7: iron man 3

“My name is Tony Stark and I’m not afraid of you. I know you’re a coward. So I’ve decided, that you just died pal.”

— Tony Stark

Main takeaways:

• Aly: This movie was “totally wicked”!! (hahaha get the Incredibles reference?) I actually loved this movie. While the plot was complex, it was easier to follow since we’ve seen all of the movies leading up to this one. I actually enjoyed the high stakes of the plot – the tension between Tony and Pepper, the issues with Roadie, the problems with the bombing and terrorists, and the issues with the president all made for a thrilling movie. This film also had a lot of scenes I didn’t expect, with lots of people getting shot when I definitely didn’t expect it, but that made for a really engaging movie. Iron Man 3 is my favorite Iron Man movie we’ve watched, and it’s for sure one of my favorites of the MCU series as a whole. The only qualm I have – no Coulson. Boooooooooo Marvel. Bring Coulson back!!!!
• Ally: This movie was way better than I remember it being – if you had asked me what it was about before, I would have said it had Pepper and lots of fire in the final action sequence. Technically, that’s not incorrect, but it’s also not giving this movie enough credit. This plot has some complexities and the plot twist with the Mandarin is actually not completely stupid, which plot twists usually are. The president looked like George Bush, which was impressive to me. This movie makes Tony Stark more human, because he has his anxiety attacks, although that detail doesn’t really come up in future movies. Harley is one of my favorite side characters in the MCU, and I absolutely detest Aldrich Killian. Of course, Rhodey is featured in this movie as Iron Patriot, and there’s the whole terrorist subplot along with the weird enhanced people that glow and breathe fire (?). All around, it’s a very action packed film with a lot of action and exciting conflicts throughout.

Favorite scene:

• Aly: My favorite scene would have to be when the Mandarin Orange guy shot the man on live TV. Well, let me be clear – I didn’t enjoy him getting shot, like at all, but I like how it built the story from there. The President called Mandarin Orange to try and prevent the killing of the man, since it’s what Mr. Orange wanted, but he still shot him anyway. It shows that Mandarin Orange has an upper hand and the US is pretty powerless to his actions. Thankful Tony steps in and saves the day in the end! Later on in the film, we learn that it was all just a greenscreen and he was never actually shot, which is awesome. Wins all around!
• Ally: My favorite scene was Tony discovering that the Mandarin is just a British – I think – man named Trevor. I enjoy this scene simply because he’s so hilarious, but at the same time he reveals a lot of important information that helps to move the plot along. Without discovering this secret, Tony would never know how Aldrich Killian was involved with the “bombings” and he would never be able to save the President and figure out what Extremis was really about.

Favorite / least favorite character:

• Aly: My favorite character was for sure Harley. He was just so precious and kind of like a mini Coulson to me. He was there for Tony and was fighting for him to help save everyone, which gives me some major Coulson vibes. I hope that he comes back in future movies (even though I know he probably won’t). Team Harley forever!! Plus the little end scene where Tony gave him a brand new workshop was just the cutest thing ever. My least favorite character would have to be the scientist lady from the beginning of the movie. I was convinced she would turn out to be nice, and I guess in the end she was willing to give up her life for Tony and Pepper (which she ended up doing unwillingly), but still, her overall motivations were bad. She was just a character that had the potential to be so amazing, but in the end,s he just ended up on the wrong side. I think she’s my least favorite character not because she’s the worst, but because she had the potential to help Tony and the good guys but she chose Killian over them.
• Ally: Aldrich Killian is my least favorite characters, which really just means the writers did well in this movie. His backstory is well thoughout out and he’s got the same vibes as Syndrome from the Incredibles, but he’s more obnoxious and looks like a knock-off Brad Pitt. I did enjoy the parallel at the end of the movie where he and Tony are battling on the roof, but for the most part I hated him. Especially when he came out of the fire at the end, all burned and glowing, because I really just wanted him to die already. Conversely, Trevor is my favorite character in this movie. He’s not in the movie very much – especially as himself and not the Mandarin – but I greatly appreciate his few moments. He’s the comedic relief so we’re obviously supposed to like him, but I also found his accent especially charming. 

Ranking (out of 10):

• Aly: 10/10!!!!! WOOOO HOOOO! First one of the series! In all seriousness, this movie was amazing. I would only rate it a 10..0 because we watched all of the movies leading up to it – had we not seen any of the earlier MCU movies, I would have been totally lost and would have given it a 2/10, but thankful our background knowledge saved us on this one. I’m really excited to watch how the Iron Man character arcs throughout the rest of these movies up until Endgame!
• Ally: 9/10. This movie was better than I remember, and the action was fun, but I also hate the way that the evil people regrow and breate fire and glow orange the entire time. It gives me bad vibes. Nonetheless, this was a really good movie and I’m excited to continue our marathon.