Chaos's Iron Man Blog

New Iron Man 2 Poster

2009-11-30T21:26:00.007-05:00

Warning: you may need a tissue.

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You may nerdgasm now.

Review: World's Most Wanted

2009-11-20T15:21:00.002-05:00

The “highly acclaimed and award winning” story arc World’s Most Wanted has finally come to a conclusion after twelve long issues. While Marvel and critics claim this arc to be epic in nearly every aspect, you have to wonder if it really is. I don't know how much weight you’ll put into my opinion (I’m guessing zero), but here is my review of World’s Most Wanted.

Story
The story itself wasn’t highly original. Stark is on the run from Osborn and HAMMER and he is losing his mind in the process trying to keep the Super Hero Registration files from falling into Osborn’s hands. It’s reminiscent of Armor Wars when he was on the run from SHIELD and later when his body was failing from the damaged nervous system, just rolled into the same arc. Different yes, but somewhat the same principle. I’m not going to say it’s a copy, but it’s not 100% original either.

The other big problem I have is that it’s really more of making Stark look low. This is Marvel once again punishing the guy they have made popular by writing out of character to be the bad guy. Fraction said he saw it as Stark atoning for all his sins, not just the Civil War crap, but given what he’s gone through in his life; the artificial heart (twice), alcoholism and losing his company, his nervous system ruined, paralysis not to mention that whole death thing, how much more does the guy need to atone for?

This doesn’t mean the story didn’t have potential. It could still have been a fun read if the right things were done, which unfortunately they weren’t. There was so much filler that this arc could have easily been six issues and without missing out on any of the excitement that was present.

The start of the saga wasn’t bad, Stark eliminating his armories and having big names like Namor sent after him added an interesting element. This didn’t last and soon it became Stark fielding less and less advanced armors while continually trying to escape some D-rate villain that had a single appearance in an obscure 1980’s issue or something along that line. The using a less sophisticated armor didn’t make much sense given how newer armors capabilities would allow the onboard computer to do much of the things he wouldn’t be able to handle. It seemed like another lame excuse to start using the classic armor again. Seriously, the armor had its run but put the thing to rest already.

The addition of Pepper becoming a fighter was iffy at best. If you changed it from Pepper to Bethany Cabe, then beating Masque, being Iron Maiden (or whatever you want to call it) would have been far more believable. Pepper is just too much of that nice cheery girl to be really seen as a warrior, even in extraordinary circumstances. I do like the things Fraction had her do, but I just felt Pepper was ill suited to it.

Despite all the room for things to happen, too little transpired and what did was often repetitive. Too many issues felt the same.

Grade: C-

Writing
Fraction made one big mistake throughout the story: he told instead of showing. We were always told how Stark was losing his mind, he said it himself three times an issue. This was horribly repetitive as if we could somehow forget it. I started to roll my eyes every time Stark mentioned this. When Fraction did show it he did a good job (i.e. “Who is Happy?”) but too often that wasn’t the case.

Pacing was also bad. As I said earlier there was a ton of filler in this arc. We were greeted to a few pages of Stark going on about his mental state which by the second issue was a total waste of space. The issues all started to feel the same mid arc and that is never good.

Grade: C

Art
Larocca isn’t my favorite artist, but I’ve seen his past work and it’s better than this. There was nothing wrong with his pencils or the inks, it was the colors. Every person looked plastic and fake in the issues, making Larocca’s art look cartoonish at times. Osborn often looked ridiculous in my opinion, his hair further making him look like someone I expect to see in a Sunday morning comic strip.

Just like during the Knauf’s run, the colorist is taking away from the visuals. We went from dark and drab to everyone being shiny like they were just waxed.

Grade: C

Finish
Marvel and other outlets billed the ending of World’s Most Wanted as shocking. Iron Man fans billed it as totally predictable. I will give credit to Fraction; even though everyone knew what was going to happen in issue #19 it was still a very entertaining piece. We all knew Stark couldn’t die and Osborn was still going to be in control; it couldn’t end any differently, so a win for both signs was a given. I can forgive Fraction for the predictable ending because he had little choice.

