Tony Stark has come an awful long way from cobbling together pieces of scrap in the caves of Afghanistan.
In the decade since Jon Favreau’s Iron Man, moviegoers have been treated to the Iron Legion, War Machine and the Mark XLIV Armor – better known to you, I, and Bruce Banner as the famous Hulkbuster – but with Avengers: Infinity War fast approaching its May release date, Marvel Studios is about to unveil a Tony Stark at the peak of his abilities.
How do we know? Because last night’s Super Bowl spot for Infinity War – a spot that has naturally been picked apart to within an inch of its life – featured our first true glimpse of the Model-Prime Armor (Mark LI), which effectively blurs the line between man and machine.
Given the entire teaser was just under 30 seconds long, this is a fleeting peek at Stark’s flagship creation, and it appears to bend to his every will. Robert Downey Jr.’s MCU figurehead isn’t one to keep a low profile, so we imagine those designer sunglasses are actually a mobile command center for Tony Stark, as he calls upon his bleeding-edge suit to confront Thanos in New York City.
Those of you who familiar with the comics will know that the Model-Prime Armor comes to be shortly after the introduction of Riri Williams, a whip-smart 15-year-old who pushes Tony Stark into upping his game. And so, Iron Man’s greatest suit is born, though we’ll likely have to wait until May 4th before we discover all of its many bells and whistles.
If nothing else, it’s another exciting reminder that Avengers: Infinity War will open up a whole new arsenal for Earth’s Mightiest Heroes – be it the aforementioned Model-Prime armor, Cap’s dual shields, or the fearsome Jarnbjorn, Thor’s Dwarven-forged battle ax that looks set to replace Mjolnir.