Everyone has heard the name, Iron Man, but not all have heard the name of Cobalt Man, Tony Stark’s dastardly second identity. Now, Ironheart has stolen the name from him and is using it to follow in some of Tony’s most dangerous footsteps.
The original Cobalt Man was Ralph Roberts and former and disgruntled employee of Stark Industries. He left the company after Tony refused to divulge the secrets of the Iron Man armor and went to work with cobalt. He eventually created a suit out of the substance despite its radioactive properties which were unstable, it granted Roberts superhuman strength, stamina, and an array of abilities similar to that of Iron Man. However, the original Cobalt Man was killed in the Stamford Connecticut blast that sparked Marvel’s first Civil War event. After the death of Ralph Roberts, Tony would sometimes assume the identity of Cobalt Man to go undercover as a villain.
Using the identity to do undercover work was one of Tony’s typically dangerous and reckless gambits, but now in Iron Man #24, by Christopher Catnwell and Ángel Unzueta, readers learn that his self-destructive tendencies have rubbed off on Riri Williams. In the issue, it’s revealed that Ironheart went undercover with the criminal black market organization known as Source Control in order to recover the Mandarin’s rings. She reveals herself by saving Tony who immediately chastises her for her “extremely dangerous” behavior. He is then promptly reminded by both Rohdey and Riri that he’s no better.
Meet Riri Williams, The New ‘Cobalt Man’
This is played in the comic as a bit of comeuppance for Iron Man, but when looked at objectively it is a bit worrying. Tony Stark has always engaged in a variety of self-destructive behaviors, whether it be as an alcoholic, or through his suicidal heroic tendencies. Despite his position as a founding Avenger, or his many allies and friends, he often goes out of his way to do things alone. Tony typically justifies this behavior as him “protecting” others, but the truth usually somewhere falls between his tendency for narcissism and his psychological need to punish himself.
Riri, by contrast, is a young but hope-filled hero. She is often portrayed as a good team player and the kind of person who is the opposite of Tony in a lot of ways. However, she does look up to Iron Man as a mentor and an inspiration, which is why this move on her part is so worrying. Securing something as dangerous as the Mandarin’s rings is incredibly important, but this is an example of Ironheart learning all the wrong lessons from Tony. Putting on a disguise, going undercover without backup is exactly the sort of move that could get her killed or worse.
In the end, Riri Williams not only proves that she stole Tony Stark’s villainous undercover codename of Cobalt Man, but that she is learning all the wrong lessons from the Armored Avenger. Iron Man is a great hero worth admiring, but Ironheart should be careful what tendencies she picks, or one day she might find herself as alone and broken as her mentor.
