6. “HE KILLED MY MOM.” (CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR)
The MCU is so interconnected that a character who is an ally to one of the heroes can be a villain to one of the others. Captain America: Civil War accentuates this perfectly. Steve Rogers’ best friend Bucky Barnes was brainwashed to be a ruthless assassin, and during that time, he murdered Tony Stark’s parents.
The conflict is clear: Bucky wasn’t himself when he did the killing, but Tony blames him anyway, and Steve wants to protect him, because he’s his best friend. This leads to possibly the most intense fight scene in MCU history. Steve implores Tony to let it go, but a heartbroken Tony just says, “He killed my mom.”
5. FIGHTING WHIPLASH ON THE MONACO RACETRACK (IRON MAN 2)
Due to its generic and predictable plot and the movie’s focus on setting up a cinematic universe over telling its own story, Iron Man 2 is one of the least beloved movies in the MCU. Whiplash is considered to be a lackluster villain, because he doesn’t pose much of a threat to Tony Stark and he’s pretty one-dimensional.
However, the movie and its villain did combine forces to give audiences a breathtaking action set piece. The fight on the Monaco racetrack, with Ivan Vanko whipping cars in half and Tony desperately trying to get his Iron Man armor on, is a spectacular sequence.
4. BLASTING ULTRON WITH THOR AND THE VISION (AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON)
Marvel fans weren’t exactly thrilled by Avengers: Age of Ultron. The main problem with the movie is that Tony Stark never faces any consequences for creating Ultron. When Ultron attacks the Avengers and flies off on a murdering spree, Tony just laughs. That’s not the Tony we know.
He wants to keep the people he cares about safe and put a suit of armor around the world. He failed on both of those counts. Age of Ultron should’ve reflected that in a meaningful and lasting way. Having said that, the sight of Iron Man, Thor, and the Vision combining forces to blast beams of energy at Ultron will never not be awesome.
3. “WE HAVE A HULK.” (THE AVENGERS)
Every good movie needs a calm-before-the-storm moment ahead of its climactic sequence. In Jaws, it was when the characters compared scars. In The Avengers, it was when Tony Stark poured himself a glass of whiskey in Stark Tower and discussed the possible outcomes of Loki’s plan with him.
When Loki said, “I have an army,” Tony quipped back, “We have a Hulk.” Tony was trying to resolve the matter peacefully, telling the trickster god that as long as the Avengers were assembled, there was no way he’d win this battle. Still, props to Loki for giving it his best shot.
2. GOING TOE-TO-TOE WITH THANOS AND LOSING (AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR)
Towards the end of Avengers: Infinity War, Iron Man, Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, and half of the Guardians of the Galaxy team up to fight Thanos on the ruins of Titan. It’s mostly a group effort, and for a while, that works out. However, as the battle winds down, the Mad Titan goes toe-to-toe with Tony Stark.
The villain that Tony has waited six years to rear his head finally engages in hand-to-hand combat with him. And just as Tony feared, his technology isn’t enough to save him. Thanos stabs Tony through the abdomen and places a hand on his head. “You have my respect, Stark.”