Spider-Man (Tom Holland) needs to get rid of his Stark suits to be able to fully get his own identity in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In 2015, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Marvel Studios entered a deal to collaborate on the next Spider-Man film after years of the character existing in its own universe separate from the MCU. Five years since then, the current iteration of Peter Parker has appeared in five movies — two of which are his solo adventures, with Spider-Man 3 slated for a 2021 release.
The idea of seeing Spider-Man interacting with the Avengers and the rest of the MCU like he did in the comic books excited many, but Marvel Studios' take on the character is not without its flaws. One of the most common criticisms of this new version of Spider-Man stems from his relationship with Tony Stark, a.k.a. Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.). Much of his arc thus far has been primarily motivated by these ties. While it was the genius billionaire who introduced Peter to the bigger franchise, Marvel Studios may have overdone it with Spider-Man barely having his own identity removed from his mentor.
With Iron Man now gone following his heroic death in Since their first meeting in Captain America: Civil War, Iron Man had been providing his mentee advanced Spider-Man suits; this isn't out of the norm because Tony was known to tweak not only his armors but the Avengers' gears as well. If anything, MCU's inaugural hero was keener on keeping Spider-Man's suit and weaponry up to date as he felt responsible for his well-being. The problem with this, however, is it doesn't give this Peter Parker the opportunity to showcase his own genius and ingenuity.
In the comic books, Spider-Man has worn a handful of homemade costumes, and unlike his MCU counterpart, he's usually left to fend on his own. With no access to high-tech apparatus and limited financial capacity, he's forced to find a way to come up with his own battle armor — and despite all that, he did just fine. This is important side of the character that has yet to be explored in this current iteration as his association with Tony essentially resolves these classic Spider-Man dilemmas. Marvel Studios has repeatedly attempted to showcase their Peter as a capable genius — he even created his own web-shooters — but without the narrative opportunity to reenforce this aspect of the character, overall, it feels hollow. Aside from the climactic battle in Spider-Man: Homecoming when he took down Vulture (Michael Keaton) by himself while wearing his original homemade suit, Holland's Spider-Man has always had some form of assistance coming from Stark — even though Stark himself knew Peter needed to learn to not overly rely on his high-tech suits.
By the end of Far From Home, the young hero appears to be more comfortable in his place as Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, safe in knowing that he's not expected to be the next Iron Man. The film leaves with the promise that Peter Parker will finally emerge from the shadow of Tony Stark, but to effectively do this, they need to establish him as an independent hero who's competent on his own. To do that, Marvel Studios must get rid of all the advantages afforded to him by his association with Iron Man, including — and most importantly — his Stark Tech suits.
