Tony Stark saw himself as a genius scientist, a playboy philanthropist, and the man who wore the Iron Man armor. Until Loki menaced New York in The Avengers, that was all he needed to be. But one comment by Captain America splintered his feelings of security, his identity. Iron Man 3 offers a resounding answer to Cap’s criticism.

Iron Man 3 was released in 2013 as the first movie to kick off Phase Two of the MCU. It was a box office success, becoming the second highest grossing film of that year. Though fans were critical of the Mandarin plot twist, it generally scored favorably - especially in comparison to its predecessor, 2010’s Iron Man 2. In the Avengers scene, the team is being manipulated by Loki’s scepter, containing the mind stone, into arguing with each other. Their personalities are amplified, their egos clash, and they teeter on coming to blows.

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The team is clearly dysfunctional. It is the lowest point of the movie for the team, where they are at their worst. From this point, they will go on to be united by the tragedy of Agent Coulson and the epic Battle of New York. Specifically, while they are arguing, Captain America and Iron Man face off (cleverly positioning themselves for the future civil war to come).

Captain America criticizes Iron Man by saying Tony Stark was just a “big man in a suit of armor,” with the armor off, he is nothing. This is true. Tony Stark, the man, has no superpowers like Thor or Hulk, or advanced combat training like Black Widow or Hawkeye. He is merely a man with money and technology. Iron Man 3 was an answer to that statement.

Iron Man 3 proved to the audience and to Tony Stark why that mere man was not just a suit of armor. The movie tested him by removing everything he thought he needed to feel safe, to feel powerful, and forced him to solve his conflicts with his own ingenuity and skills.

First, the movie removed Tony Stark’s confidence by having him struggle with serious PTSD. The Battle of New York nearly cost Tony his life. Had he failed his mission much worse things would have happened, such as the atomic bombing of New York City or the planetary conquest by the Chitauri and Loki. Next, Tony’s headquarters was destroyed by Mandarin’s missile attack, forcing him to escape with only a single malfunctioning suit of armor. This leaves Tony physically exposed to danger. Striping away his core character trait and his technological power forces Tony to rediscover what makes him Iron Man in the first place.

Tony Stark’s ability as a scientist is displayed across several movies in the MCU and he is often paired with Bruce Banner for these pursuits. One example is how they developed the artificial intelligence that becomes Ultron in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

More than a scientist, Tony Stark is a mechanic. In Iron Man 3, he is confronted with this after he crash lands his suit in Tennessee. The prototype suit is out of power and unable to move. Here he meets the little boy Harley. Tony has a panic attack when he learns from JARVIS that the suit will not be ready to confront the Mandarin. Over the phone, as an answer to what Tony is going to do, Harley tells him to “build something.” The boy reminds him that it is his skills that give him the power to be Iron Man, not the other way around. This inspires Tony to act. He is provoked that his core trait is not confidence, but technical intelligence.

Even without his suit, Tony Stark is brave enough to pursue the conspiracy head-on. Despite the risk of being totally exposed, he attacks the base in Miami, albeit armed with improvised weapons and dressed in black sweatpants and a hoodie. The bad guys have machine guns, handguns, and the greater force of numbers. Tony uses home-made weapons from things he bought at a hardware store, like a nail gun, an electro-shock glove, and Christmas ornament bombs. He successfully overcomes them and makes his way into the base to find the Mandarin.

In a way, taking everything away from Tony Stark reveals what makes him Iron Man in the first place. When he gains that knowledge back, he can confidently, truly, save the day. Later he brings his entire collection of Iron Man suits to assist his battle with Killian and to rescue the Vice President and Pepper Potts.

If Captain America, or anyone, questions what is Iron Man without his suit? He is Tony Stark, genius scientist, playboy philanthropist, mechanic, and a brave man.

Iron Man 3 is mainly remembered for its Mandarin plot twist, in which Ben Kingsely plays an actor who portrays the Mandarin only on TV, and that the real villain was Guy Pearce’s Aldrich Killian, to lesser effect. The fan backlash caused Marvel to release a One-Shot titled “All Hail the King,” to address some of the criticisms. It implied that the Ten Rings and the real Mandarin were upset that Ben Kingsley’s character used their name and that they were still out there to be reckoned with. The Ten Rings were prominent throughout the Iron Man Trilogy, perhaps they will be villains in Marvel’s Phase Four?

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