Don’t Miss New Rockstar’s MCU Breakdowns!
My comic book background trends toward ROM, the original Marvel Star Wars run, reprints of The Rocketeer, some Batman, and Comico’s Robotech series. SO, beyond the Marvel comics, when it comes to the MCU (or Marvel Cinematic Universe), the films are THE stories I’ve internalized about Iron Man, The Hulk, Thor, and Captain America.
ROM. Image: Marvel
It’s a wonderful way to live, by the way; each time I pick up a comic — nearly any comic — I learn or enjoy something new. It’s also why I am a sucker for video breakdowns of the MCU movies, which New Rockstars does expertly.
Robotech. Image: Comico
This week, Erik Voss, working from what he calls “the blue dungeon,” pulled together two awesome near play-by-plays from the genesis of the MCU: Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk.
Iron Man
Image: Marvel Studios
There are not many movies that I will sit down and watch on ANY device. Iron Man, the first movie (by production date) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, is one of those films. Not only did it mark a renaissance for Marvel’s comic book movies, but it also resuscitated the career of Robert Downey Jr.
Iron Man Director Jon Favreau
Iron Man launched the MCU Infinity Saga in a film that still feels present and of-the-moment, thanks to the ways the Marvel films have made details like “I Am Iron Man” and ACDC’s “Back in Black” iconic with callbacks in Avengers Endgame and Spider-Man Far From Home. Broadcasting from the Blue Dungeon Mark II, Erik Voss kicks off this special quarantine-edition breakdown series of an Infinity Saga rewatch — all 23 MCU films from Iron Man to Far From Home — with the one that started it all, and the Avenger that loved us 3000, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.). What secrets did Jon Favreau hide throughout the film that led him to become such a Hollywood heavyweight? How will the upcoming Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings pick up the long-lost loose threads of this film?
The Incredible Hulk
Image: Marvel Studios
I was a fan of Bill Bixby as Dr. “David” Banner and Lou Ferrigno as The Incredible Hulk in the eponymous series from the late 70s and 80s. Specifically, I remember Mr. Rogers visiting the set of the show back in the day.
https://youtu.be/ttEoetKGqGA
In particular, I remember how gentle Mr. Ferrigno seemed in that PBS program, flanked by Fred Rogers.
The Zen-seeking Bruce Banner in The Incredible Hulk (2008) reminds this viewer of that off-screen Ferrigno. And “the monster” of the modern Marvel production had an amazing character arc in the film; one that set up the massive success of Mark Ruffalo’s fantastic portrayal of Banner/Hulk.
New Rockstars set up the breakdown:
Iron Man launched the MCU Infinity Saga in a film that still feels present and of-the-moment, thanks to the ways the Marvel films have made details like “I Am Iron Man” and ACDC’s “Back in Black” iconic with callbacks in Avengers Endgame and Spider-Man Far From Home. Broadcasting from the Blue Dungeon Mark II, Erik Voss kicks off this special quarantine-edition breakdown series of an Infinity Saga rewatch — all 23 MCU films from Iron Man to Far From Home — with the one that started it all, and the Avenger that loved us 3000, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.). What secrets did Jon Favreau hide throughout the film that led him to become such a Hollywood heavyweight? How will the upcoming Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings pick up the long-lost loose threads of this film?
Here’s hoping that Voss continues to break down the MCU from the dungeon!
