Tony Stark shows his sensitive side in Iron Man 3
“It may sound absurd, but won’t you concede that even heroes have the right to bleed. It’s not easy to be me.” from SUPERMAN by Five for Fighting
This time around Tony Stark aka IRON MAN can’t keep his quips as light as he used to. After his recent adventures in New York with the Avengers, Tony starts feeling the weight of the too-close-to-death clashes in his life. This Tony is feeling feelings and it’s gumming up his works, so to speak.
And I loved that about this outing. Tony Stark is grown up. He’s the man beneath the can’t-touch-this shell, facing the costs of winning or losing. He wants to keep what really matters, and who – Pepper Potts.Tony admits how deeply he feels about her and the worthlessness of his life without her. One of my favorite scenes. But Tony hasn’t thrown in the wrench yet; the movie unspools with some really cool Stark bad-ass touches. Villains sprout up and deflect or deflate as fast as the suit’s thrusters. There was action to spare, with special effects that worked overtime. Well, except for the plane rescue; looked like the producers made cutbacks there although it was certainly not predictable. Especially loved the stark (oh, pun) switch from sunny Cal to wintry whiteness.
Big caveats to Ben Kingsley. I love him anyway but he was so off his lofty acting grid yet made it all hang together. His final scene was just a masterful touch. Big love to Gwyneth Paltrow, back in heels and peeling them off. Her Pepper is a perfect fit for Tony, and their screen chem is still magic on the third round. Don Cheadle got to go commando without the suit and that always makes my movie day. Oh, and as for the after-credits burn: I left with a big smile.
So if I haven’t said it, I loved IRON MAN 3. Fast, crunchy, funny and touchy-feely; a great ride especially on the rainy day that I saw it. If there’s a vote, I’m down for IRON MAN 4.
Urban Mage Page 
I was very pleased to see them build from Tony Stark’s reaction to what happened in The Avengers and continue to show that superheroes movies can tell different kinds of stories.
Thanks for making a visit to my home, Dr. Langley. Totally agree that we should sneak a peak at the moments when even heroes show they are basically human, too. Tony’s mini-meltdowns added enticing layers that made him even more special as the man behind the iron mask.