Coming Attractions: IRON MAN 2 DVD EXPECTED THIS OCTOBER

Although Iron Man 2's world premiere in late April had to be moved from London to Los Angeles thanks to travel complications caused by the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajokull, the sequel did make it into European theaters a good week before its North American debut. So in a way it makes sense that while no official word on an Iron Man 2 DVD has come from Paramount or Marvel Studios, the movie is already up on Amazon Germany for pre-order with a 7th October release date.

In addition to a single DVD release, Amazon Germany also lists a Blu-ray as well as a limited edition Iron Man 2 Steelbook for the 07 October date - and with details like those, it's a date we find difficult to doubt.  The only questions remaining are what extra fans can expect to find when Iron Man 2 does hit, and if American fans will have to wait a bit longer for a heavy metal fix than their European counterparts.  Considering the film made Europe first, it's altogether reasonable the DVD might, too.

As far the extras, the only clues fans have so far came from Iron Man 2 director Jon Favreau, who noted just before the Los Angeles premiere that behind the scenes cameras 'were always running' and the future DVD should include several featurettes and a robust commentary.

Abbracadabbling will keep dabblers up to date with Iron Man 2 DVD news as it hits, so stick around...! 

OUR THANKS TO DEN OF GEEK FOR THE TIP.

IRON MAN Is An Abbracadabbler...Are You???

Get Current: AC/DC's IRON MAN 2 Album Is Out Today And It's An Alternating Mix of Good and Bad

When it comes to heavy metal, there's none heavier than the armored Avenger most folks call Iron Man.  The same can definitely be said about one of our longtime rock 'n roll faves, AC/DC, so it makes perfect sense that the they're the guys who'll be amping up Iron Man 2's soundtrack when the blockbuster movie opens in May.

The 15-track album - available on CD, double LP, or as a Deluxe Collector's set (pictured below) - is out today from Columbia Records, although pre-orders have been taken through Wal-Mart and Amazon.com  since Marvel first announced their Iron Man 2/AC-DC partnership in January.   The soundtrack includes their greatest hit (also featured in the first Iron Man film) Back In Black, plus Highway to Hell and 13 other classic AC/DC songs selected from ten of the band’s studio albums, ranging from 1976 to 2008.  The group also filmed a new video for their soundtrack's first single, Shoot To Thrill,  back in December 2009  while in Buenos Aires for their Black Ice World Tour. 

(The video, which can be found on You Tube [here] incorporates exclusive footage from  Iron Man 2, made its debut earlier this year.  Shoot To Thrill was originally recorded for the band's 50-million selling album Back In Black, one of the best selling albums of all time.)

We think it's pretty cool that an iconic band like AC/DC involved themselves with superhero cinema, yet another testament that the group's still going strong after two lead singers, twenty albums, and over four decades on the rock circuit.   Iron Man 2 marks AC/DC's  second soundtrack compilation; the first, Who Made Who, was completed  in the mid-1980's for the Stephen King movie Maximum Overdrive.

But unlike Who Made Who, AC/DC's Marvel movie album doesn't offer fans any new tracks. The album does provide a great survey of the band's high-energy sound and gives great tracks from both Bon Scott and Brian Johnson, but ardent listeners won't find any new material or maybe any reason to even purchase the soundtrack.  Even one new song would've added considerably to their newest release,  giving AC/DC's fans that don't dote on Iron-clad superheroes a reason to go out and buy.

Movie and comics fans who don't rock out should find the soundtrack a fun time, even if die-hard AC/DC'er's might be a bit bored.  But with songs like Cold Hearted Man, TNT, Have a Drink On Me, Guns For Hire, Evil Walks, and even a track titled War Machine,  it's almost as if the band's been channeling Tony Stark and his team for decades. The tracks are perfect fits for Jon Favreau's film -- a fact that certainly didn't escape his notice from before the first film hit in 2008 --  so we almost understand why AC/DC may have thought they didn't need any new sounds for his film's soundtrack.

The Iron Man 2 soundtrack is just one more example of the fantastic marketing machine wielded by Marvel; as far as they and Iron Man fans are concerned, the album's a spot-on tie-in that fits their latest film seamlessly. For Columbia Records, AC/DC, and legions of rockers, maybe not so much.  Rock and roll music may find a few new fans from the electric group's latest release, but the band and its managers missed all the benefits of this great cross-promotional opportunity by forgetting the fans who have followed them the longest. 

