It’s been a rough couple of weeks for nerds:

• Comic-book nerds saw arguably the biggest nemesis of a mid-level Marvel superhero reimagined in Iron Man 3 (71.73 index rating), which could have easily been subtitled: “The Quest for China’s Lucrative Box Office.”
• Literary nerds were subjected to a framing device in The Great Gatsby (59.73) that completely altered the character of Nick Carraway in a way almost as egregious as if Gatsby’s tagline was changed from “old sport” to “fo’ shizzle.
• Star Trek nerds sat through Star Trek Into Darkness (80.65), which was essentially a remake of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, except with fewer mind-controlling space eels.

But purists represent a mere fraction of the moviegoing public. So from that perspective, it’s been a pretty fantastic summer blockbuster season, which creeps earlier every year in a way that suggests the folks running the move industry also decide when the Christmas shopping season starts (last Thursday).

Those decision-makers must be awfully happy with the fruits of their plot-massaging because box-office numbers continued their torrid pace this week. The $145.36 million total marked the third straight week in nine figures and was led by Star Trek Into Darkness, which took over the top spot at more than $70.55 million in its first week. Iron Man 3 lost a bit of momentum but still managed a respectable $35.18 million, bringing its total to $337 million. And Gatsby’s domestic haul edged closer to surpassing its $105 million budget with a $23.41 million weekend that pushed its overall tally to $90.1 million.

The rest of the top 10 was little more than hangers-on like The Croods (65.98) and plucky indie underdogs like Mud (82.58), all of which pulled in a combined $16.2 million, or what Iron Man 3 spent on goatee combs for Robert Downey Jr.

From a quality perspective, moviegoers directed their dollars wisely, as Star Trek Into Darkness and Iron Man 3 continued to garner positive reviews from nearly everyone who doesn’t spend most of their time on Tumblr debating the proper length of Spock’s bowl cut. In fact, the top 10’s overall quality rating rose for the third straight week and hit 62.22, the first time it has breached 60 since early February.

There’s a good chance it’ll stay above that mark this weekend, when sequel-palooza continues with the debuts of The Hangover Part III and Fast & Furious 6. True, the meh-worthy newcomers’ middling reviews won’t push quality into the stratosphere, but their presence will likely shove Peeples (46.48) and The Big Wedding (32.22) out of the top 10, ridding it of the two biggest ratings anchors.

The last two weeks of the Misix Movie Quality Index proves one thing: Moviegoers couldn’t care less about source material.

Last week, you had Iron Man 3 (index score of 72.15), which turned the comic-book version of supervillain The Mandarin from a fellow of Asian descent to Ben Kingsley to … something else. That film topped the weekend box office again with more $72 million, finishing $20 million ahead of The Great Gatsby (59.98), which is based on the novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald in the same way a portabella mushroom sandwich is based on a steak sandwich: It’s fine, but deep down you know you missed out on something better.

The liberties taken by director Baz Luhrmann are too numerous to detail here. But the fusion of jazz and Jay-Z, and the fact Leonardo DiCaprio’s title character drives a car that won’t be created for another seven years obviously bothered critics more than moviegoers, who turned out thanks to a fine marketing effort by Warner Bros. and the presence of shiny things filmed in Luhrmann’s signature style of swooping around them really fast.

As for the remainder of the top 10, there were holdovers aplenty from last week, although the merciful exit of Scary Movie 5 after four weeks on the list helped lift the overall quality index to 59.72. This despite the efforts of Tyler Perry and his latest presentation, Peeples, which scored a respectable 45.58 and temporarily delayed “Tyler Perry presents” as it marches toward overtaking “From the mind of M. Night Shyamalan” as secret code for “stay the hell away from this movie.”

The index could continue ticking upward with the impending release of Star Trek Into Darkness, which has already accumulated very favorable ratings from Metacritic, Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb and the six Star Trek fans who have accepted that the J.J. Abrams reboot erased 50 years of canon. In all likelihood, the next summer blockbuster will bring an end to the top 10 residence of Oz the Great and Powerful (56.31), which has been in that elite company nine of the last 10 weeks, confirming America’s insatiable appetite for James Franco.

