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Admit it, expectations for the first Iron Man movie was low (as low as the expectations we have for Punisher). Robert Downey Jr. was in an obscure place before this flick and now he’s the biggest star in the world thanks to his ass-kicking attitude and pimped out exoskeleton. So when questions are raised as to how to top the first film, that’s almost a no brainer.

Off the top of my head, I can say that Mandarin would be the next good villain for Tony Stark. He is Red Skull to Captain America, Loki to Thor, Kingpin to Daredevil, and Doctor Doom to the Fantastic 4. And for a second installment, those magic rings would sure come in handy.

WRONG! In a recent talk with Iron Man director Jon Favreau, MTV reports that Mandarin would be part of the second movie but… not really.

Favreau confirmed that Iron Man’s longtime nemesis, The Mandarin, will be a major villain in the franchise, though the character’s magic-based rings and the abilities they provided would likely need some tweaks to fit comfortably in the high-tech world established by the first film. He also hinted that Mandarin might not appear on-screen until the third film, in order to preserve some of the mystery and threat surrounding the Asian crime lord.

Whallah! That’s what I call brains, my chicken nuggets! The story of Mandarin is already one that’s compelling since a lot of Iron Man’s other enemies could’ve as easily worked for him. I think I like where this movie is headed. And for a fearless forecast, I think Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa would be great for the job. (Except he was already in the Elektra movie)

Jon Favreau is back as the director of Iron Man 2 and it looks like earlier rumors of Iron Man coming back in 2010 might just be a reality. Now, I dont want to get ahead of myself and say that it’s a done deal since there hadn’t been any formal announcements yet. (I’m not sure.. but IMDB already writes it as 2010)

I’m also wondering how Marvel could still fit this in with all their many plans. They’re set to release Punisher this December, Thor in 2010, Captain America and the Avengers movie in 2011. They’re also part of Spiderman 4, XMen Origins: Wolverine, XMen Origins: Magneto, and Antman

Aren’t they busy…

Perhaps one good thing about having Iron Man 2 back before the Avengers movie is that it could seal all the tie ups before Captain America shows up and completes the cast. In its last two movies, Marvel have had cameos that looks to build up ’til the Avengers movie. Samuel L. Jackson showed at the end of the Iron Man movie credits as Nick Fury and opened up about the “Avenger initiative,” while Robert Downet Jr. came prior to the credits of the Incredible Hulk to say that they were forming a team.