“ | Well, it's pretty simple... your team is going to get together and they're going to figure it out. They're going to realize that you've been plotting against them. That you've got tactics and strategies against each one of them. And when that happens, your world is going to unravel. Everything you think you've built here. Every relationship you have. It's all going to come crashing down. | „ |
~ Ward antagonizing Coulson following his defeat. |
“ | Well, Phil. Here we are. I figured something like this would happen eventually. Well, not exactly like this. But something. And eventually. Comeuppance. Poetic justice. Reversal of fortune, call it what you will. I just knew--I would've bet folding money--that your self-righteous arrogance would've caught up to you eventually. And it's going to catch up to your buddies Fitz and Johnson, too. Trust me, I know a little something about S.H.I.E.L.D.'s brand of justice. You and your friends... it's over. | „ |
~ Ward sadistically antagonizing an incarcerated Coulson. |
Grant Ward, commonly referred to as the Iron Thief, is a fictional character appearing in the Marvel Comics, being one of the main antagonists of the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. comic book series. He is a former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent turned HYDRA lieutenant of Gorgon, and is the friend-turned-archenemy of agent Phil Coulson. He is based on the live-action version of the character of the same name, who originally appeared in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Biography[]
Earth-616[]
Originally, Ward was a loyal, top agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. who worked closely with his friend Phil Coulson. Both of them intended on being instrumental in bringing down the HYDRA leader Gorgon, and a sceptical Maria Hill approved of Ward infiltrating the organization's lower ranks. After six months working undercover, Ward saved Gorgon from a repulsor blast during a confrontation between HYDRA and the Avengers. The fight had been staged so Ward could gain Gorgon's trust, with Iron Man's blast being calibrated so he wouldn't be seriously hurt, and he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant.
However, after getting promoted, Ward learned of Gorgon's true agenda and found himself starting to agree with the HYDRA leader's ideology. During a debrief with Coulson and Hill onboard a S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier, Ward openly declared his newfound allegiance and betrayed the agency by shooting Hill and fleeing, ultimately defecting to HYDRA. His attempt on Hill failed since it was a Life-Model Decoy since she never trusted him to begin with. The incident had caused Coulson to trust in people and motivated him to create the Axiom Protocols, which was a database of every known superhero, specifically how to defeat them.
Upon learning about the Axiom Protocols, Ward and Gorgon devised a plan to use them to defeat every superhero in the world. After the designs of the Iron Man suit were leaked, Ward adopted a counterfeit suit and used it to break into the Pentagon and steal a Quantum Drive, which contained the Axiom Protocols. Intending to put the drive up for auction for a good price, Ward tested the protocols by using its data to kill the Madripoorean vigilante Horus. He recorded everything as part of an advertisement to assure potential buyers of its legitimacy. After the drive was sold in an auction to John Walker, who was an operative working for the Pentagon to get it back, Ward pursued his motorboat. However, he instead found Coulson onboard and no Drive, which was already in S.H.I.E.L.D. custody.
With no other options, Ward kidnapped Coulson to get the protocols from him instead. To that end, he broke out Coulson's telepathic ex-lover Lola Daniels from S.H.I.E.L.D. custody. After unmasking himself to Coulson, Ward forced Lola to extract the Axiom Protocols from Coulson's brain by threatening her sister, as she had initially done to create the Quantum Drive. To verify if the new Coulson Protocols' efficacy, Ward sent somebody wearing the suit to kill Spider-Man in Shanghai. Even though Spider-Man survived, Ward assured a displeased Gorgon by using the money from the auction to build an army of counterfeit Iron Man suits armed with the Axiom Protocols.
Ward and Gorgon sent countless HYDRA soldiers wearing the counterfeit suits to kill every superhero in the world, but S.H.I.E.L.D. was able to thwart the initial attacks. The armor of one of the defeated soldiers was used to triangulate Ward and Gorgon's whereabouts. Coulson and Lola broke out of custody and subdued Gorgon before confronting Ward, who had soldiers distract the two of them whilst he suited up. The confrontation came to a close when the Avengers and Coulson's team arrived to defeat the remaining HYDRA reinforcements. Cornered, Ward took Lola hostage and attempted to use her as leverage to escape. Lola tried to break free, prompting Ward to kill her. He was then defeated and arrested. In custody, Ward taunted Coulson about how his protocols are now public knowledge, which will turn his allies and friends against him, which subsequently did happen afterwards.
When the second Civil War started and forced Coulson into hiding, the agency's new director, Elektra Natchios, brought Ward back into S.H.I.E.L.D. to track him down while wearing a bomb collar to ensure his loyalty. After Coulson came back to the agency, Ward continued to work alongside the agents, but it is currently unknown if he secretly intends on escaping from Elektra's control over him.
Earth-85826[]
Ward appeared in the Hail Hydra series set in the Earth-85826 universe. He is an agent working for the United Confederation of Hydra under the command of Arnim Zola. He was tasked with finding some background information on a prisoner named Chris Miller, but couldn't find anything about him.
Appearances in Other media[]
Marvel Cinematic Universe[]
- Main article: Grant Ward (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
Video Games[]
Ward appeared as a downloadable playable character in the 2016 video game LEGO Marvel's Avengers.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Before his character's death in the TV series, it was assumed that Ward was a version of Marvel villains Taskmaster and Grim Reaper, and Secret Warriors character, Hellfire.
- While his live-action counterpart appears to be more tragic villain who feels genuine remorse for his actions, this version of Ward shows to be far more cruel, sadistic and remorseless towards his enemies.
- His appearance is modelled after the actor Brett Dalton, who portrayed his MCU counterpart.
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