15 Most Heart-Wrenching Moments In MCU History

Iron Man is the one who doesn't die. That's how his entire story started. He - with a lot of help - built a machine to keep him alive, and power his super death robot.

His first fight with Captain America - before Civil War, before even Ultron - is about Tony not being one to lay his life down for others. But at the end, he shows he'll take the hit if he has to.

He grabs a nuke heading straight for New York and draws it into a portal, flying - alone - into the maw of space. This moment haunts Iron Man throughout the rest of the MCU. It leads to Ultron. It's what drives him to continue improving, building, even at the cost of his own personal life.

It's what leads to his fight, and loss, against Thanos - alone, again, in space.

But then he returns. And the Avengers reunite. And they win. They return all the heroes. But that darkness is still there. A nuke is headed for the city. Thanos has the Infinity Stones.

So Tony does what he always does, what he always says he'll never do. He takes the hit.

He grabs the stones, and with his last words, tells everyone who he is. And then he dies, in Pepper's arms. Right where he's always wanted to be.

And with that, the first Avenger - our first Avenger - is gone. And the MCU is forever changed.