WARNING: There are unmarked spoilers on these sheets for all but the most recent comics.
Remember, except where the sheet states otherwise, this is only for characters and examples from the main Marvel Universe (referred to in-universe as Earth-616).
Please do not list characters or examples from shows, movies or alternate universe versions here. If you've thought of a trope that fits an alternate version of the characters, please take that example to its respective sheet.
Family
Howard Anthony Walter Stark
First Appearance: Iron Man #28
The father of Tony Stark and founder of Stark Industries.- Always Someone Better: Occasionally, Tony feels this way about him.
- Depending on the Writer:
- His quality of parenting. Sometimes it's at acceptable, but sometimes it can drop all the way down to outright abusive to Tony and Maria.
- Whether the accident that killed him and Maria really was an accident.
- Disappeared Dad: His death greatly affected the life of his son Tony.
- Expansion Pack Past: He helped co-found SHIELD (after retcons), had adventures with Reed Richards' dad, and an alien robot.
- Happily Married: To Maria.
- Hero of Another Story: Turns out Tony's dad got up to a surprising amount before Tony came along. Sometimes we get to see some of those adventures.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Stan and Jack based Tony on Howard Hughes. Naturally, when Tony's father was introduced, he was named Howard.
- Ret-Canon: His middle name of "Walter" came from his counterpart in Iron Man: The Animated Series (starting off as a case of Adaptation Name Change to "Walter Stark" in season 1 and retconned to be a case of Middle Name Basis — "Howard Walter Stark" — in season 2).
Maria Collins Carbonell-Stark
First Appearance: Iron Man #104
Wife of Howard Stark and mother of Tony Stark. She was abducted during World War II by Red Skull but survived. She was eventually killed in an accident.
- Missing Mom: Her death also affected Tony and Arno.
Amanda Armstrong
First Appearance: International Iron Man (Vol 1) #5
A musician and the biological mother of Tony Stark. After discovering that Howard and Maria Stark were not his biological parents, Tony would later go on a "international" trip around the globe to figure out his origins. Eventually he found Amanda and expressed a desire to get to know her. Unfortunately for both of them, Tony was rendered into a coma due to events of Civil War II shortly after meeting.
- Alliterative Name: Amanda Armstrong.
- Dating Catwoman: Unknown to her during their relationship but Jude was a Hydra agent. Once she found out, it didn't last for very long. Nor did Jude's life for that matter.
- Retired Badass: An ex-SHIELD agent no less.
- You Are in Command Now: After Civil War II, she officially became the new CEO of Stark Industries as arranged by Tony beforehand. Although Amanda runs the company on paper, the actual day-to-day operations handled the A.I. Friday (so essentially nothing changed).
S.H.I.E.L.D
Nick Fury
First Appearance: Sgt. Fury and his Howling Commandos (Vol 1) #1
The Howling Commando. The S.H.I.E.L.D. Ramrod. A 90-year-old soldier/CIA agent/spymaster/fugitive. Considered to be one of the good guys by pretty much every hero on the planet, partly because the idea of not being on his side is kind of terrifying.
Maria Hill
First Appearance: New Avengers (Vol 1) #4
A high-ranking SHIELD agent with a temperamental relationship with Tony Stark and the rest of the superhero community, Maria Hill served as Stark's Number Two during his term as director of the intelligence agency SHIELD. She stayed with Stark during Norman Osborn's tenure, and has since returned to active duty.
Allies
Ho Yinsen
First Appearance: Tales of Suspense (Vol 1) #39 (March, 1963)
An ally of Tony Stark and co-creator of the original Iron Man armor.- Death by Origin Story: It's his death one of the main motivators for Tony Stark to become Iron Man.
- Disappeared Dad: To his daughter, Toni.
- Fate Worse than Death: Laments that he'd rather his abductors had killed him, rather than spend the last days of his life enslaved.
- Gadgeteer Genius: A mechanical genius on par with Tony... which is what got him abducted by Wong Chu.
