Every function of Iron Man’s Model 23 Ablative
Every Iron Man armor has something special about it. Stealth armor’s gotta stealth, Hulkbuster’s gotta bust Hulks, and the Ablation Suit’s gotta ablate, I guess. But the Ablative is so different that it even has its own Mark designation, called the Ablative Armor Mark 1. It’s as if Tony said, “This thing is so unlike every other armor I’ve ever built, I’m gonna start over.”
So to show just how different Axol, the Ablative Suit, is, I went through the two issues it appears in (Iron Man #416, aka vol. 3 #71 and Iron Man #417, aka vol. 3 #72) and gathered information on everything it can do. We’ll start with Iron Man standards, then move onto its specialties.
The Standards
It might be a new kind of Iron Man suit, but it still has many of the basics.
Repulsors
Every Iron Man suit has had repulsors since the Mark 2 in 1963. The Ablative Mark 23 used repulsortech to enter and escape from an alien craft in the Las Vegas desert.
Flight
Every Iron Man suit since the beginning has been able to fly in one way or another. Fun fact, did you know that the first Iron Man armor used compressed air to achieve lift?
Super-Strength
It’s kinda one of the main points of the suit, isn’t it?
Unibeam
A staple of Iron Man’s suits, the unibeam is a stronger version of the hand repulsors.
Scanning
Iron Man has been scanning things for decades. The Ablative Suit doesn’t have anything special per se, though in the issues it does use thermal, magnetic, and brain scans. It’s possible that it does have some additional scanning equipment for when it’s used in outer space, but those aren’t mentioned specifically.
Autopilot
Tony’s tech has evolved from no co-pilot to autopilot to full-blown A.I. over the years. This suit seems to fall right in the middle, as the Model 23’s autopilot takes over when Tony is incapacitated in Las Vegas.
Forcefield
Isn’t it weird that we hear the word “forcefield” so often in media, yet they don’t actually exist? Like most armors from that era, the Ablative Suit has a forcefield; keep reading to find out how it’s special. Axol is unique in that his forcefield serves three distinct roles.
The Specialties
Here’s what makes Axol considerably different from every other suit Tony created up to that point…or since.
Ablative Exterior
You won’t be surprised to know that Iron Man’s Ablation Suit utilizes ablation. Go figure! The suit has a gunmetal-gray underlying Iron Man skin that contains all of the electronics, but it’s also covered with hundreds — if not thousands — of polymer tiles. If a tile is broken, the one underneath snaps up to replace it.
Smart Tiles
It’s important to note that the tiles aren’t just solid polymer pieces. Each contains electronics that Tony can encode with information. This also lets the forcefield know where each tile is at any given time, as well as what to do with it.
Smart Force Field
The tiles and forcefield work together to perform multiple tasks. If Tony needs to protect himself from multiple projectiles or detonate an incoming warhead from a safe distance, the tiles can gather close together to form a shield (a chaff cloud, as it’s called in the comic). The forcefield could also turn the tiles into projectiles. But the most common function is to grab new tiles from the kiln and replace them when the ones on the suit are discarded. (For a more detailed explanation of the smart forcefield, check out this blog.)
Polymer Kiln
The kiln on the back of this armor cooks up new tiles as needed. The forcefield grabs them and uses them as the situation requires.
Retractable Finger Scalpels
The Ablative Suit has retractable finger scalpels, most likely incorporated for gathering samples from celestial bodies (celestial bodies like asteroids, not like Knowhere). Some other sites say these are diamond-tipped, which makes sense…in our reality. In the Marvel Universe, it would make more sense to make them from vibranium or adamantium. While it might not be affordable to make an entire Iron Man suit out of either, I’m sure Tony can afford either of those rare metals for two one-inch long blades.
Considering they pop out with a “SNKT” sound, I’m betting someone was thinking adamantium!
Space Capabilities
Iron Man’s Ablative Armor is designed to function in space better than most other armors. It likely uses updated tech from other space armors.
I theorize that the gauntlets and boots are so big in order to accommodate both in-atmosphere and outer space maneuverability. It almost certainly carries more oxygen than a normal suit as well.
What About the Containment Field?
The Ablative Suit’s containment field…or is it?
Excellent question! A few websites I’ve studied suggest that the Ablative Suit has an auxiliary containment field. This device looks like an oversized flip phone and projects a purple forcefield that can contain biological and nanological material.
I actually missed this device the first time I read the comic, because it’s not called out and simply shows up between panels. In fact, its effect shows up, but we don’t actually see the device for a few more pages.
Opening splash page from Iron Man #417. The containment field shows up between these two panels, even though the device itself isn’t seen. It could be argued that Tony’s “stay away” gesture could actually be his hand still out after having thrown the containment field device toward the squatting person. (Click for larger image. Arrow mine.)
But is this actually a part of the Ablation Suit, or a piece of equipment Tony brought along just for this mission?
Argument For: Axol was created to study bodies such as asteroids and comet tails. When you live in a comic book universe, the chances of running into a dangerous virus / bacteria / bacterial virus / technovirus / technobacteria / technomusicalvirus is pretty high. Having a containment field to retrieve samples for study would be a good idea.
Argument Against: Just after the Ablative Armor arrives, but before he dons it, Tony takes his guest to a pop-up field laboratory for dealing with all of those bad things we mentioned above. (See panel below). Basically, he keeps scientists on-hand to study dangerous materials as needed. Because he knew he was going up against the nanoplasm again, it’s possible he simply grabbed the containment field hardware from this traveling lab. It’s probably something they have dozens of for such occasions.
Honestly, I can’t decide which makes more sense. Tony could have hidden the device in the suit, always intending to incorporate it as part of the armor. (If it is a part of the armor, nothing seems to be missing in subsequent panels.)
On the other hand, it’s also possible that he just picked it up from the lab and either hid it under tiles or had the forcefield carry it for him until he needed it.
For an even more detailed examination of Axol’s containment field (or lack thereof), read this article.
What Else Can The Ablative Suit Do?
Isn’t that enough? I’m pretty sure I’ve detailed all of the functions it performs in the two comics in which it appears. I think we can all agree, it’s a pretty special Iron Man armor. Weird looking, but special.
