Iron Man: Armored Adventures

Iron Man: Armored Adventures (also known in early promotional materials as Iron Man: The Animated Series) is a 3D CGI-animated series loosely based on the Marvel Comics superhero Iron Man. It debuted in the United States on Nicktoons on April 24, 2009, and it aired on Teletoon in Canada.[3] The series is story edited by showrunner Christopher Yost,[4] who also worked on Wolverine and the X-Men, and numerous other Marvel Animation projects. The television show is not related to the 2007 animated film The Invincible Iron Man; it has a different voice cast, but some story elements are similar and the show uses the same musical score as the film in some instances. It is the first Iron Man television series since Iron Man from 1994 to 1996, and started airing after the success of the live action Iron Man film.

"Iron Man: The Animated Series" redirects here. For the 1994 television series, see Iron Man (TV series).
Iron Man: Armored Adventures
Series logo
Genre
Based on
Developed by
Directed by
  • Stéphane Juffé
  • Philippe Guyenne
Creative directors
  • Stéphane Juffé
  • Philippe Guyenne
Voices of
Theme music composerMichael Kirkland
Opening theme"Iron Man: Armored Adventures Theme" by Rooney
Ending theme"Iron Man: Armored Adventures Theme" by Rooney
ComposerGuy Michelmore
Country of origin
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes52 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Aton Soumache
  • Alexis Vonars
  • Dimitri Rassam
  • Jeph Loeb (season 2)
  • Stan Lee
  • Eric S. Rollman
  • Tapaas Chakravarti
  • Jean-Marie Musique (season 2)
  • Lilian Eche (season 1)
  • Steve Christian (season 1)
  • Trevor Drinkwater (season 1)
  • Stephen K. Bannon (season 1)
Producers
  • Joshua Fine
  • Craig Kyle
  • Cort Lane (supervising producer)
  • Cédric Pilot
  • Romain van Liemt (supervising producer)
  • Megan Thomas Bradner (season 2)
Running timeapprox. 22 minutes
Production companies
DistributorPGS Entertainment[2]
Release
Original network
Original releaseApril 24, 2009 (2009-04-24) –
July 25, 2012 (2012-07-25)
External links
Production website

The series follows the adventures of teen prodigy Tony Stark and his alter ego of Iron Man. As Iron Man, he uses his technological inventions to fight other similarly technologically advanced threats. His friends, James "Rhodey" Rhodes and Pepper Potts help him on his courageous, and dangerous adventures.

The second season of this series premiered on July 13, 2011 running concurrently with English dub of the completely separate Marvel Anime: Iron Man anime series which has already finished airing on Japan's Animax in 2010.[5][6]

On August 25, 2012, it was revealed that Iron Man: Armored Adventures would air as part of The CW's new Saturday morning children's block Vortexx. After November 24, 2012, Vortexx ceased airing the show and replaced it with Transformers: Prime on December 8, 2012.

As of January 2021, both season's of Iron Man: Armored Adventures are available on Disney+.

Within the Marvel Comics Multiverse, the Iron Man: Armored Adventures universe is designated Earth-904913.

Synopsis

When his industrialist father Howard Stark disappears in a plane crash after refusing to weaponize the Earth Mover at Obadiah Stane's behest, 16-year-old genius Tony uses a high-tech suit of armor he has constructed and investigates a charge that Stane may have been involved in his father's death. As Iron Man, Tony spends his time stopping Stane's plans and saving the world from other villains such as Mandarin, Mr. Fix, Whiplash, A.I.M., Living Laser, the Maggia, Controller, Crimson Dynamo, Blizzard, Killer Shrike, Unicorn, M.O.D.O.K., Ghost, Black Knight, and Technovore. He is assisted in his crime fighting efforts with help from James Rhodes and Pepper Potts. Tony's activities as Iron Man usually result in his needing to make up excuses as to why he is constantly late or missing from school and other activities. Dependent on his phenomenal technology for survival, Tony must balance the pressures of teenage life with the duties of being a super hero.

