Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark fixes his armor's glove in Iron Man
By
Evan D. Mullicane
Published 31 minutes ago
Evan Mullicane is the senior editor and founder of Screen Rant's anime section. Having started as a writer for the Comics Team at the beginning of the Pandemic, Evan was swiftly promoted from writer to editor, and then from editor to lead of Screen Rant's newly established anime vertical.
Throughout his time with Screen Rant, Evan has made a handful of appearances at conventions such as Anime Expo and San Diego Comic-Con, and has interviewed some of the biggest names in Anime and Comics history.
In addition to editing anime and manga articles for Screen Rant, Evan is also a science fiction and fantasy author. In 2018 and 2019, his short story "The Demon's Mother" won honorable mentions from the Writers of the Future contest.
You can find Evan on Twitter @EvanDM and BlueSky @evandmu.bsky.socia
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Few big-name Marvel heroes have attracted as much controversy, both in universe and out of it, as Iron Man. The founding Avenger's temper and sometimes unstable personality can often land him in hot water. This is why it's ironic that one of the hero's most poorly aged comics wasn't directly Tony's fault.
1988's Iron Man #231 by David Michelinie, Bob Layton, and Mark Bright deals with the fallout of a huge loss and fall from grace for Iron Man. The public believes Iron Man died in a fight against the government-approved hero Firepower. As a result of Iron Man's 'death', Stark Enterprises has a PR nightmare on its hands.
As bad as the situation for Stark Enterprises is, one suggestion for how to fix the company's image just reads as uncomfortable in 2025. When talking about the possibility of a new corporate mascot, Stark Enterprises' Head of Public Relations, Marcy Pearson, suggests replacing Iron Man with Bill Cosby.
Bill Cosby Replacing Iron Man Doesn't Even Rank Among Marvel's Most Poorly Aged Comics
While the line Pearson's line about replacing Iron Man with Bill Cobsy reads quite differently in 2025 than it did in 1988, it's far from Marvel's only controversial comic during the era.
1980s' infamous Avengers #200 saw the future Captain Marvel magically become pregnant in a horribly ill-conceived plotline whose ramifications are still being felt.
Meanwhile, the intensely popular X-Men series would see Kitty Pryde attempting to date Colossus when she was only 14 and he was 19 in one of Marvel's most inappropriate romances.
Kitty would also, quite infamously, drop a handful of slurs during this period of time.
Meanwhile, the other comics have far less of an excuse.
Marvel Comics Is No Stranger to Controversy, Even Today
MCU's Captain America with Hydra Cap behind him.
Of course, it would be incorrect to assume that Marvel's controversies are a thing of the past. More recently, Marvel would attract significant public backlash from the revelation that Captain America had been an agent of Hydra all along.
That was such a controversial decision that Marvel editor Tom Brevoort received death threats over it.
In 2022, Marvel landed in hot water again over an alternate universe story that depicted Miles Morales as Thor. That comic was hit with accusations of being tone-deaf as its stereotypical depiction of an Asgard-Brooklyn hybrid felt inauthentic and outright offensive to many.
When compared to these, the line about Bill Cosby seems relatively tame. The creative staff working on the book couldn't possibly have known just how dramatically public perception of the comedian would shift.
Still, it would have been a bad look for Marvel in retrospect if Bill Cosby actually had been used to replace Iron Man as the spokesperson for Stark Enterprises.
Iron Man (2008) Movie Poster
Iron Man
Created by
Kevin Feige, Jon Favreau
First Film
Iron Man
Latest Film
Iron Man 3
Cast
Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Jeff Bridges, Mickey Rourke, Ben Kingsley, Guy Pearce
Movie(s)
Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3
Character(s)
Iron Man, Pepper Potts, War Machine, Iron Monger, Whiplash, Aldrich Killian
The Iron Man franchise is a cornerstone of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), marking the beginning of the interconnected superhero films that have become a global phenomenon. The franchise follows Tony Stark, a billionaire industrialist and genius inventor, who creates a suit of armor to become Iron Man. His journey from a self-centered playboy to a self-sacrificing hero plays a pivotal role throughout the MCU's Infinity Saga.
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Comics
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Iron Man
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