tincanmans:

(Screenshots taken from Iron Man 2 / 0:04:18 and 0:04:40)

What was Iron Man/Tony Stark doing between the events of Iron Man and Iron Man 2?

After Tony’s rather shocking reveal as Iron Man the world press is in turmoil and he is heavily criticized for both his ‘hedonistic’ past turned hero complex and the sudden change of his company’s direction. But he is persistent in his decision to withdraw from weapons manufacturing, regardless of the serious repercussions such as losses worth billions of dollars caused by forfeited military contracts and plummeting company shares.

“CEO Tony Stark promised that the next generation of Stark products would surpass all the past achievements for which the company is renowned. It’s new direction will focus on humanitarian causes. Solutions towards creating peace in the world will be solved though developing sustainable solutions to a variety of social unrest throughout the world.”

– Scan of a newspaper article from the Iron Man 2 set design (x)

While juggling the needs of his company as its current CEO, he also embraces his new role as the only public superhero worldwide in the coming 6 months (up until the events of IM2).

“Eager to establish public goodwill […] Mr. Stark crisscrossed the globe to lend a hand to those in need.

In California, Iron Man extinguished runaway wildfires with sonic blasts and helped evacuate families trapped behind the firebreak.

At Los Angeles International Airport, Iron Man brought a stricken airliner in for a safe touchdown.

When an experimental “miracle submarine” experienced trouble in the Pacific, Iron Man saved its crew from perishing in the ocean depths.

By intervening in a number of political brushfires across Eastern Europe, Iron Man earned widespread praise for establishing East-West relations.

– Official Marvel Iron Man Manual (2013) by David Wallace (x)

For his heroic deeds he was awarded a medal of honor and was Time Magazine’s Person Of The Year 2009. He was an established and celebrated hero long before he joined The Avengers Initiative.