Anthony "Tony" Stark (Earth-199999)

Born on April 26, 1970 [2] [3]  to legendary innovator, Manhattan Project engineer and weapons developer  Howard Stark, Tony's early life was often dominated by the absence of his father whom he would later describe as 'cold' and 'calculating'. [4]

However from an early age he quickly stole the spotlight with his brilliant and unique mind. At age four he built his first circuit board, at age six his first engine, and at seventeen he graduated summa cum laude from MIT.

When his parents were killed in a car accident, Howard Stark's lifelong friend and ally, Obadiah Stane, stepped in to fill the gap left by the legendary founder. At age twenty-one, Tony became the youngest CEO of a Fortune 500 company after the inheritance of Stark Industries, a chief weapons manufacturer for the U.S. military [5]

With the keys to the business empire, he ushered in a new era for his father's legacy, creating smarter weapons, advanced robotics, and satellite targeting. Stark Industries did pioneering work in medical technology and in combating world hunger with their Intelli-Crops program. Tony's influence changed the face of the weapons industry by "ensuring freedom and protecting America and her interests around the globe."

Although he developed a strong reputation in his field, Tony rarely seemed interested in the work of others; during a party inBern, Switzerland, to celebrate the millennium, he briefly conversed with scientist Aldrich Killian and then completely forgot about the man after promising to meet him on the roof in favor of spending time with scientist Maya Hansen, offering some brief observations on her work and then leaving the morning after.[6]

Captured in Afghanistan
Stark's First Armor, Mark I When Stark traveled to Kabul, Afghanistan in May of 2009 to introduce his new cluster missile design, an extremely destructive, multi-warhead weapon called the "Jericho", to theUnited States Air Force, his convoy was attacked by militant accomplices of terrorist-leader Raza and he was knocked unconscious. He woke up to find that he had been severely injured by shrapnel piercing his chest, and had been captured by the militants, yet had survived thanks to his fellow captive, Dr. Ho Yinsen.

Yinsen had made a high powered electromagnet to hold the shrapnel in place, preventing it from puncturing his heart and thus keeping him alive. Stark was ordered by their captors, a terrorist group calling themselves the Ten Rings, to build them a new version of the Stark Industries' Jericho missile. He grudgingly agreed, but instead used the time to build a powered suit of armoralong with a miniature Arc Reactor to keep him alive.

During his escape, Yinsen was killed in an attempt to stall the guards long enough to buy Stark enough time to charge the suit. After the suit was powered up he broke out and destroyed all stock they had of Stark weapons, and used a rocket booster to get clear of the scene. After crashing into the sand he abandoned his armor, and traveled for some time before U.S. military helicopters found him and carried him to safety.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_.28film.29_4-1">[5]

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">Iron Man Armor MK III

Becoming A Hero
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Upon returning to the United States in late August, Stark declared that Stark Industries would no longer manufacture weapons, a move which his business partner Obadiah Stane told him was quickly blocked by the board members. He decided to recreate his armor suit with a vastly upgraded design featuring flight capability, and built a more powerful and reliable arc reactor, both to power his pacemaker and the suit. This experimental test model gave way to a more refined third generation suit, heavily armed, and painted in a vivid red and gold theme that would become his trademark through many more successive generations of his armor.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Faced with the realization that his weapons designs had fallen into the wrong hands, Stark donned the MK III suit and flew to Afghanistan to stop the Ten Rings. He stopped the group and destroyed their Stark weapon stock, while accidentally drawing the attention of the United States Air Force and his friend Lt. Colonel James Rhodes. They sent two F-22 jets after Stark to shoot him down, but Stark managed to escape them, and Rhodes covered up the incident after he found out that Stark was piloting the armor, stating that the altercation was a training exercise.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">While he was working on improving the suit he discovered that Stane had been dealing under the table to both sides in the conflict. He sent his assistant Virginia "Pepper" Potts to hack into the Stark mainframe. While he was back at home Stane stunned him with a device that induced temporary paralysis, and then stole the arc reactor from Stark's chest. Stark went back to his lab after the paralyzing device wore off and tried to get the old reactor before he went into cardiac arrest. With the help of his personal A.I. computer, J.A.R.V.I.S., he was able to put the arc-reactor in his chest.

