I saw a thread on Twitter and Reddit asking whether characters like Batman, Iron Man, and Iron Fist actually need to be wealthy for their stories to work. Some people were saying that, in the DCU, Batman doesn’t have to be rich—he could just be middle class and the story would still work. Similarly, if the MCU gets rebooted, Tony Stark wouldn’t necessarily need to be wealthy and could be working class instead.
A lot of people argued that this would make these characters more relatable and easier to root for. Personally, I’d say no. Elseworlds stories are fine, but if you’re adapting these characters into movies or TV shows, you should stay at least somewhat comic-accurate. Their wealth is a key part of who they are.
Stark Industries, Wayne Enterprises, and Rand Industries are characters in the story too, and they play important roles in shaping these heroes and their worlds.
It’s similar to how Clark Kent being a reporter or Peter Parker struggling financially are essential to their characters. Those traits help define their stories.
What do you think?
Batman probably doesn’t need the money; he was originally just a really good Sherlock Holmes type detective. Didn’t have gadgets. Hell, he even used guns.
Ironman, on the other hand… I’m split. In the movies, he builds his suit in a cave with scraps sure… But he didn’t make the power source. The other dude with him did. In the animated series I’ve seen, his father made the power source. IDK about the comics; I was more into Spider-Man than anything else so I never read Ironman. Tony is smart and capable; but only when it comes to engineering. And if he can’t engineer a power source for his suits, he has no chance of being as helpful. Dude is also kind of an asshole and an alcoholic. If he didn’t have money, I don’t know how much people would have put up with his behaviour.
Tony Stark broke idea: he’s a genius who got into uni on scholarships but then got kicked out because of alcoholism. He now works at a scrap yard as he tries to sober up. He’s also been working on making a suit to help his mother who has multiple sclerosis move. One day the Power McGuffin falls from space into his junkyard. He studies it and makes it a power source. Yadda yadda some tragedy happens and he makes the iron man suit
It’s giving Steel vibes.