- Heroic Sacrifice: He used himself as a distraction to buy Tony enough time to finish the armor and escape.
- Living Legend: A renowned physicist so prestigious Tony read his books in college.
- Locking MacGyver in the Store Cupboard: One half of the equation. His captors brought him in to assist Tony with the weapons they wanted him to build. Yinsen helped build the life-support technology needed to keep Tony alive.
Edwin Jarvis
Edwin Jarvis was originally the loyal household butler of the Stark family, and and little by little, became the butler to the entire Avengers team. He remains particularly close to Tony Stark, but also to Steve Rogers and Janet van Dyne (the latter of whom appears to be his employer currently).
- Battle Butler: He's not anywhere near Alfred-level badass but he's got some military background of his own - before the Sliding Timeline made it impossible, he at one point canonically was a fighter pilot in World War Two.
-
Iron Woobie: Has been repeatedly kidnapped, mind controlled, mind wiped and physically tortured by a wide range of Avengers foes, but his faith in the team rescuing him rarely if ever falters. - The Jeeves: Though he's actually faking his British accent, Depending on the Writer.
- Old Retainer: Has served the Stark family for many years.
- Out of Focus: In recent years. At this point, the AI based off of him shows up more than he does.
- Red Herring: Jarvis was heavily implied to be the mysterious "Crimson Cowl," before it was revealed to be a creation of Ant-Man known as "Ultron."
- The Rival: To Marilla.
- Ship Tease: He and Spidey's Aunt May had a thing during Peter's time as Tony's understudy. One More Day put an end to that. Oh, and apparently that "Jarvis" was a Skrull imposter, to boot.
Harold "Happy" Hogan
First Appearance: Tales of Suspense (Vol 1) #45
A retired boxer, hired by Tony to serve as his chauffeur and personal assistant.
- Alliterative Name: His full name is Harold "Happy" Hogan.
- Badass Normal: Happy could take care of himself, and saved Stark's hind end on a number of occasions.
- Battle Butler: Tony's, though he doesn't necessarily need to be this, given how Tony is Iron Man.
- The Berserker: When he was mutated into the Freak. He got better.
- Face of a Thug: Especially in the sixties. He got better looking as the comics went on.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Died taking a bullet for Stark.
- Killed Off for Real: After he and Spymaster had a clash during the Civil War period, Tony chose to grant him a Mercy Kill as he was comatose and unlikely to ever recover.
- Love Triangle: With Pepper and Tony.
- Taking the Bullet: Did this several times. It eventually killed him.
Bethany Cabe
First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol 1) #117
One of Tony Stark's more prominent girlfriends, Bethany Cabe is a security consultant, specializing in corporate espionage and bodyguard work. She has, at various points, been retained by Stark to guard him and/or ferret out moles within the company. She and Stark share an on-again/off-again romance, to the annoyance of Pepper Potts, who distrusts Cabe.
- Action Girl: From her first appearance, when she was trying to draw out and capture the original Spymaster. Bethany's a capable fighter and a crack shot.
- Archenemy: Madame Masque views her this way, and the two have a longstanding enmity.
- The Atoner: Her first husband suffered from a drug addiction and apparently died in a car crash after she left him. She feels that if she had tried to stage an intervention, she might have saved his life. This is what prompts her to try and save Stark from his alcoholism. She gets a second chance at saving her husband after he's rescued from Heaven's Hand.
- Badass Normal—>Empowered Badass Normal: No powers, but can fight the likes of Spymaster and Whiplash. Briefly graduated to Empowered Badass Normal when she wore an Iron Man armour.
- Bodyguard Crush: On Stark, eventually petered out as she took an interest in someone else.
- Fiery Redhead: Her red hair goes hand in hand with her temper.
- "Freaky Friday" Flip: Obadiah Stane put her and Madame Masque through one.
- Loves My Alter Ego: Initially liked Stark, but disliked Iron Man, who she thought was endangering Stark by not guarding him twenty-four/seven.
