What Is Armor Wars? Marvel’s New War Machine Show Explained

War Machine’s new Disney+ show, Armor Wars, is inspired by the Marvel Comics event of the same name. The comic book story was centered on Iron Man, but the live-action version will focus on Don Cheadle’s James Rhodes instead, since Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark is dead in the MCU.

All the biggest Marvel news of 2020 was dropped at the same time by Disney when two more MCU movies and three Disney+ shows were confirmed to be in development. Joining what’s already a long list of Marvel projects in Phase 4 are a Fantastic Four movie directed by Jon Watts, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, a Secret Invasion show with Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), and more. In addition to all that, Marvel will also be working on two shows tied to the legacy of Iron Man (Robert Downey, Jr.), who met his end in Avengers: Endgame. Ironheart will shine the spotlight on a teenage girl who ends up with Stark’s tech, while Armor Wars will send War Machine on a mission to stop Stark’s armor from being misused.

For a while, it was unclear what Marvel intended to do with War Machine in Phase 4, if anything. He was one of the few active superheroes in the MCU who didn’t have a clear post-Endgame future, but with the announcement of Armor Wars, it’s become apparent that Marvel isn’t done with Iron Man’s closest ally just yet. However, it’s important to note that though War Machine was in Marvel’s original “Armor Wars” story, he wasn’t the main character. This story originally belonged to Iron Man. That being said, it may stay close to the comic’s premise.

Armor Wars In Marvel Comics Explained

There are two versions of “Armor Wars” in the comics (one in the 1980s and another in 2015), but Disney’s announcement indicates its show is based on the original event. “Armor Wars” was a storyline that played out in the pages of Iron Man between 1987 and 1988. It revolved around Tony Stark’s concerns about how his armor was being used by other people in the Marvel Universe. Stark reached a surprising realization when he found out that his designs were being employed by his enemies. Apparently, his armor plans were sold by Justin Hammer. Upset by this discovery, Stark worried that his technology would be used for evil and embarked on a crusade to make sure that no harm would be inflicted by his inventions.

With War Machine as his ally, Iron Man battled numerous armored foes in an effort to track down everyone who had access to his designs. Among those he fought were villains such as Titanium Man, Beetle, Crimson Dynamo, and an aquatic superhero by the name of Stingray. One problem that surfaced during the Armor Wars was that not all of Iron Man’s targets were guilty of what he accused them of. For example, Iron Man realized he made a big mistake when he found out that Stingray had actually invented his own armor.

Despite being wrong in ruthlessly pursuing Stingray, Iron Man’s determination didn’t waver. His recklessness reached a new level when he attacked the Guardsmen and inadvertently caused a prison break at the Vault. This put him at odds with a furious Captain America, who had been forced to clean up Stark’s mess at the Vault. Things continued to get worse for Stark when Hawkeye kicked him off the West Coast Avengers team. Setbacks continued to pile up, but in the end, Iron Man and War Machine won the Armor Wars when they defeated the event’s main antagonist, Firepower. Even so, victory for the two heroes didn’t come without consequences. His actions damaged his standing in the superhero community as well as his relationships with Captain America and the Avengers.

How MCU Has Used Armor Wars So Far

The MCU hasn’t done “Armor Wars” yet, but it’s not an unfamiliar concept to those who have watched the Iron Man trilogy. People stealing Iron Man’s designs and using them to do commit evil acts is a theme that’s been tackled more than once already. With Iron Man’s armor as a prototype, Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) created the Iron Monger armor and battled Stark at the end of the first Iron Man movie in 2008. Then there was the entire concept of Justin Hammer trying to get his hands on Tony Stark’s Iron Man armor in Iron Man 2, with the government stepping in as well. Then in Iron Man 3, Stark’s main problem was his Extremis technology, which was stolen by Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce). This resulted in a heated battle between the two at the end of the film.

Armor Wars In MCU Phase 4

A common presumption about Disney+’s Armor Wars is that it will follow the basic plot of the comic book story, but with War Machine being the hero who leads the fight to keep Stark’s tech from being weaponized. Rather than being a partner to Iron Man, Rhodey will take center stage. It could be that a character like Iron Man 2’s Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) – or perhaps someone entirely different) will find Stark’s armor designs after his death and sell them on the black market. Once this happens, it will fall on his best friend to make sure his legacy isn’t tarnished. To do that, Rhodes will have to track down everyone who has his tech and defeat them. War Machine having to deal with multiple people who have this tech is likely what will set Armor Wars apart from the isolated incidents in the Iron Man movies.

Going in this direction will give the MCU an opportunity to utilize key members of Iron Man’s rogues’ gallery who Marvel didn’t have room for in any of his three movies. Titanium Man is one of his biggest villains, but he has never appeared in live-action. Armor Wars can remedy that by making him one of War Machine’s targets. It will be interesting to see how Armor Wars approaches one particular element of the story, which is how far War Machine will go to achieve his goal. In the comics, Tony Stark crossed several lines and burned a few bridges in his efforts to stop others from using his armor. It remains to be seen if War Machine will go down a similar path in his own crusade. If he does, Armor Wars could send him a on a collision course with the Avengers.

About The Author