This summer, Marvel is finally releasing the live-action six-part series, “Ironheart” on Disney+ around the world, after an almost two year delay and it wraps up the end of the fifth phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Set after the events of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” Marvel Television’s “Ironheart” pits technology against magic when Riri Williams, played by Dominique Thorne, a young genius inventor determined to make her mark on the world, returns to her hometown of Chicago. Her unique take on building iron suits is brilliant, but in pursuit of her ambitions, she finds herself wrapped up with the mysterious yet charming Parker Robbins, aka “The Hood”, played by Anthony Ramos.

In the first three episodes, we get to see that Riri is willing to turn to a life of crime to try to justify her desire to build a bigger and better suit.  While they do try to highlight that she’s not comfortable with helping out “The Hood” and ultimately, as you might expect, changes her mind, resulting in the gang going after her.

One of the interesting aspects of this show is how we see Riri dealing with the death of her best friend and the creation of an AI version, helps her come to terms with the situation, but it also highlights how this technology could upset friends and families in the future, should this become a reality.  While this addition of the AI does make an interesting subplot, I can’t help but feel that had this been a movie, this entire storyline might have been trimmed down to trim down the running time. However, it could have a major impact on the future of “Ironheart” moving forward in the MCU 

While there are some great aspects of this show, such as the special effects and the increased time spent developing smaller characters, “Ironheart” has some major issues.   I can’t help but think this show is going to be perfect for the satire YouTube channel Pitch Meeting, as there are numerous instances in the show where major plot holes or unrealistic moments are fixed, super easy and seem barely an inconvenience!  There are many occasions where Riri is presented as a master builder who can knock out an Iron suit like MacGyver with some scraps, or just so happens to come across the exact part or gets the help she needs from friends and family in seconds.   It often feels so lazy and almost insulting to the audience.

Marvel always has a problem with how to deal with its villains, and “Ironheart” tries to do something a little different, but in the end, it’s just an alternative version of creating a “mirror” villain, with little to no threat, or thought to where it’s going. Some characters are entirely unnecessary for the story and just fill in time, such as Alden Ehrenreich’s character, who is used as a link back to the original movie, and had this character not been involved in the show, it wouldn’t have made any difference to the story.       There is an additional well-known villain who makes an appearance that does change the tone of the show, but it’s a shame they didn’t lean into that more throughout.  

There are also two “heists” that are completely unbelievable and no doubt designed when Marvel Studios could spend as much as they’d like on their Disney+ shows without worrying about a budget, since they are so ridiculously over-the-top and unrealistic.   But that sums up the show as a whole.  

Perhaps my biggest problem with “Ironheart” comes down to the main character.  I just didn’t find Riri Williams to be a compelling or interesting character.  I just found the character to be so dull, entitled and uninteresting.    Marvel often gets criticised for its use of humour, but there’s no worry about that in this show, as there are no light-hearted moments, and the “love” interest in the show was a complete waste of time.  

Disney sent me all six episodes at once to watch in advance, and I binge-watched the entire show in one sitting, which is rare for me, but I’m not sure if I actually enjoyed it or just wanted to get it over with.  Each episode is between 40 and 60 minutes in length, but this includes recaps and credits.   However, as with many other Marvel Disney+ shows, it feels more like an extended movie cut down into chunks, rather than each episode standing out on its own. 

I also can’t help but think that if this show were pitched to Marvel executives today, it wouldn’t have made.  It symbolises everything that’s gone wrong with Marvel over the past few years, with a push to use characters that aren’t connecting with audiences, almost forcing people to like them, but it’s not working.    There’s a reason so many “Ironheart” action figures from “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” are filling up shelves at your local discount toy store all these years later, and Marvel has barely released any merchandise for the new show. 

I also don’t think it’s helped having this series come out so many years after the events of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”, and maybe Marvel should have just got this out a year or so ago, just to clear out the backlog. However, I’m hoping they spent that extra time improving the show.

Disney is taking a different approach to the release strategy of “Ironheart”, releasing the first three episodes, aka half the show, in one go and the second half a week later, which means audiences can have a tasty binge of the bulk of the series in one go, which is probably for the best for many reasons.  From Disney’s point of view, it helps them increase the amount of minutes watched to chart higher, but it also, more importantly, lets audiences get a feel for the show, without that feeling of waiting for it to get going and then waiting another week.  I kinda think Disney should have just treated it like “Echo” and dropped the entire thing at once, especially as I did find myself getting to episode four and then just thinking, “oh sod it, I’ll watch it all now”.

Overall:  “Ironheart” is a mixed bag.  There are some good elements in there, but sadly, it’s a show that just fails to deliver on so many levels.  I found the main character to be so bland and unlikeable, ironically making the villains of the show more interesting, though even Red Hood was pretty one-dimensional.   One of the main core hooks of the trailers for the show was the battle between tech and magic, which was just rushed through in the final episode and fixed in one of the laziest ways I’ve seen in a superhero or supernatural show.    There are some good moments in”Ironheart”, and I did enjoy watching it.  However, the more I’ve thought about the show since it ended, my overall opinion on the show has dipped.

Rating: 2.5 Out Of 5

The first three episodes of “Ironheart” are available to stream on Disney+ now, and the next three episodes will drop the following week.

Are you going to check out “Ironheart” on Disney+?  Let me know on social media!

Roger Palmer

Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What's On Disney Plus & DisKingdom. Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk

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