him crippled and Tony distraught, Rhodey reassures him that he always knew both back in his Air Force days and as an Avenger that every mission could be his last but that he did it anyway because it was the right thing to do, and even after what's happened he still thinks Tony is doing the right thing. This coupled with Sharon Carter's encouragement of Steve earlier in the movie shows both Steve and Tony have comrades who believe in them and their cause, and willing to give the encouragement they need when they waver.
• For a movie where The Bad Guy Wins the film is actually pretty far on the sweet side of Bittersweet Ending. Steve sends Tony a letter that is at least a start towards mending bridges, the imprisoned Avengers members are broken out of the Raft with Tony ignoring Ross's call for assistance while it happens, T'Challa puts the resources of Wakanda towards undoing HYDRA's brainwashing of Bucky while he is on ice once again and is possibly housing the fugitive Avengers members while making it clear that anyone who comes for them is going to have go through everything that Wakanda has to throw at them, and Tony is helping Spider-Man on the way to becoming a hero on par with the Avengers. Plus, Spidey has been spared the trauma and heartbreak that came for the rest of the heroes and sees the whole thing as a wonderful adventure where he met all his heroes.
• It's touching to see Bucky, who we last saw in Captain America: The Winter Soldier as a mindless, emotionless killer, act like the Bucky Barnes we saw in Captain America: The First Avenger. At one point, he reminisces with Steve about trying to win a stuffed animal for a girl and, throughout the film, snarks in a semi-friendly way towards Sam. Even though he took a major level in badass, he's still the same person who was Steve's best friend in 1940s Brooklyn (can you imagine this guy◊ trying to impress a girl at a carnival?).
• It's a brief moment, but when Sam and Bucky take on Spider-Man together, at one point Bucky leaps in and uses his metal arm to shield Sam from Spidey's attack. Cap's two best friends might squabble like five-year-olds with each other, but in a real fight there's no question they have each other's back.
• Despite the conflict between the two of them, throughout the whole film, there are quite a few small moments between Tony and Steve that does more than any other film to build the two of them as friends;
  • What helps make Steve almost on board to sign is just before Tony says that he'd miss Steve and the Avengers need him.
  • Steve's relief once he realizes Tony is in Moscow to help him rather than hinder, with the two admitting they're glad to see each other.
  • Likewise the look on Steve's face when he assumes that Tony and Pepper are having a baby. You can tell the very idea makes him happy for Tony.
  • And then Steve said he's sorry to hear that Tony and Pepper have broken up. Steve's as heartbroken as Tony must be.
  • Even after Steve breaks the law and goes on the run, Tony still believes in their friendship, as he asks for his whereabouts to help him:
    Falcon: Look, I'll tell you. But you have to go alone, and as a friend.
    Tony: Easy.
  • Notice how even during the massive Tear Jerker that is the final battle, Steve repeatedly tries to reason with Tony even though he knows he's screwed up big time.
    Captain America: It wasn't him, Tony. HYDRA had control of his mind!
  • More of a Tear Jerker, but Tony saying "So was I" when Steve defends Bucky. It's clear that deep down, Tony did look up to Steve a lot and respected him not just as a friend and brother, but as Captain America, his childhood hero.
• Clint's fatherly/brotherly instinct for Wanda is continued here. First, he rescues her from her house arrest by Tony Stark and Vision. Then, throughout the battle in airport, he's with her for the first part of the battle. When asked why he's doing so much to help her, he notes that he's "repaying a debt:" a reference to the fact that her brother died saving his life.
• Scott still agrees to join Team Cap even after Cap told him he will be a wanted man. The reason is simple, just like Sam said in The Winter Soldier: Captain America needs him.
  Scott Lang: Eh, what else is new?
• When F.R.I.D.A.Y. asked Tony how he thinks she looks like, Tony answered he thinks she's red-headed. While it's a Mythology Gag itself since in the comics, she does have red-headed holographic body, she then asked Tony again if he's thinking of someone else, in which he answered that he could be. The implication is clear: Tony is thinking about Pepper.
• Tony awkwardly pats Peter on the shoulder. It's a small gesture, but it almost looks fatherly considering he's old enough to be Peter's father figure. And of course it's awkward: Tony's dad wasn't exactly the World's Greatest. But Tony does the best he could, just like Howard.
• Tiny, and leads to some horrible stuff, but the reveal that Howard and not Jarvis was driving when Bucky attacked. While it's still horrible how Howard died, a lot of people thought that Jarvis was driving at the same time, and was not reported as he was "just a servant." Now it's more likely that he and Anna died of old age, thankfully.
• Falcon, Hawkeye, Scarlet Witch, and Ant-Man deciding to stay back and fend off Team Iron Man while allowing Cap and Bucky to escape in the Quinjet. They were willing to risk getting injured/arrested so someone would be able to stop Zemo. And of course, Cap thanks them at the end by busting them all out of prison.
• Tony discussing where Banner would be if he were involved in the Civil War. He gives Natasha a knowing look and says he'd obviously be on their side. But Natasha knows Bruce, and gives Tony an equally knowing look right back and says he'd be on the other side. Tony silently concedes the point.
• They may be a super soldier death squad, but when a guard tries to hurt one of the Russian Winter Soldiers, they all immediately jump up and start beating the hell out of everyone in their way. Comrades to the end.
• Cap addresses Scott Lang by name three times in the film: First he's "Mr. Lang", then "Lang", and then finally "Scott". Sure, the Avengers have always used First-Name Basis and Last-Name Basis interchangeably with one another, but that progression is a nice display of Ant-Man becoming an Avenger and a Fire-Forged Friend.
• Heck, the fact that Steve is willing to defend Bucky throughout the whole movie no matter what, even if it means becoming a criminal, even if it means dying. He also trusts Bucky almost immediately when the latter says he wasn't responsible for what happened in Vienna. Up until Tony discovering Zemo's involvement in the bomb, we only have Bucky's word for it.
• During the final fight, when Steve tells Tony "I can do this all day", Bucky manages to distract Tony long enough for Steve to get the upper hand. Prior to this, Bucky was lying on the floor, badly beaten, one metal arm short, but it's those words that make him rise up again. The timing is significant: when we first meet Bucky, he's defending pre-Serum Steve from a bully, right after Steve tells the bully, "I can do this all day." Word of God says that Bucky already would have killed himself if it weren't for Steve, and that he thought someone (probably himself) was going to die in the fight with Tony. Hearing Steve say his motto must have rallied Bucky to stick up for his best friend one more time.
• In a way, Bucky's loss of the metal arm also qualifies. He was doubtless reliving the trauma of losing his organic one when Tony shot the prosthetic off, but that and then the Wakandan scientists removing the rest of it is also important symbolism for Bucky—that arm, especially the red star emblazoned on it, represents the HYDRA control Bucky has been fighting the whole movie, and the way that he was used as a weapon by cruel and horrible people. Having it taken off of him means he has to get a new one, starting his journey to excising himself from a past that he could not control.
• At the airport, Tony loses his cool and ... begs Steve to let it be okay.
  Tony: All right, I'm done. You're gonna turn Barnes over and you're gonna come with us. NOW. Because it's us.
  • You could read that as a threat, "us or the police". Or you could read it as a plea, "Us... because we're friends."
    Tony: ...or a squad of JSOC guys with no compunction about being impolite... [whispering] Come on...
• Seeing how Tony is devastated by Rhodey's injury, Rhodey gently reminds him that he's a soldier, and that's what they do.
  Rhodey: 138 missions and any one of them could have been my last, but I did it because that's the job. Yeah, this sucks. It really sucks, but I'd do it again.

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