Thor: The Dark World was one of the most fun times to be had at the theater last year and another not-so-rare case of a sequel surpassing the original on nearly every level. The movie will be hitting Blu-ray next month, so obviously it’s high time that a list of the bonus features we can expect be released. These supplements were recently rated by the British Board of Film Classification and the Blu-ray is set to include the usual audio commentaries, deleted and extended scenes, behind-the-scenes featurettes, a first look at the upcoming Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and a gag reel.
Plus, since this is a Marvel Studios release, it looks as if we’ll be getting the latest Marvel One-Shot short film, which is titled All Hail the King and runs a reported 16 minutes.
Shane Black‘s Iron Man 3 has already grossed over $700 million worldwide, and while a box office success, it isn’t unanimously beloved by critics or audiences like Marvel’s last homerun, Joss Whedon’s The Avengers.
On Rotten Tomatoes, the popular aggregate movie review website, Iron man 3 currently sits at 78% (67% among top critics). On Metacritic, a more analytical aggregate site, Black’s film currently scores 62 out of 100. To put things in perspective, two of 2012’s most divisive blockbuster films amongst fanboys, The Dark Knight Rises and Prometheus, are locked in at 84% and 74% respectively. Iron Man 2, the black sheep of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, is at 73%.
In my review, I took issue with misplaced character motivations and the way co-writers Shane Black and Drew Pearce approached Iron Man’s greatest foe, the Mandarin. Well, even after a 1,300-word review, I’m still not finished talking about Iron Man 3. The only way to get over my disappointment with the third (and hopefully final) Iron Man film was to write about how great it could have been if it wasn’t, well, the movie it turned out to be.
So, in an effort to channel the passion and insanity of Patton Oswalt’s epic Star Wars/Avengers rant on NBC’s Parks and Recreation, here are some thoughts on what should have happened in Iron Man 3.
So, you’ve seen Iron Man 3, and now you’re all excited to read some of the old shell head’s adventures in comic book form. Well, have I got a list for you!
Here’s a brief selection of some of the stories that inspired the movie, and some that’ll get you caught up with where the character is these days in the Marvel Universe.
Iron Man: Extremis – This is at least part of the basis for the plot of Iron Man 3, but like a lot of the Marvel movies, Iron Man 3 is only loosely based on this story (very loosely). Published in 2005 and 2006, Extremis features Tony Stark taking on a group of terrorists armed with some scary new technology that forces Iron Man to get with the times and upgrade his armor. The series, written by Warren Ellis, features a lot of new ideas for Iron Man. It is very much a Warren Ellis comic, with a bunch of near-futuristic concepts come to life and used to tell an exciting adventure. This is one of the first comics to really push Iron Man to the forefront of the Marvel universe, plus it’s a decent story and works well on its own. This is one of the best Iron Man stories to give to people who’ve never read one before.
Students of the Unusual™ comic cover used with permission of 3BoysProductions
The Mercuri Bros.™ comic cover used with permission of Prodigal Son Press