Iron Man
<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">Stark and Stane in combat <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Using his first reactor, which was not designed to power his latest armor, Stark suited up once more and went to confront Stane. He battled with Stane atop Stark Industries and the surrounding streets, defeating him when the full-sized arc reactor that powered the lab was deliberately overloaded, under Stark's instruction, by Potts. Stark's reactor reactivated after having almost failed completely from the blast.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Afterwards, Stark's alter ego was dubbed "Iron Man" by the press. Stark held a press conference where his government contacts expected him to state that Iron Man was Stark's own bodyguard. However, after stumbling into a loaded question by one of the press reps, he ultimately made his identity as Iron Man public instead.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_.28film.29_4-2">[5]

Avenger Initiative
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Later that night, Stark came home and was greeted by Nick Fury, leader of S.H.I.E.L.D. (the Strategic Homeland Intervention Enforcement and Logistics Division), who told him about a plan called the Avenger Initiative.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_.28film.29_4-3">[5]

Palladium Poisoning
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Over the next six months, Stark would realize his design of the reactor in his chest required a heavy element such as palladium to keep it running. Unfortunately, palladium was continuously eroded by the neutron bombardment, and released deadly poisons into Tony's body. As he came to the realization that his demise was at hand, he began giving his things away to his trusted friends. Pepper took over as CEO of Stark Industries.

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">Iron Man battles Whiplash <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">While Tony struggled with his illness, the son of Howard Stark'spartner in building the original arc reactor, Ivan Vanko, was creating a mini arc reactor of his own.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Using crude materials, Ivan was able to create a chest harness that fed the energy from the reactor into two electrical whips he could then use to cut through metal and electrify things with. He attacked Tony at the Monaco Grand Prix while Tony was driving the car he sponsored, and would have killed him if not for the intervention of Pepper and Happy. They rushed to him on the race track and delivered a portable suitcase armor, that Tony used to defeat Vanko.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">When Stark threw a party at his Malibu mansion, his self-destructive tendencies again came to the fore. He had donned his Iron Man suit and proceeded to get drunk, then used the suits destructive capabilities to entertain his guests. James Rhodes found him destroying thrown objects above the crowd, and so therefore retrieved the old MK II prototype from the basement and confronted Stark. A fight broke out, Iron Man against Iron Man, and eventually Rhodes confiscated the MK II after telling Stark that he was no longer worthy to wear the suit. Stark watched his friend leave resigning himself to the thought that his friend might be right.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">At his lowest ebb, Tony was approached by Director Fury at a doughnut shop. Still in his Iron Man armor he agreed to a meeting within and was surprised when they were joined by his own assistant, who Fury introduced as Natasha Romanoff, a spy who would proceed to keep tabs on him. Romanoff administered a temporary barrier to Tony's palladium poisoning, before Fury set him on a trail to find an element to replace the palladium.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">After a lengthy search, Stark found a secret message meant for his adult self in his father's notes, and a diagram for the atomic structure of a new element discovered by Howard, disguised as a diorama of the 1974Stark Expo grounds. Howard was limited by the technology of his day, but was certain that the adult Tony would have access to what was needed to actually create the element. Building a small particle accelerator in his garage, Tony was finally able to create a new element that met his needs, and in turn created a brand new suit to utilize the new power.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_2_.28film.29_3-1">[4]

Armor Wars
<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">Stark and Rhodes battle the Hammerdrones <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">His next task was to deal with his arch rival Justin Hammer, who had upstaged Stark Industries at the Stark Expo. Hammer had previously arranged the escape of Vanko and had been using him to engineer new technology to rival Stark's Iron Man suits. Stark was disturbed enough to learn that Hammer had created a small army of drones powered by arc reactors, but shocked when James Rhodes in the fully armed MK II suit lost control of it. Vanko had double-crossed Hammer and was using the drones and Rhodes'War Machine armor in an attempt on Stark's life.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Stark escaped from from the Expo, leading the drones and his helpless friend on a deadly chase. Eventually, outside assistance from Natasha Romanoff allowed Rhodes to regain control and together the two Iron Men were able to fight off the drones, and later Vanko in an armored suit of his own.

