Tony Stark is a fan-favorite character, better known to most Marvel fans as the superhero Iron Man. He is a good man who wants what’s best for the world, ultimately, and would do anything to protect the world. As he points out to those who challenge him, if he fails to protect the world, he — and his team, the Avengers — will always avenge those who have been hurt.
While Iron Man may be a superhero that many look up to, however, he does have some terrible character traits. He wants to do good, but, unfortunately, he has a few horrible traits that he has to overcome in order to succeed.
10 More Stubborn Than Anyone Else
Tony Stark has a hard time backing down from anything. If he makes a decision, he doesn’t want to be embarrassed by being wrong, or feel guilt or shame if something he has done has caused problems for others. It’s easier to avoid these issues and just always insist that he is right. If he is stubborn and always right, then he never has to be wrong and feel anything bad. When Iron Man fails, he stubbornly often insists he did the right thing to a certain degree, rather than just accepting his failures.
9 Contrarian And Petty
To be honest, Tony Stark is a man who likes to argue. Those around him are fun for him because he can spar with them, and usually verbally. He is a very intelligent man, as well, and when he finds those of similar intellects, he has a hard time not disagreeing with them.
He enjoys a good argument and often disagrees with people just on principle. If he doesn’t like somebody, he’ll argue or fight with them just to cause them problems. He can be kind of a petty guy, especially if he gets a bad vibe off of somebody.
8 Has Lived A Life Of Privilege
As Tony Stark was born to Howard and Maria Stark, two incredibly wealthy people with access to only the best of the best, he was born into a life of privilege. He grew up struggling to connect with his parents, but, ultimately, they loved him and he loved them. They supported one another until their death, at which point he became the last Stark left. He has lived a life of privilege, and this sometimes makes him a bit detached from those around him. However, the more he grows, the more he learns to recognize his privilege and put it to good use.
7 Vain When It Comes To His Abilities
Tony Stark values his own opinion very highly. He is an intelligent man with a great deal of life experience, but he prizes his own opinions, actions, and thoughts often above those of others. He sees himself as a highly-skilled individual.
While this is true, showing the amount of ego that Tony Stark has doesn't do him any favors. While Iron Man may be a valuable asset, this does not make it easier to interact with Tony in daily life. He’s proud and something of an egomaniac, but, at times, it’s not unjustified.
6 He Is A Bit Of A Show-Off
After all of the different Iron Man suits Tony Stark has made, and all the different Avengers battles that he has successfully won, he has gained a certain amount of swagger to everything he does. He likes to exhibit just how amazing his suits are — and, by extension, how amazing he is. Whenever Tony Stark gets a chance, he’s showing off whatever newest thing he’s made or bought or achieved. This can be nice, at times, but Tony always takes it too far and shows off too much. It turns him into a show-off, and it’s a turn-off for those around him when he starts acting that way.
5 Bossy To All Those Around Him
Even when Tony Stark was young, he liked to take charge. The older he’s gotten, this has only become more and more true. He is a bossy guy, and he likes to be an authority more than almost anything else. If there’s a chance to be in charge, Tony Stark is going to take that opportunity. He’s one of the leaders of the Avengers, and he makes sure everybody knows it. When he thinks he knows the right thing to do, he’ll do whatever it takes to make sure people do it. He’s a bossy guy at heart, but he wants what’s best, so at least it’s not in bad spirit.
4 Cocky And Overconfident To The Extreme
Tony Stark’s extreme amount of confidence isn’t always a good thing. He believes he always knows what the right thing to do is, and insists on it to others, no matter what. It’s difficult for him to take advice or consider the input of those around him.
As a result, he has become a cocky person. He — sometimes wrongly — is an overconfident person, and he almost never backs down from an argument or a fight. This determination can be good to a certain degree, but Tony Stark takes his cockiness to the next level, and, at that point, it becomes a problem.
3 Narcissism Is A Trait He Always Has
After Tony Stark reflects upon his life, there is not much that he would change. Even in the mistakes he’s made and the regrets that he has, he still believes that most, if not all, of his actions in life were correct to a certain degree, whether or not he actually is right. He’s so self-assured and sure of himself that he struggles to believe that he could do anything wrong. His self-absorption is not constant, but it is an underlying trait for him, and he struggles to fight past it a lot of the time.
2 He Is A Workaholic
More often than not, Tony Stark’s workaholic tendencies cause problems in his personal and professional life. He dedicates too much of his time to the Avengers, prioritizes them too highly, and holds them to an impossible standard, and this destroys his personal life. He then struggles with holding the Avengers together, which challenges his professional life. Even when not involved with his superhero battles, his quest to create the perfect Iron Man suits consume his every thought at times.
1 Tony Stark Is Often Arrogant
If someone were to look up “hubris” in the dictionary, there might be an image of Tony Stark beside the definition. The man truly believes that he can do no wrong, and will challenge anybody who challenges his decisions. In fact, Tony Stark doesn’t think anybody can challenge his choices except himself. If anybody else does, Tony will inevitably lash out at them. He is capable of thinking things through and eventually coming to the realization that things don’t always revolve around him, but it takes a lot of effort and hard work for him to overcome his first arrogant impulses.