Iron Man has always been his own worst enemy, struggling to deal with the consequences of his past as a black-market arms dealer and the potential dangers of his own technological creations. In Invincible Iron Man #3 by Gerry Duggan and Juan Frigeri, he and his best friend Rhodey aka War Machine are forced to confront a rogue Iron Man armor controlled by a life model decoy (LMD) of Tony Stark. After a brief skirmish, Tony is able to immobilize the armor by freezing it with liquid nitrogen, revealing Iron Man’s armor weakness: extreme cold.
This weakness is personified in the classic Iron Man villain Blizzard, who made his debut in 1963’s Tales of Suspense #45 by Robert Bernstein, Don Heck, and Stan Lee. Blizzard, also known as Gregor Shapanka, was a disgruntled former employee of Tony Stark who created his own cold suit to experiment with immortality, rob banks, and kidnap Tony’s loved ones as Jack Frost. Tony ultimately defeated Blizzard and sent him to prison, but Blizzard would escape and created a deadlier persona. Blizzard returned to battle Iron Man in 1976’s Iron Man #86-87 by Bill Mantlo and George Tuska, using his cold armor blasts to shut down Iron Man’s suit completely.
Tony’s new armor at the time was defenseless against a liquid nitrogen blast, which nearly stopped his heart. Pepper Potts stepped in to thaw him out and helped bring Blizzard to justice. In Invincible Iron Man #3, Tony uses liquid nitrogen to freeze his villainous doppelgänger, inadvertently revealing his weakness to a competitor, the mutant-hating industrialist Feilong. With Feilong’s genius-level intellect and vast resources, he poses a significant threat to Iron Man and his company, Stark Unlimited. Iron Man’s vulnerability to extreme cold highlights the ongoing tension between Tony’s desire to create advanced technology and his responsibility to ensure it is safe and not misused.
This tension is further complicated by Tony’s past as a black-market arms dealer, which has led to his creations falling into the wrong hands and causing harm. Despite these challenges, Iron Man has always been determined to use his resources for good. He has faced numerous threats over the years, including his own inner demons and external enemies such as the Mandarin, Ultron, and Thanos. Each time, he has risen to the occasion, upgrading his armor and technology to overcome his weaknesses and protect the world.
Iron Man’s latest revelation of his weakness to extreme cold underscores the ongoing need for vigilance and caution when it comes to technology. As Tony and his allies continue to battle threats to Stark Unlimited and the world at large, they must be mindful of the potential dangers and consequences of their creations. Only by doing so can they hope to protect the world from the likes of Feilong and other dangerous villains.
This was Iron Man’s armor weakness, what are your thoughts regarding it? Answers in the comments.
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