A fun and frolicking Civil War

You’re gonna hear a lot of whoops and claps among the audience while watching Captain America: Civil War, which opens in theaters today. If you’re a Marvel fan, you’ll probably be cheering along, as the much-anticipated blockbuster rolls out a parade of familiar characters, insider jokes, and continuing storylines.

Civil War (rated PG-13 for extended violence and some language) trails in the wake of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The comparisons are inevitable: Both films feature a faceoff between well-loved protagonists in fancy costumes. Both question whether superheroes cause more harm than good—even while rollicking in special effects–heavy demolitions of buildings and bodies. But whereas DC Comics’ Batman v Superman tanked its reviews, rival Marvel’s Civil War is earning raves. That stark distinction has ruffled feathers and sparked conspiracy theories among DC-diehards, which is ridiculous because bluntly put, Civil War is just way more fun, from its zesty dialogue and eye-candy action sequences to its much more interesting and likable characters.

The movie begins with an Avengers mission in Nigeria that costs hundreds of innocent lives as collateral damage. International outrage erupts: The U.S. secretary of state and 116 other nations demand that the Avengers bow under the jurisdiction of a United Nations panel. Among those concerned is Iron Man, or Tony Stark, now indistinguishable from the ever-charming Robert Downey Jr. In 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, the wisecracking billionaire inventor almost pushed mankind into the brink of extinction, and now he’s all dark and twisty from damaged ego and guilt. While Stark no longer trusts himself, another Avenger, Captain America/Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), refuses to trust government bodies (the previous Captain America movie explains why). The UN panel is “run by people with agendas, and agendas change.”

This ideological disagreement results in a civil war. Though it’s easy to draw philosophical inferences, Civil War isn’t meant to be gritty, edge-pushing, or self-serious. It follows the tried and true recipe of a superhero classic: a dash of humor, a pinch of humanity, a drizzle of feel-good moments, a jug-load of artfully choreographed “POW”s and “WHAM”s—and there you have it, a tongue-tickling amuse-bouche until the next superhero dish.