The Consultant
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">With his illness corrected, a new Iron Man armor in hand, and coming out once again on top, Tony returned to the life he enjoyed, acting as a consultant to Nick Fury's Avenger Initiative.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_2_.28film.29_3-2">[4]

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Fury found himself pressured by his superiors to make a spot for Emil Blonsky (dubbed "The Abomination") on the roster due to his status as a war hero; with his villainous acts in Harlem being attributed to Bruce Banner. Fury, not wanting Blonsky anywhere near his team, left the matter to Agent Coulson and Agent Sitwell, who decided to send Stark to meet with and antagonize General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross so that he would refuse to release Blonsky to S.H.I.E.L.D. The plan worked, with Stark enraging Ross to the point that the general tried to have him removed from the bar they were in. Stark responded by buying the building and having it demolished.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Marvel_One-Shot:_The_Consultant_6-0">[7]

Forming the Team
<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">"Are we done here?": Iron Man, Captain America and Thor <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Months later, and fresh from switching Stark Tower onto a self-contained arc reactor power supply, Tony and Pepper were celebrating when Agent Coulson intruded with urgent business. Unable to dismiss the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, thanks to Pepper, Tony grudgingly looked over Coulson's information and became gravely concerned by the content. S.H.I.E.L.D. had lost the Tesseract and were pulling together powerful individuals from around the globe in a desperate bid to counter the threat that this posed. His concern deepening, Stark continued to digest the situation described in the S.H.I.E.L.D. files long after Coulson had left.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">When Loki, the mastermind responsible for the theft, made a public appearance in Stuttgart, Tony suited up and flew into action. When he arrived he found Steve Rogers, in full Captain America regalia, already deeply embattled with the rogue Asgardian and beginning to fail. The combined firepower of Iron Man and a S.H.I.E.L.D. jet backing up Rogers was enough to get Loki to desist hostilities however, and Loki then allowed himself be escorted away. Loki's adoptive brother Thor had other plans, and intercepted the craft in a bid to extradite Loki back to Asgard before he could do any more harm. Tony attempted to stop him, but only succeeded in provoking a fight. Finally Rogers' intervention confused the dispute even further and only when all three had been blasted off their feet did the trio come to their senses enough to agree on a mutually beneficial course of action.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Once on board the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, Tony set about discretely planting bugs to infiltrate the ship's systems over suspicions about S.H.I.E.L.D. intentions. There was more to the story than what he'd been told and he was determined to wring out all of Fury's secrets.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Tony's addition to a group of powerful people added a volatile element to the mix. His antagonistic swagger was only paused when he found a kindred spirit in Bruce Banner, a fellow scientist trapped by controls on his life that he could not fully master. Tensions mounted and the arguments flared. Tony's suspicions and electronic surveillance prompted a more traditional investigation from Rogers, and the resulting discovery that Director Fury had not been entirely truthful about the Tesseract, planning to use it in armaments, only made matters worse.

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">"This usually works": Loki fails to possess Tony. <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Just when the disputes were threatening to boil out of control, the Helicarrier was attacked in a surprise move by missing S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Clinton Barton. An explosion shut down one of the engines, prompting Stark and Rogers to put aside their differences and work together in an effort to save the ship. In the aftermath they learned that Loki was gone and that S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson had been killed, an event that forced them to look inward and consider their own actions.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Stark deduced that Loki had headed for New York City, and spurred by thoughts of retribution he donned his battered Iron Man armor and set off in pursuit. As predicted, he found the Asgardian in Stark Tower and offered him a warning, cataloging each of the powerful individuals now arrayed against him. Loki responded by trying to control him, and when this failed due to Stark's arc reactor he hurled Stark bodily out through a window. Having already abandoned his broken suit, Tony plummeted to the street below, but his forward planning saved him when the freshly constructed MK VII armor rocketed down after him and merged with him in free fall only moments before impact. Disaster averted, he rose back up to issue his final pronouncement before he opened fire: "And there's one other person you pissed off! His name is 'Phil!'"<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Marvel.27s_The_Avengers_7-0">[8]

