Marvel’s Civil War era is returning two decades after the original crossover, but the latest developments in Avengers: Armageddon have produced a different and darker status quo. Rather than a new Superhuman Registration Act, the United Nations has moved to ban superheroes, while the United States has stayed out of the measure because it fears it cannot enforce it.
The original Civil War began after the New Warriors’ confrontation with supervillains in Stamford, Connecticut, ended in a massive explosion caused by Nitro. Hundreds of civilians were killed, prompting the government to introduce a law requiring superheroes to register. Iron Man backed the measure, while Captain America led heroes who rejected it and went underground.
In Avengers: Armageddon, a comparable disaster follows a chain of escalating conflicts. After the Avengers defeat the Red Hulk in Latveria, David Colton—who had briefly served as Captain America—decides to destroy the world’s nuclear arsenal. Bucky Barnes helps him, and Russia responds by launching missiles at the United States. The heroes stop the attack, but the confrontation continues in Russia, where the Red Hulk is revealed to have been turned into a bomb. His explosion devastates a remote village and kills thousands; Captain Marvel absorbs part of the blast, limiting the loss of life.
The destruction fuels public opposition to superheroes. From the perspective of other countries, the crisis involved multiple superheroes acting independently, military-scale damage around Latveria and a Russian operation that turned the Red Hulk into a weapon. The United Nations responds by passing a rule banning superheroes.
The United States abstains, but its position is not presented as support for the heroes. In Avengers: Armageddon #5, the U.S. ambassador tells Invisible Woman that the country avoided antagonizing superheroes because it does not believe it could stop them. The government is also working with Nick Fury Jr. on weapons and defenses that could be used against superheroes. With the Avengers disbanding after the crisis, the story leaves the Marvel Universe in a period of heightened distrust—without a registration law, but with governments preparing for the possibility of conflict with the heroes.
Sources: Comic Book Resources.