Admittedly, I’m not a nig fan of solo Iron Man comic books, but I get why everyone loves him. Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal of Tony Stark in the Marvel Cinematic Universe helped reinvent one of Marvel Comics’ veteran characters. However, unless he’s running with the Avengers, I’m typically not interested unless there’s a writer I love creating the series. For example, Gerry Duggan’s Iron Man was an elite series that should be looked at as a great entry point for comic book fans.
When it comes to comic book creators I trust, writer Joshua Williamson (Superman and G.I. Joe) is around the top of the list. After learning that he was next up to put their creative touches on Iron Man, it seemed like a no-brainer to give the premiere issue a shot. Well, with the help of an amazing creative team, it looks like this series will become part of this writer’s monthly reads.
Whenever a new series with a classic character begins, certain things have to be established. You need a quick look at their backstory, learn who the main characters of the project will be, and what antagonists will be fighting the hero. It seems straightforward, but it’s not an easy task. There is a finite number of pages to do this and make it interesting. All of which was done brilliantly with the help of artist Carmen Carnero (Exceptional X-Men), who made sure that Tony dazzled, while his enemies looked devious.
The issue begins with readers seeing that Tony Stark’s ex, Madame Masque, is continuing her work with A.I.M. (more on this in Venom by Al Ewing). Instead of looking for a quick fix of powers, she kills someone for not being the next Tony Stark. This leads her to do something deplorable, but genius. Masque has A.I.M. (Advanced Ideas Mechanics) capture everyone that Tony Stark thought was smart enough to work with Iron Man. What’s more disturbing is that Tony seems to know something everyone else doesn’t.
After learning what was happening (and upgrading his Iron Man armor), Tony makes a call to Steve Rogers, saying that they need to meet in private. Tony doesn’t say why, but explains that it’s thanks to a nightmare contingency plan, and now A.I.M. has said plan.
Of course, Steve agrees, but he’s not alone. With him are Sue Storm and Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four, Carol Danvers (Captain Marvel), James Rhodes (War Machine), Norman Osborn, and, who looks to be Maria Hill, but it could be Janet Van Dyne. Steve looks at them and asks a question that people have wondered for years. “How do we take down Tony Stark?”
Iron Man No. 1 was an example of how to get people invested in a new series. Everything that you could want from a comic book series was displayed. More importantly, Tony Stark’s skills, strengths, and faults. The latter is the key to the success of Iron Man in the comics, movies, and animated features.
It looks like Joshua Williamson will remind comic book fans that, for all of Tony’s greatness, he’s his own worst enemy. That’s probably why his battle with Captain America during Marvel Civil War was brought up in the beginning of the issue. It served as a reminder that Stark will always do what he thinks is best, even if it’s not the right thing for everyone.
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