Alternate versions of Iron Man
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In addition to his mainstream incarnation, Iron Man has had been depicted in other fictional universes.
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[edit] Modern Continuity
- Anthony Edward "Tony" Stark - The first Iron Man, Tony Stark a wealthy industrialist and genius inventor creates the powered suit of armor to save his life after receiving a mortal wound by a devastating weapon. [1]
- James Rupert Rhodes - After Stark loses his fortune to Obadiah Stane and regressess into alcoholism, long-time friend, confidant, and pilot, "Rhodey" Rhodes assumes the mantle of Iron Man.[2] Rhodes relinquishes the role back to Stark after becoming unbalanced due to the neural interface, but resumes the role of Iron Man after Stark's purported death. [3].
[edit] 1602
1602: New World features a 17th century Spanish Iron Man named Lord Iron. Taken captive in the Holy Land during the English / Spanish war, he was forced to make weapons for them by way of weeks of torture by David Banner, the later Hulk of that world. He needs his massive armor to survive. The armor is powered by "lightning bottles" and provides him with super strength and invulnerability as well as several electricity-powered weapons.
With his Moorish associate, Rhodes, Lord Iron is assigned by King James to put an end to the traitors and witchbreed in the New World. Instead, he realizes he has let bitterness consume him, and makes his peace with Banner. He is last seen using his armor to power the colony's printing press.
[edit] 2020
Machine Man 2020 features Arno Stark in the red and gold armor, acting as a mercenary in the employ of Sunset Bain.
[edit] Age of Apocalypse
In the Age of Apocalypse, Tony Stark is an agent of the Human High Council. The injury that compromised his heart is caused by the attack of a mutant.
[edit] Avataars
In the sword and sorcery world of the Avataars: Covenant of the Shield miniseries, Iron Man's counterpart is Ironheart, one of the Champions of the Realm. A powerful warrior, he wears a huge suit of grey armor.
[edit] Bullet Points
In Bullet Points, Iron Man is Steve Rogers, who, following the assassination of Dr. Abraham Erskine and the cancellation of the 'Captain America' project, agrees to be bonded to the prototype 'Iron Man' armor despite the intense physical pain and discomfort this will cause. Rogers is later killed fighting an alternate version of the Hulk; following this, Tony Stark, who has been recruited into S.H.I.E.L.D. expresses a desire to continue in Rogers' footsteps as Iron Man, but is rejected owing to a heart condition. He later disobeys this command and adopts the mantle upon the arrival of Galactus.
[edit] Earth X
In the alternative reality of Earth X, Tony Stark builds a headquarters that protects himself from a plague that grants all humans superpowers.. Afterwards, he builds the Iron Avengers. Later, his headquarters is revealed to be a giant armor in and of itself, based on the old Godzilla fighting mecha, the Red Ronin, which he uses to delay the Celestial attack until the coming of Galactus, sacrificing his life in the process. He later becomes part of the angelic Avenging Host of Mar-vell's "Paradise", with an Iron Man motif.
[edit] Earth-691
In the continuity of Earth-691, Tony Stark is devastated by the horrors of the Martian invasion and jettisons his technology into space. It is found by a primitive alien race who use it to become an interstellar menace calling themselves the Stark, who subsequently clash with the Guardians of the Galaxy in the 31st century.
[edit] Earth-2122
In the continuity of Earth-2122, the home of Crusader X, where the British won the American Revolution and still control North America, Anthony Stark is a member of a group called the Sons of Liberty. In this reality, Stark is willing to kill innocent people.
[edit] Exiles
- In Exiles, an alternate villainous Iron Man of Earth-2020 is a member of Weapon X, the more ruthless team of reality fixers. He joins the Exiles but is eventually exposed and sent back to his own timeline where he is arrested by the Army (despite protestations that he was persecuted for being a pacifist, he apparently actually started a world war there).[citation needed]
- In Exiles #23-25 a Tony Stark has become the absolute ruler of the entire planet Earth, and kills many of that Earth's heroes and mutants. Weapon X arrives on this reality to help him conquer Attilan, though their true purpose is to cause his downfall. Tony is eventually killed by Susan Storm.
