At the end of Avengers: Endgame, Tony Stark didn't pass the mantle of Iron Man to War Machine. It was in sharp contrast to Steve Rogers, who willingly passed his shield to Sam Wilson with the implication it was time for Sam to take up both the shield and the Captain America moniker. Instead, Tony sacrificed himself and Iron Man passed with him, with Rhodey remaining as War Machine rather than stepping into the big red-and-gold shoes his best friend once filled.

On the surface, it seems surprising. Before the final battle with Thanos, Tony had the presence of mind to record a goodbye video for his daughter, Morgan, just in case he didn't make it back alive. One would think that, as he was setting his affairs in order, Tony might also have had a heart-to-heart with Rhodey and told him the Iron Man suits and title were his if he didn't survive the fight. After all, it's a common theme in the comics, with original characters passing on their legacies to younger characters in order to keep the name going.

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However, Tony is a very different kind of superhero, and there are a few reasons War Machine didn't get the suit the way Sam got the shield. For starters, Tony's relationship to Iron Man was always complicated. Superheroes like Spider-Man and Captain America see being a superhero as an honor and a privilege, coming to it honestly from the start with a natural desire to help people. Tony, on the other hand, came to it as a means of redemption for his past sins and to balance out the scales. What started out as a means to atone for being a war profiteer became a curse from the moment a giant hole opened up in the sky and gave way to the Battle of New York. From that point on, Tony approached being Iron Man with a sort of grim obsession; his genius brain turned against him as it showed him all the potential possibilities for devastation if he failed. For Tony, being Iron Man wasn't a gift, but a burden. It's a burden he never would have wanted to put on his best friend.

Iron Man War Machine MCU

There's also another major reason Tony didn't pass the Iron Man mantle on to Rhodey: it wasn't necessary, especially compared to Steve giving his shield to Sam. Captain America wasn't ever Steve Rogers, not really. Captain America isn't a man, but an idea, and the shield he carries is a symbol of that idea, representing all America can stand for at its best. It's important the succession of the Captain America mantle keeps going; people need to see the star-spangled Avenger out there fighting the good fight to remind them of what's good.

Tony, however, is Iron Man. The two are inextricably linked. "I am Iron Man" is quite literally his most famous line from Iron Man, the movie that kickstarted the entire MCU. While Iron Man was a hero and the most famous Avenger, his mantle isn't vital to the public consciousness in the way Captain America's is. Hence, it wasn't as necessary he pass Iron Man on to War Machine. Instead, Rhodey is now free to continue after Avengers: Endgame as War Machine if he wants, without the heavy burden of knowledge that comes with being Iron Man.

Next: Avengers: Why No One Else Could Have Done Iron Man's Snap In Endgame

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