As some people seem to not understand or distorting what Tony did in Civil War, here's a little reminder
---- Protecting people ----
Tony is presenting the September Foundation, his program to help school and give scholarships to students.
Just afterwards, a mother comes to him in the backstages to tell him that they killed her son during a battle, that she blames him and that he only fight for himself.
(And she says that to him, the one who has always done everything to protect people and not hurt anyone.)
People's safety has always been Tony's first priority. He's been trying to prevent that for years with organizations he created like Domage Control or the Stark Relief Foundation. And when he fights he always think of people first, he always evacuates places and created the Iron Legion for that too.
-- Tony is hurt, broken, that's one of the worst things you can say to him, he who already blames himself for everything.
He researches the boy and feels responsible for his death.
Then there is the Sokovia Accords. (Tony didn't create them). 117 countries have come together to ratify them. All these people agree on the same thing.
"Rhodey: A 117 countries want to sign this. 117, Sam, and you're just like, "No, that's cool. We got it."
Tony listens to the countries, listens to the people and recognizes the problem. He knows people suffers and dies because of them and he can't stand this.
He returns to the Avengers facility where Ross shows them a video of all their fights and the collateral damage.
-- He's stressed and feels so bad about it, we can see him holding the chair and his hand tightly with anxiety during the screening
He tries to make everyone understand that it's necessary to make compromises for the well-being and life of others.
He himself doesn't like Ross. We can see it in The Consultant and in some mcu comics.
But the safety of the people is more important.
It's so important for him, and he fears that the Avengers don't understand him and don't listen to him (as often).
And he's shocked when Natasha do.
---- Protecting the Avengers ----
When later Steve goes outside the law to capture Bucky, Tony is the one who keep him out of jail and protect him.
As well as to Bucky to whom he offers medical care in the United States rather than prison.
He just want to keep everyone together, united and safe.
He talk to Steve, proposes to him to modify the Accords to make them as convenient as possible for everyone. And does everything to convince him to avoid the fights (until exhauntion).
At this moment Steve was close to signing but refused when he learned that Wanda was confined. And later Wanda accuse him of having "locked her in her room."
But first of all it was not a room but an entire facility with everything you could need in it.
"Tony: It's a 100 acres with a lap pool. It's got a screening room. There's worse ways to protect people.."
And he didn't lock her up, he did this to protect her. Not only to protect her from jail, but also to protect her from the blame that she might receive, knowing too well the pain that it could cause.
And he made sure to ask Vision to stay with her, because he noticed that she likes him.
And when the battle starts he thinks about Wanda first and he prioritized to rescue her out of this mess.
"Tony: All right, there's two of the parking deck. One of them's Maximoff. I'm gonna grab her."
He had already spotted potential in Peter before. And when he meets him, he shows interest in him, he tries to find out who he is, and if Peter is a good person, before recruiting him.
"Tony: So you wanna look out for the little guy? You wanna do your part? Make the world a better place, all that, right?"
He trust him and believes in him when no one does.
"Tony: Do you know that I was the only one who believed in you? Everyone else said I was crazy to recruit a 14-year-old kid."
Peter was already Spider-Man and Tony just gave him more protection with a new suit. He brings him into fight because he thought Captain wouldn't hurt him, and he still hoped they wouldn't have to fight at all at this moment.
+ he worries about him and asks him to stays safe.
"Peter: Hey, Mr. Stark, what should I do?" "Tony: What we discussed. Keep your distance. Web 'em up."
He watches over him and soon as something happens to him, Tony runs to him and asks him to go straight home to his aunt now.
"Tony: You did a good job. Stay down. [...] You're going home or I'll call Aunt May! You're done!"
---- Trying to stop the fights ----
Bucky managed to get away. Team Cap is officially outlawed, people have been hurt, and Tony blames himself.
He thinks it's his fault, because he didn't take his armor with him, because he was still hoping that things would just work out calmly.
Then Ross adds that if things had happened differently they are dead people who would be alive now. And he tells him that he will send his armed men to stop Steve and his team by force.
Tony is afraid that things will get worse, that the Avengers will split up, that more people will get hurt, he's afraid for his friends. He sees that what he's been trying to prevent all along is happenning.
He intervenes right away and asks Ross to go at the airport himself with Nat, hoping to still be able to change Steve's mind, to fix things, stop the fights, and protect everyone, instead of going after the TeamCap with Ross's "boys and bullets."
-- He looks exhausted and overwhelmed in this scene.
But when Natasha asks him how he is, he says that everything is fine. "Always."
He's always the one who suffers the most but he always takes everything on his shoulders and acts like he's okay. Because he doesn't want to disturb, because he's afraid to bother people with his problems and emotions. He keep everything for himself.
He goes to the airport telling himself that there is still hope. That Steve will understand that it's better to stay together as a team, as a family. That together they can face anything but that doing things on his own outside the law will only give people more reason to distrust them and see them as a threat.
