Editor’s note: This is the third in a series looking back at the Marvel films leading up to this weekend’s release of Captain America: Civil War.

In this third installment on the road to Civil War, we will be looking at the biggest superhero team films yet that involve the previously talked about Iron Man and Captain America – The Avengers series.

The Avengers

After four years and five movies of buildup, Marvel made history by releasing The Avengers. All of the hype turned out to be worth it. This is an incredibly enjoyable film with terrific characters, a memorable villain, spot-on action, and a fantastic script written by the master of quips Joss Whedon.

All of the members of the team get their time to shine and nobody gets left in the dust (except for Hawkeye in the first two acts). Tom Hiddleston’s Loki is a really interesting villain, creating a character simultaneously threatening and sympathetic. All of the Avengers are super-likeable and their interactions make for some fun scenes.

Overall The Avengers is a wonderful film that manages to satisfy most Marvel fan boys.

Avengers: Age of Ultron

The second film had a lot to accomplish.

Not only did it have to be a satisfying sequel to the original film, but it also had to be the conclusion to another phase of Marvel films, it had to set up future films, it had to introduce new Avengers, and it had to work as a stand alone movie.

As a result, this film was met with mixed reviews, with many calling it just a commercial for future films. However, there is so much more to the Avengers’ second outing than most give it credit for.

For starters the titular villain Ultron is one of the best in any comic book film. He’s dark, menacing and knows how to get under the team’s skin, but he’s also fascinating due to the fact that he is a dark reflection of Tony Stark, his creator. Like Tony he’s humorous (but that humor does not take away from his threat), smart, prepared for almost anything, and he believes what he is doing is necessary for the betterment of humanity.

Thanks to the writing and James Spader’s brilliant performance, this one character brings the film up a few notches from the first. Everything that worked about the original film continues in spades, and the movie hardly ever feels long or boring to sit through. The only thing that feels disjointed is the obvious setup for future Marvel movies, but that accounts for only approximately five minutes of the film and does not take away from the overall experience.

Age of Ultron is The Empire Strikes Back of the Avengers series and deserves a lot more credit than it gets.

All of these films have proven that Captain America: Civil War is in safe hands and it will be interesting to see where the story goes next.