Stark won because Osborn didn’t get his hands on any of the information he wanted. Osborn won because Stark was no longer a threat. Like I said, predictable. I did like at the end how Stark smiled and said “I won” which pissed Osborn off to no end, classic Stark (another Kudos to Fraction). Stark also had his contingency plan in place, knowing about all the legalities of SHIELD and having Donald Blake (a.k.a. Thor) as his doctor with power of attorney. It was also nice to see Pepper sabotage the stolen armors, throwing yet another wrench in Osborn’s plans.

In addition the video feed of Osborn beating a helpless Stark was shown all over the world, setting up the beginning of his fall. It looks like public opinion will begin to shift away from Osborn now, so by the time Siege rolls around chances are things will be going badly for him.

Grade: B+

Final Thoughts
Despite the positive critical reviews the majority of long time Iron Man fans have been giving it a big thumbs down. The arc overall was boring, laced with far more filler than substance and a storyline that repeated itself way too much.

Marvel no doubt points to the Eisner win a testament to its quality, but I counter with the opinion from long time Iron Man fans (the ones who have kept the book going for so long) that are ripping it apart. I’d venture to say those opinions are more telling than an award because who knows the character better than the ones who have follow all his exploits for decades? Are we not the ones who can determine if each action is in or out of character, instead of some committee that only gets handed the product when submitted? Ask the long time fans and all of them will tell you World’s Most Wanted can't hold a candle to previous sagas such as Armor Wars, Dragon Seed, War Machine and the other classic arcs. That the arc could have easily been half its length and contain the same amount of quality substance is a fact that should not be overlooked and frankly it should be questioned why it was allowed to happen.

All in all, Worlds Most Wanted despite its critical acclaim was unimpressive. Too long, too boring, and a predictable ending never make for a good story.

Final Grade: C-

Wolverine: Overexposed

2009-10-19T13:58:00.003-04:00

There is no denying that Wolverine is one of the most popular comic characters out there. We loved the edge and grittiness he brought to teams consisting mostly of goody-two-shoes. We loved he was willing to do what it took to get the job done, including what others wouldn’t. He was original from his powers to his past and an all around great character. There was an awe and mystery surrounding him that helped propel him so quickly from cameo to mainstay.

Nowadays Wolverine is everywhere. And while I do mean everywhere from books to movies, let’s just focus on the medium he was created for: comics. Wolverine is all over the place. He holds multiple titles of his own with the likes of Wolverine Origins and Old Man Logan, he is part of a team in the X-Men, X-Force and New Avengers books and is in just about every alternate reality there is like the Ultimates and House of M. Literally, wherever we look, Wolverine is there.

And it has to stop.

I know Marvel wants to make the most of one of their most popular characters, but it’s to the point of too much. Origins is chided by fans for finally revealing Wolverine’s past, not only making it not that interesting but also taking away secrets that made the character so mysterious. They essentially filled in dates for things that were hinted at for years. Plus they did a big no-no in comics: they gave specific dates. Never give a specific date unless it’s something like Captain America when he fought in World War II and he was then frozen for an undetermined amount of time to get to the present. We now know exactly how old Wolverine is and it hurts the character.

Then you have the fact Wolverine is now a part of three teams, the above mentioned X-Men, X-Force and New Avengers. Where does he get the time for all of this? The two X titles okay, but does he really need to be in the Avengers?

Finally there is the problem on how powerful Wolverine has become. Before one of the great things was that underneath it all, the adamantium and the advanced healing factor, he was no stronger or faster than the rest. He one more by his never quit and aggressive demeanor that his actual powers. But Marvel made an excuse to make him more powerful, saying his body continually evolved and that the adamantium was holding his evolution back. Now he has superhuman strength and his healing factor, before just very quick, can now heal him as long as there is any flesh left. Basically, Wolverine is no longer killable. What fun is that in a character?

