The Invincible Iron Man #517 – Review

by Matt Fraction (writer), Salvador Larroca (art), Frank D’Armata (colors), and Joe Caramagna (letters)

The Story: Stane goes poking around his own body, Spymaster wreaks office havoc, Tony removes the Extremis Armour, and “Detroit Steel” gets creepy.

The Review:  Matt Fraction gets a lot of slack for the decompression present in a lot of his comics.  In other words, arcs go on forever and not much happens in each individual issue.  Between his work on the Defenders and the last few issues of Invincible Iron Man, it seems like he’s making a conscious effort to fight against that bad habit.  Nowhere is this clearer than this issue of Invincible Iron Man.

Put simply, a LOT happens in this issue, which makes it feel well-worth the $3.99.  Every major character gets a significant moment and there are lots of scenes that either come close to resolving a plot thread or leave you hungering for more.  For instance, Spymaster fights Bethany Cabe, we find out who the new Iron Man is, a very insane “Detroit Steel” goes all creeper on Sasha Hammer, Stane performs cringe-worthy surgery on himself, and somehow Fraction even finds time for a couple of flashbacks to Tony and Stane’s respective childhoods to juxtapose the two and their fathers.  Many of these threads end on cliffhangers, guaranteeing that you’ll want the next issue.  It’s really crazy though how many story beats and how much entertainment Fraction crams into this standard-sized issue.  Yet, despite this, nothing feels rushed or glossed over, with each element being satisfying in its own right.

However, not only does Fraction cover a lot of ground plot and character-wise, but he also subtly plays around with genre influences as well.  The Spymaster sequence is pure action, the Detroit Steel/Hammer scene has a distinct, “slasher-flick” horror vibe to it, while Tony’s acceding to Babbage carries a hint of intrigue.

Perhaps most impressive is that Fraction, somehow, never spreads himself to thinly.  The issue doesn’t feel at all scattered despite how wide-ranging it is.

Invincible Iron Man #503 – Review

by Matt Fraction (writer), Salvador Larroca (art), Frank D’Armata (colors), and Joe Caramagna (letters)

The Story: Tony fights to disarm Doc Ock’s bomb while Pepper goes for another round with Sandman and Electro.

The Review:  I think it’s issues like this that make people aggravated about event tie-ins.  Looking at the cover of this issue, you’d think Fraction had postponed the conclusion of his Doc Ock arc altogether, going for the tie-in straightaway.  Thankfully, that isn’t the case, with Fear Itself only being introduced as the next storyline in the issue’s final few pages.

Unfortunately, that most likely mandated prologue makes this Doc Ock arc feel rushed in its conclusion, as Fraction seeks to tie up this story as quickly as possible in order to move on to Fear Itself ASAP.  It’s a damned shame, given how solid this arc has been.  This rushed feeling permeates the issue.  Pepper’s fight with Electro and Sandman is shockingly brief this month, with the baddies putting up no fight whatsoever.  Meanwhile, with respect to Doc Ock’s bomb, Fraction goes for the oldest and most predictable twist possible.  Given how much I’ve been enjoying the duel between Otto and Stark, that Fraction would resort to such a tired trick, and then act as though it’s clever, was more than a little disappointing.   Then there’s an image of Tony breaking Otto’s neck, but this is never addressed or referenced.

And all this is sped through in this manner to lead into Fear Itself through an event that is so conveniently timed as to feel utterly forced.  Ugh.

It’s sad really, given that there is a lot to like here, were it not for the big event gumming things up.  For instance, Doc Ock’s getting Tony to beg and call him “master” was a lot of fun, and this being his entire motivation for this scheme was crazy goodness.  I loved seeing Doc Ock gloating, rewinding and re-watching Tony’s begging again and again, treating the video as though it were internet porn.  Also, while the pacing was off, I did like how Fraction ended this plot, with a whimper and not a bang.  There’s no conclusive end of Doc Ock here, no huge battle, and no Otto walking away in handcuffs or lying unconscious.  While this particular conflict and situation are fully resolved, Fraction leaves the story feeling a little more open-ended and hence, less run-of-the-mill.  In fact, seeing Otto simply leave after getting his video of Tony (for his own personal enjoyment) just adds to the demented nature of the character.

Invincible Iron Man #1 – Review

By Matt Fraction (Writer), Salvador Larocca (Pencils and Inks), and Frank D’Armata and Stephane Peru (Colors)

Let the Iron Man over-saturation commence! Counting Secret Invasion, Marvel Adventures, and all the Avengers books, I think Shell-Head’s in about a dozen comics this month – which is funny because personally I’ve found his own book to be rather weak lately. I loved him in the Civil War books and the Mighty Avengers, but let’s face it: Tony’s generally not as interesting without a couple of well-meaning but less intelligent costars to bounce his Type A personality against.

Fortunately, Invincible seems to be an exception to the rule. Other than brief appearances by Maria Hill and War Machine, Iron Man has the book all to himself, and it’s still cool. The story starts in Tanzania, where we get a little lesson in geography and sociology before people start exploding. Ezekiel Stane, working with an A.I.M. splinter group called Advanced Genocide Mechanics, has developed a way to turn people into second-rate Iron Men (In one of several nods to the current movie, they have little glowing blue dials on their chests that they expose just before they blow themselves up). The nature of Ezekiel’s plan isn’t clear, but considering his genealogy it probably isn’t good news for Stark Enterprises.

I liked the way this book was divided equally between action, character study, and philosophical ruminations on the drawbacks of advanced technology. When he’s not sleeping with models, running S.E. and S.H.I.E.L.D., or flattening A.I.M. agents, Tony worries about staying on the cutting edge of weapons innovation. Not only because he wants to keep one step ahead of his enemies but also because he defines himself in large part by being better than everyone else. In one particularly telling passage, Tony basically admits to the reader that he constantly makes sure Rhodey’s War Machine armor isn’t as good as his own.

