Ironman

"So exactly who is the Ironman? We've all seen the movie, but let's hear a little something about how this character was first created. He is of course based on a super hero from a comic book. The character first appeared in Tales of Suspense #39 (March 1963), and was created by Stan Lee and Larry Lieber, and artists Don Heck and Jack Kirby.

The Ironman starts off his life as a billionaire playboy who is off showing his weapons of mass destruction. As Robert Downey Jr. so memorably says at the beginning of the movie, "most people feel that the best weapon is one you have never have to use. I say the best weapon is one you only have to use once. That's the way America has always done it and it worked out pretty well for them." He is changed when he gets kidnapped and forced to build an ultimate weapon for a group of terrorists. He instead builds himself a suit of armor which he wears and the Iron Man is born. Being a genius, Stark does not just build himself a suit of armor, but literally builds a suit of armor capable of doing almost anything. He can fly, he has all manner of weapons and he is all but impervious to any kind of weapons fire.

Initially, Iron Man was a way for Stan Lee to explore Cold War themes. He was particularly interested in the role of American technology and business in the fight against what was then perceived as the communist threat. At first, the Ironman was completely against communism and did everything to stamp it out, but that attitude changed gradually when the Vietnam war heated up and so many people were against the fight that it was felt that Iron Man needed to get out there and say exactly how he felt.

Later on, Iron Man was re-invented (isn't it nice how super heroes can reinvent themselves whenever they feel like it and they are always young?) to face more contemporary problems such as crime and corporate greed.

The character used to be a member of the Avengers super hero team and also spent a bit of time hanging out with the Incredible hulk, but it was only recently that Ironman got a world all his own in a series of comic books beginning in 2005 with the "Extremis" story line written by Warren Ellis.