Yes, he survived this

If you look at the older X-Men and Wolverine books, you’ll see him struggle to recover from wounds that would keep a normal man down. His recovery would be much faster but he would still be weak for a short time. Think of when Omega Red was first introduced. He barely survived and was weak while he and other captured X-Men escaped. Now if that happened he’d be 100% healthy in a few minutes.

Look at Secret Invasion #6 when he fought the Skrull Queen. In a few frames we see half his face burned off and his forearm burned down to the bone, yet a few frames later he is perfectly fine. It’s too much. What good is a character if they can’t actually be beaten?

I know it won’t happen but Marvel really needs to tone down Wolverine’s exposure, and get him back to what made him interesting to begin with. He’s in too many titles and it’s getting a bit annoying to see him everywhere. Worse is that they’ve watered the character down by telling his past and making him too powerful. A lot of the things that made the character great are now gone.

I like Wolverine as a character, and I was one of those kids who got hooked on the X-Men because of the cartoon back in the 90’s. But that character, the one that caught everyone’s interest instantly is gone.

Siege

2009-10-13T11:19:00.003-04:00

Just recently Marvel announced what the next will be: Siege. Written by Brian Michael Bendis (who seems to be writing 75% of Marvel comics at the moment) it is to bring Dark Reign to a close.

Bendis explains that Norman Osborn will be setting his sights on Asgard seeing them as a threat. We're left to assume he has some big plan in order to bring down a city filled with Gods, and to the rescue will be the Avengers, including the reuniting of the three classic Avengers: Iron Man, Thor and Captain America.

According to Bendis the event will affect the Avengers the most, involving all the teams. I'm guessing we are going to see a Mighty Avengers team consisting of the big three plus some others, a different New Avengers team and likely the end of the Dark Avengers. Bendis is claiming this will be the biggest impact to Earth's mightiest heroes since Disassembled.

The series will be only four issues and supposedly be action packed and move quickly. I'm shocked Marvel editors agreed to do, but Bendis was able to convince them so congrats to him for not wanting to stretch a story when it doesn't need to be.

At this point I'm just not optimistic anymore. Yes I know I have been negative and cynical but Marvel hasn't given me any reason not to be in recent years. Bendis says Thor, Cap and Iron Man will put aside their differences, but frankly I'm not buying it. I've just seen too much Iron Man bashing from Marvel in recent years to really believe Stark wont somehow be lambasted and made to look bad yet again.

For the most part the story sounds interesting. Hopefully Bendis can pull this off and Dark Lame can come to an end. Maybe I just haven't been reading enough Marvel titles, but I've been thoroughly unimpressed with what little has happened under Osborn's rule. It just seems like a wasted opportunity to me.

We'll see where this goes though. Hopefully it will live up the hype Marvel will be putting into it.

Spider-Man Aesthetics

2009-10-08T20:45:00.001-04:00

I admit I don't read Spider-Man at all. There have been a few arcs that have interested me but that’s it. I don’t have anything bad to say about the character himself; I think he’s pretty original, but he’s just never done it for me. But there is something I don't understand that happens with him sometimes:

Why does Spider-Man look like an anorexic teenager wearing pajamas?

Yes, it depends on the artist and some draw him in the more classic style, but some draw him like a scrawny teenager picked off the street and thrown in a costume. I don't get it.

I know Parker was a teen when he became a super hero but I’m pretty sure he’s not a teen any longer. His body has developed and he’s actually filled out with muscles, and super strength is a part of his power set. So why is he drawn like he hasn’t eaten anything in months? I get he’s not supposed to be muscle-bound like Thor or Luke Cage, but there is no reason for him to look like he’s skin and bones.

Also, why do some artists draw the outlines of his feet through his costume as if the feet have no soles? Seeing his toes is awkward and honestly a bit goofy.

So when the editors at Marvel get the layouts from the artist, don't they see it and say to themselves “that looks weird?” I know I would. I’m not saying you should tell an artist his style per se, some will draw characters bigger, some smaller, but I think when it goes into the realm of making him look like Dr. Strange could pick Spider-Man over his head and break him like a twig, I think the editor needs to step in.

