In the first Avengers film, Tony Stark and Steve Rogers had an argument where the latter told Tony he wasn't "the one to make the sacrifice play." However, as all of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films have shown, Steve couldn't have been more wrong. In fact, the two share a very powerful quality: selflessness.
In 2008's Iron Man, Tony Stark changed his ways, evolving from a selfish weapons dealer into a hero who was ready to make amends for his past mistakes. By the film's conclusion, Tony completed his transformation by risking his life and overloading the Stark Industries arc reactor so he could defeat Obadiah Stane and save Pepper Potts. His attempted sacrifice mirrored the conclusion of Steve Roger's first film, Captain America: The First Avenger, where, to save New York City, he crashed a Hydra plane carrying bombs into the Arctic Ocean. This marked the first of many times that the two heroes nearly laid down their lives for others.
In Avengers, Tony Stark made a similar decision to Steve when he flew a nuclear missile through a portal to destroy the Chitauri mothership and save New York. Like Cap, Tony faced his own demise at that moment, which affected him for years to come. Battling his own PTSD, Stark spent his time trying to think of ways to avoid another threat similar to what he experienced in New York. This line of thought led to the creation of the sentient AI, Ultron, who believed the best way to protect the planet was to destroy humanity by dropping a Sokovian city on Earth like a meteor. To stop his plan, Cap, Iron Man and the rest of the Avengers all agreed to sacrifice themselves to destroy the city and save the planet.
Following their success and a major falling out between Captain America and Iron Man, the two heroes remained off speaking terms as Thanos' onslaught approached in Avengers: Infinity War. While Tony took the battle to Thanos' home on Titan, Steve and his secret team of Avengers joined T'Challa on Wakanda to protect Vision and the Mind Stone. In both instances, the two heroes once again showcased their similarities by deciding to face the Mad Titan one-on-one. For Tony, he had been preparing for his fight against Thanos for years. For Steve, he knew he was one of the last people standing between Thanos and the Vision. Even though the two failed to stop Thanos, they unwittingly continued their shared theme of selflessness by trying to stop the conqueror.
By Avengers: Endgame, the two characters reached the end of their journeys and prepared for their biggest sacrifices when facing off against Thanos. During their fight against the enemy, Cap, with Mjolnir, took on Thanos alone, as did Iron Man in Infinity War. Even though Thanos nearly beat him to death and damaged his shield, Steve stood ready, facing off against the entirety of the villain's army with seemingly no backup. Tony Stark's sacrifice and the culmination of his entire journey came when he took the Infinity Stones from Thanos and used them against him and his army. Sadly, this came at the cost of his own life and showed that even if Tony didn't always show it, he was always willing to lay on the wire and save others.
Captain America and Iron Man spent much of their time arguing their beliefs and ideals and rarely seeing eye to eye. This was partly due to their generational gap and upbringing, but more so, it was because they shared a common belief. When push comes to shove, they were two sides of the same coin and both characters have always been willing to take the fall so that others could lead the charge. Tony made the ultimate sacrifice to protect the universe while Steve spent his entire life willing to die for the freedom of others. Though they aren't similar, Captain America and Iron Man were no strangers to risking death so that others might live.
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