Spider-Man: Homecoming has Iron Man in an important role, and the movie ends by making a comic book moment better in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man and Tom Holland’s Spider-Man have been linked since the latter’s debut in the franchise. Holland first appeared as Peter Parker in one of Marvel’s best films, Captain America: Civil War.

It was Downey’s Tony Stark who thrust Holland’s Peter formally into the world of superheroes. Before being recruited by Iron Man to join his team against Captain America’s, the MCU Spider-Man was operating on a smaller scale and still wore Peter’s homemade costume. Every Spider-Man movie in the MCU has had the hero don a suit made of Stark Tech.

That shows just how the two heroes have been connected throughout Spider-Man’s MCU journey. Be it in the Captain America film, Holland’s Spider-Man movies, or the MCU’s Avengers franchise, the bond between Spider-Man and Iron Man is one of the MCU’s strongest. In Spider-Man: Homecoming, that dynamic leads to a surprising finale, and the moment is better than a comic book storyline.

Iron Man Is Crucial To Spider-Man: Homecoming

Holland’s first Spider-Man solo movie tried to do things differently from the hero’s past cinematic franchises. We see Spider-Man trying to swing through the suburbs, with no buildings to attach himself to, and finally live in a universe where other heroes exist. While he might not have a lot of screen time, Downey’s presence as Iron Man is always felt.

As was the case in Captain America: Civil War, Peter Parker continues to look up to Tony Stark as a role model. After all, Downey Jr.’s Iron Man ends up being Spider-Man’s father figure in the MCU, and the actors’ chemistry works to make that relationship not only believable, but a key part of both characters’ journeys in the franchise.

Spider-Man: Homecoming is a movie about Peter trying to rise to a new level to show Iron Man that he is a hero in his own right. Tony helps him with valuable lessons throughout the film, with the biggest coming in the form of a hard-hitting line, saying, “If you’re nothing without the suit, then you shouldn’t have it.”

Iron Man Gives Spider-Man The Iron Spider Suit In Marvel Comics

Spider-Man is Marvel’s most popular superhero. As such, the hero has a long history in the comics, with Peter Parker donning several suits over the years. However, few of them are as striking as the Iron Spider suit. Not only is it visually different from Spider-Man’s usual costume — red with gold details and spider legs — but it has a special meaning.

In Marvel Comics’ The Amazing Spider-Man #529, Tony Stark gives Peter the Iron Spider costume. Initially, he does not say why he is doing it. However, by the end of the issue, it becomes clear that Iron Man had an ulterior motive. Before he makes his intentions clear, he asks Peter to practically agree to a blood oath to back him.

As it were, the conflict that would be on the way was Marvel Comics’ Civil War, which put Captain America and Iron Man on different sides. The MCU partly adapted that Spider-Man storyline, with Iron Man giving Spider-Man his Stark Suit in Captain America: Civil War. In the comics, Peter agreed to back Tony no matter what, before knowing what was coming.

Spider-Man: Homecoming Has Iron Man Give Peter Parker The Iron Spider Suit In A Much Better Way

Like in the comics, Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man is the one to give Spider-Man his iconic Iron Spider armor in the MCU. However, it is done so in a different way. For starters, Spider-Man: Homecoming was released a year after Tom Holland’s Marvel debut in Captain America: Civil War. The upgrade had nothing to do with taking on Captain America.

Instead, the MCU Iron Spider suit was unveiled at the end of Spider-Man: Homecoming. After Peter made Stark proud throughout the movie and showed he was a real hero, not letting the suit dictate his true nature, Iron Man realized it was time to promote him. To that end, Tony decided to make Spider-Man a member of the Avengers.

The Iron Spider suit would be what he would wear by accepting the invitation to join the Avengers. That is easily a better storyline than having Spider-Man blindly follow Iron Man into a major superhero conflict, in which Peter would come to switch sides in the comics. The MCU gave a much more heroic feeling to the Iron Spider reveal.

Spider-Man’s First Use Of The Iron Spider Suit Made The Wait Worth It

While Peter chose to remain a “Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man” a little longer instead of joining the Avengers in Spider-Man: Homecoming, Tom Holland’s MCU hero would don the Iron Spider suit just a year later. In order to survive in space after Spider-Man chased Thanos’ forces, Tony Stark sends the Iron Spider armor to Peter.

The Iron Spider is the suit that Spider-Man wears in Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame, the MCU’s two biggest movies. It ends up being incredibly important to his role in the franchise, similar to what happened in the comics with Civil War, but in a more positive light. Ultimately, Peter joins the Avengers after Spider-Man: Homecoming, donning the Iron Spider suit.