Moebius 1/8 Iron Man MKIII Model Kit # 930 - Plastic Model Kit

Moebius 1/8 Iron Man MKIII Model Kit # 930 

Stark's trademark red and gold armor arose from a battle with a villain named Mr. Doll, who could control the gold armor through a replica figurine. To circumvent the villain's ability, Stark withdrew and constructed a new suit with a significantly different look and a lighter build- thus allowing him to devote less of his own strength to moving the armor and more to fighting Mr. Doll's influence, resulting in the streamlined red and gold suit.

The red and gold armor was composed of an ultra-fine 3-D knit alloy and incorporated motors into the knitting to allow full mobility. While it ran on the same type of power, the power consumption was much more efficient. The boot jets were upgraded to chemically fueled thrusters, which provided a much faster flight speed. Weaponry consisted of the chest-mounted Mk II Monobeam (useful range was still only several yards), repulsor rays, a proton gun, and powerful electromagnets to pull metal objects to him or repel/push them away. Communications and sensors consisted of a short-wave radio. Other features included an image reproducer and collapsible roller skates. Most functions were controlled by miniature electronic switches mounted on the insides of various pieces of the armor such as the helmet and the gloves; by pressing various combinations of them, different systems were engaged. The switches in the helmet were enabled by the wearer's tongue; other functions were utilized with wrist-mounted controls.

Beyond these features, Stark also occasionally experimented with cosmetic modifications such as adding a nose indentation on his faceplate, or rimming the face-plate with rivets.

While the appearance of the armor changed only slightly, over the years its technology improved by leaps and bounds, resulting in vastly increased strength, speed, and firepower. Control of the armor was slowly shifted from motion feedback and internal buttons to cybernetic controls, which could sense and interpret the wearer's own brainwaves and respond accordingly. The pacemaker function of the chestplate was also eventually abandoned, as Stark's heart was repaired using artificial tissue.

It is hinted that Tony Stark based the new cosmetic improvement on a childhood fantasy, as the red and gold color scheme came from his elementary school's colors, and the whole "Iron Man" motif from the eponymous song by Black Sabbath.