10 Shows Like Ironheart You Must See

After being introduced to the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the 2022 film ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,’ Dominique Thorne reprises her role as Riri Williams in the Disney+ miniseries ‘Ironheart.’ Created by Chinaka Hodge, it follows Riri as she returns home to Chicago from MIT with her new suit of armor equipped with the AI N.A.T.A.L.I.E. Grieving the death of her best friend and stepfather in a drive-by shooting, she gets involved with a local gang led by Parker Robbins, aka The Hood. This sets her on a dangerous path where technology and magic are pitted against each other.

Riri Williams debuted in the Invincible Iron Man comic book series in 2016 as a 15-year-old genius engineering student who builds a suit similar to Tony Stark’s armor with materials stolen from the MIT campus. With the help of her new suit, she resists being detained and even foils the plans of two inmates to break out of jail. When Stark gets word of Riri’s achievement, he meets her and decides to support her drive to become a superhero. The MCU show is a fresh take on the young superhero coming of age. If the miniseries has you craving more, here is a curated list of shows similar to ‘Ironheart’ to dig into next.

10. Zero (2021)

Based on Antonio Dikele Distefano’s novel ‘Non ho mai avuto la mia età,’ ‘Zero’ by Menotti tells the story of Omar (Giuseppe Dave Seke), a second-generation Italian with Senegalese heritage. He lives in public housing in a suburb of Milan that is under threat from building developers. A very shy teenager, Omar develops the power to become literally invisible when he feels strong emotions. Thereafter, he takes on the moniker Zero and joins a rag-tag team of local teens to protect his neighborhood. Like ‘Ironheart,’ ‘Zero’ depicts a youngster gaining extraordinary power, and with his gang of friends, takes on a threat much bigger than himself.

9. The Gifted (2017-2019)

Set in a timeline where the X-Men exist and have disappeared from the world, ‘The Gifted’ centers around a seemingly ordinary suburban family who discover that their children are mutants. Fearing a government crackdown, they leave their home and go into hiding. They meet with an underground rank of mutants, and together team up to save the world and change the narrative about themselves. The Marvel Television show, created by Matt Nix, has the children taking charge of themselves and the world at large, much like ‘Ironheart.’

8. Naomi (2022)

Created by Ava DuVernay and Jill Blankenship based on the DC superhero comics of the same name, ‘Naomi’ stars Kaci Walfall as Naomi McDuffie, a smart, comic book-loving teenager and the host of a Superman fan website. After a supernatural event takes place in Port Oswego, Oregon, she sets out to investigate with her best friend, her adoptive parents, and a mysterious local tattoo shop owner. In the process, Naomi discovers that she possesses superpowers. The show, like ‘Ironheart,’ focuses on a teenager with powers taking an active interest in her community.

7. The Flash (2014-2023)

A spin-off of the DC superhero series ‘Arrow’ on CW, ‘The Flash’ was helmed by Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, and Geoff Johns. It centers around the popular DC superhero, with Grant Gustin playing Barry Allen, aka the Flash. After being struck by lightning and doused in chemicals on the night a particle accelerator blows up in STAR Labs, Central City, Barry finds his life changed forever. He gains superspeed beyond anything imaginable, and is helped by STAR Labs scientists Harrison Wells (Tom Cavanagh), Cisco Ramone (Carlos Valdes), and Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker) to help control his powers and be a hero. Though not as tech-heavy as Ironheart, Barry gets a special suit that can withstand his speed as he takes on the responsibility of protecting Central City from powerful Metahumans.

6. Runaways (2017-2019)

Taking place within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, ‘Runaways’ by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage follows six teenagers in Los Angeles who begin investigating their parents after stumbling across a terrible secret. As the adults begin to wonder if the kids are hiding secrets of their own, the children team up to stop their sinister plans. Based on the eponymous Marvel comics superhero team, ‘Runaways,’ like ‘Ironheart,’ has teenagers coming to terms with the fact that the villains may sometimes be the people around us.

5. Gen V (2023-)

‘Gen V’ is a spin-off of the superhero satire ‘The Boys’ by Eric Kripke, which portrays the life of young adults with superpowers (“supes”) as they get trained at the Godolkin University School of Crimefighting. Run by Vought International, the top-ranking students from the institute stans a chance to join the elite superhero team, The Seven. Despite the allure, a group of teenagers investigates and discovers the dark side of the organization and team up to stand against their own to save the world. As friends turn against friends, they face a similar question as Riri Williams in ‘Ironheart’ about what kind of hero they would want to be as grown-ups.

4. Cloak & Dagger (2018-2019)

Helmed by Joe Pokaski, ‘Cloak & Dagger’ is a Marvel superhero series that revolves around teenagers Tandy Bowen (Olivia Holt) and Tyrone Johnson (Aubrey Joseph). In the aftermath of the collapse of an oil rig in New Orleans, the pair gets powers that work better when they are together. Tandy has the ability to emit light daggers, while Tyrone can engulf people in darkness and transport them to the Darkforce Dimension. Despite coming from very different backgrounds, they run away together and are chased by drug cartels on the streets of New York City. The couple tries their best to solve the problems around them, much like Riri Williams in ‘Ironheart.’

3. Hawkeye (2021)

‘Hawkeye’ by Jonathan Igla is set a year after the events of Avengers: Endgame and follows Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner) coming to terms with the loss and devastation in the war against Thanos, especially that of his best friend, the Black Widow, aka Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson). After coming across a stubborn Hawkeye fan, 22-year-old Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) who draws his attention by masquerading as Ronin, Clint takes her on as his protégée and trains her to take over the Hawkeye mantle. As Riri Williams is to Iron Man in the comics, Kate manages to impress Clint and fights alongside him as he takes on the likes of Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio) on the streets of New York.

2. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (2025-)

Set in an alternate timeline within the Marvel multiverse, Jeff Trammell’s ‘Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man’ explores the teenage superhero’s origin story and his early days fighting crime in New York. In this universe, Peter Parker gains his abilities as a result of a temporal paradox caused by Dr. Stephen Strange while fighting a symbiotic alien. Unlike the sacred timeline of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Peter is mentored by Norman Osborn as he learns to control his powers and comes up with enhancements for his superhero persona. Like Riri Williams, Peter designs his own costume at first and is later helped by Norman into an improved suit.

1. Ms. Marvel (2022)

‘Ms. Marvel’ stars Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan, a 16-year-old Pakistani-American high school student from Jersey City who takes on the mantle of the titular hero. For the artist-gamer-fan fiction writer, it is the best thing in the world as she has always been obsessed with superheroes, especially Captain Marvel. Wearing her great-grandmother’s magical bangle gives Kamala the power to harness cosmic energy and create solid constructs with light. She approaches saving the world with the awe and simplicity of a teen having the time of her life, while being supported by her family and friends.

Bisha K. Ali helmed the miniseries, which introduced Marvel’s first major protagonist to the cinematic universe. Much like ‘Ironheart,’ it follows the teenager’s journey to embracing what it means to be a superhero in a chaotic world. Both Kamala and Riri Williams are supported and guided by the people around them as they acquaint themselves with their newfound responsibilities, and hail in a new generation within the MCU.