7 Times Iron Man Was Absolutely The Worst

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As a huge Marvel fan, I’ve always found Iron Man to be a fascinating, but frustrating, character. He’s been around forever in the comics, but honestly, he’s messed up so many times, it’s surprising he hasn’t fully turned bad yet! The movies definitely did a lot to make him more likable, but in the comics, he’s always been…complicated. It feels like every time Tony Stark tries to do the right thing, he ends up making things even worse, teetering on the edge of villainy. And honestly, the biggest issue is his ego – he always believes he’s right, even when everything’s going wrong. It’s a really interesting dynamic, but it definitely makes him a flawed hero!

Here is a look at seven times Iron Man was the absolute worst in Marvel Comics.

7) When He Attacked Heroes To Get His Armor Back

A standout story arc for Iron Man was the ‘Armor Wars’ saga, spanning issues #225-232 of his comic. It began when Iron Man discovered that villains were using stolen technology he had created to build weapons. He decided to reclaim all of it, which worked well against the supervillains. However, his mission escalated when he started targeting other heroes and even the U.S. government.

Things went south when Iron Man mistakenly targeted a government agent named Stingray, assuming his tech was connected to Stark Industries. This led the government to demand Iron Man be deactivated, and they dispatched Captain America to try and stop him. When SHIELD arrived, Tony Stark disabled his robotic forces, the Mandroids, and then attacked the Guardians while they were imprisoned. Tony Stark acted recklessly throughout this entire situation, even going so far as to stage his own death as Iron Man to avoid taking responsibility for his mistakes.

6) When He Helped Clone Thor

During the first Civil War storyline, Iron Man made several questionable decisions. One of the earliest and most serious involved him creating a clone of Thor. This clone then killed Bill Foster, who was known as Goliath. Because Goliath was opposing the government’s registration act, his death wasn’t investigated or punished, despite Iron Man’s involvement in creating the killer.

Reed Richards and Tony Stark created a clone of Thor called Ragnarok, using a single strand of Thor’s hair that Tony had saved. Ragnarok’s killing of Goliath highlighted the growing conflict between heroes and sparked a lot of debate. This was a particularly low point for Iron Man, and he faced the consequences when Thor returned and defeated him in a brutal fight, making it clear he was furious about Iron Man using his genetic material to create a murderer.

5) When He Ordered Captain America’s Memory Erased

As a huge Marvel fan, I’ve always been fascinated by the fallout from the Illuminati’s actions. Seriously, they really messed things up! It all started with their trip to the Skrull homeworld, which basically kicked off the whole Secret Invasion mess. Then, they decided banishing Hulk to Sakaar was a good idea – talk about a bad call! That led directly to World War Hulk, where the Hulk understandably went on a rampage. But honestly, the worst thing Tony Stark ever did, in my opinion, was ordering Doctor Strange to erase Cap’s memories. That was just… brutal.

The Illuminati discovered that multiversal Incursions were wiping out entire Earths. Captain America attempted to halt the process using the Infinity Gauntlet, but it broke. When Captain America refused to sacrifice alternate Earths and millions of lives, Iron Man instructed Doctor Strange to proceed, and they erased Captain America’s memories, revealing he had secretly orchestrated the events. This was a profound betrayal, leading to a fight between the two heroes as Earth was destroyed.

4) When He Helped Exile Hulk From Earth

As we’ve discussed, the Illuminati exiled Hulk from Earth, with Iron Man playing a key role in that decision. This was another instance of the group’s deception, much like their treatment of Captain America. They lured Hulk with a false promise of help, then forcibly launched him into space. Their intention was to strand him on a remote, uninhabited planet to live out his days in isolation.

The story didn’t unfold as expected. Hulk was transported to Sakaar, where he was forced into gladiatorial combat as a slave. He eventually broke free, liberating the other enslaved fighters and becoming the planet’s ruler. He even found love and got married, but tragedy struck when his wife was killed in a terrorist attack. Devastated, Hulk returned to Earth and unleashed his fury on Iron Man, Reed Richards, and Black Bolt, defeating them all. While Iron Man deserved some of what happened, it doesn’t justify his earlier behavior.

3) When He Ran The Initiative

During the Civil War storyline, Iron Man gained the government’s confidence and effectively took control of the superhero community in the United States. He launched the Initiative, forming superhero teams in each state and positioning himself as the leader overseeing them all. This gave Iron Man a great deal of power, and ultimately, he became overly influential.

The events following the Secret Invasion had serious consequences. Norman Osborn unexpectedly became a public hero and took over as Iron Man, turning Tony Stark into a wanted criminal. Osborn then took control of the Initiative program, filling the teams with his own villains and undermining the work Iron Man had previously done. Because Iron Man played a role in the Secret Invasion, he was ultimately blamed for the entire situation.

2) When He Helped Start Civil War

The ‘Civil War’ storyline often sparks debate, with fans landing on either side. Some support Iron Man, who believed in working with the government to proactively train heroes and prevent future disasters like the one caused by the Secret Warriors. However, many more side with Captain America, fearing the government would prioritize control over the well-being of heroes and the public, and he wanted to avoid that risk.

Both Iron Man and Captain America refused to compromise, leading to a full-blown war. However, Iron Man was particularly at fault, taking things way too far. He imprisoned heroes who disagreed with him in the dangerous Negative Zone, and his actions directly led to Bill Foster’s death. He also pressured Spider-Man into revealing his identity, a decision that nearly cost Aunt May her life, and then relentlessly pursued Spider-Man when he changed his mind. Ultimately, Iron Man abandoned his own principles.

1) When He Betrayed The Avengers For Kang

The ‘Crossing’ storyline marked a particularly low point for Iron Man, portraying him as a true villain. It was a shocking and divisive plot that revealed Tony Stark had secretly been a villain all along, merely pretending to be a hero since his Marvel Comics debut. The story claimed he was actually a double agent working for Kang the Conqueror.

Iron Man acted horribly in this storyline, callously killing people like Marilla and Rita DeMara, and betraying his friends. He ultimately battled a younger version of himself that the Avengers had traveled back in time to save. This was arguably Iron Man’s lowest point, as he became a true villain. However, Marvel later changed this storyline after the Onslaught event, as part of a reboot of the Avengers comics.

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2026-02-12 18:15