MC2 Legacy: Did Mainframe Influence the MCU Iron Man?

 

This will hopefully be the first instalment in a new occasional series touching on the various instances of an MC2 character, concept or…whatever that is later used elsewhere. Basically, a record of the many times the MC2 has influenced the comic’s Main Marvel Universe, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a variety of animated series, etc.  

Many years ago, I wrote about the MC2’s Mainframe being loosely adapted in the Marvel animated series Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. which led to a follow up post and a short video. The episode, ‘Wheels of Fury’, debuted on the 29^th of March 2015 and concludes with the Mainframe Artificial Intelligence taking on a familiar yellow and black armoured form resembling his MC2 design.

 

But this wasn’t the first time we’d seen Iron Man himself in a yellow and black armoured suit. The Iron Man: Armored Adventures episode ‘Fun with Lasers’ which first aired on the 4^th of September 2009 debut’s the teenage Tony Stark’s ‘Space Armor’ when he uses it to reach a hijacked S.H.I.E.L.D. Orbital Station.

 

Some might argue that this is a reference to the ‘Iron Man Armor Model 42’ which was the first Iron Man Armor to feature the yellow and black colour scheme. However, the Model 42 didn’t debut until years later with Iron Man (Vol. 5) #1 in November 2012.

 

One of the dozens of Iron Man Armors seen in the climax of the 2013 Marvel Cinematic Universe movie Iron Man 3, the Mark 20 or Mark XX also known by the nickname ‘Python’ is believed to be inspired by the above-mentioned Model 42. Additionally, it also appears in the official Iron Man 3 mobile tie-in video game from Gameloft, thus making the leap to yet another medium.

 

Thus, I’d argue they are all in some way originally inspired by Ron Frenz and Rich Yanizeski’s frankly classic Mainframe designs which debuted all the way back in A-Next #1 from 1998. Here’s an excerpt of what co-creator and artist extraordinaire Ron Frenz had to say about the design of Mainframe on episode 744 of Adam Chapman’s Comic Shenanigan’s podcast:

 

‘We went through a couple of different designs, the early designs still had red and yellow in them and everything. I’ll be perfectly honest with you, what occurred to me about what I like about black and gold is that I’m from Pittsburgh and that’s the colour of all of our sports teams.’

 

Until the MC2 stops being the secret inspiration for the ‘House of Ideas’, I remain

 

frogoat

Iron Man 3 Movie Review

Last night I watched Marvel Studios latest film, Iron Man 3 with a group of friends and my partner. Let's skip straight to the bit everyone seems to want to know: No, the post-credits scene isn't integral to any future films, but it is funny....shwarma funny.

Shane Black directs this monster of a film, and the directorial differences between Jon Favreau (the director of the previous two films) and Shane are distinct yet similar in tone. Without spoiling to much in this review, the action scenes, along with some great character work by the cast make this a movie you won't want to look away from, even if you have a strong urge to pee. Which will suck for those with weak bladders, because this movie is great, but still clocks in at over two hours long.

Narrated by Robert Downey, Jr. in-character as Tony Stark, the film kicks off years before the first film, and ties a few events together, throwing a couple of new comic-concepts into the mix including AIM and the Extremis enhancile and giving us a nice set up for the rest of the film, as well as reminding us Tony can be a bit of dick.

I'll attempt to avoid most major plot points, but I can't review this film without mentioning in passing what a brilliant play on expectations this film delivers with the Mandarin. Ben Kingsley turns in a surprising performance, as do Guy Pearce, James Badge Dale and Rebecca Hall. As a matter of fact, the casting in this film is virtually flawless, and considering this film has an extended period featuring Tony interacting with a child actor (Ty Simpkins), that's impressive.

This film toys with some very dark stuff for a Marvel film, but manages to effectively dance along the edge, throwing in some well timed humor when things get too grim. Concerned with breaking Tony Stark down to his core, this third film really nails some home truths about who he is, with the occasional glimpse of something amiss behind his face and eccentricities. Apparently the events of The Avengers has taken it's toll.

All in all, highly recommended. This film wont change your life, but it's still darn good fun to watch and you'll be riveted to your seat. Until Stan stops making cameos, I remain

frogoat