“I saw that I had become part of a system that is comfortable with zero accountability.”

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is the highest-grossing franchise in film history; the average box office gross of a Marvel movie thus far has been just shy of $1 billion… and there are 23 of them to date. These movies are popular for a variety of reasons: stories of good triumphing over evil have a universal appeal, and extravagant action scenes do, too — who doesn’t love a good explosion?

But the best comic book movies also resonate with us for a more emotional reason: superhero narratives acknowledge that there is great evil in the world, and that we have the power to overcome it.

Comic books — and the movies inspired by them — are best when they feature imperfect superheroes who can triumph over great existential threats in spite of their own shortcomings, egos, and flaws. The best supervillains in these stories are foils for the heroes they battle; they externalize the evil that the hero could give in to, but chooses to fight against.

Heroes and villains teach us that when we are gifted with skills, we can use them for good… or for evil. Flawed heroes in particular remind us that good and evil aren’t states of being, but the result of active choices.

Iron Man, released in 2008, was a massive success and launched the MCU as we know it for a variety of reasons (not least of which being the pitch-perfect casting of Robert Downey, Jr. in the titular role). But key to its success was that it got all of the aforementioned things right in its storytelling while conveying a tone of hope not seen in many of the other, broodier superhero movies of its time.

The duality of Tony Stark / Iron Man — and Tony’s growth as a result of the responsibility and moral ideology that he adopts after becoming a prisoner of war — makes him a dynamic, compelling character. He isn’t a superhero because he simply gains powers and fights evil. He starts out the movie as a fairly unlikable, conceited man, but then makes an active choice to change his ways and do good in the world once he realizes the damage that he and his actions have inflicted on others. He recognizes his own toxic behaviors, faces them, and triumphs over them.

In one of the film’s opening scenes, Stark calls a peace sign a “gang sign” while taking a photo with a soldier; the van then is attacked by terrorists and the soldier dies. Stark is taken prisoner and sees crates of Stark Industries-branded missiles at the compound that he is taken to; he is forced to reckon with the knowledge that his own company’s weapons are being used by the “bad guys” against him and his own country’s military. These events — along with his fellow prisoner Yensin’s plea of “Don’t waste your life” later on — serve as a catalyst for self-reflection. It is this self-reflection and active choice to change that turns Stark into a hero.

This shift toward goodness doesn’t happen instantaneously. As Stark grows from a conceited war hawk to the Iron Man we know and love, he adjusts his toxic behaviors in ways both professional and personal: a notorious womanizer, Tony shifts his perspective on women as he recognizes the effect that his philandering has on the one woman who genuinely cares about him, Pepper Potts.

Two similar shots in Iron Man visualize Tony Stark’s character arc. Both shots feature Stark / Iron Man in the foreground while a massive explosion — set off by him — erupts in the background. In the first version of this shot, Tony Stark stands in the center of the frame looking smug in sunglasses and a suit as a barrage of missiles explode in the mountains behind him. He revels in his power and capacity for destruction.

After he becomes Iron Man, we see him in a similar shot — in full armor, walking toward camera with an explosion erupting behind him. But in this version of the shot, his violence has a just purpose: he is saving a village of innocent people from terrorists.

Similar shot composition, similar action, same character… different motivation and mood entirely.

Iron Man is Tony Stark’s aspirational self.

Once Tony Stark returns to the United States, his personal growth is met with resistance by those who knew him before; his change of heart threatens to drive his company out of business. Obadiah Stane then takes over as Stark Industries’ CEO and becomes the film’s primary villain. Stane represents everything that Tony could have become if Stark had remained a self-absorbed, money-and-power-hungry war profiteer. When Iron Man faces off against Stane, their external battles become symbolic of Stark’s own internal conflicts.

Stark ultimately chooses who he wants to become — and in the process, beats the enemy that represents that worst form of who Stark could have been if he gave in to his demons.

Good and evil ultimately comes down to how power is directed. This duality is explored in the battle between Stark and Stane as well as in other, more subtle parallels. The arc reactor itself, for example, is a symbol of this. In one form, the arc reactor is life-saving — it prevents shrapnel from ripping through Tony’s heart. But in Stane’s hands, the arc reactor does devastating damage — ultimately destroying an entire building and ending lives.

As we grow and change — and as we innovate and create new technology — we must actively choose to do good with ourselves and the things that we create.

These kinds of parallels are what make Iron Man a successful example of good comic book movie storytelling. Looking back on the film more than a decade after its release, it remains a stark template for what this kind of polished, extravagant, blockbuster superhero can be. It’s no wonder that this is the film set the tone and formula for the MCU.