Premiering on 07 May 2010, Iron Man 2 is one of a continuing slate of films being produced by Marvel Studios based on the Marvel characters, including Thor on May 6, 2011, The First Avenger: Captain America on July 22, 2011 and The Avengers on May 4, 2012.  

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AC/DC's official website is [here]. Record shoppers wanting to be the proud owner of Iron Man 2's Deluxe CD/DVD Collector's Set need to visit Sony Music Digital's online specialty shop [here].

EXCLUSIVE: IRON MAN 2 Official Trailer Is Here!

Has abbracadabbling got a surprise for you! Actually, we were pretty damn shocked ourselves when this baby came our way. And here we said we were wrapping up the Marvel movie bloggage last night! But good superheroes never quit, and neither do we. Without further delay, your favorite comicsblog is proud to present the first and still unreleased but all-together official trailer to Marvel Studio's IRON MAN 2!!

Marvel UPDATES: IRON MAN's Virus Continues! Sam Jackson Is 'Furious' with THOR

Believe it or not, we have yet to exhaust our Marvel movie news, but tonight's blog should put Iron Man 2 and Thor to bed -- at least until Christmas Day, when second Iron Man's first trailer opens ahead of Robert Downey, Jr.'s new Sherlock Holmes. However, we have told a few friends they'll see a short but sweet Black Widow bio on the comicsblog this week - so keep your eyes peeled, Scarlet Johansson groupies.

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Dabblers, y'all better buckle in. What could've been an isolated incident when we blogged it only a few days ago is now looking like it's here to stay, and if you haven't given the first round of Iron Man 2's viral marketing campaign a closer look, trek back down the comicsblog and do that now.

A second viral bit hit the web on Monday, popping up on Screen Rant, followed today by a third clue this morning on CHUD. Scrutinizers of the pics, as well as last week's Whiplash teaser,are now referring to them as clues, as each of the images appears to be emphasizing a different word within it. This weekend's clue called attention to the word 'SECRET', while Monday's has highlighted the "STARK." This morning's faux-photo puts "CONFESSION" front and center.

Iron Man 2 : Viral Specimen #2

Iron Man 2 : Viral Specimen #3

If you jump the pics above, you'll get a better look at Monday's image-- all attention seems to be drawn to the photo below 'Walking on Air,' and you can see someone dressed in a Roman kilt (or something similar) apparently doing just that. But whether that's also a clue we're meant to find or not is anyone's guess. Screen Rant's posted several theories plus tons of feedback postulating on what these three clues may mean, so you might want to check it out. You'll know where to go at the link. [Link]

Unless we're alerted to some earth-shattering revelation tied to Iron Man 2's viral campaign, we've decided to refrain from posting future clues to the comicsblog. A t this rate, we're expecting a new clue to show up somewhere every day, and unless one suddenly appears in our in-box, we'll let interested dabblers pursue this mystery on the their own!

Yes, you know who that is. That's the guy from your home movies....err, and our's, too. No joke -- Samuel L. Jackson's such a prolific actor that he and an unknown collie be in the photo of the next picture frame we buy at Wal-Mart! Seriously, though, we dig the dude, and we can all rest a bit easier now that the 'I's' have been dotted and the 'T's' crossed, as Marvel has confirmed once and for all that Mr. Jackson will be reprising his role as SHIELD Col. Nick Fury in Kenneth Branagh's Thor.

Jackson's been signed to a multi-picture deal, as his Fury will appear in every Marvel movie up to and including 2013's Avengers motion picture. It's possible that he'll even play the lead in an all Nick Fury movie, although Marvel Studios has only speculated on that possibility. But the comics publisher did recently add Jackson's name to the cast on their Thor hub-site , and the larger picture gets even bigger, one day at a time.

Marvel also posted a this poster at the Thor hub, which showcases Thor artist Olivier Coipel's interlocking cover art from the recent six-issue Thor limited series, Tales of Asgard. You can't tell by looking at it, but the poster's actually made of vinyl, and stretches over 10 feet wide. Coipel's an amazing illustrator, and his Thor work has never been less than impressive. He's captured 63 different Asgardians in the piece - which is a helluva closer to being mural-sized than poster-sized -- which makes this Sistine Chapel rival more than an ample primer for the feature film.

Marvel's also created an ENORMOUS legend to help fans and film followers identify each one of the Norse gods Coipel's portrayed. We decided against posting to abbracadabbling, as no amount of enlargement we could offer would give you the close-up that Marvel can. You'll find Marvel's legend -- and Coipel's fantastically drawn heroes of myth -- at the link! [Link] (BTW, interested shoppers who may want to buy their own ten feet of Thor should see their local comics retailer.)

