I Finally Watched Iron Man 2

Alex had it on DVD. I wasn't sure when he handed it to me, whether it was a loaner, or a gift, so I watched it Sunday afternoon while he ran errands. I'd read a discussion of the film on Too Busy Thinking About Comics, and I know that colored my viewing experience, because I was thinking of the points it brought up as the movie went along.

Tony tries to argue that as Iron Man he's a nuclear deterrent, but we never see him actually doing anything to keep the peace. What's more, he plays those videos of other countries trying to develop their own powered armor suits, apparently to reassure everyone they're safe. But aren't those suits being developed precisely because people saw how effective one Iron Man can be? Obadiah wasn't wrong when he said Tony's attempts to rid the world of weapons had lead to the best weapon yet.

Tony's antagonists are the grandstanding Senator Stern, Justin Hammer, and Vanko. Stern is leading the Congressional hearings to get the Iron Man armor because it'll be a feather in his cap. He'll be the one who reined in this rogue industrialist, and gave the American military the most advanced combat tool on the planet. It's the sort of hard-nosed, line-in-the-sand legislative action a Senator could point to if he were to make a run for the Presidency. There's always the chance Stern legitimately wants the military to have the armor to protect the soldiers and the country, but I have little faith that politicians care about the majority of their constituencies these days. Not that I want to put my faith in party-boy billionaires, either.

Hammer's after Stark for making him look bad, stealing his thunder, and generally being a better weapons designer, even when Tony's not selling weapons anymore. he wants what Stark's got to make himself more money. As for Vanko, he wants to watch Stark's world crumble. He doesn't want what Tony has for himself, but he doesn't want Tony to have it, either. All these guys are only threats to others if those people happen to be in the way while they're gunning for Tony. The attack at the Stark Expo isn't some grand statement by Vanko about how it's a futile attempt to create a better world, it's a way to take away what Tony has. All the threats are personal. Vanko could certainly have become a bigger problem if left unchecked, but he still starts as a threat to Tony specifically.

I was disappointed that Tony still seemed largely the self-destructive guy he was in the first movie. There were flashes of him growing past that, mostly with Pepper, but then he throws a birthday bash for himself where he pilots the armor while drunk*, drives in a Grand Prix, basically acts the wild child. It's strange, because sometimes he seems to be putting his affairs in order, trying his best to prepare the world for after he dies (the Expo, Pepper as CEO, maybe letting Rhodey take the armor), but the rest of the time, he behaves as if he has no cares whatsoever. I know it would have accelerated his demise (though the blood toxicity can affect him as fast or slow as the story dictates), but I'd have liked to see Tony actively zooming around the world, trying to intervene in situations as Iron Man. There may not have been any threats to the U.S. in six months, but I really doubt there are no conflicts anywhere in the world, regardless of what Tony told Congress. Sure, Tony probably wouldn't be able to fix most of them, but maybe he starts as Iron Man, then uses Stark Industries to make the next step.

There's always the possibility Tony did some of the reckless stuff to keep Pepper and the rest in the dark about his situation, I suppose.

OK, griping aside, what did I like? Hmm, the briefcase armor was cool. I thought the final boss fight was ended better than the one against Stane in the first movie, because it actually used an something previously established in the film**. I wasn't as fond of the fight with all the drones up to that point because other than Tony using that one-shot attack to finish it, I never felt like Tony and Rhodey were really being pressed. They might be getting shot a bunch, but it didn't seem to hurt how their armors performed , neither of them was getting knocked around, so it felt like a shooting gallery.

That was more griping. Um, the character interactions were good. Tony and Pepper, Tony and Rhodey. I continued to like Pepper, who is clearly frustrated by Tony's erratic behavior, but soldiers on as best she can. I especially liked how, when Tony came to visit her, she didn't cut him any slack or make special exceptions for him. She was dealing with his mess, and didn't have time for more of his junk. it was good, because I don't think it bothers Tony much when someone like Fury or Agent Coulson won't tolerate his crap, but when his closest friends say "Enough", it sinks in. Maybe. A little. I would have liked to see more of people coming at Stark after his first fight with Vanko. Vanko said he'd made God bleed, and with blood in the water, everyone would come after Tony, but I got the impression most of the average folks still liked Iron Man. The people against were the ones already against him: Hammer, politicians, news commentators, the brass. It strengthened their convictions, but I didn't see people throwing tomatoes at Tony, or newspapers with the headline "Iron Man: Threat or Menace?!" being eagerly purchased by a fearful populace. Which could mean the public is more perceptive than the folks with actual clout, and they recognize a guy with good intentions. Or the public is inconsequential, so it doesn't matter whether they still like Iron Man or not.

* That scene in the doughnut shop with Fury. I was really impressed with the plastic benches. Stark's sitting there, in his armor, and the bench is holding up fine. That's some good bench manufacturing there.

** Iron Man had Tony discover the icing problem at high altitude, and adjust his armor for it, while Stane didn't have time to do so. Except they decided that wouldn't actually finish Stane, and the fight continued beyond where it should have.