I have a few thoughts on Ironheart.
First thought- it was fine. I did not regret watching it. I will continue to say that the problem that I have with MCU series like this is that they just don't work well as TV series. They are movie-adjacent content. For that reason, there is always something that feels lacking in them- because you know you won't get to dwell with any of the characters in the same way you would with an ongoing series, so there's a certain pointlessness to it.
2- That said, I thought it was pretty good for an MCUTV series. It wasn't one of the absolute best, and it wasn't groundbreaking, but it was solid and well-executed for the most part.
3- I think they did a great job at setting up Riri's final decision in the last episode. THIS IS A SPOILERS THREAD, REMEMBER? We had seen the pathos. We had seen her struggle with the grief and the loss. We had seen her literally tell her friends off before she left, saying that she could use magic to bring her friend (in that scenario, the AI) back. And we had seen her repeatedly ignore the fact .... even when it was served up to her on a silver platter ... that magic is going to require a sacrifice. Finally, we can see the process of Riri's self-deception (it's only going to affect her, right .... ha).
Look, I went into the show and the finale blind. Even though it was all set up, even though I saw the story payoff coming, I still assumed Marvel was going to Marvel ... and Riri was gonna be all, "Naw, I see through you Ali G. I've learned valuable lessons about letting go and stuff. Plus, did you see what happened to the last guy?"
But they didn't Marvel it. I was shocked, surprised, and happy to see that actual character work pay off. If you strip away all the superhero stuff and the magic stuff ... it was a sad and moving story about someone who is still broken, and the decisions that they make.