Can Lightning Strike Twice?

Rating: Null/10 (7 September 2018)

After the surprise box office and critical success of the first Iron Man, it was no surprise that Marvel would want a sequel as fast as possible. That being said, many panned this movie when it came out, and claimed it wasn't as good as the original. But looking back on it, was it as bad as we thought?
The cast is still top notch, with RDJ once again taking the spotlight. Even when Tony is acting like an unlikable jerk, RDJ somehow makes him charismatic. His plight to save his life is also done well. Terrence Howard was replaced by Don Cheadle in this film and all of the following movies, and he does a great job as Rhodey. Gwenyth Paltrow is still good as Pepper, but that's to be expected. Scarlett Johansson is good in her introduction as Black Widow, but she gets much better in movies to follow. Sam Rockwell is pretty good in this, playing Justin Hammer, a less funny, less smart Tony Stark. Unfortunately, Micky Rourke doesn't give a good performance as Whiplash. He's just "angry guy with whips, a Russian accent, and he likes birds." Other bright spots in acting are Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury and Jon Faverou as Happy Hogan.
The writing is okay, with the comedy not being as strong as the first one. Whiplash wants a bird from Russia. That's a running joke from the movie. Tony acts like a huge jerk through most of the movie, and that's somewhat understandable because he is dying, but fighting with Rhodey took it to far, and is slightly out of character in my opinion. The effects are on par with the first one. The drones and suits all look great, and the suitcase suit up is the best part of the movie.
This movie was heavily criticized for just being set up for "The Avengers" with the introduction of Black Widow, Fury playing a big roll, Thor's hammer, and a model of Cap's shield. While that is true, it's the other stuff that you only know in hindsight that makes it cool. The senator looking to take the Iron Man suit is a B-Plot, until "Winter Soldier" when you find out he's actually a Hydra agent. The little kid in the Iron Man mask is a throwaway moment, but now we know it's Peter Parker under that mask. Things like this make the movie better with recent viewings.
In conclusion, I like Iron Man 2, with all of its faults. Upon release it was probably a 5/10, based mostly on its stellar cast. But now, with little things to add depth to the world, it's actually better. So lightning didn't strike twice, but it got somewhat close.
6/10