Marvel Keeps Forgetting The Best Part Of Iron Man's Endgame Story

For some reason, Marvel Studios keeps on disregarding arguably the best part of Iron Man's (Robert Downey Jr.) story in Avengers: Endgame.

Marvel Keeps Forgetting The Best Part Of Iron Man's Endgame Story

For some reason, Marvel Studios keeps on forgetting the best part of Iron Man’s (Robert Downey Jr.) arc in Avengers: Endgame. The MCU’s inaugural hero wrapped up his personal arc in the 2019 Joe and Anthony Russo-directed blockbuster. Despite being an ensemble film, Avengers: Endgame gave Tony Stark his own compelling narrative, leading to his eventual death after sacrificing himself to defeat Thanos (Josh Brolin).

While Iron Man’s MCU arc ended in tragedy, Marvel Studios made sure to tie up all narrative loose ends. Avengers: Endgame allowed him to reconcile with his father, Howard Stark (John Slattery) thanks to the time heist. The film also gave him the opportunity to patch things up with Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) after their falling out in Captain America: Civil War. Arguably the most important thing Tony was able to do in the film, however, was to focus on his personal life. Ever since becoming Iron Man, he had been so obsessed with keeping the world safe that he didn’t have time to focus on himself or his family.

So, when Thanos won in Avengers: Infinity War, Iron Man finally got the time for his family. In the five years since the Titan’s snap, he married Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), and together, they had a kid, Morgan (Lexi Rabe). Avengers: Endgame didn’t get to devote that much time to exploring Tony as a father, but in the brief moments that it was front and center, it was clear that he was really good in the role. Sadly, this is an aspect of the character’s personal story that is often overlooked, even by Marvel Studios. In fact, during this year’s Father’s day social media post, Iron Man was left out on the list of celebrated dads in the MCU. What makes this worse is that Thanos, who was abusive and toxic, was mentioned in the greeting.

While Avengers: Endgame didn’t get the chance to fully explore Tony’s relationship with Morgan, he previously had paternal relationships with several other MCU characters. He was essentially J.A.R.V.I.S and Vision’s father as their creator. Meanwhile, he had a more traditional guardian dynamic with Nebula (Karen Gillan) and, more prominently, Peter Parker (Tom Holland). Interestingly, Tony didn’t originally seem like he was cut out to be a dad. He had a difficult relationship with his own father and was known to be self-centered. Tony knew these aspects of himself well, hence why he was hesitant about taking Peter Parker as a mentee. However, he turned out to be great in the role. Spider-Man looked up to him and Nebula had a great father figure experience because of him.

Tony’s various inventions are integral parts of his legacy, not to mention his sacrificial snap in Avengers: Endgame. His impact on the MCU goes beyond that, however, thanks to the relationship he fostered with some of his contemporaries. Given this, his patriarchal role in the franchise to Morgan, Peter, Nebula, and Vision shouldn’t easily be disregarded and forgotten.