Battle of New York
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">While Stark had been busy dealing with Loki, the god of mischief's plan had come to fruition. A device with the Tesseract at its core on the tower's roof had opened a dimensional rift in the sky above Manhattan. Through this rent poured the Chitauri, Loki's allies, swarming down over the city and raining destruction everywhere. Iron Man was unable to breach the energy field shielding Loki's device nor could he match the sheer numbers of the Chitauri. Descending back to the streets he joined with the others and presently six exceptional people stood together for the first time against the alien threat.

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">New armor <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">The battle was a long and grueling affair. Iron Man dominated the skies in an air supremacy action against squads of Chitauri flyers. At one point he emulated the tale of Jonah and destroyed one of their leviathans from within. His most compelling action however, was his interception of a nuclear missile deployed to the area as a final solution.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">This he managed to divert and redirect into the rift where he released it on course for a Chitauri mothership beyond. The destruction of the alien vessel also caused the remaining Chitauri in New York to literally collapse. His life support systems spent, and energy depleted, Tony collapsed into unconsciousness, unaware of the closing rift below him. Luckily his lifeless body fell through it before it collapsed entirely and the Hulk was then able to intercept him and break his fall.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">With the Chitauri defeated and Loki safely removed to Asgard, the Avengers disbanded. The geniuses, Stark and Banner, parted company from the group together as friends, each with new scientific horizons to pursue.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Marvel.27s_The_Avengers_7-1">[8]

Stark: Disassembled
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Following the Battle of New York, Tony found himself troubled by acute insomnia, occasionally experiencing nightmares of what he had experienced during his trip through the portal, and doubting his ability to protect the people he cared about in a world of gods, aliens and other dimensions. To this end, he made repeated upgrades of his armor, not only inserting various remote control devices into his body that would allow him to summon his new Mark XLII "Autonomic Prehensile Propulsion Suit" with his thoughts alone, but before this, he also created thirty-four remote-controlled armor suits keyed to his physiology. The strain also resulted in him becoming increasingly distant from Pepper, as his efforts to ensure that he could protect her ironically drove him to spend less time with her.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_3_.28film.29_5-1">[6]  He also offered Nick Fury some advice in upgrading the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier's engines to make them more efficient, although he apparently declined to upgrade their weapons into the bargain.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Captain_America:_The_Winter_Soldier_8-0">[9]

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">Testing MK XLII <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Later, Tony met with Rhodes to discuss the recent string of bombings caused by an enigmatic terrorist known only as theMandarin, and Rhodey's War Machine alter-ego rebranded as the Iron Patriot by President Ellis, a decision Stark was against for its stupidity and his preference for the name War Machine. When Rhodes and some kids wanting him to autograph a self-drawn picture mentioned New York and the Chitauri, it triggered a panic attack within Tony, so Stark got in his suit and flew away.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_3_.28film.29_5-2">[6]

Terrorist Attacks
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Back at home, Tony was informed by Happy Hogan that Pepper was meeting with a former co-worker of hers, Aldrich Killian. Tony said it was not a big deal, although he later bought Pepper a big stuffed bunny for Christmas. When she got home herself, the pair argued over Tony's distant demeanor and apparent jealousy, but the dispute ended when Tony admitted he'd been having trouble coping with his experiences in New York. The dispute reignited however, when Tony's nightmares had him subconsciously summon the Mark XLII in his sleep, which awakened and terrified Pepper.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">The next morning, Tony visited Happy Hogan at the hospital, who was in a coma after barely surviving one of the Mandarin's attacks. He walked out into a swarm of reporters and got irritated when one of them questioned him about the Mandarin. He publicly swore revenge, and announced his home address to the world, challenging the Mandarin to meet him there.