- Powered Armour: Alongside Rhodey, and a number of others friends and allies of Iron Man's, she donned a spare Iron Man suit to battle Ultimo.
- Secret Secret-Keeper: after bumping into Tony while they're both on different rescue missions into Heaven's Hand, she asks him to change into Iron Man. She reveals she figured it out on her own weeks prior, as being so close to someone allows one to pick up unspoken details about them.
- UST: With Stark whenever they aren't together.
Guardsman I
Alter Ego: Kevin O'Brien
First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol 1) #31 (November 1970)
Kevin O'Brien was head of the research department at Stark Industries and a close friend of Tony Stark. Tony built the Guardsman armor as a backup to his Iron Man armor, and later gave it to Kevin to use. Unfortunately, a flaw in the cybernetic controls drove Kevin insane and he was eventually killed in a fight with Iron Man.
- Ax-Crazy: Kevin went insane due to a flaw in the armor's cybernetic controls.
- Green and Mean: The Guardsman Powered Armor is green, and Kevin makes a Face–Heel Turn and becomes an antagonist once he starts wearing it.
- Flawed Prototype: Kevin used the armor before it was fully tested. The cybernetic controls were flawed and overstimulated the parts of Kevin's brain that control anger and envy.
- Powered Armor: Tony originally designed the Guardsman armor as a backup to his Iron Man suit. He first passed it on to Kevin, and later mass-produced it for governments to help law enforcement hold their own against supervillains.
Guardsman II
Alter Ego: Michael O'Brien
First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol 1) #82 (January 1976) note ; Iron Man (Vol 1) #97 (April 1977) note
Michael O'Brien was a police sergeant who believed Iron Man was responsible for his brother's death. After fighting Iron Man as the Guardsman, he discovered his mistake and became an ally to Iron Man and the Avengers. He acted as Iron Man briefly and fought Sunfire and the Mandarin.
- Fair Cop: He used to be a cop and he is not bad looking.
- Legacy Character: To both his brother, the original Guardsman and to Iron Man.
- No Plans, No Prototype, No Backup: Averted. Kevin was killed because a flaw in the original armor's cybernetic controls made him Ax-Crazy. Tony corrected the problem in later versions of the Guardsman armor, including the one Michael started using.
- Powered Armor: The Guardsman armor. Tony later mass-produced it for governments to help law enforcement even the odds against supervillains.
- Shoddy Knockoff Product: Downplayed. The Guardsman armor is reliable and well-equipped, but Tony deliberately made sure it wasn't as good as the Iron Man armor when he designed it.
Suzi Endo/Cybermancer
First Appearance: Force Works (Vol 1) #6
A former cybernetics researcher from Stark Industries Far East division who later joined his Force Works team during The Dark Age of Comic Books. She later became the leader of a new Force Works team of her own during The Initiative. After parting ways with Stark, Suzi was eventually imbued with the Power Cosmic as the Seeker.
- The Bus Came Back: During Civil War.
- Clothes Make the Superman: Her armor was the source of most of her abilities. She did eventually gain genuine superpowers during her time as the Seeker.
- Distaff Counterpart: Becomes one to the Silver Surfer after she parts ways with Stark.
- Future Me Scares Me: Had some unpleasant run-ins with her future self.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Her attempt to prevent a bank heist resulted in the deaths of three civilians.
- '90s Anti-Hero: She acted like this in in the Initiative.
- Took a Level in Jerkass: Averted. She betrayed Tony during Civil War.
- You Can't Fight Fate: A firm believer of this.
Riri Williams / Ironheart
Alter Ego: Riri Williams
First Appearance: Invincible Iron Man (Vol 2) #7
A teenaged genius with a scholarship at MIT, Riri reversed engineered one of Tony's old suits into her own suit of armor. After taking it out for a spin, she ended up using it to stop some inmates from escaping a New Mexico prison. This eventually leads to Tony visiting her and offering her a chance to work as his replacement as Iron Man.
