If the first two Iron Man films seemed like a non-traditional approach to the superhero formula, than the third entry in the trilogy went ahead and set the rulebook on fire completely. Jon Faverau was swapped out for veteran, witty screenwriter Shane Black, who decided to do a bait-and-switch with Ben Kingsley's supervillain and to keep Tony Stark out of his iconic suit of armour for as long as possible. Even the bit where Stark teams up with a precocious child wasn't done in the usual way. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wq7TWooGIk Black very nearly included another trope of heartwarming, schmaltzy cinema with Tony and Harley, with Stark encountering the young kid's bully. There was an entire subplot excised from the film that involves the douchey EJ and his pals making both their lives a living hell from the back of their ATVs, Stark actually rescuing the little turds from being crushed under a water tower, and sacrificing his own live to save a bully's. What a true American hero.
Tom Baker is the Comics Editor at WhatCulture! He's heard all the Doctor Who jokes, but not many about Randall and Hopkirk. He also blogs at http://communibearsilostate.wordpress.com/
