Ten rings to rule them all...

[Endeavor]

FYI, in Comics continuity The Mandarin's rings aren't magical. Their powers stem from ancient alien tech.

[747]

If we don't get beams from rings, then I hope Mandarin has, well some other offensive powers, other than regular firearms.

[metaphysician]

Originally Posted by Endeavor

FYI, in Comics continuity The Mandarin's rings aren't magical. Their powers stem from ancient alien tech.

Unless its been changed again, actually, they *are* magic. The alien Malkuens didn't create them either, they just knew and used them as ancient magical artifacts.

That may have been retconned again, though.

[MahvelBaby!]

I hope the rings do somethng powerful just something, this IM movie needs a better end battle to the last 2.

[cherokeesam]

Originally Posted by Endeavor

FYI, in Comics continuity The Mandarin's rings aren't magical. Their powers stem from ancient alien tech.

FYI, that post I just made *also* indicated that Feige said that MCU Mandarin's rings aren't alien tech, either.

[Zinc Saucier]

It looks like the Persian writing on the rings is the same as the writing on the Ten Rings flag in the first film:




The ring that Raza wore in the first film also had the writing on it:

[M-2]

Originally Posted by cherokeesam

FYI, that post I just made *also* indicated that Feige said that MCU Mandarin's rings aren't alien tech, either.

I wonder if it will be based on some hi-tech ish.. maybe allowing Mandarin to take control of Iron Man's suits or something like that...

Because we see Iron Man pull Pepper off Tony, we see the IM kneeling over Tony and the we see Iron Man's hand smash through the plane before blasting a guard, and probably causing the whole in the side of the plane...

So my theory is Dr. Killain (Guy Pearce) implants Tony with the Extremis virus but sells some info to Mandarin on how it operates. Mandarin then uses this new knowledge to gain control of the suit, but Tony can override his control, which we can see when Tony saves the passengers.

So Maybe the rings give him that ability or maybe the rings are just symbolic... but if Tony has to make 47 Armours to take on the Mandarin, then he must have some serious firepower of his own.

[cherokeesam]

That's the thing --- I think the rings *do* have powers, but they're not magical or alien. They're (Extremis) nanotech.

Your theory about Killian giving Mandarin the source code to control Tony's Extremis armor makes sense, too, but I still think that's a case of the armor becoming sentient, as we saw in that story arc in the comics back in 2000 or so.

I've not been keeping up with all the tiny details that differentiate each MCU armor from the other, but can someone who does tell what model that is that shows the sentience --- i.e., the one crouching over Pepper, and later over Stark? To my untrained eye, it looks like the original one from IM1...

[M-2]

Mmm interesting, i never knew Iron Man's armour started doing its own thing... Thats pretty cool...

Could this be the first step to get to Ultron?? Just think about Tony makes a sentient armour by mistake, he reads one of Pym's thesis.. figures with his money and input, they can create a full functioning sophisticated Iron-Man-Robot-Cop thing called Ultron...

Anyways heres the screenshots from those scenes you spoke about

Spoiler!!! Click to Read!:

Spoiler!!! Click to Read!:

I think its safe to say its new armour

[Surfer]

Originally Posted by M-2

Mmm interesting, i never knew Iron Man's armour started doing its own thing... Thats pretty cool...

Could this be the first step to get to Ultron?? Just think about Tony makes a sentient armour by mistake, he reads one of Pym's thesis.. figures with his money and input, they can create a full functioning sophisticated Iron-Man-Robot-Cop thing called Ultron...

Anyways heres the screenshots from those scenes you spoke about

Spoiler!!! Click to Read!:

Spoiler!!! Click to Read!:

I think its safe to say its new armour

Personally I hate the idea of sentient armor in this movie. I would greatly prefer that they leave the sentient Armor / Robot idea for Ultron to make him more unique, as well as that they give the credit for the technology to the proper character (PYM).

I think what I would rather see is that Tony has the extremis virus and is still trying to adjust to this new technology which connects his thoughts to his armor. So, I feel like during sleep he would still continue to control the suit, on a subconscious level.

Also, to me I feel like the part where the suit is crouched over Tony and the part where the suit is crouched over Pepper in the bed could very well be part of the same scene, except that the part where the suit is crouched over Tony he is actually in this subconscious nightmare (where perhaps he does believe the armor has a life of it's own), meanwhile in the conscious world Pepper sees Tony is having a nightmare and tries to wake him as the Armor is more or less performing the thoughts that Tony is having in the nightmare, except not quite perfectly. We already know Tony at first has trouble adjusting to the virus and using the extremis armor, as was previously shown in the picture of the hall of armors with the broken glass and helmet knocked off, so to me this scenario makes the most sense.

