‘Armor Wars’ Will Feel Different Without Tony Stark
When Avengers: Endgame culminated in the death of its marquee member, Tony Stark, the Marvel Cinematic Universe was bound to change forever.
Within the universe, Stark helped kick off the modern timeline that eventually culminated in the ambitious event. Off-camera, Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal helped spearhead the entire universe after the success of its first film, Iron Man. With Stark gone from the universe, many are wondering how the upcoming Armor Wars will play out in his absence.
Founding father
While the MCU timeline has since been muddied to include several thousand years of history, there was no backstory to fall upon at the time of Iron Man‘s premierein 2008. As such, many could argue that Tony Stark is the first real avenger despite Captain America later taking on that title in his first solo endeavor. Regardless, Stark helps fund, assemble, break apart, and ultimately save the rest of the group.
By saying goodbye to Iron Man, the MCU acknowledged that while his footprint will be on the MCU for years to come, it was time to look toward the future as they grappled with age both on-screen and behind the scenes. Stark, who was always a flawed superhero who often showed his darker side, made the ultimate sacrifice to save the universe as we know it.
Since then, we have only gotten one look at the MCU in a post-Stark world. This world is still grappling with the Blip, while Stark’s death away from his supergroup has other, darker sides that must be sorted out.
What we didn’t see, however, was the effect it had on one of his closest friends, Don Cheadle’s War Machine. After Disney announced a new series, Armor Wars, fans can see how one of Stark’s closest allies can keep his legacy alive.
What is ‘Armor Wars’?
Disney recently announced a brand new slate of series that had long been rumored. One of these series, however, was something of a surprise. Since Stark’s death in Endgame, many have wondered what would become of Don Cheadle’s character. After all, while Cheadle is an acclaimed actor in his own right, his MCU role has always been connected to Stark’s.
With Stark gone, Cheadle will finally get the chance to lead from the forefront. He cannot rely on the eccentric billionaire who not only let him become a superhero but scarred him forever during Civil War thanks to his feud. Despite this, Rhodes stayed loyal to his friend until the very end. However, his reaction to Stark’s death is, thus far, unknown.
Armor Wars will help to answer this question. While little is known about the series itself, it gets its name from a pair of events in 1987 and 2015 that focused on the technological fallout of Iron Man’s suit. After all, when technology gets into the wrong hands, the villains are just as powerful as the heroes. In the comic books, however, this is confronted by Iron Man himself. With him out of the picture, however, some wonder how the creators can pull it off.
Reddit reacts to ‘Armor Wars’
Fans on Reddit were excited to learn that War Machine will finally get to take the driver’s seat. However, the series also serves as a reminder that Tony Stark is gone. User u/Xaldyn155 acknowledged both sides of this, stating how it serves as a bittersweet reminder of what happened last time we saw Rhodes and Stark.
“It’s great they’re doing it but honestly I’m so disappointed Iron Man won’t be in this. He’s my favorite MCU character and I wish he could’ve been a part of phase 4 and going forward.”
U/HybridTheory also lamented the lack of Stark in the new series. However, they also acknowledged how interesting it will be to see a side character be forced into the forefront and forge his own path away from Stark’s shadow.
“My dream would have been an Armor Wars show featuring both Tony and Rhodey working together because they’ve got such a fun dynamic. That would have been so good
But I’ve been hoping for a War Machine show for a while now, so obviously I’m personally super hyped about this regardless! And also I imagine Tony is gonna have a large influence in this show, since it’s his tech and him and Rhodey were like brothers, so that’ll be nice!”
Stark’s death might have affected many people in the fictional universe, but it also did so in the real world. After all, Robert Downey Jr. helped lay the groundwork that’s still reaping the rewards. An end was always going to happen, but now that Stark is no longer here, it means that we will finally see an MCU that doesn’t have him to lean on when things go south.