However...! We did go through the trouble to pull up some great scans of Thor's very first comic book appearance, just in case a few of you might enjoy a flashback to the Norse God of Thunder's humble beginnings. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby introduced Thor in August of 1962, inside the pages of Journey Into Mystery #83. The comic had long been the home of horror stories, monsters, and aliens, but when superheroes once again became popular and the Silver Age of Comics began, Journey Into Mystery shifted its focus to Thor's adventures. Thor headlined Journey through Issue #125, after which the comic was retitled The Mighty Thor.

UPDATE:Iron Man 2 Viral Marketing Infects The Web

Just as we thought we'd done justice to our discussion of Marvel superhero movies, we received word that Paramount Pictures sent our comicsblog neighbor, Superhero Hype, what looks to us like a fictional newspaper clipping reporting on Tony Stark's decision to out himself as Iron Man. If you'll recall, that was one of the pivotal events of metal-head's first movie, and the repercussions of that decision are sure to be felt in the May sequel. It's almost impossible to read as we've got it here, but in short, the newspaper article summarizes many of the main events from the first film, and it also repeats the newspaper imagery you may have noticed from the Whiplash teaser we featured here earlier. It's a motif if we've ever seen on, and believe us, we have. Superhero Hype has a really wonderful over-sized image of the viral bit, and you can check it out on their site. It's possible there may be other clues hidden within the photo that we overlooked, and we'd be so proud if one of our dabblers gleaned something the Big Boys missed. Find it at the [Link].

Five for Friday: THOR Or...?

Despite my personal preferences for both Ryan Reynolds and Green Lantern, the intergalactic DC Comics' superhero he'll be portraying when the character shines onto the Silver Screen in 2011, the buzz around town (yes, even a hamlet like Springfield has its share of buzz) is all about Thor, God of Thunder. Other than Reynolds, the Lantern folks have yet to shed any light on the film's casting, whereas Thor's casting to date has Marvel and DC fans alike waiting anxiously, their eyes and ears peeled for any hints of story or event the smallest glimpse of costuming that might leak as the film prepares to begin principle photography next month.

Marvel's clearly looking forward to pitting Thor against DC Entertainment's Green Lantern, as both movies are set to open within just one month of each other. While DC and parent company Warner Bros are clearly looking for a Dark Knight repeat with Lantern, Marvel's stated from its actions if not its words that Thor will not only be their version of last summer's billion dollar Batman sequel, it will also surpass it.

Those are lofty assertions, and while they've never been said, Thor's impressive and formidable cast more than speaks for itself in an emphatic statement powerfully punctuated by the film's director, Kenneth Branagh. Thor stars Chris Hemsworth as the sinewy blonde God of Thunder, with Natalie Portman as leading lady Jane Foster, Thor's human love interest. His immortal love interest, the Goddess Sif, will be portrayed by Jaimie Alexander, while Sir Anthony Hopkins presides as the Odin, ruler of Asgard, the Norse version of Mount Olympus. Idris Elba, Stellan Skarsgard, Stuart Townsend, and Colm Feore round out the cast.

But Thor's casting -- as well as exuberant and unspecific Tweets of high praise coming from Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada and Avengers scribe writer Brian Michael Bendis -- is, so far, the only solid stuff around for the movie's building fan base to sink its collective teeth into. And if the real goods aren't there, comics fans prove time and again that they're not only imaginative, but creative and resourceful as well.

Judging by two visuals we've got on the blog here, fandom's best are already hard at work. The Thor teaser (above) made its rounds on the blogosphere about a month back, until the boys at Earth's Mightiest [Link] finally proved it to be less than the genuine article. And while that's really future-Thor Chris Hemsworth below, the faux-photo has been entirely 'imaged' by someone with mad computer skills.

While we don't know who's responsible for the little masterpiece, they've undoubtedly paid close attention to their Thor comics. Nevertheless, if Quesada and Bendis can be trusted, we're going with something a little different when it comes to Hemsworth's final look for the Thor feature. Just like The X-Men's bright spandex became black leather bodysuits back in 2000, Thor's costuming is likely to take a similar route. Leather tunics just aren't hip for 2011, and the Thunder God's silvery-winged helmet would be a blocking nightmare. And unlike Batman and Superman, Thor's not married to his cape. The end result: fashionably closer to Bryan Hitch's Ultimate Thor (minus the glowing chest medallions) than Jack Kirby's iconic ensemble.

