Wednesday, May 01, 2013

Iron Man films Informatics Part 1: Intro to Tony Stark, inventor of the Iron Man suits

Anthony "Tony" Stark is a billionaire industrialist and inventor. He runs Stark Industries, originally started by his father, Howard Stark. In Afghanistan Tony was captured by Ten Rings, they ordered him to build the Jericho missile for them, instead Stark with Ho Yinsen helped use their resources to build a suit of armor and make their escape. Returning to America, Stark improves his armor and become the invincible superhero, Iron Man.

Stark is still human with the exception of his Arc Reactor in his chest. He is one of the richest, smartest and most powerful men in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His power however comes from his high-tech battle suit known as the Iron Man Armor, which grants him extraordinary strength, durability, flight capabilities and various on-board weaponry. He is a founding member of the Avengers.
Character Traits

Tony Stark is an outgoing man who enjoys drinking and gambling, all the while possessing the capacity to become an expert in thermonuclear astrophysics overnight. Tony is shown to be a big fan of Australian hard rock band AC/DC.
An inventive mechanical engineering prodigy, Stark is constantly creating new technology and looking for ways to improve it. At the start of Iron Man, he has little concern for the effect his weapons have on others. However, for all his flaws, Tony is a good man at heart and wants to use his technology to better the world.
From Iron Man to Iron Man 2, Tony has an unique friendship with James Rhodes. Rhodey tries to keep Tony on the straight and narrow although he has stated at times it is not that easy. Although they have been friends for many years, Tony's erratic nature at times makes it difficult for Rhodey to choose between Tony and his duty to the military as clearly evident in the second film, however, by near the end of the film, they have once again become friends on one accord.
In The Avengers, Tony has matured to an extent: while around Pepper he is able to openly express his feelings around her. However, upon being around the team, he still shows the same "qualities" that he is known for. He immediately clashes with Steve Rogers due to their very different personalities, and nearly come to blows when the Helicarrier falls under attack. The two quickly put their feud aside to help repair the ship.
Stark quickly strikes up a friendship with Dr. Bruce Banner, as the two have several things in common including a genius-level IQ. Stark relates to him that his arc reactor -- which keeps shrapnel from reaching his heart--is a great power that he can control, which is not unlike Banner's abilities as The Hulk. In fact, Stark is the only one who doesn't fear the Hulk, and helps Banner realize that The Hulk is more of a blessing than a curse.
Upon Coulson's death, while he tries not to show it in front of Captain America, he shows that his death has greatly affected him. By the time of the battle of New York, he has no problem taking orders from Cap, knowing what is on the line.
In Iron Man 3, Tony is constantly haunted from his near death experience from The Avengers. Fearing he couldn't protect people he cared for, he decided to make repeated upgrades of his armors, not only inserting various remote control devices into his body that would allow him to summon the new Mark XLII with his thoughts alone, but also created the "Iron Legion" of multiple remote-controlled armors keyed in to his physiology.
After defeating Aldrich Killian and the Extremist soldiers, Tony finally decides to undergo surgery to remove the shrapnel from himself, and letting his arc reactor go because he finally understood that Iron Man is the man who "built" the armor, not the armor that wears the man.

No comments: