Billionaire weapons manufacturer Tony Stark creates the ultimate battle suit to save the world from weapons built by Stark Enterprises, his own company!
With the release of the new movie, Iron Man leaps from the pages of the popular comic book series into movie history with incredible special effects and a charming turn by Robert Downy, Jr. in the title role, and has been amply rewarded for the criticism. and the box office. Fans were cheered by the appearance of classic Iron Man supporting cast Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and Happy Hogan (played by director Jon Favreau himself), as well as “Rhodey” Rhodes (Terrence Howard), the future Machine War. “Next time,” Rhodey promises, nodding at the armor. “Next time.”
Iron Man is Tony Stark wrapped up in the impregnable suit that he himself invented on the fly while a prisoner, in Afghanistan in the movie, in Vietnam in the comics. His armor allows him to fight his way to freedom, and once back in the States, he sets about refining his initial crude design. A fancier armor allows her to fight… crime… terrorists… his corrupt business partner…
The Iron Man character began life as a comic book superhero from Marvel Comics’ stable of Silver Age characters created during the height of the cold war, such as Spider-Man, the Incredible Hulk, and the X-Men, but the Iron Man’s origin is more closely tied to the Cold War than any of the others. The challenge for comic book and movie writers is to keep a character whose defining moment involves arms trafficking in Vietnam relevant in the 21st century.
Created by Stan Lee, Don Heck and Jack Kirby, with the help of Lee’s brother Larry Lieber, Iron Man made his first appearance in *Tales of Suspense* #39 in March 1963, and in many ways he is the archetypal Iron Man superhero. Marvel. of the time: good at heart but deeply flawed. Like Captain America, he has had to deal with the death of a mentor he couldn’t save; as Spider-man, he has discovered that his irresponsibility has come back to haunt him; like some of the X-Men, he is physically scarred during his origin story; as Daredevil, he suffers from what would normally be a debilitating disability; and like the Incredible Hulk, there lurks (we eventually learn) a demon within him. Or at least inside the bottle of it.
Because one of the characteristics that makes Iron Man unique is his all too human weakness. Batman pretends to be a billionaire playboy, but Iron Man isn’t faking it. His irresponsible drinking and womanizing is played for laughs in the movie, as you’d expect from Hollywood, but comic book readers know that Stark is headed for a battle with alcoholism as harrowing as any confrontation with the Mandarin.
Not that this detracts from Stark’s heroism or genius. In fact, Stark was honored by *Business Week* as one of the top ten smartest superheroes, ranking at No. 3 behind only Mr. Fantastic and Batman, a moment that could have come straight from the spinning headlines of “Stark wunderkind.” from the Iron Man movie.
If Iron Man is most celebrated for the armor that gives him the power of flight and is loaded with gadgets and weapons, including missiles and the famous repulsor beams, he is perhaps most distinguished for his unique genius and willingness to overcome his own weaknesses. .
The guy is all heart, he even has shrapnel stuck in him.