Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Ironheart!Marvel’s Ironheart brings back a key Tony Stark invention that the MCU apparently forgot about after its introduction in Iron Man 3. Riri Williams honors Tony Stark’s Iron Man legacy by creating her own brand of ultra-advanced suits of armor. But unlike Stark, Riri starts facing supernatural enemies almost as soon as she earns the тιтle of superhero.
Throughout the years, Tony Stark created dozens of Iron Man suits with a wide variety of abilities. Stark went from building a bulletproof one-man tank in a cave to perfecting nanotechnology. But as impressive as his final Iron Man suits were, one of Stark’s forgotten inventions remained unappreciated — until now.
Iron Man 3 Introduced The Idea Of Biotech Enhancements
Tony Stark Started To Blur The Line Between Humanity And Technology In Iron Man 3
To cope with the aftermath of the Battle of New York, Tony Stark focused all his efforts on building the Iron Legion and developing state-of-the-art technology. One of Stark’s creations was the micro-implants he used to control the prototype Mark 42 suit of armor, which he found himself forced to use all throughout Iron Man 3. With his Iron Man 3 tech, Tony Stark could command every individual part of the Iron Man armor using only his thoughts.
Stark overcame his paranoia and obsession with technology after his numerous brushes with death in Iron Man 3. Although Stark returned with even more advanced suits of armor in Avengers: Age of Ultron, he left behind his wide array of wearable Iron Legion armors and his cybernetic implants. Instead, Stark focused on other upgrades, primarily nanotech.
Ironheart Sets Up Ezekiel Stane’s Full-Body Cybernetic Enhancements
Ezekiel Stane Is Set To Become One With Technology
Image via Disney+
Despite growing close at the beginning of Ironheart, Riri Williams and Ezekiel Stane fall apart following a botched heist. As a result, Ezekiel receives help directly from the Hood and leans on his own brand of highly-advanced biotech inventions to fully turn against Riri. Riri breaks the Hood’s control over Ezekiel, but Ezekiel is virtually a cyborg now.
In Marvel Comics, Ezekiel Stane develops and adapts his state-of-the-art biotechnology to his body, becoming a full-fledged cyborg that resembles more an Iron Man suit than a human being. Half-human, half-machine, Ezekiel Stane follows in his father’s footsteps and joins Iron Man’s rogues gallery. Alden Ehrenreich’s MCU character could follow a similar path after Ironheart‘s optimistic ending, with Ironheart as his archnemesis.
Ezekiel Stane’s Villain Future Is Exciting For Iron Man’s Legacy
The MCU’s Ezekiel Stane Could Be A Nightmarish Fusion Of Obadiah Stane And Tony Stark
While Ezekiel Stane’s MCU tech isn’t the same as Tony Stark’s, it does show how wrong Stark’s inventions could have gone. Ezekiel Stane is starting to develop a certain fixation on a specific type of technological advancements. In the future, Alden Ehrenreich’s Zeke Stane could double down on his Ironheart villain turn and become a nightmarish version of the Iron Man Mark 42 armor, and grow into an even darker shadow of his father, Obadiah Stane a.k.a. Iron Monger.