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">Defending his house <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Later that day, Tony started investigating all of the Mandarin's attacks, leading him to a potential clue in Tennessee. He then told J.A.R.V.I.S. to make a flight plan to that state. Further investigation was interrupted when Maya Hansen arrived at his door warning him about the Mandarin's attack on his home. The meeting was interrupted by armed helicopters firing missiles into the house. Suddenly faced with having to protect Pepper, Stark sent the Mark XLII to her, giving her a means with which to get herself and Dr. Hansen out of the house. Once they were clear he drew the suit back to himself and fought the helicopters until his house fell on him, leaving him trapped underwater. J.A.R.V.I.S. got control of the suit, freed him, and triggered the flight to Tennessee.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">After leaving Pepper a voice message saying that he would not be able to return home immediately, Tony dragged his depowered suit to a garage where a boy named Harley found him. The boy aimed a spud gun at him, but after finding out the intruder was Tony Stark, he relaxed and they sat down to talk. Tony soon deduced that Harley had a bully problem at school, and offered him a flash grenade as bully-deterrent. In return, Harley had to help Tony with his bomb investigation.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">After providing supplies, Harley showed Tony to a location that had been the site of an explosion with a rare thermal signature, and then to a woman whose son, had been the cause of the event. Believing Tony was another person she was expecting, Mrs. Davis gave him confidential files regarding her son. They were interrupted by Ellen Brandt and Eric Savin, two Extremis-infused agents also looking for the files. Tony fought them off using improvised weapons and escaped after killing Brandt. Despite Harley's earlier assistance, Tony left him by the in the middle of town while he drove away in a car stolen from Savin, although he would keep in touch with him, as the Mark XLII was still in the boy's garage.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">When looking for clues in the confidential files, Tony realized Davis had a connection with Aldrich Killian's company, A.I.M.. With the help of Rhodes, whose armor was upgraded by A.I.M., thus being an user of the company's systems, Tony managed to hack into A.I.M.'s secrets, finding out that they had developed the Extremis virus, which enhanced the infused subjects, but also made them unstable and liable to explode. The revelation that the bombs he had been looking for were actually failed test subjects drew him to the conclusion that Killian's failed subjects were used by the Mandarin as human bombs.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_3_.28film.29_5-3">[6]

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">Tony meets Trevor Slattery

The Mandarin
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">After calling Harley, Tony received the bad news from J.A.R.V.I.S. that the Mark XLII was still not ready to be used, but that the Mandarin's location was finally revealed as Miami. Even without his armor, Tony got some supplies and built a home-made arsenal to infiltrate the Mandarin's mansion. There, he discovered the Mandarin was actually a fictional character invented by Killian, and portrayed by an actor called Trevor Slattery. Tony's pursuit for the truth was stopped when he was discovered and captured.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">In the basement of the mansion, Dr. Hansen revealed to Tony that she was actually working with Killian, and had helped him to kidnap Pepper, who had since been injected with the Extremis virus. Tony had to fix the problem of instability of Extremis, as he managed to partially do so years ago, or Pepper would be killed. Maya objected to Killian's methods however, and threatened to kill herself with an Extremis overdose, but Killian simply shot her and informed Stark that her position had just been vacated. Tony was left to contemplate his predicament as Killian left.

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">Escaping captivity <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">With the Mark XLII operational, Stark summoned it from Harley's garage in Tennessee to Miami, and managed to escape. When escaping, Tony found Rhodes, who had also been captured, and his armor taken to be used by Savin as a Trojan horse to infiltrate Air Force One and kidnap President Ellis.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_3_.28film.29_5-4">[6]

House Party Protocol
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">The pair set off to confront Killian and find Pepper, at the coast where he had set up the next part of his plan on a salvaged Roxxon oil tanker. This information was given to them by Slattery. Tony used the telepresence feature of the Mark XLII in an attempt to rescue the President but was thwarted by Savin, whom he killed with the uni-beam. He found himself instead rescuing a group of thirteen passengers who had been sucked out of the stricken plane. Although their rescue was successful, the Mark XLII came out of it in pieces after he accidentally piloted it into the path of a semi-truck. Tony later commanded J.A.R.V.I.S. to execute his "House Party" protocol which summoned all of the remaining Iron Man suits to his location.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Stark and Rhodes managed to sneak into the loading docks where the President was strung up, inside the Iron Patriot over the adjacent oil tanker, the Norco. Without their armor, they were left with the prospect of facing Killian's men and Extremis soldiers armed only with their wits and a pair of 9mm pistols. They were soon discovered, and found themselves facing a force of several dozen Extremis soldiers, but those odds were evened shortly thereafter when Stark's Iron Man suits arrived in force and engaged the soldiers. Stark donnedone of them himself and flew through the fray to find Pepper.