What do you guys think? Is this fan fantasy right on the money, or will Branagh's costume designers catch us al off-guard? And is Thor going to be the ultimate hit for Marvel that we're predicting, or will Green Lantern's emerald light outshine Thor's bid as a box office deity? Leave us your Back Issues, talk back, and make it loud! abbracadabbling wants to hear what you've got to say!

No matter who's right, we'll all find out once Thor's first real teaser floods the web. No word yet on that action, but from where I'm sitting, Iron Man 2's May premiere smells like the perfect opportunity for Marvel to roll out the official fanfare. Stay tuned for more Thor movie news!!

IRON MAN 2: Mickey Rourke Gets Whipped

While more people hit their local theaters in the summer compared to the relatively few weeks of the Holiday movie season, the Thanksgiving through New Year's time period is provides a less dispersed and far more attentive audience. It's no surprise, then, that Hollywood's many marketing machines have been turning out teasers for their future blockbuster hopefuls in rapid-fire succession.

We brought you two new Iron Man 2 posters just last week, and yesterday Paramount Studios and Marvel Entertainment surprised us again by releasing their third promo for the superhero sequel. While the earlier posters gave us a chance to see leading man Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr) in his Iron Man suit solo as well as standing back-to-back with his battle-armored buddy War Machine, this newest tease offers the first look at one of the movie's two villains, Mickey Rourke's Whiplash.

Top-tier comic book characters like Superman, Batman, The Joker, and Spider-Man come with a lot of baggage -- personalities and histories defined by years of storyline continuity and just as much public exposure. Considering that the celebrities studios approach to play these characters also cart around super-sized personas, the on-screen mix of the two can prove to be anywhere from irritating to downright disastrous.

Aside from the Grade-A acting and over-the-top special effects, the key to Iron Man's success is that the film's deftly managed to sidestep these pitfalls, owing much to the titular character's relatively unknown status. Hollywood's biggest names are on-board, but they're not struggling with characters already too-well formed in the minds of the viewing public.

In this regard, Rourke has Carte Blanche with Whiplash. While an Iron Man villain since the character debuted in the Marvel comic Tales of Suspense #97 back in 1968, Whiplash never transcended his status as a background player, one of Marvel's 5000-strong character pantheon available for use by comic writers in need of that month's super villain. Alias Mark Scarlotti, Whiplash is defeated early on by Tony Stark aka Iron Man, and subsequently changes his name to Backlash. He's a pawn of the Chicago mob and a failed second rate super-villain. Ultimately, Stark's Iron Man armor, under its own control and not at Tony's direction, inexplicably beats Scarlotti to a pulp and kills him.

How Jan Favreau's film handles Rourke's character -- and that of Justin Hammer, the movie's second villain --will be interesting, to say the least. The director and studio executives have worked very closely with Marvel's writers - most notably current Iron Man scribe Matt Fraction -- to ensure that their movie's don't stray too far off the comic book course. Likely, Rourke's Whiplash won't live to see Iron Man 3, but it's highly doubtful that it will be at the hands of a sentient suit of Stark armor. I would expect a name change to Backlash, however, as well as a realistic twist on the character's origins that brings him closer to Tony Stark - perhaps as a victim of Stark war technology -- than his comic book doppelganger. And as Mickey Rourke's never looked his best in purple, chances are the costume up top is the only one we're going to see when Iron Man 2 opens in theaters May 7th, 2010.

IRON MAN 2: Teasing Us Twice

Last Monday, Marvel Studios and Paramount Pictures released their first teaser posters for Iron Man 2. The comics blogosphere -- including abbracadabbling -- was (happily) inundated with the film's US theatrical teaser (above), though only a few sites were on the receiving end of the international teaser, which we've got for you below. Paramount also threw a few additional photos of cast of crew out to the net, but it's the teasers that folks are talking about. The US poster gives us a great look at Iron Man's brother-in-arms, War Machine, so we're psyched -- how about you?

We've also heard that the movie's first official US trailer will debut (!) before leading man Robert Downey Jr's Holmes, which will be in theaters in just three weeks. Holmes opens on Christmas Day -- Iron Man 2 is scheduled for May 7th, 2010.

Iron Man 2 stars Downey, Jr as Tony Stark / Iron Man, Mickey Rourke as Whiplash, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Scarlett Johansson as The Black Widow, and Don Cheadle as Rhodey aka War Hammer. The movie's directed by Jon Favreau, and it's the first of Marvel's trio of lead-in features to 2013's super-anticipated Avengers. Thanks to our buddies at ComicBookMovie.com for the head's up. [Link]