Why Iron Man’s Worst MCU Phase 4 Mistake Is Actually The Fault Of A Cancelled Marvel Plan

Iron Man‘s big Marvel Cinematic Universe Phase 4 mistake was caused by a canceled Marvel plan. Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark started the MCU with 2008’s Iron Man. Due to his role as the MCU’s founding father, Tony has had a lasting impact on the franchise, with some of his right decisions and mistakes still playing a role in the MCU years after his death in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame. Across the MCU’s Iron Man movies and RDJ’s appearances as Tony Stark in Avengers films and more, Tony’s mistakes become clear.

One of Iron Man’s biggest faults was his role in the creation of Ultron. That event would lead to the destruction of Sokovia, resulting in the Sokovia Accords and the Avengers parting ways, which allowed Thanos to acquire all the Infinity Stones and snap away half the universe’s population. While none of Tony’s other mistakes might be as bad to all the MCU movies as Ultron’s creation, an Iron Man Phase 4 mistake is quickly becoming a growing problem to the MCU and the new generation of heroes, and it is all due to a canceled Marvel project.

Related: How To Watch the Marvel Movies In Order (By Release Date & In Order Of MCU Timeline Events)

Marvel’s Damage Control Show Could’ve Prevented Their MCU Villain Turn

Iron Man founded the Department of Damage Control in the MCU in an effort to make the Avengers’ public image better. The idea was that Damage Control would clean up after the destruction the Avengers left behind during their battles with MCU villains, such as in the case of The Avengers‘ Battle of New York. While the organization initially served that role, Damage Control has become a more antagonistic force over the years — creating prisons to hold superpowered people and making life difficult for some MCU heroes — and the villain turn of the organization created by Iron Man could have been averted if Marvel had brought one series to life.

In 2015, a Damage Control series was announced, with the show said to be a comedy to air on ABC. Sadly, the series ended up stuck in development hell and thus opened the path for the organization created by Tony Stark to take a villainous turn after his death. Had Damage Control made it to series, it would have been established to the audience that the organization was on the side of good, and with Marvel fans likely becoming fond of at least some of the show’s characters, Marvel Studios’ decision to use Damage Control as villains would have been much less likely.

Why Damage Control’s Cut Show Is Great For The MCU

While Damage Control as a villain organization is bad for Iron Man’s legacy, the Damage Control series being cut is great for the MCU. Now, Marvel Studios has a government agency that works against the interests of superheroes at its disposal, with Damage Control presenting a major headache to the MCU’s younger and newer heroes, especially. The organization’s antagonistic role opens up multiple storylines for the MCU’s future, with Damage Control having superpower inhibitor collars at its disposal being interesting for when the X-Men debut in the MCU. Given Damage Control’s growing role, Iron Man‘s MCU Phase 4 mistake might become even more important to the MCU in the future.

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