It's not as good as the first one, but to be fair, Favreau set a pretty high bar for himself. Slow to start but you're satisfied enough in the end. The challenge with any sequel is the story as the origin of the character has pretty much been established. But the creative team does a nice job of trying to add a few new wrinkles. Mickey Rourke was convincing in the part but suffered from not enough screen time. Scarlett Johanssen is gorgeous in this film, but aside from the sex appeal you wonder why she really needs to be in the movie. Don Cheadle is a down grade from Terrence Howard. Robert Downey Jr. plays this part so well, with such ease, that even when he's unlikeable, he's likeable. You get what you pay for, high end VFX, great sound, and some flashy directing. B+