If box office numbers are to be believed, it's safe to say most everyone has seen Iron Man's acquisition and use of the legendary gems in the comics was a different kind of moment, where fallout from a superhero conspiracy threatened the world with the rise of a different kind of villain that forced Tony to wield the ultimate, life-threatening power mankind was never intended to behold.
In Avengers Vol.4 #7-12, writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist John Romita, Jr put the latest Avengers team to the test when they learn that somebody is out there collecting Infinity Stones (called Red Hulk alerts the Avengers as well as the Illuminati to his plans.
Although the existence of the Illuminati was revealed to many of Earth's heroes as a result, few felt the heat worse than Iron Man, who ended up in a the reassembled Infinity Gauntlet wielded by Iron Man himself.
Ever the sore loser, Hood calls all the assembled heroes hypocrites who would have done the same thing if they lost their powers and challenges Iron Man, demanding what he would do. Faced with the infinite power of the gauntlet, Tony runs through the possibilities, both selfish and selfless, but ultimately decides on two things. First, he sends Parker Robbins back to his prison cell in the Raft, powerless and even more broken. Second, he uses the Infinity Gems' power to will themselves and the Gauntlet out of existence, correcting the Illuminati's mistake and eliminating the possibility of this event occurring again. These two acts of heroism seemingly redeemed Iron Man in everyone's eyes, including Steve Rogers, and saved his spot on the Avengers, proving that despite his flaws, Tony Stark was a real hero.
Unfortunately, Tony's act of heroism proves to be anything but. It was all an act and the Illuminati later meet to again split the Infinity Gems between their . However this time, things have changed, as Steve Rogers is now a part of the Illuminati, agreeing with their cause and suggesting they need to hide the Gems in better places. Considering the threat both the Infinity Stones and the Illuminati would become to the Marvel universe, one could say that the MCU's Tony Stark was far more heroic than his comic book counterpart, but that wouldn't be fair. Both are simply different version of the same hero, doing their best to save and protect their world, even if their decisions don't speak well of their legacy.
