The One Iron Man Armor That's Too Gross For The MCU

Over the course of Tony Stark's (Robert Downey Jr.) Marvel Cinematic Universe timeline, he dons numerous Iron Man suits. While these weaponized armors are designed to fit the more grounded, real-world MCU aesthetic, plenty are based on the Iron Man suits of Marvel Comics fame. For instance, his very first suit built from scraps in a cave resembles Iron Man's Model 1 armor from the comics, and his Mark 50 nanotech suit seems heavily inspired by his comic Bleeding Edge armor. Meanwhile, one comic suit is simply too gross to be adapted for the silver screen.

In the pages of "Darkhold: Iron Man" #1, Tony is shown a vision of a potential version of himself by the Darkhold: a book imbued with dark magic that's capable of a range of mystical abilities. The book shows him an iteration where he develops his second Iron Man suit, also known as his Mark II armor, with a terrifying twist. Not only does this version of the suit come with healing capabilities, but it also connects to Tony's brain directly. Perceiving his humanity and biological matter as weakness, the suit's artificial intelligence fuses with Tony's body. His human form is slowly pulled apart, discarded, and replaced with mechanical elements. Once it's done with Tony, the suit turns its attention to the rest of the world.

Thankfully, this version of Tony is merely a vision from a potential timeline. Seeing as this is the case, though, perhaps it could appear in the MCU down the line via a project perfectly suited for one-off, occasionally macabre tales.

In the wake of 2019's "Avengers: Endgame," the MCU has shifted its focus from Infinity Stones to the ever-expanding Multiverse. Alternate versions of characters, branching timelines, and the collision of separate worlds have become the norm in the franchise. One of the productions to use the Multiverse concept the most is the animated Disney+ series "What If...?", which sees the Watcher (Jeffrey Wright) — one of the most important characters introduced in the MCU's Phase Four — shine a spotlight on timelines far, far away from the main MCU. Some of these worlds are fun excursions from Earth-616, while others are a bit more outlandish and downright terrifying.

On a show where a universe overrun by a zombie virus has taken center stage (and is soon to get its own spin-off that won't follow the "Marvel Zombies" comics), it's not out of the question that "What If...?" could feature a frightening episode dedicated to a "Darkhold: Iron Man"-inspired world. All of the key pieces are already established in the MCU to make this story work. Iron Man, Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), and Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) are major players in the MCU, and the Darkhold has appeared in such efforts as "WandaVision" and "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness." Perhaps the Avengers and other heroes could also appear, doing their best to combat Tony's nightmarish, human-eradicating Iron Man suits.

Until the MCU decides to embrace the body horror of "Darkhold: Iron Man" — assuming it ever does at all — fans can at least count on the comic itself to deliver in that regard.