Iron Man Manual
Hardcover
Written by Daniel Wallace
Insight Editions
Release Date: November 19, 2013

Iron Man. Tony Stark. Ten years ago these names weren’t nearly as well known as they are today. Marvel was always proud of their Iron Man comic franchise but as with most comic characters, only the readers had the whole scoop. And then came the movies. Now these are household names, the movies are cinematic blockbusters and you cannot help but see Robert Downey, Jr. as the face of old Shell Head. The films did more for the name than the four decades of comics prior, I enjoy them and think they cast Tony perfectly. To celebrate this trilogy of action packed films, Marvel and Insight Editions produced this Iron Man Manual. A beautifully bound book with so much going for it that it’s sure to be a hit!

That said, I am profoundly disappointed that no one saw fit to include anything from the comics. I’m not kidding. Not a single piece from any Iron Man comic is in this. There is a comic cover shown at the beginning of the book, but it’s a Captain America cover! Seriously? This should have more fittingly been called the Iron Man Movie Manual, because that’s what it is. Every single page, every insert, every thought is based on the films. What a huge let down this was for me. Comic fans will open this up and feel the same shock I did, of this I have no doubt. But now that I have that off my chest, let me review what is actually in there, okay? I’ve vented and feel a little better.

Marvel officially announced this morning that Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kick-Ass) and Elizabeth Olsen (Spike Lee’s Oldboy) will join the cast of The Avengers: Age of Ultron as the brother-sister duo Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch.

There have been longstanding rumors that Olsen was being eyed as the Scarlet Witch while Taylor-Johnson was previously confirmed for the role of Quicksilver. It’s great to see Marvel finally providing the official announcement for both of them.

Today, TeeFury is doing one of their special “Twofury” deals with two shirts for $11 each, both of which are inspired by Thor: “The Thunder God Returns” by Six Eyed Monster (at left), which mashes up with the famous The Dark Knight Returns comic book cover and “Asgardian Absinthe” by WinterArtwork (at right).

The sale began at Teefury today, Tuesday, November 12, 2013, at midnight EST, and will continue for 24 hours from then, and once it’s over, it will not be sold on the site anymore.

Thor: The Dark World
Director: Alan Taylor
Screenwriters: Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely
Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Idris Elba, Christopher Eccleston
Walt Disney Pictures
Rated PG-13 | 112 Minutes
Release Date: November 8, 2013

Directed by Alan Taylor (HBO’s Game of Thrones), Thor: The Dark World is the eighth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and a follow-up to both 2011’s Thor and 2012’s The Avengers.

Chris Hemsworth (Chiseled Man-Candyâ„¢) returns as Thor, the hammer-wielding god of thunder and protector of the nine realms. With his brother, the mischievous Loki (Tom Hiddleston), in Asgardian time-out for the destruction of New York, Thor is busy bringing peace to the warring factions of the universe.

Alongside the Warriors Three (Ray Stevenson, Zachary Levi, and Tadanobu Asano) and Lady Sif (Jaimie Alexander), Thor battles rock giants and monstrous marauders while his long-distance love interest, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), waits for him to return to Earth.

Speaking of Foster, the astrophysicist is busy investigating a gravitational anomaly in London. While there, she stumbles upon the Aether – an ancient artifact buried on Earth eons ago by Bor, father of Odin. Turns out the Aether is a powerful weapon that was once wielded by the evil Malekith (Christopher Eccleston) and his Dark Elves, who sought to engulf the universe in darkness.

We heard back in June that Aaron Taylor-Johnson, star of Kick-Ass, Kick-Ass 2, and the upcoming Godzilla reboot, was wanted by Marvel for the role of Quicksilver in Joss Whedon‘s follow-up to The Avengers, titled The Avengers: Age of Ultron, and now that casting has been confirmed.

Taylor-Johnson’s schedule promoting Godzilla overlapped with filming on the Age of Ultron, which is why the casting had not yet been made official. Those scheduling conflicts have now been worked out, allowing the actor to take on the role.