Iron Man 3

Last summer, the armored Marvel Iron Man was one of The Avengers. Now, he's flying solo, maybe for the last time, in Iron Man 3. And if it is the end, then it's a good one.

Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) hasn't been feeling great since The Avengers. After his near-death experience protecting New York, Tony has been making Iron Man armors non-stop. His hobby's endangering not just his health, but also his relationship with Pepper Potts (Gwenyth Paltrow).

But then The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) shows up. The evil mastermind of the Ten Rings Organization (from Iron Man) has returned to take his revenge on the world. His minions take out Tony's home, leaving him stuck with an imperfect new armor. Once Tony gets back together, he'll have to face villains powered by something called Extremis.

This sequel replaces director/co-star Jon Favreau, who still appears here, with director/co-writer Shane Black. It gives Tony plenty of fun things to do even out of the suit(s). One of the best was Tony defeating a few minions with ingenuity instead of an armor. Even The Mandarin has some fun when his true nature is revealed.

Of course, there's plenty of in-suit action to enjoy. Whether in 3D or Flatscreen, scenes such as Tony's daring rescue of an entire free-falling airplane crew are sure to amaze all. But the highlight is the final battle with dozens of automated armors fighting the villains.

There were a few oddities with the plot. But they were so minor they didn't detract from the fun.

Iron Man 3 needs to be seen on a big screen first. It's an incredible start to a summer with many, many, many more blockbusters to come. But overall, it's a super threequel that's just as fun as its original.