He doesn't want them to have to live like this.
+ During the fight Tony is careful not to hurt anyone. He blows up things at a long distance of Clint and Wanda but never touch them. But them, they don't hesitate to dump dozens of cars on him and break his arm in the process.
At the end, Rhodey has an accident and is paralyze, and Tony blames himself again.
---- Blame for trying to protect everyone ----
So, since the beginning, all Tony has done is try to avoid collateral damage and keep everyone safe. He does everything to keep the Avengers together, help them, protect them and avoid the fights.
When Team Cap goes against the law, ignores 117 countries, and tears the team apart.
> But who does everyone blame for this (including Steve himself)? Tony.
> Ant-Man who doesn't even know him judges him right away
"Tony Stark: Who's speaking?" "Scott Lang: It's your conscience. We don't talk a lot these days."
And says that when Tony is the one who questions himself the most and blames himself for everything.
> Natasha betrays him and blames him for everything that has happened when he is the one who try everything to prevent this from happening.
"Natasha Romanoff: Are you incapable of letting go of your ego for one goddamn second?"
When he realizes what's going on, even after all that's happened, if Rhodey is paralyzed and if he has a broken arm, he wants to go help Steve. So Tony goes to the Raft, also to see how they are all doing.
Tony is not the one who created this prison, he didn't think it would look like this at all.
Tony even worries about their treatment even though we never believe him to be sincere.
"Tony: They feed you yet?" "Sam: You're the good cop now?"
-- I mean look at his face, he's hurting and he didn't want this.
But they blame him again.
"Tony: Give me a break, Barton. I had no idea they'll put you here. Come on."
> Clint blames him for putting them there when it's just the consequences of HIS choice. He has a family and children, but he himself chose to go with Team Cap, to go outside the law.
"Tony: Alright, you're all grown up, you got a wife and kids. I don't understand, why didn't you think about them before you chose the wrong side?"
"Clint: You gotta watch your back with this guy. There's a chance he's gonna break it."
And he dares to blame him for what happened to Rhodey when he knows that Tony is obviously already blaming himself.
> Steve and Sam decided not to reveal the truth to Tony in the beginning. But he still blame this on Tony.
"Tony: I was wrong." "Sam: That's a first"
(Tony has always been the first to put everything on his shoulders so I will never understand this reaction)
-- He seems so happy to be there and that they are together again, I want to cry
When he watches Zemo's video he doesn't understand and then realizes that he is about to witness the death of his parents before his eyes.
"Tony: I know that road. What is this?"
He understands that they did not die in a car accident as he always believed but that they were murdered. And by the man standing right next to him.
But on top of that, he learns that one of his best friends whom he trusted knew the truth for years but had never told him anything.
(Who dared to blame Tony in Avengers 2 saying that he doesn't like it when his teammates hide things from him)
And even when Tony asks him to his face if he knew about it all this time, Steve tells him straight to his face that he didn't before confessing the truth to Tony.
And after destroying him psychologically, instead of simply apologizing, they attack him very, very violently. They don't hesitate to rip off his arc reactor with hatred, Steve hits him several times with such anger and is close to kill him. Tony really thinks his "friend" is going to kill him right now.
(Tony didn't want to kill them or they would be dead. + He still has power in his hands but does not use it even at the last moment.)
When Steve leaves, Tony asks him for his shield back because he is disappointed in who Steve really is. He's not the man he thought he was, he is not the man Tony has heard about all his life. It was his father who created his shield. And Steve doesn't deserve it.
And he's left alone in Siberia, with a non-functional armor.
He goes to the Avengers compound for the first time after he fought with the Steve and see it empty because everyone has now left.
Ever since he was little, everyone around him always ends up leaving, abandoning or betraying him. And he thinks it's his fault, that he doesn't deserve them to stay.
+ When he get out of the cars he has an anti-stress ball in his hand, to stop injury and stress š
He stays by Rhodey's side throughout his rehabilitation, worries about him, makes things to help and support him.
And Steve's "apology" letter to him is not an apology at all. I always found his way of speaking in it arrogant.
And even after the trauma and all the sufferings he's been through, after seeing his parents get murdered, after everything they did to him, he still create things for them, he does everything to prepare everyone for the next attack, he makes them new technologies, new shield, new armor, he takes steve's phone everywhere with him, he gets a new arc reactor..
"After everything that's happened.. How can I not feel guilty? I got distracted, didn't focus on the real threat that's coming. I'll have to figure out how I can do it alone" - (Tony in the Civil War comic)
All Tony has ever done is take care of the people around him and everywhere. He has always treated the Avengers as his family and always gives everything for others without ever receiving anything in return.
He deserves better, so much better.
#BringBackTonyStarktolife (petititon)
If you want to write something for Tony's birthday (here)
