Iron Man 2, Easter Eggs, and More!

After recently watching Iron Man 2 for the second time, I came across a few things. The first was a large amount of Easter eggs for upcoming movies which actually made me jump in my seat.

First, a little back story:

Iron Man 2 is a direct followup to Iron Man which came out in 2008. In the first film we are introduced to the rich and famous Tony Stark who owns Stark Industries, one of the top weapon manufacturers in the world. Stark is kidnapped while visiting the Middle East by the terrorist organization The Ten Rings. While in captivity, Stark makes an ally out of Dr. Yinsen, a fellow captive. The Ten Rings demand that Stark create missiles for them using the tools they supply. He agrees but, like most Marvel heroes, is smart enough to get away with not working with the bad guys. He builds the first Iron Man suit by using the arch reactor in his chest that is keeping him alive. The rest of the film is about his struggle with the manager of his company and keeping his identity a secret. SPOILER: At the end of the movie he announces to the public that he is Iron Man. Awesome way to end the film.

Iron Man 2 starts out by introducing a new villain, Whiplash, who is an all around bad-ass. The film revolves mostly around an ailing Tony Stark, who's health is fading due to the palladium core in his arch reactor, and introduces some very interesting new characters. I will try not to get into the plot any farther because it's an awesome flick and I think everyone should go see it.

Easter eggs are when a director deliberately puts something in a film or has a character say something to hint at another movie or a future film. Iron Man 2 is chalk full of these. Here's my nifty little list for all of you good kids:

Easter Egg # 1: The Black Widow

The introduction of Black Widow aka Natasha Romanoff or "Natalie" as a S.H.I.E.L.D agent will definitely play a manger part in the future. There have been rumors that Scarlett Johansson's character will be in The Avengers film set to come out in 2012. But remember, that's just a rumor.

Easter Egg # 2: Captain America's Shield

This you have to pay very close attention to.

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While Stark is working in his lab, Agent Phil Coulson stumbles upon this little baby. It wasn't the fact that it looks so similar to the Captain's shield, it's more the reaction that Coulson gave Stark when he picked it up. This isn't exactly how it goes, but obviously I don't have a script on hand.

Coulson: What's this?

Stark: That's it!

Coulson: You know what this is?! How do you know what this is!?

stark: Give it to me.

He then proceeds to use it as a level. What struck me as interesting was how defensive Phil Coulson gets when Stark points out the shield as something recognizable. Hint hint? I do believe so!

Easter Egg #3: The Incredible Hulk

This is something that took me a long time to catch. Actually, it took me a second watch of the movie to catch but you get my drift.

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During this particular scene it shows a news cast from what looks to be New York. Now, I haven't personally seen The Incredible Hulk but I did a little digging and found out that the final scene is shot at a college in NYC. Oh snap.

Easter Egg #4: Namor?

I personally don't know much about this underwater super hero. What I do know is that there are some interesting hints towards this Prince of Atlantis. Oracle is a company owned by Namor. During the final scenes of the film, Iron Man and War Machine are fighting drones and Whiplash inside of a large glass dome. While flying into the dome, serious Marvel fans catch a glimpse of the Oracle logo. This would make a lot of sense because Oracle is a major sponsor to environmental care. Don't believe me? Take a look.

Easter Egg #5: The Avengers

The theme of the soon to be Avengers is hinted at many times throughout this film. Both of the Eater eggs listed above are hints at the Avengers because both the Hulk and Captain America were a part of the avengers which also included Iron Man, Thor and a few others that I will get to a little later. During the scene where Stark is having a private meeting with Nick Furry, he picks up a folder that says "The Avengers Initiative". They really can't lay it out any more obviously. Marvel has already announced the creation of an Avengers film. The film will follow soon after the wrap up of Captain America: The First Avenger.

Easter Egg #6: THOR'S HAMMER!

For those cool kids out there that stayed after the credits of Iron Man 2, you know what I am talking about. Coulson tells Star that he has to go do some "secret business" out in New Mexico. What is that secret business you might ask? Oh, it's pretty sick. After the credits you see Coulson driving in the desert lands of New Mexico. He stops and gets out of his car, walking up on a ledge and looking out on a huge crater. He picks up his cell phone, pushes a button and utters the beautiful words "Sir, we found it." I am not going to lie to you guys, when the camera panned out and reviled a huge hammer, I jumped and cheered in my seat. The people around me were giving me some pretty strange looks but it was totally worth it. Marvel has a way of making me stick around for the credits after every movie of theirs and I am never disappointed. IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN IRON MAN 2 YET REMEMBER TO STAY AFTER THE CREDITS. I can't describe in words the awesomeness of that moment. You've just got to see it.

Now, I would like to pose an open question. It is obvious at this point that a lot is going on all at the same time; The Hulk has his powers, Iron Man has his suit, Captain America is getting his movie and Thor's hammer is found in New Mexico. We all understand that Marvel is trying to make all these worlds combine, right? If that's going on then this is where I get confused. In the X-Men universe, mutants are a big deal. A really, really big deal. This world is also a part of the Marvel universe, isn't it? Why is it that there has been no hints towards mutants in any of the Marvel films that weren't X-Men films? It has been established in the comic book that Wolverine is an on-off Avenger. Here's my question:

How is Marvel going to make all these worlds come together without causing the end of the world? Is the X-Men universe the same as the Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and the Hulk's?

Oh Marvel, you and your way of confusing me. It's probably what keeps me and thousands of other movie fans coming back for more!

*Images from: The Flick Cast
Information from: The Flick Cast, Comic Book Movie, IMDB, and Wikipedia.