Tony Stark Disassembled

2009-09-22T14:10:00.001-04:00

Well if you haven’t heard by now the upcoming arc for Iron Man following World’s Most Boring… err, World’s Most Wanted, will be Tony Stark Disassembled.

Sigh.

So basically the next arc is exactly what we thought it will be: dealing with the aftermath WMW whose sorely predictable ending will end with a fight between Stark and Osborn and each emerging victorious in their own way. TSD will focus on Stark being put back together as a person both in body and mind.

Oh look, more ways to make Stark pay for the past three events fans hated that he didn’t actually cause. Yippee! For whatever reason Marvel decided twelve issues of crapping on Stark wasn’t really enough, so they need to create a supplementary arc to fully cover how shattered he has become. I know I can’t wait!

Seriously, how is this supposed to be entertaining? Honestly, I want to know. We’ve had to deal with an arc where we’re told five times and issue Stark is losing his mind and running away. It’s been a comic adaptation of the movie Run Lola, Run! featuring Iron Man.

Not to mention they pick a name for the arc that related to Avengers: Disassembled, considered a terrible arc by Avengers fans. Way to go Marvel! Nothing entices people to read an arc by relating it to a failed arc.

I don't know what to say at this point, I just don't. I thought this would be a long, well thought out post but as I wrote I found myself unable to muster anything that I haven’t said a hundred times over. Even the paragraphs that I’ve written seem like a repetition of the one before it.

The title has become so boring and predictable and Marvel has told us the six issues that follow will just be more of the same crap. I’m seriously starting to contemplate dropping the title because it is just that uninteresting and banal.

I’m getting depressed just writing this article, and that is probably the most telling thing of all about the direction of this book.

Dinsey set to buy Marvel

2009-08-31T13:52:00.004-04:00

Well I originally had another post planned for this week, but it gets trumped by this.

If you haven't heard (which I'm sure you have by now), Marvel is being bought by Disney. Yes, Disney. While the sale has not been fully approved yet, since it won't be creating a monopoly or anything of that sort chances are this will go through as long as the two companies to everything legally. The price is $4 Billion, yes, with a "B"

So is this good or bad? Well it's good in that Marvel wont have to worry about money anymore, which could see a rise in the quality of work as it may be more keen on paying to keep high end writers and artists. It can also be a boon for movies as funding likely wont be a problem anymore.

Of course, there is always a flip side.

Disney is known to shove out movies just to get them released so quality may suffer in that aspect. They're in it for the money and I think we've all seen how Disney milks everything they own for what it's worth be it film rights, characters or actors. And they're definitely going to do this with what they're paying for the company.

The question is how much they will interfere with the creative process at Marvel. While I am drooling over the possibility of Joe Q getting the boot, the truth is Disney doesn't really do comics and they could make things worse. If they just throw their own people in charge who have no clue what they're doing (even less so than Marvel) well, the Marvel U will be a mess, titles will get cancelled and who knows what kind of Deus Ex Machina they will have to use to fix it all.

All in all I am skeptical about this. There are definitely pros to this acquisition, and as much as Marvel may be misguided at times, I'm kind of for the devil you know in this case. Comics aren't exactly PG anymore and if Disney decides they should be, well, I don't look forward to Cyclops shooting rainbows from his eyes and Dr. Doom striving for something despicable like maintaining the highest tv ratings in the world.

I wonder what the Vegas odds are when the X-Men take on Duck Tales?

If I Were Marvel Editor in Chief

2009-08-25T12:03:00.000-04:00

I’ve made no secret I am not a fan of Joe Quesada as Marvel Editor in Chief, and neither has many of other Marvel fans out there (not that Marvel cares what any of them think). He’s done far too many things that, while may sell comics, has severely dropped their quality. Things up at Marvel don't seem to be all happy go lucky, filled with ego and either too much leniency for writers or tying their hands too much. When you hear tidbits from those who work there, it isn’t all the fun and games you think it would be. In reflecting on this I have decided to pose a question to myself: what changes would I make if I were Marvel’s Editor in Chief. Below is a list of the changes if I hypothetically got the job.

