Avengers: Infinity War will see most of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's heroes joining forces to combat Thanos and his minions, but with this franchise now in it's 10th year, most of the protagonists are already well familiar with one another. Take Iron Man and Black Panther. Tony Stark and T'Challa joined forces in Captain America: Civil War to bring Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes into custody, although T'Challa later provided those two asylum in Wakanda once he learned that it was Helmut Zemo who killed his father, not Bucky. Whether Tony learned about what T'Challa did or not, the two of them will nonetheless need to work together during Infinity War, and if the Super Bowl spot that dropped for the movie yesterday is any indication, Tony will be borrowing some Wakandan technology for his new Iron Man suit.
If you've been following along with the Black Panther marketing, you've surely seen shots of both T'Challa's Black Panther suit Erik Killmonger's Golden Jaguar suit manifesting around their respective wearers. T'Challa's sister, Shuri, came up with this particular upgrade, as rather than having to drag an entire costume, it's "packed" within a special necklace. Whenever T'Challa wants to become Black Panther, he just needs to think it, and the suit will manifest around him (though consequently, whatever clothes he was wearing beforehand will be shredded). As you can see in the Avengers: Infinity War moment above, Tony Stark's new Iron Man armor is materializing in the same way. Assuming that Tony's armor has indeed received a Wakandan upgrade, that presumably means that Shuri will be modifying the armor herself.
Ever since crafting his first armor in a cave with a box of scraps, Tony Stark has rarely stopped building new versions of the Iron Man suits. Oh sure, he tried stopping after Iron Man 3, but he'd already resumed the habit before Avengers: Age of Ultron. Each new suit has either improved upon its predecessor or served a particularly unique function (those ones made up the Iron Legion), and it's safe to say that the armor that he'll wear during Avengers: Infinity War will be his most powerful yet. However, one thing that Tony Stark hasn't had available to him until now is Wakandan technology, which is significantly more advanced than any other technology on Earth. Tony Stark is a smart man and built some of the world's most state-of-the-art weaponry, but even some of his stuff pales in comparison to what's available in Wakanda, let alone what Shuri is constructing.
In Iron Man 3, Tony Stark built the Mark XLII armor, which allowed him to remotely summon each individual piece of his armor to himself. It was an impressive feat, but this manifesting armor is several leaps ahead of what we saw five years ago, and it couldn't arrive at a more perfect time. With Thanos, the Black Order and the Mad Titan's monstrous hordes coming to Earth in search of the Infinity Stones, Tony is going to need every upgrade available for his armor to ensure he has a better chance of survival. Unfortunately, even these Wakandan augmentations may not be enough, as the first Avengers: Infinity War trailer showed Tony getting a beatdown from Thanos. Maybe the Wakandan upgrades come after that, but if they don't do the trick, the only way I can see Tony's armor further improving is if it's enhanced by either alien technology or magic. Could one of those (or both) happen in Avengers 4?
Avengers: Infinity War opens in theaters on May 4. Don't forget to also look through our 2018 premiere guide to see what else is being released this year.
