Welcome to a series of features that spotlight Tony Stark’s numerous Iron Man suits from over the decades. We plan to cover every suit in chronological order – including debut and key appearances – before expanding even further into the Marvel Multiverse!
Kicking us off, we go right back to Tony’s very first appearance and re-experience his first few suits, with the catchily-titled Iron Man Armour Model 1 (Grey & Gold), 2 and 3.
Head to our Many Armours of Iron Man Index for more!
Following their capture at the hands of Wong-Chu in the middle of the Vietnam War, Tony Stark and Professor Ho Yinsen are forced to build hi-tech weapons for the Viet Cong leader. Instead, they cobble a chest plate together for Stark to keep shrapnel from piercing Stark’s heart. Using more leftover parts, this is built-upon to become the Iron Man Armour Model 1. Ho-Yinsen gives his life to allow Tony to surprise Wong-Chu’s forces with the armour and make his escape.
After returning home to America, Tony Stark continues to wear the chest plate to keep himself alive, though he decides to keep it secret. He gives the armour gold plating when Marion Rodgers suggests a gold paint job will make people think he has a heart of gold! So that, my friends, is why Stark upgraded to the Iron Man Armour Model 1, Mark III. This version of the suit is the one Stark wears when he helps form the Avengers.
| Notable Appearances |
| Tales of Suspense #39 [1/4] (1962) On a visit to Vietnam at the height of the war, Tony Stark is injured by a landmine built by his own company – Stark Indistries – and taken prisoner by Wong-Chu. Stark and Ho Yinsen build a suit of armour to keep Tony alive and escape captivity as Iron Man. 1st appearances: Iron Man Armour Model 1, Iron Man/Tony Stark, Professor Ho Yinsen, Wong-Chu |
| Tales of Suspense #40 [1/3] (1962) Tony Stark carries out heroic acts as Iron Man – fighting criminals and subduing big cats who have escaped from the circus. Under hearing his love interest Marion Rodgers refer to the dull grey Iron Man as ‘terrifying’, gold paint job will make people think he has a heart of gold! So that, my friends, is why Stark upgraded…Stark gives the suit a gold plating which, upgrading it to the Iron Man Armour Model 1, Mark III. The Mark II us first used against the Gargantus – a robot sent to Earth by aliens with a fear of magnets! 1st appearances: Iron Man Armour Model 1 – Mark III, Stark Industries |
| Avengers #1 (1963) Iron Man becomes one of the founding members of the Avengers, eventually becoming nicknamed the ‘Golden Avenger’. 1st appearances: Avengers, Bill Bishop, Keibler’s Circus, Rock Trolls, Isle of Silence |
| Iron Man #191-198 (1985) Having passed the mantle of Iron Man to James Rhodes, Tony Stark tries to reclaim his life and subdue his alcoholism by building a fresh version of his original armour. Stark wears this suit when Bethany Cabe is kidnapped by Obadiah Stane’s mercenaries, but fails to rescue her. 1st appearances: Dr Alice Nugent, Scourge of the Underworld |
| Notable Appearances | Event / Crossover |
| Iron Man #244 (1989) Flashbacks expand on the origin of Iron Man and reveal the next iteration of the original suit – the Iron Man Armour Model 1, Mark II – which Stark honed down and made more lightweight, largely to hide the chest plate under his regular clothing. 1st appearance: Iron Man Armour Model 1 – Mark II, Joanna Nivena | HEARTBEATEN |
| Iron Man #5 (2005) Flashbacks retell the origin of Iron Man, retconning his origins to shift him from the Vietnam War to Afghanistan. 1st appearance: Iron Man Armour Model 29/Extremis Armour | |
| Invincible Iron Man #18-19 (2009) Another version of the Iron Man Armour Model 1 is utilised by Tony Stark when he finds himself on the run from the new US Government agency HAMMER, headed up by Norman Osborn. This version is referred to as the Iron Man Armour Model 1, Mark 0 and includes repulsor capabilities. Osborn trashes the Mark 0 armour using the adapted Iron Patriot suit he created by pillaging Stark’s armoury. | DARK REIGN |
| Iron Man 2020 #1 (2020) Tony Stark fully accepts his new life as an artificial being when he learns his body died in the second Superhuman Civil War (see CIVIL WAR II, 2016-2017). He takes the name Mark One and wears a variation of his original Iron Man Armour Model 1, Mark 1 suit. 1st appearance: AI Army, Thirteenth Floor New identity: Tony Stark as Mark One | IRON MAN 2020 |
While Jack Kirby didn’t draw Iron Man’s first appearance, he’s credited as one of his creators alongside Stan Lee, Don Heck and Larry Lieber.