First season

The first season of Iron Man: Armored Adventures has a total of 26 episodes. Tony Stark, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Pepper Potts, Gene Khan, Happy Hogan, Whitney Stane, Black Panther, The Hulk, and S.H.I.E.L.D. all appear in this season.

The first season focuses on the Makluan Rings saga as Tony Stark, Pepper, James Rhodes, and Gene Khan work together to get the 5 rings. Upon overthrowing his stepfather Xin Zhang, Gene secretly works undercover to steal the rings from his friends, and ends up betraying them (which upsets Pepper). The season also features the Madame Masque Saga, which comes to a conclusion in the episode "Best Served Cold". Tony's feud with Obadiah Stane comes to a partial conclusion in that episode as well. The season ends with two primary cliffhangers in the episode "Tales of Suspense". The now-friendless Gene discovers that the original Mandarin had 5 other rings besides the original 5. Tony finds out that his father, Howard, survived the plane crash and is being held prisoner, while the armory is destroyed during Xin Zhang's attack limiting Tony's resources to find and rescue his father.

This season featured Makluan Guardian versions of Dreadknight, Ultimo, Firebrand, and Fin Fang Foom who guard the rings the Mandarin hasn't obtained yet.

Black Panther, Hulk, Rick Jones, Nick Fury, and S.H.I.E.L.D. make guest appearances.

Second season

The second season of Iron Man: Armored Adventures has a total of 26 episodes, just like the first season.[7] Black Widow / Natasha Romanoff, Hawkeye, Doctor Doom, Magneto and Justin Hammer appear in this season.[8][9] General Nick Fury, Black Panther, Mr. Fix, Whiplash and Obadiah Stane return.[10]

The second season covers the Armor Wars saga and Stane International storylines. The first half of Season 2 reflecting the Armor Wars has Tony and Rhodey as his definite partner War Machine fighting many people who have stolen Stark's armor tech and seek to exploit the stolen Iron Man specs for their own purposes. The enemies young Stark fights during this version of the Armor Wars include the Ghost who steals Iron Man specs and knows that Tony Stark is Iron Man. Ghost sells the specs to both Justin Hammer and Obadiah Stane but says he will not reveal Iron Man's true identity until Tony turns 18. Justin Hammer makes an armor with the Iron Man specs with the armor being called Titanium Man.[11][12] Doctor Doom joins forces with Stane to attain the Iron Man armor operating system.[13] Stane builds the Iron Monger armor which is revealed actually to be a direct upgrade from Crimson Dynamo armor (version 3) and is much larger than in the comic book and live action movie realities. The Armor Wars conclude as Obadiah Stane discovers the identity of Iron Man. Stane steals Iron Monger and is intent on destroying Tony once and for all.[14]

While Tony is fighting the Armor Wars, Howard Stark is shown to be alive and forced by Gene to find the other 5 Makluan Rings. Gene continues to find and secured the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth rings for himself during this time. This part of the season also included Makluan Guardian versions of Melter, Sunturion, Grim Reaper, and Grey Gargoyle who guard the remaining Makluan Rings.

The second half of season 2 showcases the printed page storyline of loosely based on the "Stane International" story arc. Justin Hammer (instead of Obadiah Stane) successfully buys control of Stark International. Stark, Rhodey and Potts all agree to fight against Hammer and his weaponization of Stark International's projects. Unlike the printed page version, Stark and Rhodes reject the title of Circuits Maximus for the new start-up and settle on "Stark Solutions" (opposite to Stark Enterprises of the printed page).

By the end of the second season, Pepper has assumed the armored identity of Rescue.

On March 25, 2013, Marvel Animation announced April 23, 2013, the release of the "Complete Season 2" 4-DVD box set.