Just my thoughts of course though.

Surfer

[Surfer]

Originally Posted by Zinc Saucier

It looks like the Persian writing on the rings is the same as the writing on the Ten Rings flag in the first film:




The ring that Raza wore in the first film also had the writing on it:

Yeah, I would say there is definitely a connection there which is really cool and it is nice that it is tying into part 1 and coming full circle.

I just hope the rings have some powers and that they are more then just symbolic. I mean to me the characters powers define them possibly even more then their story. I say this because if a person new to comics picks up a comic book today with Mandarin battling Iron Man they will not necessarilly know his history or motives but it's his powers that will captivate them and interest them most. Then perhaps after being excited about the character they would take the time to look into his history and motives. So, to not have the rings do something I think would be a bad call on Marvel's part. However, they have not really failed me at least not majorly yet), so I will continue to have faith they will do the character justice.

Surfer

[Endeavor]

Originally Posted by cherokeesam

FYI, that post I just made *also* indicated that Feige said that MCU Mandarin's rings aren't alien tech, either.

I know I wasn't referencing your comment when I made mine.

The retcon thing somebody else mentioned, as far as I know the last established continuity is that they're tech. But they rewrite things so much it might be back to being magic...

[cherokeesam]

Originally Posted by Surfer

Personally I hate the idea of sentient armor in this movie. I would greatly prefer that they leave the sentient Armor / Robot idea for Ultron to make him more unique, as well as that they give the credit for the technology to the proper character (PYM).

I think what I would rather see is that Tony has the extremis virus and is still trying to adjust to this new technology which connects his thoughts to his armor. So, I feel like during sleep he would still continue to control the suit, on a subconscious level.

Also, to me I feel like the part where the suit is crouched over Tony and the part where the suit is crouched over Pepper in the bed could very well be part of the same scene, except that the part where the suit is crouched over Tony he is actually in this subconscious nightmare (where perhaps he does believe the armor has a life of it's own), meanwhile in the conscious world Pepper sees Tony is having a nightmare and tries to wake him as the Armor is more or less performing the thoughts that Tony is having in the nightmare, except not quite perfectly. We already know Tony at first has trouble adjusting to the virus and using the extremis armor, as was previously shown in the picture of the hall of armors with the broken glass and helmet knocked off, so to me this scenario makes the most sense.

Just my thoughts of course though.

Surfer

I'd hate for the sentient/controlled armor scenes to be dream sequences --- that's lame, and even lamer to try to drum up hype for dream sequences in a trailer. It's bait 'n' switch.

No, M-2's theory makes the most sense to me now: Tony gets the Extremis tech from Killian, thinking it's the Next Big Thing; but unbeknownst to Stark, the Extremis armor can be remotely controlled by Mandarin. The "nightmare" sequence involves Mandarin powering up the Extremis armor to go wandering around and scout out Stark's mansion in the middle of the night, and when he spots Pepper there, he moves the armor in for a closer look....

But I still think the Sentient Armor angle can be worked in, as that might be Stark's initial reaction to the situation --- he thinks the tech is so advanced that it's become self-aware, when in actuality it's simply being manipulated from afar by Mandarin.

[chamber-music]

Wasn't there a storyline in the comics in which Tony's armor came alive?

[chamber-music]

In the most recent Iron Man comics Mandarin's rings are the souls of Aliens, they talk to Mandarin and he serves them.

Mandarin kidnapped Tony so that he would build him ten giant Titanomechs robots to serve as new bodies for the alien souls of his rings.

[M-2]

Originally Posted by cherokeesam

I'd hate for the sentient/controlled armor scenes to be dream sequences --- that's lame, and even lamer to try to drum up hype for dream sequences in a trailer. It's bait 'n' switch.

No, M-2's theory makes the most sense to me now: Tony gets the Extremis tech from Killian, thinking it's the Next Big Thing; but unbeknownst to Stark, the Extremis armor can be remotely controlled by Mandarin. The "nightmare" sequence involves Mandarin powering up the Extremis armor to go wandering around and scout out Stark's mansion in the middle of the night, and when he spots Pepper there, he moves the armor in for a closer look....

But I still think the Sentient Armor angle can be worked in, as that might be Stark's initial reaction to the situation --- he thinks the tech is so advanced that it's become self-aware, when in actuality it's simply being manipulated from afar by Mandarin.

After watching the trailer again, I have to say I kinda like the sentient armor angle.