Rumiko Fujikawa
First Appearance: Iron Man Vol. 3 #4
A former love interest for Tony Stark, Rumiko was the daughter of Kenjiro Fujikawa, the man who took over Stark's company when he was in the Heroes Reborn universe.
- Killed Off for Real: She was murdered by an Iron Man impostor named Clarence Ward.
Scott Lang / Ant-Man II
Alter Ego: Scott Lang
First Appearance: The Avengers #181 (March 1979) note ; Marvel Premiere #47 (April 1979) note
Electronics technician and former crook who became the second Ant-Man with Hank Pym's blessing. Scott would be recruited into Stark Industries and would be a prominent supporting character for him throughout the comics, especially in the '80s, as well as the Avengers by extension.
Jocasta
Alter Ego: Jocasta Vi Quitéria
Notable Aliases: Bride of Ultron
First Appearance: The Avengers Vol. 1 #162 (August 1977)
Once the Bride of Ultron, Jocasta has become an honorary member of the Avengers after years of loyalty and sacrifice. She had until most recently held a position at The Avengers Academy.
Natasha Romanoff / Black Widow
Alter Ego: Natalia Alianovna Romanova (Natasha Romanoff)
Notable Aliases: Natalie Rushman, Laura Matthers, Mary Farrell, Natasha Romanoff, Oktober, Yelena Belova
First Apperance: Tales of Suspense #52 (April 1964)
See the Black Widow page.
Clint Barton / Hawkeye
Alter Ego: Clinton "Clint" Barton
Notable Aliases: Goliath; Golden Archer; Ronin
First Appearance: Tales of Suspense #57 (September 1964) note ; Avengers #63 (April 1969) note ; Captain America #179 (November 1974) note ; New Avengers #27 (April 2007) note
Mary Jane Watson
First Appearance: Amazing Spider-Man #42 (November, 1966)
Mary Jane (or MJ) is the most famous love interest of Peter Parker. She becomes Tony Stark's personal assistant after the destruction of her nightclub, Jackpot, at the hands of Madame Masque.
Patricia "Patsy" Walker
Patsy is the superhero known as Hellcat. While Tony is going through an existential and midlife crisis, Patsy provides him guidance. However, she wrestles with her own demons and has trouble with Tony's It's All About Me attitude. The two have a sexual relationship, if not an emotional one.
A.I.
F.R.I.D.A.Y.
Alter Ego: F.R.I.D.A.Y. (Female Replacement Intelligent Digital Assistant Youth)
First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol 3) #53 (June, 2002)
- "I have it on pretty good authority that I'm more real than the two of you put together and I'm damn well going to outlast you both."
A female-presenting artificial intelligence introduced in 2015's Invincible Iron Man, devoted to keeping Tony on track.
- Benevolent A.I.: She's actually been programmed to not take any crap off of Tony, but helps him in a variety of ways, both small and large; she runs scans, sorts through information, and pays Stark Industries' electric bill.
- Deadpan Snarker: Just to Tony. She's very professional when talking to Rhodey.
- Meaningful Name: She is Tony's Girl Friday.
- Robot Girl: She's eventually given a robotic body so she can interact with people.
J.A.R.V.I.S.
Alter Ego: J.A.R.V.I.S. (Just A Rather Very Intelligent System)
First Appearance: Invincible Iron Man (Vol. 2) #11 (May, 2009)
- Canon Immigrant: Based on the MCU A.I. that assists Tony in the movies.
H.E.L.E.N.
Alter Ego: H.E.L.E.N
Notable Aliases: P.E.P.P.E.R.
First Appearance: Iron Man (Vol 5) #2 (January, 2013)
An A.I. created by Tony Stark as a replacement for J.A.R.V.I.S. that was modeled after Pepper Potts.
- Meaningful Rename: Starts out being called P.E.P.P.E.R. while Tony's up in space, but on returning to Earth he renames her to avoid the One-Steve Limit (and because flesh-and-blood Pepper finds it creepy).
