The Avengers is one of Marvel's most popular teams, and Iron Man is one of their most iconic members. One of Marvel's darkest futures, however, doomed the team to a robotic existence. Earth X by Alex Ross, Jim Krueger, and John Paul Leon was essentially Marvel's equivalent to DC's Kingdom Come, showcasing a dystopian world in which the Earth's human population had all developed powers of some sort through the release of Terrigen. It also saw the figurative and literal deaths of several key Marvel superheroes and teams, with the Avengers being one of them.

Tony Stark, still human thanks to remaining inside of a sterile Iron Man suit, attempts to monitor this vastly changed world with help from some old friends. The aged Iron Man was aided by an army of Iron Avengers, and while they might look like Earth's Mightiest Heroes, they're all far less than human.

RELATED: 1994's Iron Man Introduced Tony Stark With a Risque Hot Tub Scene

Iron Assembly

The Iron Avengers first show up in the seminal issue of Earth X. As their name would suggest, they are robotic facsimiles of old members of the Avengers. The models for these androids include Sting, Monolith, Bolt, Crimson Sage, and Steelbow, who are each based on The Wasp, Giant-Man, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, and Hawkeye respectively. Their metallic frames imitate both the traditional designs of Iron Man's armor, along with the appearances of each Avenger. Given Steelbow's archery, it would seem that each of them is also able to at least somewhat imitate the skills, powers, and abilities of their respective hero, as well. The team came into being following the deaths of their namesakes. A massive battle in Washington D.C. saw the Absorbing Man become more powerful than ever. With his newfound abilities, he killed several of the Avengers, without stalwarts such as Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk, Vision, and Thor. Wanting to honor their memories, Tony built the Iron Avengers to carry on in the line of heroism, with each robot even imitating the deceased Avengers' personalities.

This drew the ire of Captain America, who disliked seeing his former comrades' lives essentially mocked. He was even more vocal about this when Tony had the Iron Avengers begin working for President Norman Osborn. In actuality, Tony planned to use the growing money that he amassed by working with Osborn to overthrow him, creating an even larger army of Iron Avengers that would be able to stomp out crime anywhere. Some of the robots' most vital missions were saving the aged Captain America from the alien Hydra plague in New York, as well as standing up to the Skull. When the psychic youth realized that he could not control them, he quickly had the Iron Avengers dismantled by his minions.

RELATED: Iron Man: Tony Stark's Family History Just Got MUCH Darker

Life After Iron Man

Iron Man would never get the chance to personally rebuild the Iron Avengers, or produce them on a global scale. Instead, he valiantly sacrificed himself against the might of the Celestials, saving Earth one last time. In honor of Stark and seeing the androids' usefulness, King Britain would later decree that the Iron Avengers should be rebuilt to serve in his country.

The Vision, as well as several of King Britain's loyal Union Jacks successfully made new Iron Avengers. Though they had the same powers and appearances of their predecessors, they seemingly lacked the cognitive ability to imitate the real Avengers' personalities or even speak. Together, they would personally defend Buckingham Palace as a first and last line of defense. They would continue to show up throughout Earth X's sequels, Universe X and Paradise X.

They would later join Black Bolt when he investigated a disturbance in the Savage Land and were briefly taken control of by Toad, who had gained Magneto's abilities. After Cable helped to turn the tide against Toad, the Iron Avengers were freed and joined by Toad's former robotic slave, Tank. From there, the team's appearances would begin to slow down, having only minor roles in the battle against Absorbing Man when he absorbed the entirety of New York. They were last seen going into space to rescue the trapped Eternals, who had long been trapped in Vibranium. Given the lack of a further sequel in the Earth X universe, the current whereabouts of Iron Man's ultimate creations remain unknown.

KEEP READING: Iron Man: Why Tony Stark's Car Is Off-Limits for Marvel Villains