Superheroes without costumes are still super. Or, at least, they should be. As Tony Stark tells Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Homecoming, “If you’re nothing without this suit, then you shouldn’t have it.” Some heroes may get their extra-normal abilities from the suits they put on, but what truly makes them special aren’t the material items they wield or wear.
Take Tony Stark, for example. If anyone seems like they’re nothing without their suit, it’s Tony. Yet, any fan who thinks Tony is useless without his suit is forgetting some key MCU moments. For instance, Tony designs that suit himself as a prisoner of war in Iron Man, and in Iron Man 3, he proves to be just as deadly armed with weapons he crafts at a hardware store. Tony’s just as super without his armor because it’s Tony’s brain that makes him special, not his suit.
Sometimes heroes are down pretty bad. It’s those moments, suit or no suit, weapons or no weapons, where they prove they’re actual bona fide heroes.
1. Iron Man Breaking Into The Mandarin’s Compound In ‘Iron Man 3’
If there’s any hero that definitely shouldn’t be separated from their super suit, it’s Iron Man. Tony Stark’s incredible abilities come directly from his scientific mind, but that mind doesn’t do much in a fight unless he has the suit of armor said mind built. Yet, in Iron Man 3, Stark proves he can create a deadly set of high-tech weapons with materials he gets at a hardware store.
In Iron Man 3, Stark’s ego gets him into trouble after he threatens the Mandarin and the Mandarin responds by blowing up his home (and suits of armor). This leaves Stark with a not-quite-fully functional experimental suit that runs out of power midway through Stark taking a cross-country flight. This leaves Stark attempting to take down an international terrorist organization without his super-suit or other resources. But, Stark puts his big brain to good use and sneaks into the Mandarin’s home using a number of lo-fi gadgets he creates.
2. Spider-Man Going After Vulture After His Suit Is Confiscated In ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’
When Peter Parker first becomes Spider-Man, he uses a homemade suit to protect his identity while serving vigilante justice across New York. That suit is no longer necessary after Civil War because Tony Stark gives Peter Parker a modified (and much more recognizable) Spider-Man suit to entice Peter into joining his side of the hero conflict.
In Spider-Man: Homecoming, Peter is still using his high-tech Spidey suit to fight for justice. But, when the stakes get dangerous, Stark warns Peter not to get involved. Peter disobeys Stark and almost gets dozens of people aboard the Staten Island Ferry killed. Thus, Iron Man takes the Spider-Man suit away from Peter, and Peter gives up crime-fighting for a while.
Peter is brought back into fighting for justice after discovering his prom date’s dad is really a supervillain known as the Vulture. Peter springs into action to fight him and dons the only costume he has left, his hoodie with the silly goggles. And, even though Peter’s costume doesn’t look very super, he manages to save the day.
3. When Spider-Man Had To Fight A Water Elemental On A Field Trip In ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’
Peter Parker really wants his field trip in Far From Home to serve as a break from his crime-fighting antics. So, for at least a couple of weeks, Peter leaves his webbed suit and great responsibility behind.
What should be a great trip is almost immediately interrupted by the appearance of a massive water elemental. Whether he wants to or not, Peter springs into action to combat the creature. At first, Peter, not wanting to give his secret identity away, is stealthy and casual about his actions. But soon, Peter finds a court jester mask that conceals his identity well enough that he feels comfortable flipping and web-shooting alongside Mysterio. Eventually, though, as buildings start to crumble and more and more lives are at stake, Peter loses the silly mask and stops worrying about being seen (although, thankfully, he still isn’t).
4. The Prison Escape In ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’
The Guardians of the Galaxy, in their first feature film, meet just in time to be apprehended and thrown in prison together. Why are they thrown in prison? Well, Quill is trying to sell a pilfered orb, Gamora is trying to take it from him, and Rocket and Groot are trying to capture Peter Quill to get the bounty on his head. This all combines into one giant skirmish that attracts the Nova Corps and gets the future Guardians detained on this and past charges.
In prison, the guards strip the Guardians of their iconic clothes and put them into plain yellow prison garb. But, their time locked up allows them to meet Drax and come together as a team. Rocket formulates a plan for their escape, and they manage to pull it off successfully, taking out a number of guards in the process.