If I have any complaint about the Invincible Iron Man, it’s that the plot so far bears a suspicious resemblance to the Extremis arc from the first few issues of Iron Man’s regular book, with its focus on bioweaponry. But Ezekiel Stane’s plan seems more complex than simple terrorism, and so far Fraction is doing a good job of building up what promises to be an intriguing story. I look forward to the next issue. (Grade: A)

– Andrew C. Murphy

A Second Opinion

Invincible Iron Man #1 serves one main purpose: to draw in everyone who loved last week’s Iron Man movie, whether they be long time comic readers or someone who has never read a comic. Does it succeed? Maybe. I personally fall into the category of fairly new to comics, knowing only a bit about Iron Man’s character (only that which I’ve read in Avengers and online).

So, what did I think? Well, the story opened with a bang (quite literally) in Africa, keeping the international feeling of the film. The opening is also quick to tell us some of the main differences between the movie and current Iron Man continuity: Tony is now director of S.H.I.E.L.D., sober, still a womanizer, and through the Extremis has complete mental control over his Iron Man armor. Rhodes is still Tony’s best friend and has donned the War Machine armor. Pepper is still his personal assistant, and is now very good with computers, and finally, Obadiah Stane is dead, but his son Ezekiel is alive and kicking and has inherited the lack of moral compass. Personally, I already knew all of this, but for someone who had only seen the Iron Man movie, this one issue is pretty darn good at giving a summary without seeming like a summary itself.

Okay, so it’s noob friendly, check. Is it interesting? Well, not wanting to give too much away, it appears that the main villain of this piece has not only improved, but exceeded the current Iron Man technology, much more so than Iron Monger in the film. However, we do not know how he has done this, nor what his plans are and by the end of the issue, Tony is just as worried as we are. So yes, it is interesting.

Finally, is it a good comic? Well, it is fairly well written, there was one part where I had to turn back a page to figure out what was going on, but other than that it flowed smoothly and the characters maintained unique voices. Likewise, the art was very well done. It wasn’t perfect, as there were three minor things that bugged me, but being minor, they weren’t anything to take away from the enjoyment of the storytelling. So overall, not the best of the best when it comes to comics, but certainly very good. As someone fairly new to Iron Man, will I be back? Yes, I will definitely finish out the story arc, but I’ll have to be really impressed to stick with it after it’s over. (Grade: B)

-M. Staples

The Order #9 – Review

By Matt Fraction (writer), Barry Kitson (breakdowns), Javier Salteres (pencils), Stefano Gaudiano & Derek Fridolfs (inks), J. Robers (colors)

The last few issues have been building towards this fight. With one issue to go, it’s The Order versus a plethora of bad guys, lead by Ezekiel Stane (son of Obadiah Stane). What he has in store for our band of west coast heroes ain’t pretty, either. As usual, the beginning of each issue focuses on one of The Order’s team members. This issue gives us Heavy’s backstory, which Matt Fraction writes as a tragic one. It’s also clever how he connects Heavy and Tony Stark’s origins together.

As for the big fight itself, it felt obligatory (honestly, there was no way to avoid it), and just wasn’t very exciting. Even the planning that lead up to it felt “by the numbers”. I realize this issue’s Heavy’s story, but putting him in charge of the team for this mission didn’t seem to make much of a tactical difference. He mentions strength in numbers, and they take an “alternate” route the to bad guy’s base, but other than that, we don’t see any of his battlefield prowess at all.

Remember when Barry Kitson actually drew this book? Me too. It’s a complete bummer we’re at the next to last issue of the series and Kitson’s finished pencils are still sorely missed. Sure, he does the layouts and Javier Saltares does a competent job on finishes, but this is Kitson’s book as far as I’m concerned. Not seeing him ride this book into the sunset is just disheartening. I hate to say it, but this is the first issue of The Order I’ve been disappointed with. The story finishes strong with a sad moment for the team, but everything that happens prior to that is a yawn fest. Please guys, don’t let this book go to the crapper with your last issue. (Grade: C-)

– J. Montes

The Order #8 – Review

By Matt Fraction (writer), Barry Kitson (breakdowns & finishes), Stegano Guadiano, Paul Neary & Jon Sibal (finishes), J. Roberts (colors)

The Order’s left with three issues to go and Matt Fraction is wasting no time tying up loose ends. One again, the story is well written and full of wit. Barry Kitson and company also do a bang up job on art chores. With all these people working on art, you’d think it’d be a mess, but it’s surprisingly consistent. Still, I wonder why it’s becoming harder and harder for Kitson to finish a full issue.

We’re finally shown the outcome of Supernaut and Aralune’s predicament after two issues of suspense. How it’s handled is pretty inventive, but the real kicker is the mastermind behind their attempted apprehension. This revelation gives a lot more relevance to Iron Man’s presence in the book. I’m sure this is all going to build up to issue #10 (just in time for Iron Man’s movie debut), but it’s definitely worth looking forward to.

Meanwhile, Mulholland’s incarceration by the Black Dahlias takes somewhat of a backseat even though it’s prominently featured on the cover.  In fact, the cover is somewhat misleading – The Order does not come to rescue her at all! Perhaps last minute script changes are to blame. Either way, the scenes we’re given of her are shocking (no pun intended), especially near the end of the issue. There is an absence of certain members of the ensemble, but it, in no way, detracts from the story.

It’s gonna be sad seeing this book go. Other than the Runaways, Marvel has no west coast team books and that’s a shame. When you consider the quality of this book, there’s not too many others that have a roster this fleshed out or this likable. (Grade: B)

– J. Montes