I thought they were both great. but Heath Ledger's performance seals the deal. Robert Downey Jr did an excellent job, but it was nothing compared to Heath's performance.

I have to agree with Millheiser, I thought Iron Man really lacked a good ending.

I saw TDK for the fifth time tonight. Even after five viewings, I was still discovering new things, thematically and visually. It's a wonderfully layered film. Iron Man, on the other hand, is very much on the surface. It's a good surface, but the depths that TDK possesses in spades is not there.

This.

I liked both a lot, but I give TDK the edge. Mostly because it doesn't suffer the languish of being an origin story. Most superhero origin films seem to drag on too long at the beginning. I understand the need, but I always look forward to a sequel where the character(s) has already been established. X-men 2, Spidey 2, TDK, are all good examples. If they make another Iron Man film, I hope it continues this trend.

I enjoyed the hell out of both, but Knight is the lead horse in this race.

I'm one of the very few (I reckon) who consistently loves "origin" superhero movies over their “straight to the action” sequels. The original Superman and Batman Begins are the ultimate in that regard, for me. I enjoy the developmental scenes in Supes and BB as much as the big pay-off, superhero stuff. Don’t get me wrong, nothing beats the great action scenes. But I still thoroughly enjoy those movies’ background scenes on multiple viewings.

This is like comparing sex with a Playboy Playmate with sex with a Victoria Secret model !

I'm happy with both