Iron Man Is Definitely Done With the Avengers, But Can He Strike it Out on His Own ?

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Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Iron Man #3

The world has not been kind to Iron Man the last few years – and now, at his lowest, Tony Stark has come to the realization that he must do something different if he wants to save the world, rather than avenge it. After having his company stolen and his legacy tarnished, Tony has been left with nothing but a vision for the future of his role in the Marvel Universe.

In Iron Man #3– writtenby Spencer Ackerman, with art by Jethro Morales and Julius Ohta – Tony Stark is still fighting an uphill battle to rescue Stark Unlimited from another hostile takeover.

Tony no longer has direct authority over his company. Now, the remnants of Feilong’s board have opened an agreement to sell Stark Unlimited to Roxxon and AIM. Despite swearing to leave the weapons industry forever, Stark must watch as his company becomes the new face of global warfare and energy. However, just in time, Tony crashes into the meeting to stop the agreement and assert his vision for Stark Unlimited and what it could mean to the world.

Iron Man Wants To Develop The World, Not Just Avenge It

Iron Man #3 – Written by Spencer Ackerman; Art by Jethro Morales & Julius Ohta; Color By Alex Sinclair; Lettering By Joe Carmagna; Cover Art By Yasmine Putri

The Avengers serve an immediate purpose, and they do good work. However, the Avengers are a form of treating the symptoms, rather than the cure, and they always have been. To avenge means your work starts after tragedy has occurred. In a better world, however, tragedy wouldn’t exist as often in the first place. Iron Man has tried his hand at world peace a few times, but has failedbecause he tried to make it safer through weapons.Currently, both Stark and the Avengers react to disasters with force. Now, Tony wants to break away from that pattern.

Tony has done his best to swear off working in the weapons manufacturing industry. However, after “genocidal racists” create weapons of mass destruction using
the Stark name and technology
, this mission becomes impeded. Now, as Stark struggles to hold onto his company again, he’s finally making it clear what kind of hero he wants to be, and how Stark Unlimited has a place in his vision. To Tony, Stark Unlimited stands for something: “The boldness to solve problems, not manage them. Or avenge them.” Tony Stark is making a stand to save the world by creating new resources.

More Resources, Fewer Villains

Longtime Marvel fans will recognize that Tony Stark has expressed sentiments similar to those in Iron Man #3 before. Depending on the writer, Tony’s company tends to flip back and forth between manufacturing weapons and clean energy, with the character at times betraying his morals for the “greater good.” Yet this time, Tony Stark’s path seems clear, as he sets out to prove that theworld doesn’t need avenging. Tony wants Stark Unlimited to rise above and show everyone what the future could be;it remains to be determined to what extent this ongoing Iron Man series will deliver that.

Roxxon and AIM
seek to combine powers with Stark Unlimited to forge a global monopoly on all forms of energy. The world’s most necessary modern resource would be under the hands of genocidal supercriminals, all pining for profit at the cost of morals. It’s a very real-world problem that causes similar issues in the comics. When it comes down to it, most villains and criminals are motivated by their want or need for resources. There’s not enough money. Things are too expensive. These stressors often create villains. This is the problem Tony Stark wants to fix.

Iron Man Didn’t Just Save His Legacy, Tony Stark Did

The Hero Has Everything It Takes to See His Vision Through

As Tony already acknowledged, he sees his company, his legacy even, as being for something bigger than avenging. He’s tried to steer Stark Unlimited toward clean energy research and production. By transforming the company into an ingenuity machine, guided by the desire to fill the world with cheap and abundant resources, Iron Man’s vision of the future
wouldn’t need the Avengers
anymore. If he genuinely wanted to, and didn’t have to fight fascists and otherworldly entities for his company back, Tony Stark could create this future.

By the end of this issue, Tony successfully wins back his company. Importantly, he does this not as Iron Man, but as Tony Stark. Not with might and a giant sword, but through ingenuity and guile. Stark is showing that he has what it takes to be the hero he wants to be. There is still a lot to clean up, at Stark Unlimited and across the world, and Iron Man will be needed for that. However, once the mess is gone and Stark Unlimited ledgers have been cleared,Iron Man is quitting “avenging” so that Tony Stark can be the hero.

Iron Man #3is available now from Marvel Comics.

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