Warning: SPOILERS for Iron Man #24Just ahead of her MCU debut, Marvel Comics shows that Riri Williams, aka Iron Man but actually a potentially dangerous villain. Ironheart has acquired the powerful Ten Rings and she refuses to destroy them, wanting instead to use their power despite the great danger posed by these evil artifacts.
Riri Williams was on the path to becoming the next Iron Man when Tony Stark chose her as his replacement after he was put into a coma during Civil War II. An A.I. copy of Tony's personality was sent to teenage prodigy Williams and helped her in building her own version of the Iron Man armor, which she used to become Ironheart. While Riri was set up to become Iron Man's true successor, iconic characters like Tony Stark are almost impossible to replace, so Ironheart quickly faded away from Marvel's spotlight. Making her much-awaited return, however, she shows a new side of her character that puts young Riri on a very dangerous path.
In recent stories, Tony Stark has been obsessed with taking down a global network of weapons dealers known as Source Control. Iron Man used all his fortune to buy every dangerous weapon on the market, with one exception: the Ten Rings, formerly used by the Mandarin. The Cobalt Man has beaten Tony to the prize, but in Iron Man #24, by Christopher Cantwell, Angel Unzueta, and Frank D'Armata, it is revealed that Riri Williams was actually hiding under the guise of the villain. Ironheart uses the power of the Rings to send Force and Spymaster to the Darkforce Dimension and then refuses to relinquish the artifacts to Tony. While Iron Man wants to destroy the Rings, Riri instead has a plan to use them for the good of humankind, but she is ignoring how dangerous these weapons can be.
Ironheart Is Set To Become One Of Marvel's Most Dangerous Villains
The Ten Rings are actually of alien origins. They were created by the Makluan and each contains the soul of a long-dead legendary warrior, trapped in a phantasmal state. The spirits can reach out to the mind of whoever wields the Rings and influence their thoughts, as they did with the Mandarin many years ago. In fact, Riri's behavior could already be altered by the spirits. She sent two men into the Darkforce Dimension, an alien universe that saps the life force of living beings, with no guarantee they will survive or find a way back. Ironheart could have simply restrained Spymaster and Force using the other rings, but instead, she sent them to their deaths. Riri's stubbornness against Tony's warnings of getting rid of the Rings also proves that she has already fallen prey to their nefarious influence.
While Marvel Comics probably wants to make the best of Ironheart's recent appearance in the MCU movie Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever, it is also taking the character in a completely different direction. Far from being Iron Man's successor, Ironheart is actually on the path to becoming Marvel's next big villain.
