Unsurprisingly, Marvel isn’t even close to being done with us just yet. The comic behemoth, more than hitting its own stride as an ‘independent’ film production company, recently released its ‘Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 1—Avengers Assembled’ box set of titles, and the cavalcade now continues with Iron Man 3, the first installment of Phase 2.

Very much a sequel through and through, this third foray for Iron Man and company puts the plot in the backseat (surprise!), preferring instead to give free reign to impressive (and impressively loud) effects: the mightiest of which is Robert Downey Jr.’s now trademark cocky banter. However, Downey as Tony Stark is giving just a little too much snark for his own good here, with a script that has him actively mocking a young farm boy who gets caught up in the superhero’s good deeds. Presumably, this boy is a stand in for the ‘classic’ comic book fan—the demographic that initially gave these stories life—and maybe the writers are dismissing him in an attempt to say that comics have grown and evolved to boast a much wider appeal. But perhaps Iron Man and his writers should be just a touch kinder—it’s important not to forget where you came from.

On a happier note, IM3 gives the most screen time to Gwyneth Paltrow (as Pepper Potts) yet, an actress who should be working a lot more than she is. She even gets to do a little fighting and flying of her own, which leaves us to wonder what she could do with her own superhero script.

But the best part of Iron Man 3, by far, is the extended cameo by Sir Ben Kingsley, who reportedly agreed to be a part of this without having even read the script. Luckily he finds a way to milk it to the max, as a Bin Laden-inspired mystery villain who isn’t at all what he seems.

—Dan Heching