Ir❤️nheart Pt. 2

Mayhem, Magic, and Mephisto!

On July 1, 2025, Ryan Coogler dropped the last three episodes of Ironheart, wrapping up season 1. In collaboration with Marvel Television, Disney+, Writer-Chinaka Hodge, Director-Angela Barnes, (comic artists)-Brian Michael Bendis, Mike Deodato Jr, inspired by Eve L. Ewing, Kevin Libranda, Luciano Vecchio, and Matt Milla- Ms. Riri Williams’ live-action television series brings Ironheart into the MCU with her very own origin story.

We left off in the last three episodes filled with concern and so many questions. If you haven’t seen the first episodes or have not read our Ironheart Pt 1 blog, please take the time now to bookmark this spot and check it out as from here on out, we have nothing but recap, spoilers, and Blerdy nerdy content to discuss!

-==-=-=-=SPOILERS FROM HERE ON! =-=-=-=-

Mayhem- We left off in S1E3 “We in Danger, Girl!’ where all things have gone sideways after the bold Heirloom Heist! Riri was able to snip off a piece of Parker Robbins’ hood, Cousin John is dead, Joe’s bio cloaking tech is on the floor of a greenhouse ready to blow up Riri’s connect and all her research extra-curricular activities! We find out Joe is really Ezekiel Stane - son of Ironmonger, Obadiah Stane - and The Hood ratted Ironheart out as the reason why Cousin John is dead. Parker wants revenge for his life, his loss, and for Riri’s betrayal and lack of loyalty. Riri is told to take Gary’s advice, “break yourself down and see what you’re made of…there might be a hero in there after all.” Ms. Williams is left crying on the floor of her room rocking herself into an understanding of what just happened, what are the ramifications, how did she let it get this far, how can she recover, will any of this be fixable, and how could she be facing another death happening before her eyes!

Ezekiel Stane is arrested and is now being framed for the Heirloom Heist. His past and father’s legacy is plastered all over the television leaving Zeke lost and betrayed, Parker angry and betrayed, Riri guilty and the betrayer-It’s a hot mayhem-filled mess!

Magic- Magic magic everywhere and not a drop to drink! We got some heavy bad juju vibes coming from The Hood and his ability to do what he does. Riri needs help and she reaches out to her mom and this time it’s not fun, games, or sage that she needs. Momma Ronnie heads to our local magic candy store Stanton’s Sweets, Reads, and More with Ms. Williams in tow and tries to get to the bottom of things. Here is where Zelma Stanton shines. Zelma is a self-taught witch that had the potential to learn from masters of the mystic arts at Kamar-Taj, a school in far off lands, created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko and appearing in Strange Tales #110 in July of 1963 as a place for magic to be learned, studied, practiced, and protected.

Both Zelma and her mom, Madeline Stanton, try to understand the power source of the hood and while they study the bit of hood Riri got from the Heirloom Heist, Parker is on the other side of town slipping into Zeke’s cell and offers him his freedom as well as the chance to get back at their shared enemy-Ironheart.

A hood by any other name turns out not to be a hood at all but rather it’s an older than time, magically powered, source of nature cloak that needs to be destroyed but can’t be by conventional means. The entity responsible for the hood’s power and magic is not trying to possess anyone, instead, it wants to influence what they do. This evil creature from another realm hopes to use those manipulations to bring the owner of the power source into our realm of the living and Ironheart’s world. This pulls from the theory that the wearer of the hood is not being made to do things but must have the potential and want within them to do evil- they just need to be swayed and influenced to do it. There must be evil lurking within “The Hood” in order for this to work!

Riri has many decisions to make and wants to make things right for all the people she feels she has affected. With so much emotional pain torturing her, she suffers a panic attack and is forced to introduce Xavier to N.A.T.A.L.I.E. In this moment we see another decision before her. Xavier is horrified at the image of his sister who he has already mourned and accepted as a loss in his life, being used for Riri’s plans that he knows are sketchy at best-DELETE N.A.T.A.L.I.E. !

N.A.T.A.L.I.E. runs away in fear of being deleted and emotionally distraught at the sadness she caused in Xavier for just existing. It is during this highly emotional interaction we start episode 5 and the Suit with N.A.T.A.L.I.E. gets stolen by Slug. Meanwhile, Riri and Zelma have a strategy chat at White Castle about the power source, who could be the magical entity behind the Hood, and what the real purpose would be to influence people like Parker Robbins. The entire crew shows up and Riri is the target. Her death is the objective, and once she bests them all (as if you had any doubt she would) she runs outside only to be met by Zeke Stane who is now biotech enhanced into a bionic superhuman tech man. Zeke and Riri have an intense fight and Zeke literally rips the backbone from her suit but grants her mercy and the ability to walk away with the warning that next time she won’t be so lucky.

Emotions run high and Zeke knows playing the puppet to The Hood is not only bad for his emotional state but not what he wants from life. Parker Robbins is at the end of his rope because Clown did some digging after White Castle and told the crew Rampage was taken out by The Hood. Parker only has Zeke and his rage to finish the job he set out to do and is ready to get everything he has planned. Zeke and Hood invade Parker Robbins’ father’s house and here we learn why his origin story started when he was 12, unwanted, and unloved.

Mephisto- the king of hell himself has come to bargain with the souls of the lost and unhappy and who better to fall for

such tricks as Parker Robbins? If you visit Marvel’s website and look up the description you get this colorful paragraph which puts this whole series into perspective.

“Mephisto | Marvel 101

Monarch of Evil, Mephisto rules a fiery nether realm and loves impersonating the biblical Satan. Empowered by the souls of the damned, he often strikes deceptive bargains with the living, making him one of the evilest and most untrustworthy beings in existence.”

https://www.marvel.com/characters/mephisto

Armed with the knowledge that the hood is a tool twisting Parker into what he is becoming and it must be destroyed, Ironheart makes the choice to fight magic with magic. She will rebuild the suit Zeke ripped from her body and infuse it with magic sourced from Dormammu with Zelma’s help. If the fight outside of White Castle wasn’t thrilling enough we get another chance to see what Ironheart and her suit can do. The car Gary told her would protect her that played a big part in the first episodes of the series’ backstory becomes Ironheart’s new backbone and frame but it came at a price as all magic does. N.A.T.A.L.I.E. disappears as Zelma enchants and infuses the suit’s body. With this new design and magic as a power source we see The Hood taken out easier than expected. Riri takes the cloak and leaves Parker begging for its return because without it he is in pain and feels empty. Riri knows this emptiness well and leaves knowing none of this had to happen. Upon trying to exit she sees Mephisto in the pizza shop dining, waiting for her, and ready to give her an offer she is sure to take as it will only require something she would never miss if she is willing to hear him out and shake on it.

If you haven’t seen the series yet, if you aren’t at episode 6 yet, now is the time to log onto your Disney+ account and stream all 6 episodes as Ironheart is worth your time, streaming moments, and definitely a second season!

How does it end? Mephisto gets into Riri’s head and they have a conversation on what she wants, if she is hungry, what can he offer her, what is the cost, and as with Parker we see a handshake…. But as for “How does it end..?” You’ll have to stream it and tell us! How did it end?

The last three episodes range from 42mins to 60mins and they are so thought provoking it leaves you wanting more! Amazing plot and origin stories unfold to a brilliant soundtrack that smoothly and seamlessly gets us from the heavy emotional stuff all through the Butt kicking!

Released Tuesday July 1st, 2025 9pm EST

Episode 4. “Bad Magic”

Episode 5. “Karma’s a Glitch”

Episode 6. “The Past is the Past.”