[edit] Fantastic Four: The End
In this mini-series which is set in a future where Reed Richards' technology has launched humanity into a golden age without poverty, hunger, disease or war and where mankind has colonized the entire Solar System, awaiting membership in the intergalactic federation while in quarantine from the rest of the universe, Tony Stark has died long ago - but his consciousness survives, 'hopping' from artificial body to artificial body. All the bodies shown in the mini resemble Iron Man armors, often being identical to existing armors. One notable exception was the bulky, stocky space-armor which played an important role in the battle of humanity's heroes versus several alien armadas.
[edit] House of M
In House of M, Tony Stark is the owner of Stark Enterprises, a company given to him by his father. He is a winning contestant on 'Sapien Death Match', a reality TV fighting show which involves humans in power-armor battling each other. He lives in the shadow of his father, and has been developing a superior armor to protect himself. Iron Man earned the admiration of human and mutant alike, including Magneto himself, when he and a team of Sapien Death Match fighters stopped a terrorist plot to kill hundreds of mutants with 'gene bombs.'
[edit] Iron Maniac
Iron Maniac is an evil alternate universe version of Iron Man from Earth 5012. He first appeared in Marvel Team-Up (Vol. 3) #2, wearing armor that bears heavy resemblance to that of Doctor Doom (and is, because of that, mistaken for that villain).
He comes from an alternate reality where most of the Avengers were killed when they encountered the vicious alien Titannus in space. While the team is rescued by the reserve Avengers five years later, it takes another five years to fight back the Trellions- the alien race that has brainwashed Titannus- and, during that time, an apparently power-hungry Reed Richards turns his back on the surviving heroes. (The exact circumstances behind this are unknown.) Scarred for life due to an attack from the Human Torch shortly before the aforementioned hero is killed, Iron Man sets his own operation base in Latveria for the express purpose of "take over the world to save it from Richards," until Richards somehow manages to banish him into Earth-616 (other differences between his world and the one we know include that there is no Spider-Man - or, at least, he and Iron Man have never met - and that Hank Pym is another version of the Hulk).
After being transported to Earth 616, the alternate Iron Man fights the Fantastic Four and Doctor Strange, all of whom initially assumed him to be their Doctor Doom having escaped from Hell. However, after he unmasks himself, they learn his true identity, shortly before he manages to temporarily negate the FF's powers and escape. Capturing a recently-discovered mutant, the alternate Iron Man attempts to return to his home dimension, but is attacked by Spider-Man and X-23. After the appearance of Captain America and Black Widow, he realizes that he is in an alternate world, but continues to fight the heroes, calling them all 'Richards' lackeys'. He is defeated thanks to Spider-Man and X-23's use of their own version of the fastball special to destroy his equipment, shortly after 'warning' the other heroes of the Titannus War (by saying that he wouldn't kill them now because it would be a kindness).
While the alternate Tony Stark is kept locked up and drugged in the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier, he is briefly visited by his counterpart in this universe, although he is unaware of the visit. Shortly after the alternate Stark is transferred to a conventional cell, Titannus soon arrives and fights the heroes, this time confronting a new group of Defenders assembled by Doctor Strange. When Titannus' comatose lover is revived, she tells him that she never loved him and that he was insane, causing Titannus to kill himself. The alternate Iron Man later discovers from Spider-Man and Wolverine that the Avengers were never massacred in space in this reality because the group had been disassembled, thus never encountering Titannus and averting the so-called 'Titannus War'.
He has recently broken free from captivity, having immunized himself to the gas that was used to keep him sedated onboard the SHIELD Helicarrier. In the process he gains the unwilling alliance of the LMD Diamondback. Having convinced her that he is the "real" Tony, the AU Tony Stark erases her memories, and reshapes the former LMD into an advanced suit of armor. This armor, even more advanced than the pre-Extremis suit Iron Man wore at that time, is able to replicate any weapon from the wearer's memory. He subsequently battles Spider-Man, Wolverine, Captain America and Luke Cage, but is only defeated after the sacrifice of rookie hero Freedom Ring, who kept Iron Maniac occupied long enough for Captain America to knock him out with a shield thrown at the back of his neck.