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">"House Party" protocol <p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">The Extremis-enhanced Killian blocked Stark's rescue attempt, but was fended off long enough for Stark to make a second try. Stark was unsuccessful however, and watched in horror as Pepper fell and was engulfed in flame. When Killian approached again, Stark got into another Iron Man suit and so began a lengthy battle, during which Stark had to use his wits and many suits to fight Killian, who systematically managed to wreck one suit after another.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Stark eventually ensnared his opponent in the late arriving Mark XLII and triggered its self destruct. Killian survived the explosion, and when he was about to kill Stark, Pepper was also revealed to have survived her apparent death due to her Extremis enhancement. She first bashed Killian away with a metal pole, then followed the surprise attack with a Stark explosive and a repulsor ripped from a passing Iron Man armor. Detonated by the repulsor blast, the explosive munition obliterated Aldrich Killian.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_3_.28film.29_5-5">[6]

<p class="caption" style="color:rgb(127,127,127);">A changed man

Clean Slate
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">When Tony and Pepper were reunited, Stark promised her he would find a cure for the Extremis in her body, but also that he would no longer be obsessed with his suits. He ordered J.A.R.V.I.S. to activate the "Clean Slate" protocol, which caused the remaining Iron Man armor suits flying around the port to be destroyed in firework-like explosions.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">With his new take on life, Tony not only managed to find a cure for Pepper's condition, but also arranged to have the shrapnel surgically extracted from his chest. Having no further use for the arc reactor in his chest, he went to the ruins of his destroyed mansion and threw the device into the sea, stating that even if his "toys" were taken from him, one thing would always remain: He was Iron Man.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Later, Tony expressed the traumas he had been facing to Banner, but as Banner was not a therapist, he fell asleep. Tony was somewhat irritated, but Banner's explanation got Tony to tell another story, making Banner get drowsy again.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Iron_Man_3_.28film.29_5-6">[6]

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">During the events of the Winter Soldier, Tony Stark was in his Avengers Tower in New York. He was one of the many targeted by the Hydra helicarriers, but his life was saved when the carriers were destroyed by Captain America.

Personality
<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">The playboy and womanizer Tony Stark has one of the most captivating personalities in this universe, all dubbed of his egocentrism, narcissism and sarcasm. He is an outgoing man who enjoys drinking and gambling, all the while possessing the capacity to become an expert in thermonuclear astrophysics overnight. An inventive mechanical engineering prodigy, Stark is constantly creating new technology and looking for ways to improve it, but has shown that he has little concern for the effect his weapons have on others. After his capture (and subsequent escape) by the Ten Rings, he realized what his weapons had done and turned a new leaf, stopping all weapon productions and using whatever weapons remained to become Iron Man.

<p style="color:rgb(58,58,58);">Tony has a unique friendship with James "Rhodey" Rhodes. Although they have been friends for many years, Rhodey tries to keep Tony on the straight and narrow. Tony's erratic nature, however, sometimes makes it difficult for Rhodey to choose between Tony and his duty to the military. In the course of time, they have once again become friends on one accord and Tony has shown he matured somewhat. With Pepper, Tony has expressed his ability to maintain a relationship and express his feelings for her. With the Avengers, he still shows the same reckless characteristics that he has become famous for while still proving he is able to work with a team and accept orders. While working with the Avengers, Tony developed a friendship with Dr. Banner. Tony shows great respect for both Bruce's past works and his abilities as the Hulk, stating to Banner that his ability is somewhat more of a gift than a curse.