It's time for that very special season where Hollywood gives us more of the same. As is the case every summer, sequels and franchise films dominate the calendar, with a few being more welcome ("Star Trek") than others ("Smurfs").

Not surprisingly, some of the most promising films of the summer are set for limited release, meaning they might get released in North Idaho eventually. Stay tuned for those, and pay attention to the handy Must-see Score (MSS), which gauges the buzz and predicted quality of this summer's slate. The closer to 10, the better... hopefully.

Opening Today

Iron Man 3

Robert Downey Jr. is back as billionaire superhero Tony Stark, and this time he doesn't have the rest of the Avengers team as backup. Shane Black ("Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang") takes the director's chair to inject even more snarky Downey diatribes between CGI mayhem. Must-see Score (MSS): 8

May 10

The Great Gatsby

Talk about a gamble. "Moulin Rouge" director Baz Luhrmann goes for broke with this 3D adaptation of the classic F. Scott Fitzgerald novel, with Leonardo DiCaprio in the title role. The book has proven to be a tough cinematic endeavor in the past, but Luhrmann's insane style just might be the right fit. MSS: 8

May 17

Star Trek Into Darkness

J.J. Abrams takes another trip on the USS Enterprise before hopping over to sci-fi franchise rival "Star Wars." The 2009 "Trek" reboot was terrific, and the trailers for this one suggest another winner. MSS: 10

May 24

Fast & Furious 6

Vin Diesel and his fugitive team of drivers join forces with hulking cop Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson to stop a master criminal. Cars crash, The Rock punches people and Michelle Rodriguez comes back from the dead! Yeah, it's stupid... and completely awesome. MSS: 9

The Hangover Part III

Hoping to wipe the slate clean after the atrocious "Part II," director Todd Phillips breaks formula (no blackout drunken shenanigans) to take the Wolfpack on a conclusive, apparently hilarious adventure. MSS: 4

Animated adventure about a teenage girl transported to a magical forest and thrust into a battle between good and evil. Generic plot, sure, but take a listen to all those celebrity voices! Beyonce! Steven Tyler! That "Hunger Games" guy! MSS: 3

May 31

After Earth

Will Smith teams with his son, Jaden, for a sci-fi adventure about a father and son stranded on a human-free, beast-filled future Earth. Smith is the king of summer, but director M. Night Shyamalan hasn't made a good movie in a long, long while. MSS: 5

Now You See Me

Magicians robbing banks - alongside Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine. If nothing else, that's three things going for it. MSS: 6

Opening Eventually

Before Midnight

The third installment of Richard Linklater's walk-and-talk romance series starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy. The second film, "Before Sunset," had one of the best movie endings ever (seriously). Good luck with the follow-up, folks.

June 7

The Internship

Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn take an internship at Google despite knowing nothing about technology. No chance for any blatant and obnoxious corporate advertising, right? MSS: 4

June 12

This is the End

Celebrities brace for the end of the world in ways only whiny, entitled actors can. James Franco, Jonah Hill, Seth Rogen and many others play twisted versions of themselves in this comedy written and directed by Rogen and "Superbad" writing partner Evan Goldberg. MSS: 7

June 14

Man of Steel

Director Zack Snyder ("Watchmen") tries to bring Superman into the darker, serious world of "The Dark Knight" (Christopher Nolan serves as a producer). The latest trailer suggests a movie that finally makes Superman relevant again. MSS:8

June 21

Monsters University

Pixar Animation prequel to "Monsters Inc." about eyeball Mike (Billy Crystal) and blue beastie Sully (John Goodman) competing for grades, girls and respect at Monster College. Pixar pedigree aside, the studio has been hit ("Toy Story") and miss ("Cars") with sequels. MSS: 7

World War Z

The speedy undead take over the world, and Brad Pitt hunts for a cure. Yeah yeah, "The Walking Dead" is great... anybody else tired of this zombie craze yet? MSS: 5

June 28

The Heat

Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy are mismatched cops in what looks to be the comedy of the summer. MSS: 8

White House Down

The second Oval Office-siege movie of the year (following "Olympus Has Fallen"), "White House Down" has a bigger budget, bigger stars (Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx) and a director who works almost exclusively in destroying famous landmarks - Roland Emmerich of "Independence Day" and "2012." MSS: 6

Opening Eventually

Much Ado About Nothing

Director Joss Whedon takes a breather from "The Avengers" with this black-and-white, modern take on Shakespeare's comedy.