Two streaks came to a spectacular halt this weekend: the movie industry’s long nightmare of sub-$200 million weekends (24 in a row), and the moviegoing public’s desperate attempts to fool itself into thinking blockbuster season had begun (11 in a row). No more A Good Day to Die Hard (36.55 index value), Jack the Giant Slayer (57.97) or G.I. Joe: Retaliation (49.14). And, like a no-nonsense assistant/love interest, we were saved by Iron Man … 3 (72.15).

Tony Stark’s initial post-Avengers foray marked the first time since the second weekend in January (Zero Dark Thirty, 87.86) that a movie topped the box office with an index value higher than 70. And, with earnings north of $175 million, it was the first nine-digit leader since the brooding vampires of The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn—Part 2: Everyone Gets Even Paler led the way back in November 2012.

Inarguably, entertainment value was much higher for the more recent box-office pace-setter, particularly with viewers older than 13, as Robert Downey Jr. re-teamed with director Shane Black for the smarmiest Avenger’s third go-around. The two previously worked together in the criminally underrated Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and brought that witty rapport back to the screen eight years later to absolutely horde weekend revenues.

Iron Man 3’s 83.59% share of moviegoers’ cash dwarfed the rest of the field, none of which got within a sneeze of the $10 million mark. The nine other residents of the top 10 couldn’t crack $35 million combined, with Pain & Gain ($7.6 million) serving as the Twice a Prince to Iron Man 3’s Secretariat. No other movie attempted to open in wide release during the weekend, although Mud (82.42) raised the overall quality of the top 10 by making its first appearance, holding down the seventh slot with a little under $2.2 million. Meanwhile, Oblivion continued to tread on the outskirts of flopville, as a nearly $7.8 million draw brought its total to a touch under $76 million against a $120 million budget.

With Iron Man 3 drawing good ratings and even better crowds, moviegoers spent their money wisely this weekend. Whether that continues in the next several weeks remains to be seen, as critically questionable flicks (The Great Gatsby, Fast & Furious 6) trade off with more promising fare (Star Trek Into Darkness, Man of Steel).

The overall box office this last weekend was rather slow. Two below average movies were moved onto the list, Pain & Gain (52.83) and The Big Wedding (31.89). Total top ten sales were $78.1 million compared to the $98.2 million the weekend prior. As such, the Misix Movie Quality Index dropped 3.76 basis points. Featuring The Rock and Marky Mark Wahlberg, Pain & Gain topped the list with a weekend total of $20.2 million. The action-comedy centers around three body builders who embrace their inner Robin Hood by kidnapping an extortionist. Oddly enough, the film is based on a true story. The Big Wedding also opened this past weekend with some pretty big-named actors in tow like Robert De Niro, Diane Keaton and Susan Sarandon. As surprising as it may sound, the main plot depicts the chaotic events leading up to, and during, a wedding. The movie was largely a flop. It debuted at fourth on the list with a weekend total of $7.6 million. Both of last week’s awards carried over: Jurassic Park 3D (19.23) was highest rated and Scary Movie 5 (22.28) was anchor of the week. On the whole, the revenue-weighted index was 0.5 basis points above the non-weighted one. Such indicates that dollars were spent relatively efficiently at the box office in terms of value.

Say what you want about Tom Cruise and his affection for jumping on couches, but the guy flat out sells movies. This last weekend the box office was topped by his most recent flick Oblivion (61.57), which took in $38.2 million in ticket sales. It probably didn’t hurt that it was the only wide spread release for the weekend. Nonetheless, Mr. Cruise’s lead character lives in a world where the Earth is only a desolate wasteland: a result of previously defending off alien invaders. However, a series of events lead him to think otherwise. The film also features Morgan Freeman. On the whole, the Misix Movie Quality Index was up 2.87 basis points, partly due to the debut of Mr. Cruise’s latest sci-fi flick and partly due to the loss of Tyler Perry’s Temptation. Jurassic Park 3D (79.23) held onto the title of highest rated flick, and Scary Movie 5 (22.86) was newly awarded the title of anchor of the week. With regard to value, the revenue-weighted index stood 1.97 basis points higher than the non-weighted one; accordingly, this suggested a relatively elevated value per dollar spent. The weekend total for the top ten grossing films was $98.2 million. 