The name Iron Maniac is what he decided to call himself, due to being the "sole survivor of a sane world living in a backwards, insane world,".
Iron Maniac is known to be at least partially cyberized, with armor plating implanted in his chest (revealed during his escape from the Helicarrier, when he is shot). It is unknown whether the rest of his body is similarly armored or if he possesses other cybernetic enhancements.
He has been briefly mentioned as being held in a Shield Hellicarrier recently in The Irredeemable Ant-Man.
[edit] Mangaverse
In the Marvel Mangaverse reality, Tony Stark creates the original armor together with Dr. Ho Yinsen and acts as Iron Man for a time, but eventually vanishes after a battle with Namor, the Submariner. He is succeeded by Antoinette (Toni) Stark, his twin sister, a former agent of SHIELD, who turns Iron Man into a massive operation - a veritable army of Iron Men in many forms, with herself as Iron Woman. After she dies in battle against the Hulk, Tony Stark reveals himself again; he has gone underground after spinal cancer reduced him to a disembodied head hooked up to a life support system. However, he has designed a new armor, and a body that he can integrate with.
He also had designed four massive vehicles for the Avengers of his world to use, which could combine (in a manner resembling old fashioned combining super robots like Combattler V and Voltes V) into a skyscraper-sized Iron Man-mecha (Dubbed Ultimate Iron Man in its first appearance, then the Iron Avenger in its battle with the Hulk and finally simply called "the Avenger's mecha" in Volume 2 of the series). Unfortunately it was quickly destroyed by that world's Hulk. Apparently, however, it was rebuilt again by the time of the second volume, this time as a single robotic unit without transformation (or, if it was capable of transformation, it was never demonstrated). This unit helped fight off the giant Galactus spores, but was later destroyed, along with most of the Avengers, single handedly by the Mangaverse version of Dr. Doom.
[edit] Marvel Adventures
The Marvel Adventures Iron Man is very similar to the Earth-616 Iron Man, but with some changes. Instead of suffering damage to his heart due to a booby trap in Vietnam, Tony Stark's heart was damaged when an experimental plane he was flying was brought down by AIM. AIM wanted Stark to build weapons and devices for them. Dr. Gia-Bao Yinsen aided Tony in escaping AIM, but Yinsen died saving his country from AIM. Iron Man doesn't seem to have problems with alcoholism, since the Marvel Adventures is aimed at a younger demographics. Iron Man's armor resembles his Extremis armor although Iron Man has other armors that fit over his regular armor, as in the case of his underwater armor.
[edit] Marvel Zombies
In Marvel Zombies, Tony Stark has been infected by the zombie virus. Alongside a horde of starving superhuman zombies, Iron Man attacks the Silver Surfer. The attack is successful, but one of the Surfer's energy bolts hits Iron Man's lower torso, cutting him in half. The zombie "survives" this wound and later gains cosmic powers (including flight) by eating part of the Surfer's corpse. Galactus then shows up and after eating him along with five other surviving zombies, Iron Man becomes one of the members of "The Galactus".
Currently, the Marvel Zombies are attacking a Skrull planet, only to encounter the Fantastic Four of this reality- currently consisting of Black Panther, Storm, the Thing and the Human Torch-, leaving the Zombies eager to capture the FF and transport back to their reality.
He also appears in Marvel Zombies 2, one of the small group of super-powered zombies that have eaten their way across all known space. Here Stark has had his entire lost lower body replaced with cybernetics. He also appears to have forgotten he had some design in the machine which opened a link to the Ultimate Universe. The Hulk kills Iron Man when The Hulk stomps through the armor, forcing Tony Stark's flesh through any openings in the armor.
[edit] MC2
In the alternate future of MC2, Tony Stark retires after the loss of many heroes in battle, but eventually creates the armored computer program Mainframe, which joins the next generation of Avengers.
[edit] Ruins
In the two issue Warren Ellis series [1]. Tony Stark is a rich industrialist, he supplied weapons for the US military in an attempt to win the Vietnam war. This version of Iron Man was injured while mediating between US forced and pro-secessionist Californians by a piece of shrapnel thrown by National Guard. This embittered Stark who formed a revolutionary cell named the Avengers. This version of Iron Man was betrayed by Scarlet Witch who provided the United States military information to crush the Avengers. Tony Stark is presumably killed.
