It has been six months since Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) revealed himself as Iron Man and things couldn’t be any better. The world is now in a state of peace thanks to him and he continues to live his luxurious and narcissistic lifestyle. Everyone loves him; everyone except the government that is. They see the suit as a weapon and a danger to all in the hands of one man and want Stark to turn it over to them. Being the man Stark is that’s not going to happen any time soon.

Peace doesn’t last too long when Ivan Vanko aka Whiplash (Mickey Rourke) appears on the scene with an arc reactor of his own. His suit features electrically charged whips that can cause massive destruction accompanied with a crack of thunder. He doesn’t care about fame and fortune though. All he wants is revenge against Stark for the humiliation his father endured while working with Howard Stark. Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell), a longtime competitor of Starks, wants that same revenge and decides to team up with Vanko to take Iron Man down a notch. Now Stark must prove to everyone that he can be the hero they all see him as.

Iron Man 2 takes everything the first film did and doubles the intensity. The technology, the characters, the comic mythos; everything is that much better than before. Whether he is using his transparent iPhone-like touchscreen to hack into government computers or pulling up personal information on the surface of a coffee take, Stark always has some nifty gadget within arms reach. Let’s not forget the suit as well, this time coming in a convenient travel size disguised as a suitcase; a reference to the comic. Fans will no doubt ogle at the many references to the Marvel universe. Speaking of ogling…

Scarlett Johannson makes her Iron Man debut as the sexy yet dangerous Black Widow. Under the guise of an assistant of Stark’s, she actually is an agent working for S.H.I.E.L.D., the secret organization seen briefly in the first film. Under the command of Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), she’s observing Stark to see if he is an acceptable candidate for the Avengers project along with helping keeping him safe at times. It’s not until later in the film where we see her kick some major ass with her quick and stylized fighting style. It’s these scenes that make it very clear that she’s not only in the film as just eye candy.

Also helping Stark along is friend James Rhodes and the fan favorite War Machine. We all know the story behind Don Cheadle replacing Terrence Howard from the first film, and honestly, I was a bit worried to see how he would take over the role. Once you get over the fact that it’s another actor playing the same character, you don’t look back. Cheadle does a great job. Besides, it’s War Machine we’re talking about here. This guy has more firepower than a small army but of course, his armory is no match for the technologically advanced Iron Man.

There are plenty of intense and visually pleasing action scenes that exceed those of the first Iron Man. Whiplash, Rhodes, Hammer; Iron Man takes on them all at some point and usually comes out on top. That being said, the film also delves deeper into Starks character and looks at his faults and how becoming Iron Man has affected his life. His relationship with Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) has been a rollercoaster and his business isn’t exactly perfect either. The film can drag on during a few of these non-action storylines but they’re a necessity. They bring much more meaning to Downey’s character and the whole Iron Man universe.

Overall, Iron Man 2 is just as good, if not better, then its predecessor in both visuals and storyline. Fans of the comic will no doubt love all the detail and information put into it and action junkies will be blown away by the awesomeness of it all. Iron Man 2 is the defining movie that the summer blockbuster season is here!

P.S. Be sure to stay after the credits for a special extra scene. You won’t want to miss it!