Being a comic-book guy, when I watch the new super-hero flick, I can pick out the big easter eggs in the movie and occasionally I can find them in the trailers. Now, the below noted could just be a few random facts that don’t really hold any weight, but after screen capping the hell out of the Iron Man 2 trailer, I think I may have found some pretty interesting stuff in between the lines.
WARNING!
Content may be considered “spoilerish”
1. The chest
In the “Extremis” story arc of The Invincible Iron Man, the Iron Man armor slowly begins to take Stark over, after fighting the very same villain seen in the trailer. After a first failed bout with Iron Man, Whiplash goes back to the drawing board and improves the electrical power in his whips. Later, when fighting in a lightning storm, Stark is struck with a whip and a bolt of lightning, causing him to have a massive heart attack and subsequently, into a coma. After waking up, Rhodey informs Stark that the armor has become sentient and is beginning to become a part of him. Could this be the beginning of sentient armor?
2. Justin Hammer
Justin Hammer, played by Sam Rockwell, is the financier to the villains and the business ying to Tony Stark’s yang. When Stark leaves the weapons business, Hammer’s customer base shoots through the roof, making him a target for Iron Man’s anti-war and weapon campaign. Iron Man is and has always been a thorn in the side of Hammer Industries. His clientèle includes El Toro Negro, Cyclone, Blizzard and Whiplash multiple times. His past exploits include robbing banks and casinos, but that’s seems a little small-time for this movie. As noted earlier, Hammer has dealt with Whiplash (and his alter-ego Blacklash) in the past. The question is, what will the relation be this time? Just a simple financier, or something more?
3. S.H.I.E.L.D: Nick Fury and the Black Widow
Oh, Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division. How I love you so. S.H.I.E.L.D has been a part of the Marvel universe for a long time and they aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. Nick Fury, as seen in the picture, is the S.H.I.E.L.D director and Black Widow, after dealings with the K.G.B, Natalia Romanova becomes Nick Fury’s right hand (wo)man. After the “Secret War” story arc, the marvel universe was in shambles and the world turned to Nick Fury for answers. To avoid apprehension, Fury goes into hiding, and the title is passed to Maria Hill, the next below him. Shortly thereafter, the “Civil War” story arc takes place. In strong protest of the Mutant Registration Act, Hill steps down from the position of director and in his new found celebrity, Stark steps in. We know that Marvel is using this movie to set up for the Avengers movie, as the only films between this and The Avengers are THOR and Captain America. The amount of S.H.I.E.L.D we’re seeing in the trailer makes me wonder what involvement S.H.I.E.L.D will have in this film as well as the future films. Could we see Director Tony Stark? In some story arcs, Steve Rogers and Romanova become romantically involved. Marvel has made it a rule to have at least one allusion to another super hero in their films. For example, in Iron Man, Captain America’s shield can be seen on the table, and in The Incredible Hulk some say that Captain America can be seen frozen in the ice. Now, with the announcement of Captain America beginning to film in June of 2010, the possibility of seeing being introduced to “Natalia’s boyfriend Steve” is not that slim.
4. Who’s shooting at Iron Man?
Okay, I know. I may be reading a little far into this. But there are a few possible answers.
- Justin Hammer: Hammer is notorious for his technological work with many Iron Man villains. He assists in funding, and often designs the suits himself. We can see 7-8 robots here. Could these be creations of Hammer, in efforts to take down Iron Man? Another possible theory is that the American government has contracted Hammer’s help. Now that Stark is out of the game, Hammer Industires is the next in line, so a relationship could have already formed between the two parties. In the picture to the left, we see a disgruntled Hammer sitting next to Rhodey and Stark. Could the government have contracted Hammer’s help?
- War Machine: Note the machine gun placement above the right shoulder. Another steel-clad humanoid sports this look is War Machine, Iron Man’s “sidekick” of sorts. In the “Devil in a Bottle” story arc, Tony goes through a pretty serious bout with alcoholism. Realizing his responsibilities to the citizens who have come to expect his protection and his overall uselessness as such, he turns to Rhodey, and asks him to take his place, bearing the armor and the responsibility. Rhodey does so for a short while, but upon Stark’s return, he is filled with jealous rage and makes a new suit and by doing so, an entirely new hero: War Machine. Could this be an example of the afforementioned jealous rage? Or just a friendly training exercise between friends?
- Sentinels: I know how far fetched this sounds, but humor me. Perhaps what we see here are the robots known as Sentinels, who are most popularly associated with the X-Men. In “Operation: Zero Tolerance”, an X-Men story arc, a carefully selected group of humans were transformed into cyborg-hybrids known as the “Prime Sentinels” in order to capture the X-Men. The sentinels were then taken in by S.H.I.E.L.D. Given S.H.I.E.L.D’s obvious increased involvement in this film, the possibility of these things being a breed of Sentinel is not as outrageous as one might think. After the Marvel Universe-wide catastrophe that was “M-Day” another special breed of Sentinel was made, this time to serve as a police force in the current state of panic. Who designed this Sentinel S.W.A.T team you ask? Tony Stark and James “Rhodey” Rhodes. Below is a better picture of who, I think, are the same robots we see chasing Iron Man.
5. New Armor
“In Extremis” is Latin for “to the extreme”. The “Extremis” armor has been praised by many fans as Iron Man’s best look and some of the best writing for character. I’d have to agree. Notice the similarities between the armor for the new movie and the “Extremis” armor to the right. 
Similarities can be seen in the shoulders, forearms and biceps and the elbow joints. Also note the blaring similarities in torso: the downward curvature of the hips and ribcage, the bump where the upper and lower torso meet and the telltale triangular chestpeice, which is replacing the circular chestpeice from the last film. The biggest difference between the two can be found in the legs. The “Extremis” armor has red leg armor that rises almost to the hips, while this film armor has golden upper legs and red boots, a look more akin to the “Classic” or even “Silver Centurion” armor set. Could this be the Favreau imagining of the Extremis arc? I for one, hope so.
What do you think? Am I right on the money? Or just toting my vast comic-book knowledge? (We both know that’s true) Miss something?
