The Most Relatable Character in the MCU

Written by Shae Rufe

Today I wanted to talk about the most relatable character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in my opinion. If you haven’t seen Endgame yet, don’t worry, this is 100% Spoiler Free. As good as the movie is, I felt it important to leave it out of this chat. So, we’ve had 11 years of movies and with 20+ films and a massive list of characters, it’s quite daunting to choose a favorite. Admittedly, I have a few that I love more than others but that’s not to say I don’t love them all, because I do. Within the characters and ever-growing list of Avengers there are a core group, the original 6 that took us from the very first Avengers movie on into a wild ride. But among those 6, only 4 of them have had their own stand-alone movies.
 
Between Captain America, Thor, the Hulk, Iron Man, you’d think these amazing superheroes would give their assassin friends a break. Don’t worry, Black Widow will hopefully be getting her own movie soon! Which means poor Hawkeye is really the only one to be left out. So, which among these 6 amazing heroes had the most relatability? With super human strength, and assassin skills, great aim, and an exposure to some pretty harsh radiation, I’m going to have to settle with the genius, playboy, philanthropist, billionaire for this one. Yes, Tony Stark is all those things and more, and while that’s not really something most of us can relate to, his personality is. 

From the first movie, Iron Man, Tony is left to deal with a lot of complex human emotions that all of us do face at one point or another. The man is kidnapped and watches a new friend literally die during his escape. Yet, as the movies go on, Tony isn’t a stranger to death. Loss affects everyone differently, but this is probably what really solidified my bond to the character. Out of everything, Tony’s fear of loss is so great, he literally does anything he can to avoid that feeling ever again. Tony pushes his best friend, James Rhodes, away and falls back into some unhealthy drinking habits in Iron Man 2, instead of dealing with the overall PTSD that he acquired in the first movie and that came with the realization of his own mortality. Thankfully, Tony’s got a really good support system in not only his best friend, but others around him and he manages to pull free of it. Or does he? Because, in Iron Man 3 we see Tony battling more PTSD and this time, anxiety and panic attacks come with it. Granted, most of us don’t have panic and anxiety from shooting a nuclear weapon into space to kill a bunch of aliens and almost dying. But that doesn’t make seeing a superhero battling panic attacks and anxiety any less relatable. I, for one, suffer both and to have that recognized and portrayed on the big screen; to see a favorite hero battle the same things I do? Well, it actually makes me feel like a normal human.

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​Okay, except I haven’t created a giant murder bot that tries to kill the whole world, unlike Tony in Age of Ultron. I suppose, really, that this movie is an excellent way to show what happens if you let fear rule your actions. At least his friends forgive him and everything’s cool. Well, until Civil War. In which case, yikes. There’s nothing worse than a friend breakup. Really, there’s not. While there are a ton more complicated issues with all these movies, especially Civil War, the few relatable take aways are, never ask other friends to choose sides, and sometimes your long time best friend gets shot out of the sky and loses his ability to walk.

No, but really, Tony handles this like he does everything else, by running into it thinking he knows all the answers, and truthfully he doesn’t. That being said, Tony doesn’t react well to being lied to and ultimately the betrayal of certain secretes tear more than just the team apart. I think we’ve all been there on some level. Secrets hurt people. And having someone you thought a close friend betray you, well....at least none of us have had a brainwashed super soldier experiment murder out parents! And finally, Infinity War. Tony has tried to just protect everyone and everything he cares about. He’s spent his life being fearful of what was to come. Then, Thanos’ minions show up. It’s a fight of epic proportions and our hero’s give it their all. And they fail. Tony fails...

And that’s just it. Tony Stark faces failure, PTSD, betrayal, heartbreak, addiction, loss, disappointment, anxiety and panic attacks, insecurities and so much more. Behind that suit of armor, he’s just a guy with real world problems. That’s not to say the others aren’t relatable. Through all of that though, he keeps going, keeps fighting, and he never gives up. Perhaps that’s the most relatable thing about Tony Stark and these are the things that make Iron Man the most relatable character in the MCU.

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