[edit] Ultimate Iron Man
- See also: Ultimate Iron Man for information on the two Ultimate Iron Man miniseries.
The Ultimate Marvel version of Iron Man first appears in Ultimate Marvel Team-Up #4, written by Brian Michael Bendis and drawn by Mike Allred (though his biography, as related in this book, is very different from what is later established as canon). He later appeared in the Ultimates and often appears in the same titles they do. In the Ultimate Universe, Antonio "Tony" Stark is a wealthy business tycoon and inventor who creates the Iron Man power armor. Like his mainstream counterpart, Tony has a drinking problem and life-threatening affliction; in this case an inoperable brain tumor which will kill him anytime between six months and five years, which he explains is the reason he has become a philanthropist and superhero. Stark's early life and origins are explored in the Ultimate Iron Man miniseries, written by science fiction author Orson Scott Card.
Stark's genius is attributed to the fact that he was infected with a regenerative virus while in his mother's womb, which facilitated the spread of undifferentiated neural tissue throughout his body, in effect making his entire body part of his brain. However, this brings with it an over stimulation of his neural cells, causing excruciating pain whenever his skin comes into contact with anything, even dust. To save the infant Tony's life, his father Howard Stark applied an experimental bacterial coating all over his body, which grants him a certain degree of protection. However, it is unable to prevent the chronic, constant pain within his body, and the coating can be washed off. In part, this motivates him to create a stronger, more durable form of armor in the form of Iron Man.
Stark's dual identity as Iron Man is public knowledge. The Ultimate Iron Man armor is more finicky and requires a considerably larger crew to operate than that found in the regular Marvel Universe, but serves as Stark International's corporate mascot. It's also noticeably bulkier, with more of a "wearable fighter-plane" feel rather than a skintight suit. Despite his public image as a thrill-seeking playboy, Stark is an inventive genius and rates amongst the greatest minds in the Ultimate Universe. When Stark hears Nick Fury is assembling a team of superheroes, Tony volunteers his services. After helping defeat the Hulk, Tony develops a friendship with Thor and Steve Rogers. He has since captured the Rhino, battled Chitauri spaceships, sneaked aboard a Kree spacecraft, and decapitated a Silver Surfer clone as a member of the Ultimates. Though he has made these great accomplishments, he is still unsure of himself, as in the Ultimates when he is beat down and throws up in his own helmet. He doubts his own abilities and decides he can't continue fighting until a soldier asks, "if you don't do it, who will?"
Stark falls in love with and proposes to Natasha Romanova, the Black Widow. Just prior to proposing, Stark gives her a black suit of armor, almost identical to his own. The flight test of the suit includes flying over her homeland, where Stark had paid the three million inhabitants of her hometown to stand in a field, spelling out his proposal, which she immediately accepts. When the Liberators invade America, the Widow shoots Jarvis and then tries to get Stark, at gunpoint, to transfer much of his fortune to her. However, Stark has ultimate control of the nanites in her bloodstream that allows her to interface with her armor. Using these nanites, Stark incapacitates Romanova and retrieves the enemy plans from her mind with the intention of fighting back against the Liberators. He takes Iron Man 6, a massive helicarrier-sized ship armed with dozens of laser cannons and machine guns, and wipes out the air force of the Liberators in Washington, D.C (as well as his opposite number in the Liberators, The Crimson Dynamo). He then heads to New York to aid the heroes there. After the battle, Stark, now wielding a more skintight suit, agrees to finance the now private practicing Ultimates and very quickly gets over Natasha's betrayal with the help of a pretty blonde.
The start of Volume 3 sees Tony becoming a full-blown alcoholic. A sex tape that he made with Natasha during their time together also makes into the public, causing a PR nightmare for the Ultimates.
Marvel has announced a second run for Ultimate Iron Man, also written by Orson Scott Card. The Iron Man armor shown in the preview image of Ultimates 3 resembles its Extremis counterpart more closely than the previous suit, although it retains the characteristic Ultimate mask and bulk.
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