Iron Man 2

I remember when the first Iron Man was released a couple years ago. I remember thinking that I wasn't too thrilled to go out and see it. And that was just because I didn't know much about Iron Man in general. I've said it before, I'm a DC, so when it comes to the Marvel super heroes, I'm usually at a loss. Sure, I've seen enough Spider-Man and X-Men growing up that I get the gist of their stories. But to me, Iron Man was just never one of those more popular characters.

And then I saw the movie and was pretty much blown away. I'm not sure I can say that it was better than the first couple Spider-Man flicks. Those were really good. But Jon Favreau did a great job directing and Robert Downey, Jr. was the perfect fit for Tony Stark. So when the inevitable sequel was being made, I had to fight back my excitement.

See, I don't like to get excited over sequels anymore. More often than not, I end up being let down. Because, let's face it, for every Godfather Part II you have a Godfather Part III. That is to say, for every great sequel, there is inevitably the sequel that is just as horribly disappointing.

Iron Man 2 did not disappoint. I won't sit here and claim I thought it was better than the first, but it may have been just as good. It may help that I'm not familiar with much of Iron Man's history or stories, so any potential movie plot would be a complete surprise for me. I don't know how Tony Stark is supposed to interact with Pepper Potts or Colonel Rhodes or Nick Fury. So any of his actions and reactions are completely new to me.

This time around we're introduced to a new villain, Whiplash. I don't think he's ever actually named that in the film, he may only be known as Ivan Vanko, a typical bad guy with a typical rationalization for his villainy. And this time, Tony gets a little help from his friends at SHIELD and from Col. Rhodes, who dons an armored suit to become War Machine.

If you enjoyed the first movie, you'll like this one. It's packed with the same kind of action and humor that made the original a success. And there are little hints at things to come. We catch sight of Captain America's shield and (if you stay until after the credits) Thor's hammer. I think it's safe to say that the Avengers will be assembling at a theater near you soon enough.