Episodes
Main article: List of Iron Man: Armored Adventures episodes
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
126April 24, 2009 (2009-04-24)January 18, 2010 (2010-01-18)
226July 13, 2011 (2011-07-13)July 25, 2012 (2012-07-25)

Main cast

Supporting cast

Production

Pre-release

Months before the show's television debut, Marvel had a screening of the first episode of the series at the San Diego Comic-Con.[18] There was also a room where the public could meet, and talk with the Co-Producer Josh Fine and Head Writer Chris Yost among others involved in the production of the show.[18] The trailer of the show was also released on Marvel's official website as well as numerous behind-the-scene and teaser trailers on the website in the weeks before the US television debut.[19]

Theme song

Popular rock band Rooney recorded the theme song to the series.[20] The song originally could be downloaded from Teletoon's website. A provided "secret code", Tony would be needed to access the theme. This "secret code" was shown onscreen during Canadian broadcasts of the first few episodes of the first season. The music video for the theme song features clips of Rooney singing, along with clips of Iron Man from the show.[20]

Animation style

The series is made primarily using computer-generated imagery (CGI), in a similar style to MTV's Spider-Man: The New Animated Series and Nicktoons' original series Skyland. The technique is similar to cel-shading animation technique although the detail and resolution are lower.

Comparison to previous incarnations

Origin differences
See also: Iron Man § Origins

In Iron Man: Armored Adventures, Tony Stark becomes Iron Man as a teenager, and Pepper Potts and James Rhodes are also teenagers. In the mainstream Iron Man continuity, Tony Stark becomes Iron Man later on in his life as a grown man, and is a long time friend with Pepper, whereas in this series, Pepper and Tony have just met.

Traditionally, Tony's parents were accidentally killed in a car crash, whereas in this series, Tony's father, Howard Stark, disappears in the first episode in a plane crash suggesting Howard's death. Howard lives to see his son become the armored hero Iron Man and even helps his son in his adventures in this reality. Howard uses the advanced technology of one of the alien Mandarin rings that he discovers for the basis of his many creations that he later locks away in his vault such as the light armor of the Living Laser. In the mainstream incarnation, Howard never met the Mandarin nor had any of his ten rings.

Tony also injures his heart in this crash, as opposed to being injured by an explosion in war. Tony invents the Iron Man armor at home. In previous incarnations, Tony invented an alpha version of the suit to escape after being captured due to the trap explosion leaving him defenseless. In the show, Ho Yinsen was a Stark International medical specialist who saved Tony by installing the technology that saved him instead of Yinsen meeting Tony in the war being held captive. Ho Yinsen is different from his comics counterpart, he is unaware of Tony's double life as Iron Man.

Iron Man's armor
The Iron Man Mark 1 armor in the series.
The Iron Man Mark 2 armor in the series

Iron Man's original armor in the series is very similar to Iron Man's armor in the 2008 live action film, although the helmet design is different, and the armor is less yellow.

The armor appears to be convertible from its ability to spread over Tony from various parts he puts on. This armor generates a force field around Iron Man from his repulsors.

There are also numerous alternate armors that Stark uses in special occasions, including the Silver Centurion Armor, the Stealth Armor and the Hulkbuster armor (which was originally named the Dynamo Buster armor).

In the second season, the armor was changed to look similar to the second live action film's armor, but sharing more similarities with the Extremis armor. The abilities of the armor in how Tony can call it to himself are also reminiscent of the Extremis storyline. One of the other main changes of the armor is the circular unibeam is now a triangular unibeam.

DVD releases

The pilot episode was released as a bonus feature in Wal-Mart's edition of the live-action Iron Man movie.

Volume One was released on DVD in the United States on October 20, 2009. The Blu-ray edition was released exclusively through Best Buy. In the UK, Volume One contains the first 13 episodes (the one-hour pilot being split into two separate episodes) on two discs.[21] Volume Two was released in the United States on January 5, 2010. The Complete Season One was released in the United States on May 4, 2010. The Complete Season One set included an unreleased pair of Volume Three and Four DVDs. The Complete First Season was released on Blu-ray in Australia.

