Ironheart – The Past is the Past review S1 E6

The Past is the Past wrapped up Ironheart’s first season in an atypical manner for a Marvel Studios series. There wasn’t the usual happy ending with everything neatly wrapped up in time for the character to arrive/return for a new big screen adventure.

Instead, The Past is the Past opened up all kinds of interesting possibilities as it took Riri down a very compelling path. One that’s intriguing enough to wonder exactly where she’ll show up next. And in what capacity.

The episode kicks off with a flashback when Parker and cousin John broke into Parker’s father’s estate. They went in different directions, but the guards and their dogs were closing in on Parker, who made it to a tunnel on the grounds. There, a mysterious figure (Sacha Baron Cohen), offered Parker an escape and a few slices of pizza at a familiar pizzeria.

Parker is cautiously taking in everything the stranger is saying as he promises to make him the ‘greatest human of his generation.’ Sure seems like Parker should have paid a bit more attention to that whole “human” mention.

After listening to the stranger’s spiel for a bit, Parker shares what he wants — to be powerful, respected and stupid, disgusting, greasy rich. It’s nice to be able to pinpoint that level of rich.

Instead of waving his hand and making that all happen, the stranger states he’s going to provide Parker with all the tools he needs to make his dream a reality — and it all stems from the hood at their booth. All Parker has to do is give him something he won’t even miss. Again, Parker might have wanted to get more specifics here or at least ask for a written statement to peruse. He wasn’t in a particularly distressing state besides maybe needing some soda to wash down the pizza.

Fast forward to the present and Parker is indeed indulging his greasy rich life dreams. He’s the king of the castle, which is infinitely better than being the King of the North. Parker even has a full pig at the table. Ezekiel is completely over having to stay under Parker’s control, and it doesn’t even have anything to do with that virus strand that’s now spreading across Parker’s face.

Parker is annoyed and calls for a face to face with his benefactor. All the money is great, but he’s not satisfied. He wants more power. The benefactor, now dropping his friendly New Yorker accent for a far more intimidating English accent asks “Why would I give you more when you’ve made such a dog’s breakfast of it?” The benefactor isn’t pleased with the request for more power and questions if he shouldn’t replace Parker with someone who’s more appreciative?

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In case anyone was worried The Past is the Past wasn’t actually going to focus on the titular character, Riri is busy trying to get NATALIE back online. She knows she didn’t lose NATALIE, she just can’t figure out the magic that took her. Riri will figure that out when she gets hold of the hood. Before making a dramatic exit in her new Ironheart armor, Riri thanks everyone for their help — that’s a major departure from most heroes.

Ironheart arrives at the pizza place where she’s got to fight Ezekiel again. ‘Ol Joe isn’t trying to kill her and she comes up with a way to break Parker’s hack over him. That works, but Ezekiel assures her that they’re not done yet. Maybe Season 2?

Now it’s time for the main event. The final showdown in The Past is the Past — Ironheart vs. The Hood. Parker has started to feel a different kind of possession from the hood as it’s now starting to bring out a demonic side to him. This fight scene was put together with some real thought in terms of having a magic-using, gun-toting villain battling an armored character with a magic upgrade.

Clearly, this episode doesn’t have a movie budget, so the fight doesn’t last for 10 minutes, but it’s an entertaining battle. Brief, but entertaining. Riri wins by making Parker see an elaborate hologram of her armor imploding leaving her helpless. The thing with fighting a guy called The Hood is you don’t have to work too hard to get the win after removing…the hood.

Parker is defeated, but there’s still nearly half of The Past is the Past, which is where things get really interesting. Riri is back in the pizzeria seeing Parker’s benefactor in the same booth.

Ironically, he repeats one of Parker’s constant mantras while he ran his gang of wanting to help the unheard and unseen. She assumes he’s Dormammu, but he scoffs at that notion as he keeps shifting between his accents. His words are more melodic as he clearly is seeing he has to work harder to engage Riri compared to Parker.

The stranger reveals that he’s Mephisto (!). Riri understands the concept of nothing in life is free and asks what he wants. “Nothing you could miss, Riri.”

Director Angela Barnes does an excellent job on this final act of The Past is the Past. Mephisto knows what Riri wants more than anything else and starts conjuring images of Natalie in Riri’s head making her relive some of her favorite moments with her best friend. Riri says the past is the past. What she wants can’t be done.

Mephisto insists that’s not the case with him, which seems to make Riri curious. Barnes cuts to Riri with her more comic accurate unbraided hairstyle working in her garage when Natalie arrives. This conversation is interspersed with Riri and Mephisto’s chat so it’s unclear if the Natalie and Riri conversation is after that or just a scenario he’s showing her as a possibility.

Riri assumes Natalie is N.A.T.A.L.I.E. and freaks out when Natalie pushes her head without any phasing. Back to the pizzeria as Riri clarifies that this deal only pertains to her, not anyone else. Well, she’s smarter than Parker by laying out some parameters. She takes the deal (!) and shakes Mephisto’s hand. Now in the clear present, Riri hugs Natalie as a strand of that demon virus starts stretching along her arm.

The post credit scene shows Parker coming to Zelma’s shop for some heavy-duty magic. He needs big help. Supreme help. An Ironheart/Doctor Strange crossover certainly could be interesting…

It’s a bold move to have Riri align with Marvel’s devil, but in many ways this decision plays into Riri’s choices all season. With the devil in her ear hopefully it won’t be too long before the next chapter in her heroic story continues.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

The Past is the Past concluded Ironheart’s first season with some genuinely intriguing developments that raises the anticipation for her next appearance.

Photo Credit: Disney

Now that you finished The Past is the Past, it’s time to check out the inspiration with the Ironheart: Riri Williams trade now available on Amazon.

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