The Bling Ring

Sophia Coppola ("Lost in Translation") writes and directs this fact-based tale of teenagers who rob celebrity homes.

July 3

Despicable Me 2

Supervillain turned foster parent Gru (voice of Steve Carell) returns to hunt down the bad guy he could never be in this animated sequel. MSS: 6

The Lone Ranger

This mega-budget Western predictably focuses on Johnny Depp as the Lone Ranger's warrior sidekick Tonto. The trailers are trying to evoke the fun of "Pirates of the Caribbean," but the material hasn't clicked so far. MSS: 5

July 12

Pacific Rim

It's giant monsters versus humungous man-operated machines in this adventure from visionary director Guillermo del Toro ("Pan's Labyrinth"). Should be better than the most recent "Godzilla" and "Transformers" movies by a mile. MSS: 8

Grown Ups 2

Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Kevin James and David Spade return for the most unnecessary sequel since "The Hangover III." MSS: 1

July 17

Dreamworks combines garden snails and Indy car racing in their latest animated effort, featuring the voices of Ryan Reynolds, Paul Giamatti and Samuel L. Jackson. MSS: 5

July 19

Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren and John Malkovich return for the most unnecessary sequel since "Grown Ups 2." MSS: 2

R.I.P.D.

Jeff Bridges and Ryan Reynolds play undead cops working for the Rest In Peace Department. Yeah, it's a "Men in Black" ripoff, but The Dude abides. MSS: 5

July 26

The Wolverine

Back for yet another go-around as Logan, Hugh Jackman visits Japan to fight ninjas, mutants and his inner demons. Looks like a significant improvement over the last "Wolverine" movie, but we've been burned by this franchise before. MSS: 7

July 31

The Smurfs 2

OK, THIS is the most unnecessary sequel of the summer. MSS: 1

Opening Eventually

The Way, Way Back

Sundance Film Fest standout about a teenager who befriends his middle-aged manager (Sam Rockwell) at his waterpark summer job. Written and directed by Jim Rash and Nat Faxon, Oscar-winning writers of "The Descendants."

Aug. 2

2 Guns

Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg take down bad guys in a movie you'd expect to see from Denzel and Marky Mark. MSS: 5

300: Rise of an Empire

"The Smurfs 2" stays on top... just barely. MSS: 2

Aug. 7

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

Sequel to that movie you barely remember from 2010 about the modern-day son of Zeus. Your kids probably know the books, I guess. MSS: 4

Aug. 9

Elysium

Neill Blomkamp follows his terrific "District 9" with this science fiction adventure starring Matt Damon as a man living on a ruined Earth who tries to infiltrate the luxurious space station that houses the wealthy class. MSS: 8

We're the Millers

Jason Sudeikis plays a pot dealer who recruits Jennifer Aniston and a pretend family in order to sneak drugs into the country. Just your average family-friendly road comedy. MSS: 6

Planes

Disney (without the involvement of its own Pixar studio) presents this "Cars" spinoff about a crop-dusting plane who dreams of aerial racing. Originally intended as a straight-to-video title, someone must think this is good enough for a late summer cash grab. MSS: 5

Aug. 16

Kick-Ass 2

High school vigilante Kick-Ass returns alongside Hit Girl for more violent shenanigans as amateur heroes. Look for Jim Carrey as fellow do-it-yourself hero Colonel Stars and Stripes. MSS: 6

The To-Do List

A switch on the boy-dominated sex comedy, Aubrey Plaza ("Parks and Recreation") plays a high school grad hoping to gain some "experience" before college. MSS: 6

Aug. 23

The World's End

Simon Pegg and Nick Frost reteam with their "Shaun of the Dead" and "Hot Fuzz" director Edgar Wright for a secretive sci-fi/apocalyptic comedy about five friends who reunite at a pub aptly titled "The World's End." MSS: 9

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

The first installment of a popular teen fantasy series about angels and demons and not, I'm told, based on those violent fighting video games featuring guys named Sub-Zero. MSS: 5

Aug. 30

One Direction: This is Us

Some kind of concert film? This title makes no sense to me. MSS: ?

Tyler Wilson can be reached at twilson@cdapress.com.