Season Two, Volume One was released on DVD on June 26, 2012, with Volume Two released on September 25, 2012.[22] The Season 2, Volume 3 DVD was released on January 22, 2013.[23] Season 2 Volume 4 and the complete second season set became available April 23, 2013.[24][25]

Reception

The hour-long premiere of Iron Man: Armored Adventures broke Nicktoons Network's record of highest-rated original series by premiering with over 125,000 viewers.[26]

Reviews of the pilot episode have been mixed. Some praise the series for its detailed and layered writing, strong continuity, and character designs. Entertainment Weekly gave the series debut a B+ grade, saying, "What could've been a clunky retrograde reboot works surprisingly well, thanks to some smart writing and stellar CG butt-kickery."[27]

Awards

In 2012, Iron Man: Armored Adventures won the Pulcinella Award for Best TV Series for Teens.[28]

In 2013, it was included on TV Guide's list of the 60 greatest cartoons of all time.[29]

References
  1. TV (2007-10-09). "DQ, Method Films Pact for Iron Man". Animationmagazine.net. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  2. "PGS Announces Global Sales For 'Iron Man: Armored Adventures'". Animation World Network. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
  3. Findlay, Kurtis (2008-05-12). "Iron Man: Armored Adventures". Animated Superheroes. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  4. "2 New Iron Man: Armored Adventures Videos | Iron Man | Movie & TV News | News". Marvel.com. 2009-03-18. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  5. "Iron Man Anime's US Debut in July, JP Debut in October".
  6. "Marvel to behold".
  7. "Comic-Con 2010: Marvel Animation Panel". Screenrant.com. 2010-07-23. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  8. James Harvey. "New Stills, Series Description For "Iron Man: Armored Adventures" Season Two". Toon Zone.net. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  9. Marvel Entertainment [@Marvel] (2010-10-13). "@RobbieNewton1 We'll confirm Doctor Doom is in IM:AA season 2! Anything else...keep waiting!" (Tweet). Retrieved 2020-06-13 – via Twitter.
  10. "NYCC: Marvel Television Presents". CBR. 2010-10-15. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  11. James Harvey. "Descriptions For Upcoming New Episodes Of "Iron Man: Armored Adventures"". Toon Zone.net. Retrieved July 26, 2011.
  12. "IMAA 2x4 on TVGuide". TVGuide.
  13. James Harvey. "New Images, Details For "Iron Man: Armored Adventures" October 2011 episodes". Toon Zone.net. Retrieved October 9, 2011.
  14. "Marvel Animation Age - The Marvel Animation News Resource". marvel.toonzone.net.
  15. "Animated Superheroes: Iron Man Voice Cast".
  16. "Comics Continuum by Rob Allstetter: Thursday, April 16, 2009". Comicscontinuum.com. 2009-04-16. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  17. "Comics Continuum by Rob Allstetter: Wednesday, May 13, 2009". Comicscontinuum.com. 2009-05-13. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  18. "First Look: Iron Man: Armored Adventures Animated Series". 2008-07-14.
  19. "Iron Man: Armored Adventures - Action and Adventure Video Spotlight | Iron Man | Movie & TV News | News". Marvel.com. 2009-04-16. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  20. Collis, Clark (2009-03-27). "'Iron Man' exclusive! Watch Rooney's clip for their new Tony Stark theme song". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2020-06-13.
  21. "Man: Armored Adventures DVD Vol. 1 at". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2011-02-27.
  22. Lambert, David (June 26, 2012). "Iron Man: Armored Adventures - Release Date, Cost for 'Season 2, Volume 2' on DVD". TVShowsOnDVD. Archived from the original on June 28, 2012. Retrieved June 28, 2012.
  23. "Download Episode 303 of This Week in Marvel". News - Marvel.com.
  24. "Iron Man: Armored Adventures - Season 2, Vol 4". 23 April 2013 – via Amazon.
  25. "Iron Man: Armored Adventures, Complete Season 2". 23 April 2013 – via Amazon.
  26. Hauman, Glenn (29 April 2009). "Iron Man: Armored Adventures breaks Nicktoons rating record". ComicMix. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
  27. Bernadin, Marc (2009-4-24). "Tonight's Best, April 24, 2009", Entertainment Weekly.
  28. "Marvel Animation Age - The Marvel Animation News Resource". marvel.toonzone.net.
  29. Sands, Rich (9 October 2018). "The Definitive Ranking of The Simpsons, Peanuts, and More Old Cartoons From Your Childhood". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
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