No problem! 9 it is :)

Also, I agree on Bridges. He was a really measured and devious enemy, at least until the end when he contacts supervillain-itis 

I'm sure plenty of people will disagree with me as it's by no means the best MCU film but the one I always like rewatching the most is Age of Ultron.
Yes, I thought it was disappointing the first time round, but straight away found I enjoyed it more when I watched it a second time. I think this is because, as a bridging film, their a so many threads you dont spot the first time. Hulk and Black Widow made a bit more sense on second viewing, and I had found it quite jarring the first time around (the 'I adore you' line is still awful). You also see the first cracks appear in the team leading to Civil War.

Ill have to catch up since I am at my work... 4 weeks with no MCU movies... But for my next work period I will get the 4 movies corresponding to its 4 weeks so I can fight over my fav movie hehe

Sounds good! :)

Ah yes, Iron man. The movie that started it all. It was every bit as good as I remember it being nearly ten years ago. It did kinda follow the whole "Superhero origin story" tradition to a T. Waiting until about the hour mark for the hero to finally put on his suit, spending the first half of the film setting up his character and his motivations, and the latter half putting him face-to-face againts some supervillain that he happens to know quite personally, giving him the perfect oportunity to put his newfound abilities and convictions to the test. Feels like every (good) origin story goes with this basic pattern, but I guess if it ain't broke, why fix it?

I was kinda surprised that the effects still hold up really well today, too. I actually feel like the VFX in this film were more convincing than those in Spiderman Homecoming.

As far as the actual story goes, it was actually a great origin story. The pacing was great and it did an excellent job introducing both the characters and the world, plus the movie was friggin' hilarious to boot! My one issue is I feel like the main villain was kind of weak, and the climactic final battle was weaker still. I'm at a complete loss as to what the heck his plan was by the end of the film. So he wants to kill Tony. Great! Then what? He's just going to spend the rest of his life in a prison cell, as his crimes were exposed by that point. His suit is powerful, but not invincible. He wouldn't be able to defy the US Government with it. I kinda feel like underwhelming villains is the biggest problem with the Ironman "trilogy", but I suppose we'll get to that in a few weeks. Where these films really shine is in their fantastic sense of humor and the great chemistry between the members of the cast, imo.

Overall I give it an 8/10. I'm tempted to give it a 9 just because of all that it accomplished, but I need to leave some room for some other films that are coming up. I really can't say where it ranks on my list yet, but it's definitely in the top half.

Thanks guys! Will add your scores! I definitely think Iron Man will land in the top 5 or 6 when all is said and done — definitely one of the most consistent MCU movies :)

On a side note, I picked up a copy of The Incredible Hulk today so I’m ready to rock for next week ;)

Marvel most definitely has a villain problem. In hindsight, Stane does fall into this trope however since it was the beginning, I think it’s a tad more forgivable. Most of the bad taste comes from the final act with little motivation other than “being evil”. Bridges does an admirable job with the material he’s given, it just kind of fizzles by the end when all the motivation is lost.

For those unsure where to “rank” the film, I would suggest doing it as we go as it makes the process simpler and it’s fresher in your mind. Maybe your rankings now will surprise you from how you had them before. Thanks for all the great participation everyone!

True that. Superhero movies in general have a villain problem but it’s especially pronounced in the MCU. After Loki it just falls off a cliff. I guess Pierce and Toomes are good too, but nothing spectacular.

I think Civil War was Disney/Marvel saying to themselves “we have no good bad guys, so let’s just have them fight each other.”  

That’s what makes him a good villain. He’s a good character.

All too often superhero screenwriters don’t bother to give a villain a personality trait beyond vengeful or evil. They’re plot devices, not characters.

I think the quality of the villain is how much you invest into it. Look at Hackman and Nicholson. They got top billing over the hero of their films (which admittedly was due to star power and therefore led to bigger paychecks) and so the film spends almost as much time with them as the hero. Now the villain tends to be one small piece in the hero’s story. Loki benefits both from spending more than one film with him and also better writers writing for him and giving Hiddlleston a chance to cut loose. Obviously we’ll dive into this more as we go on, but it just seems Marvel has its successful formula and that does not include a villain that potentially outshines the hero