Dominique Thorne was first seen as Ironheart in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022) and her role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was received with mixed reactions. Regardless, the actress and the superhero have gotten themselves their own Disney+ television series whose trailer just got leaked online. Oops, there goes the suspense.
Fans who have lost almost all of their hopes in the MCU after Avengers: Endgame (2019) were not too pleased with the trailer and seemed to be rather uninterested in the series as a whole. However, it is pretty unfair to be judging a book by its cover and Ironheart seems like it deserves a solid chance to plead its case.
Dominique Thorne’s Ironheart May Not Deserve All the Hate It’s Getting
Ironheart entered the MCU a few years ago, but after that, it seemed like everything went silent despite getting her own show. Whether it was Ironheart being overshadowed by other MCU projects or the lack of fan interest in it, people weren’t really talking about it. Perhaps they just didn’t care enough. It seems like everything has changed now.
At the D23, the ultimate Disney fan event, attendees got a special treat in the form of Ironheart’s first trailer. Now, while the trailer wasn’t released to the masses, someone actually recorded the whole thing and posted the video on social media and fans are not pleased.
We're literally begging for characters people actually like, care about and wanna see, and we're getting THIS?
Blade, Ghost Rider (Blaze), Nova (Thanos has already destroyed his home), Sentry, Silver Surfer, Mar-Vell, Captain Britain, Captain Universe, Gladiator, The Power Pack.
— Jesse Bickers (@jessebickers) August 10, 2024
Keeping the details of the trailer aside, we need to take a moment and address the hate flooding toward the show. After the leak, fans of the superhero universe were quick to give out their verdict that Ironheart is going to plummet down the hole most of the latest MCU projects have fallen into. Let’s play the devil’s advocate for a second.
Dominique Thorne’s Ironheart brings a fresh character to the MCU, aiding the fictional world’s entry into a new era. The young, Black female genius is inspired by Tony Stark and is building herself an Iron Man-like suit. However, she is not here to fill in Iron Man’s shoes and her story should in no way be seen as an attempt to replicate our favorite Avenger.
Riri Williams is her own person and if fans are just going to compare her to Iron Man, then they are simply writing themselves up for obvious disappointment. Fans should aim to watch the show with no preconceived notions in their mind about her resemblance to Iron Man. Only then will we be able to give it a fighting chance, at the least.
Lessons from the Superhero Universes
We cannot talk about giving new characters and stories a chance without talking about Guardians of the Galaxy. When fans first learned that the MCU would be making a superhero film with a talking raccoon and a tree that says nothing but “I Am Groot,” many doubted Marvel Studios’ gutsy move.
It initially didn’t seem that a bunch of misfits from outer space would become some of the most beloved characters in the MCU but look at where we are now. We were all in tears while watching Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, were we not?
Thanks to its heart, humor, and the studio’s ability to take risks, GoTG has become a fan-favorite franchise in the MCU. Similarly for DC Studios, there was scepticism about Shazam! due to its comedic tone, which was eventually proven wrong.
The point is, we don’t have to like Ironheart. You could simply choose not to watch the show, at all. However, it seems rather unfair that fans are so harsh toward it without giving it a try, doesn’t it? Perhaps it’ll prove everyone wrong in the end!
Ironheart will be released on Disney+ on September 03, 2025.