The criminal Mister Doll utilises his voodoo abilities to coerce businessmen into relinquishing their sizable bank accounts over to him. Tony Stark gets ahead of the game and confronts Mister Doll as Iron Man, though the battle goes poorly. Stark switches up his armour so he no longer matches the doll that Mister Doll was using and is somehow able to use his new armour’s “transistorized ray gadget” to transform the clay Iron Man doll into a Mister Doll doll, so Doll voodoos himself! Doll goes on to becomes the Brothers Grimm – yes, both of them!
Tony gives the new Iron Man Armour Model 2 some upgrades including roller-skates, magnets, radio communications, additional sensors, magnetic repulsors, an oxygen supply and a chest spotlight. It also has a more lightweight design, increased the battery life and a fresh red and gold colour-scheme.
| Notable Appearances |
| Tales of Suspense #48 [1/3] (1963) Iron Man’s battle with Mister Doll prompts him to create a new, lightweight suit of armour; the Iron Man Armour Model 2 gives Stark the means to defeat the voodoo-themed villain. 1st appearance: Iron Man Armour Model 2, Mister Doll/Nathan Dolly Identity revealed: Stark’s company is first referred to as Stark Industries |
| Tales of Suspense #54 [1/4] (1963) Tony replaces the armour’s pointed mask with a more-rounded, better fitting design. |
The Iron Man Armour Model 2 was created by Steve Ditko and Stan Lee.
Factoring in all the changes he’s been making to his armour, recently, as well as everything he learned during his clash with the Mandarin, Tony Stark debuts a new suit of armour which gets a crash course when he faces the Unicorn. This is the first suit to feature repulsor rays and briefly included a nose on the faceplate. There’s some debate over the debut of the Iron Man Armour Model 3 with some sources marking its first appearance as Tales of Suspense #66, but the core changes to the suit appear much earlier than that.
The suit adds a rocket element to the roller skates, a cutting blade, an increased air supply, electric bolts, an image inducer, smoke bombs and energy absorption capabilities.
| Notable Appearances |
| Tales of Suspense #56 [1/2] (1965) Though there’s little fanfare, the Iron Man Armour Model 3 makes its debut with a design that includes the hip–mounted discs that contain additional component parts. 1st appearance: Iron Man Armour Model 3, Unicorn/Milos Masaryk |
| Tales of Suspense #65 [1/2] (1965) Tony Stark installs a Slave Circuit in the armour to prevent anyone from taking over his armour without consent when Weasel Willis steals the suit. |
| Tales of Suspense #84 [1/2] (1966) Happy Hogan dons the Iron Man armour for the first time when the Mandarin comes close to figuring out his nemesis’ secret identity; Happy attacks the Mandarin as Iron Man to disprove the Mandrin’s theory that he and Tony Stark are one and the same. New identity: Happy Hogan as Iron Man |
| Tales of Suspnse #85 [1/2] (1967) Happy Hogan’s lack of experience in utilising the Iron Man armour leads to it taking serious damage in battle with the Mandarin; Tony upgrades the amour’s design, boosting its strength capabilities in preparation for a showdown with the Mandarin. |
| Notable Appearances | Event / Crossover |
| Iron Man #17-19 (1969) Mordecai Midas utilises the Slave Circuit in Iron Man’s armour, gaining remote control of his suits and briefly discrediting the hero. 1st appearance: Mordecai Midas New identity: Big M/Whitney Frost as Madame Masque | ENDGAME |
| Iron Man #21 (1970) Tony Stark hires boxer Eddie March to become his bodyguard, granting him the role of Iron Man; March’s time as Iron Man is shortlived when he’s injured by the Crimson Dynamo in his first outing. 1st appearance: Iron Man/Eddie March | |
| Iron Man #68 (1974) Iron Man adds a nose to his faceplate. | |
| Iron Man #85 (1976) Iron Man escapes an angry crowd using his roller skates which now feature a rocket-powered upgrade. 1st appearance: Iron Man Armour Model 4 |
The Iron Man Armour Model 3 was created by Don Heck and Stan Lee.
Reading Order Copyright © 2025 Omniverse Comics Guide
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