5. Captain America And Black Widow Had To Fight While Incognito In ‘The Winter Soldier’
Captain America may be the shining symbol of what the United States can accomplish, but in The Winter Soldier, that shining symbol has to hide from the country that created him. That means he has to exchange his Fourth of July-themed superhero suit for a blue zip-up hoodie. Luckily, Rogers has an ally in Black Widow, and she specializes in going undercover.
While it’s hard for someone like Steve Rogers to walk around in public without being recognized, he manages to do a pretty good job of not being caught while investigating Hydra’s infiltration into S.H.I.E.L.D.. Eventually, Rogers and Natasha get bold enough that they capture a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent named Jasper Sitwell, and that’s when their luck finally runs out, and they have their first real fight with the Winter Soldier. This encounter leads to one of the best fights in the entire MCU, and it happens without a single superhero suit in sight. The plain-clothed Natasha, Rogers, and Falcon fight it out with the Winter Soldier and his goons in the middle of broad daylight. Luckily, even though they aren’t wearing their suits, Rogers has his shield, Natasha has her guns, and Falcon manages to equip his wings.
6. Wolverine Fighting The Military Team In ‘Logan’
Logan’s superhero days are far behind him when he first meets a nurse on the run named Gabriela López and her supposed daughter Laura. He only agrees to transport the desperate duo because the money will help him get Charles to a safer location out in the ocean. But, as Logan soon finds out when the people chasing Laura come to his doorstep, some old habits are hard to kick.
As the fight begins, Logan shows he’s clearly a bit rusty from this level of fighting. But with the help of Laura (who has powers like Logan’s), he’s able to rally and escape alongside Laura and Charles. Dressed in the suit he wears to drive his limo, this fight may very well be the fanciest Wolverine has ever looked in a skirmish.
7. T’Challa Fighting For The Crown In ‘Black Panther’
After T’Challa is crowned King of Wakanda, he barely gets a chance to settle in before he has to defend the throne from Killmonger (and this is after already fighting M’Baku for the crown). Killmonger is T’Challa’s cousin who was born and raised in America. He spent his life wondering why Wakanda didn’t do more for the people around the world, so he decided the only way to fix Wakanda is to rule it. Killmonger’s beef is with the kings of the past, but it’s T’Challa that has to settle the score.
Killmonger is the son of Prince N’Jobu, which means he has the blood-right to challenge T’Challa to become the leader of Wakanda. Interestingly enough, to complete this challenge, T’Challa has to face Killmonger without his Black Panther armor or powers. The two actually don’t really wear anything at all, instead opting to meet shirtless on the battlefield, armed with weapons of their choice, and duel it out.
8. When Thor Tried To Get Mjolnir Back In ‘Thor’
After Thor decides to disobey his all-powerful father, he finds himself stripped of his powers and sent to Earth. Accompanying Thor on Earth is his magical hammer, Mjolnir, whose inscription promises to grant whosoever can wield it the power of Thor.
Before Thor can locate Mjolnir, S.H.I.E.L.D. finds it and sets up camp to study the otherworldly artifact. Eventually, Thor gets wind of this and goes to retrieve his hammer. As he infiltrates the S.H.I.E.L.D. encampment, Thor fights his way through numerous guards. Due to the nature of Thor being on a quest to get Mjolnir, he obviously isn’t dressed in his costume or possessing his powers during this mission. He simply storms the camp in a T-shirt, fistfights through the guards, and ends up failing to lift the hammer.
9. Wolverine Fighting Stryker’s Team When They Break Into The Mansion In ‘X2’
At this point, Wolverine is just about as well known outside of his suit as he is inside it. The character seems to get into bar-room brawls in jeans just as often as he puts on the black and yellow spandex to fight alongside the X-Men. In X2, though, Wolverine has to defend X-Mansion in his jeans and a tank top against enemies that are bigger threats than a drunken jerk in a tap-room.
Due to the surprise onslaught, Wolverine is in plain clothes, but he’s certainly angrier than ever and ready to fight as he cuts his way through the military group that’s trying to go after sleeping children. Sadly, though, Logan isn’t able to save all of the kids inside the mansion, and Stryker’s team makes it out with a few of them.