When all is said an done, Iron Man 2 delivers. The question now perhaps is, did we need it in the first place? First things first, Downey simply makes this entire franchise worth watching and waiting for. He's got the Midas touch here when he's the troubled and pseudo egotistical Tony Stark. I simply can't think of a more capable and gifted actor in the last several years who's been able to reposition himself as an elite actor after years of a spiralling demise. What Downey brings to this Marvel tin soldier is depth and heart (even if his seems to be failing). The sequel picks up where the last one left off and for the first hour really has me enjoying these faces again. And with the scope of real domestic issues here, I was captivated. But as the story continues and Marvel simply wants to force feed us the impending crisis (as Sam Jackson seems to keep popping up to remind us) in all various remote locations in the world, we have to start cataloguing what elements are important to the story today and what can be shelved for later. After all, Avengers is still years away. Sam Jackson pops up and then flares up more and more like a case of vaginal warts. He offers the parties involved nothing of substance, but the possibility of a relationship later. More and more characters are introduced, subplots and villains galore and an army of Iron men. All of this occurring at the pinnacle disintegration of Tony Stark. Here Favreau begins to touch on the real dangers that Tony has within him, but finds a quick fix amongst the film canisters of a drunken father. Before you know it, the two hours have whizzed by and you can't help but wonder if you simply watched a retread of of the first Iron Man plot line. The film still works because of the richness of all the characters and it showcases how much the best actors can take what would potentially be a subpar script and make it into a gem.