When Will Tony Stark's Bleeding Edge Armor Finally Debut in the MCU?

Back in 2016, when Doctor Strange premiered, fans analyzed every screenshot moment by moment, looking for clues about the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While there are the obvious ones — like the Eye of Agamotto being an Infinity Stone, which will undoubtedly tie into Avengers: Infinity War — the movie also teased the future of Tony Stark, a.k.a. Iron Man.

The nod was brief, but if you're familiar with Marvel Comics, then you know Christine Palmer's mention of "bleeding edge" foreshadows Stark's development of the new technology.

Tony Stark Will Probably Develop Bleeding Edge In the MCU

In the comics, Stark is the inventor of the Bleeding Edge technology, which he uses to create a revolutionary new Iron Man suit. By integrating nanobots into his own body, the Bleeding Edge technology allows Stark to control and form suits by merely willing it.

There was also that brief mention of "bleeding edge" in Avengers: Age Of Ultron, providing us with yet another piece of evidence towards the imminent introduction of Bleeding Edge. Otherwise, why namedrop such a huge staple of the Marvel universe?

The technology may already exist in the MCU, seeing as how #DoctorStrange and Christine Palmer were able to mention "bleeding edge" at all. (Perhaps it's only used for medical purposes so far, and Tony will unlock its full potential.) Regardless, the Bleeding Edge technology has not made its on-screen debut in the MCU, so we'll have to wait — but for how long?

It seems likely the Bleeding Edge technology will come to the forefront of the MCU in either Spider-Man: Homecoming or Avengers: Infinity War since Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) will be present for both movies.

Stark was last seen in Captain America: Civil War, before the Bleeding Edge #EasterEgg was dropped in Doctor Strange. His next appearance will be in Spider-Man: Homecoming, where he'll also be donning a new Iron Man suit — which may or may not have been crafted through the use of Bleeding Edge. Our first look at Iron Man's suit from Spider-Man: Homecoming came from the toy reveals for the movie:

Based on the design of the suit, it appears quite similar to Stark's suit from Captain America: Civil War, only with some noticeable silver tones melded into the color scheme. The new suit doesn't look exactly like the comic version of the Bleeding Edge armor, but it does share some similarities in regards to its color schemes.

Now Is the Right Time for Tony's Bleeding Edge Armor

It seems logical for Tony Stark to develop the Bleeding Edge armor at this point in his MCU career. He's created dozens of variations of Iron Man suits, but he's yet to develop the one that'll make him one of the strongest heroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which may be necessary in the fight against Thanos (more on that later).

In the past, Stark has had to rely on machines to send pieces of the Iron Man suit to him, but with the Bleeding Edge technology, he can use nanobots within the molecular structure of his own body to form a suit around him. So where would Stark get the idea for this?

Perhaps from his first run-in with Bucky Barnes in Captain America: Civil War, which easily could have inspired Stark to develop an armor that he can keep with him at all times.

If you recall, Stark mentioned to Black Widow that he was unprepared for active combat when Bucky showed up in the United Nations building. Stark was equipped with an Iron glove for emergencies, but it wasn't enough to subdue Bucky; he needed a full Iron Man suit, which he didn't have on hand.

Being without his suits puts people's lives at risk — including his own — so Stark is going to have to find a way to keep his Iron Man suits on hand at all times. In other words, all the evidence is pointing towards Tony Stark using the Bleeding Edge technology on himself.

Stark will also play a central role in Avengers: Infinity War. The recently released featurette reveals that he is the only protector Earth has while the Avengers are out of the picture. He will take it upon himself to protect the world from an impending threat.

Not much has been said about how Stark intends to protect Earth, but if the concept art teased in the featurette is any indication, then he probably intends to assemble another Iron Legion.

If Stark is creating another Iron Legion, he may also be creating whatever he can to protect the planet — so developing the Bleeding Edge technology seems like a close second. For now, we'll just have to wait and see what kind of developments he'll make in Spider-Man: Homecoming, though it seems more and more likely that Bleeding Edge is on its way.

Avengers: Infinity War premieres May 8, 2018.