THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN (2007). Directed by Patrick Archibald and Jay Oliva. This full-length animated movie was released direct-to-video before the theatrical films Iron Man and Iron Man 2. Trouble begins when Anthony Stark (Marc Worden) initiates a project to raise an ancient Chinese city, along with the temple of an ancient warlord known as the Mandarin [actually Iron Man's arch-enemy in the comics]. In a revised origin story, Stark creates the Iron Man armor as a reaction not only to his heart being damaged in an explosion but to the threat caused by 4 "elementals" seeking rings of power that will help resuscitate the Mandarin. [Although it turns out that he had already developed numerous Iron Man suits in private.] A sub-plot deals with Stark's problems with his father Howard (John McCook) and the board of Stark Industries. There is also a pretty young lady, Lei Me (Gwendolyn Meo), who doesn't seem to know which side she's on. Although the animation and voice characterizations are acceptable [if not necessarily first-rate] The Invincible Iron Man suffers from a mediocre storyline. The elementals are uninteresting antagonists, and the Mandarin [now a battle with him might have been something] doesn't even show up until the movie's almost over, although there is a lively fight with a good-looking dragon. Stark's secretary Pepper Potts is given a British accent for some reason. Stark's status as a lover boy is given emphasis in Greg Johnson's screenplay with him cavorting in a hot tub with a gal and showing up late for an appointment sporting a lipstick kiss. For more on the comic book adventures of Iron Man see The Silver Age of Comics. For Iron Man paperback fiction click here.
Verdict: Big, noisy, and still a bit on the dull side. **.
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