Marvel Just Upgraded The Coolest Iron Man Armor Almost A Decade After It Debuted In The MCU

By Kai Young

Published Dec 30, 2024

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One of Iron Man's best What If...? season 3, episode 1, "What If... the Hulk Fought the Mech Avengers?," gave one of Iron Man's best live-action designs an unexpected twist.

During his time in the MCU, Iron Man's best designs were seen after Iron Man 3, and one of these exciting additions to the MCU was given a major upgrade in What If...? season 3, making the almost-decade-old design even better.

The Hulkbuster Was Iron Man's Coolest Creation

The Hulkbuster First Appeared In Avengers: Age Of Ultron

Hulkbuster Iron Man fighting the Hulk in Avengers Age of Ultron

Tony Stark first deployed Veronica and the Hulkbuster armor in 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron. Veronica was designed to try and contain an out-of-control Hulk, with the Hulkbuster armor allowing Stark himself to take on Bruce Banner's gamma-irradiated form in an even match. This was seen during their duel in Johannesburg that occurred when the Scarlet Witch manipulated Banner's mind, causing him to rampage uncontrollably. The Hulkbuster established itself as one of Stark's best creations, as it eventually managed to bring the Hulk to his knees.

The Hulkbuster was later seen being used by Bruce Banner to aid in the battle against Thanos and his armies in Wakanda in Avengers: Infinity War. With the Hulk refusing to appear after being humiliated by the Mad Titan, Banner's use of the Hulkbuster allowed him to act as the Hulk would, though with a few upgrades, and he used this armor to kill Cull Obsidian, a member of Thanos' Black Order. The Hulkbuster armor is supremely powerful, and became even more important in the premiere of What If...? season 3.

What If...? Season 3 Upgrades The Hulkbuster Armor In The Coolest Way

What If...?'s Mech Avengers Used Upgraded Hulkbuster Armor

The opening moments of What If...? season 3's premiere episode saw the original Avengers team tasked with dealing with an army of giant Hulk monsters. To help them during this Gamma War, Tony Stark upgrades his Hulkbuster armor to create enormous mech-suits for each member of the Avengers, allowing them to fight in Power Rangers Zord-like machines against the army of Hulks. This tradition es down to the new Avengers team, and Bruce Banner's own improvement allows these mech-suits to together as the Mighty Avenger.

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This evolution of the Hulkbuster armor is incredible to see unfold in the MCU. Even though this takes place in an alternate reality across the multiverse, this What If...? storyline showed the potential of Tony Stark's genius, as he is able to take something already fantastic and make it bigger, stronger and more impressive. It would be amazing to see the Mech Avengers make the move to live-action in Phase 6, bringing their versions of Iron Man's Hulkbuster armor back to the MCU proper.