Despite an overall loss of traffic at the box office this past weekend, the Misix Movie Quality Index increased 3.35 basis points. Two of the three movies added to the list brought up the value, including the top grosser 42 (68.85). Led by Chadwick Boseman as Jackie Robinson, the biopic depicts the one of baseball’s greatest inspirational stories. The film brought in a weekend total of $27.3 million and also features Harrison Ford as Branch Rickey, the Brooklyn Dodgers team executive who signed Jackie Robinson. Also pushing the index upward was The Place Beyond the Pines (73.41), which totaled $4.1 million for the weekend. With Ryan Gosling as the lead character, the crime-drama centers around his character’s need to provide for his family and the run-ins that ensue with an ambitious rookie cop. Scary Movie 5 (30.97) also opened, taking in $15.2 million in ticket sales. Highest rated movie for the weekend went to Jurassic Park 3D (74.97), and the anchor of the week was awarded to Tyler Perry’s Temptation (30.38). In the end, the top ten in sales grossed $105.5 million and the revenue-weighted index stood 1.20 pointed above the non-weighted one, indicating an elevated value per dollar spent. 

The Misix Movie Quality Index was pushed upward 1.15 basis points this past weekend by the revival of two popular movies: The Evil Dead and Jurassic Park. A top the box office was Evil Dead (65.07), which amassed a weekend total of $26.0 million; the remake of Sam Raimi’s 1981 cult classic ranked tenth all-time for horror remakes. Also hitting theaters was Jurassic Park 3D (63.23), which grossed $18.2 million and was good enough to place fourth in ticket sales. Not-so-surprisingly, the awards from last week were carried over. Tyler Perry’s Temptation (30.62) was given anchor of the week, and The Croods (71.64), highest rated top grosser. On the whole, the box office had another relatively strong showing, where the top ten in sales totaled $125 million. With regard to value, there was a relatively elevated value per dollar spent as the revenue-weighted index was 3.90 basis points above the unadjusted one.

The Misix Movie Quality Index dropped 3.23 basis points this past weekend, where the decrease in value can be attributed to the addition of three subpar flicks. First among them was G.I. Joe: Retaliation (49.14), which hauled in just north of $41 million, good enough to top the box office. Featuring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, the latest action flick depicts the Joe teams’ struggles to clear their names after being framed. In typical Tyler Perry fashion, Temptation (34.31) opened at the third spot in sales ($22.3 million) and as vaunted anchor of the week. Perhaps led by the acting chops of Kim Kardashian, the film continues the trend of low-rated Tyler Perry films with relatively strong revenues. The final movie that opened was The Host (42.06), which came in at sixth in sales with $11 million. Based on the Stephenie Meyer novel, the film takes another crack at the oft-ventured plot of mysterious beings taking control of human bodies. In the end, The Croods (65.89) repeated as the highest rated movie, with a second weekend total of $26.5 million, and overall, the top ten at the box office had a strong weekend, taking in $138.7 million. With regard to value, it was about average: the difference between the revenue-weighted and unadjusted indices was just 0.85 basis points.

Despite the opening weekend of March Madness, the Misix Movie Quality Index moved up 2.53 basis points, where the top ten in sales hauled in $129.1 million. The family oriented flick The Croods (65.72) topped the box office and earned the title of highest rated with a weekend total of $44.7 million. Featuring the voices of Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds, and (gasp) Nicholas Gage, DreamWorks’ latest work tells the prehistoric tale of a family’s journey to find a new home. The success of the animated comedy comes to no surprise as the theaters were long overdue for a 3D movie with broad appeal. Next on the list in sales was Olympus Has Fallen (55.47), which opened with $30.5 million in ticket sales. In the R-rated action/thriller, the White House is taken over and the events that follow are left up to a former Presidential guard played by Gerard Butler. The film also features Aaron Eckhart as the President and Morgan Freeman, as the Speaker of the House. Also opening this weekend was Admission (47.43), a comedy which features Tina Fey as an admissions officer who encounters some stick situations. Despite its release a weekend ago, Spring Breakers (63.92) made its way to the top ten in sales this past weekend. The movie centers around a group of four college girls who get caught robbing a restaurant and bailed out by a shady character played by James Franco. For the third weekend in a row, a new anchor of the week was awarded, going to Identity Thief (40.14). On the whole, there was a relatively elevated value per dollar spend since the revenue-weighted index was 3.57 basis points higher than the non-weighted one.