That scene with the armor pulling Pepper could easily be the armor trying to warn her about something.

If u look at the scene where the armor is on top of Tony, you will notice the house is crumbling and Tony has the same shirt he has on when him and Pepper see the helicopters coming. So it could be that the armor assembles itself and basically saves Tony, by allowing Tony to put it on.

[GoldGoblin]

Each ring has DNA from a superhero and a needle pops out of the ring injecting him with the DNA that gives him super abilities.But they are not permanent.

[Vartha]

Made these up lastnight. STILL wish we had some kind of art or pictures of ALL the rings

[Surfer]

Originally Posted by Vartha

Made these up lastnight. STILL wish we had some kind of art or pictures of ALL the rings

It's nice to see it broken down like that, thanks for sharing Vartha.

Surfer

[Vartha]

Yeah tho according to the 10 Rings flag/banner, Mandi's got some of his rings on wrong compared to the others on the same hand lol

[SpocksBrain]

From this week's Entertainment Weekly:

The Mandarin's backstory here will differ from the comics, where he is a Chinese exile who discovers 10 rings inside a crashed alien ship, each of which gives him a different power. The rings are still the source of his strength, but the alien subplot has been dropped. "Tony is earthbound and facing earthbound villains," Feige says. So they're just bling? "Not necessarily," he replies coyly.

Sounds like the rings are still significant, they're just not alien (or magic).

[Vartha]

NIIIICE Thanks SB!!

[The Guard]

I'm pretty sure the rings do something.

Maybe they create Captain Planet.

[Vartha]

Well I made EIGHT of the ten rings so far, MIGHT make them of Sketch-up in 3d.
left hand


Right hand

[LokiDionysos]

I'm wondering about the past references to Atlantis within the Iron Man franchise.
Are these just throwaway easter eggs?

As we know certain seeds have been planted that connect to later movies within the franchise, but some things are more like easter eggs.

With the fact that all the Mandarin/10 rings clues are now amounting to something big, I'm wondering if there's a reason that the Oracle company is briefly referenced in the series, even though it seems like it could be one of those throwaway easter eggs.

If the rings are still the source of Mandarin's power I'm leaning towards them being a form of ancient technology...
This idea has been proposed by others, but we know the rings are not powered by magic, or alien technology.
Plus the Makluan subplot has been removed.

What if the rings are a form of semi-ancient technology that Mandarin still finds in a cave in China while on an archaeological excavation? Something that links Mandarin to Atlantis/Lemuria so that Namor can eventually be brought in further down the line or after the credits. Mandarin knows they're important to China's history (or east Indian/Middle eastern history) and believes they're related to the Lemurians/Atlanteans; revealing bits and pieces of his true beliefs as he teaches a few history lessons about Genghis Khan and empires. On-screen Mandarin becomes even more of a mixture of Earth cultures and portrays himself as sort of a mystical Oracle in some ways. One who makes statements about the future because he's studied the past. A historian/teacher of Earth's true history (in his perspective) who says that America's Empire will fall like Atlantis. There are no true heroes that can stop it. Heroes are only a myth to Mandarin, however he believes most myths have some truth to them, knows about Thor etc. Thinks things from myths were more like a form of advanced science than magic, and embraces their cultures, along with many others who reject the current view of things and America's dominance.

The rings do nothing for now, but they're a symbol of a different time on Earth and each represents part of Mandarin's hidden Empire--symbols of a time where America was not in control. Mandarin believes America and Shield are covering up the past (i.e. all their misdeeds and the Atlanteans). He AIMS to change & teach the world. But first he Aims to teach the world about heroes through eliminating Stark. He believes it's false that anyone who serves America could be a hero, because they're guilty by association with Shield; who allows the world to believe Atlantis doesn't exist (he's on the Lemurian side, and believes the Atlanteans were at fault...) Leading to a business move and a practical move that gets one of the newly revealed heroes out of the way. They threaten his plans for world domination. Namor has already been dealt with off-screen, deposed as head of his own company. Mandarin controls Oracle as well as AIM, secretly funded Hammer Industries, the 10 rings terrorist group, and had previous dealings with Stane. Each were part of his Empire and represented by a ring. In my view he secretly runs multiple corporations and groups, appropriates tech and resources from everywhere, and has most of his controlling shares in AIM and Oracle. Others show up to reclaim control of their companies/group after Iron Man defeats Mandarin. Namor retakes control of his company in the after-credits, and someone who will be in Captain America: Winter Soldier regains control of AIM directly before this. The movie would be all about Mandarin temporarily having control over a lot of things. Juxtaposed with Tony losing control and having to regain it.