Arc length is no longer decided by a TPB
This is a major problem I have with Marvel right now. Arc lengths are determined by being put into a TPB, normally six issues and this sells the story and reader short. If an arc only needs to be four issues, do it in four and don't draw the story out. If it needs to be eight, don't cut it short and deprive the reader of what the story was supposed to be. Too often arcs feel rushed or drawn out because of this. The TPB is the one whose length (and subsequently price) should be adjusted to fit the story, not the other way around.

Asterisks are OK
Joe Q got rid of these citing writers should explain what happened in the past in the story, feeling it is a bit of a cop out. Personally I think it’s so they don't have to point to a story that’s been retconned but I digress. Honestly putting the asterisk in keeps the story moving so a writer doesn’t have to waste precious space on referring to the past. Using the asterisk speeds the story up and avoids lengthy retellings.

Smoking is back
Smoking was banned because it was seen as a bad influence to kids. Somehow, all the sex, violence, death and other stuff that is far worse than smoking is ok to have on a regular basis. But a few characters having a smoke? Don’t even think of it. They add an element to the characters and I guarantee you kids never smoked because Wolverine had a cigar. I know it had no affect on me.

Vivid colors return
Far too often comics look drab and dark. Some are supposed to be dark and I am fine with that, but not all comics are a good fit for the noir style. Moon Knight? Yes. Iron Man? No. Too often the Marvel world seems blah from poor coloring. Reading series like Legacy of Doom the story was brought to life by bright, vibrant colors, and it needs to happen again. Look, if people were that into dark, we’d have never switched from black and white film to color. There is a reason TV companies promote how vibrant the colors of their TV are, bright colors are eye catching and are visual stimulating. It should be no different with comics.

Epic and shock factor aren’t a priority of a story
I truly think this has taken over. It’s like every arc there has to be some death defying, world changing occurrence that changes the character(s) life. It’s ridiculous. So many writers try to tell the grand story they lose sight that they aren’t writing a good story. Give me a well written, entertaining non-epic arc over one that is lots of filler but ends with a bang. I don’t pay $3.99 an issue just to have it be filler that leads up to something better. I’m all for a twist or meaningful ending, but it shouldn’t be the point of the arc. If the lead up story isn’t any good or it’s boring, the ending doesn’t really matter.

Listen to the fans
You know, the people that support Marvel by purchasing their product? Too many times has Marvel blown them off because the editors and writers think what they do is good. The Crossing? One More Day? Avengers Disassembled? All horrid in terms of story or their implications but the editors loved what happened. Did it matter to them the fans hated these stories? Nope. Marvel patted themselves on the back for a job well done because they liked them, ignoring the vitriol spewed by the fans.

Get rid of specific dates
I’m sorry, but Wolverine Origins has done nothing but damage the character. Setting a specific date has proven to be a no-no in comics for decades. Wolverine is a great example of this because now we know exactly how old he is, and when he gets to be too old, boom- retcon. All is does is create trouble and spawn an eventual fix, re-boot, retcon or some other method of undoing the date. It’s always been stated Captain America was frozen for an unspecified amount of time after World War II, and despite that working so well some writers don't want to follow that. Specific dates are truly nothing but trouble.

Well Isnt This Interesting?

2009-08-10T09:27:00.003-04:00

This story is courtesy of poster IMJ over at the Advanced Iron forums.

IMJ attended the Wizard World Chicago event over a three day period and one of the things he attended was the Marvel panel. One of the things they talked about was the current and future arc of Iron Man. They expected there to be a a good reaction to the new arc Tony Stark Disassembled (I cover this in a later post) and what they got was silence. In order to break said awkward silence one of the panel said "this arc won an Eisner for a reason!" (or something along that line according to IMJ).

That's really the story, but those last two things are very significant: the silence from the announcement and that Marvel's response was winning the Eisner.

Silence can be golden as they say, and it was definitely the case here. Marvel thought they hit a home run with the upcoming Disassembled arc (even thought people still have nightmares from Avengers Disassembled) only to find out no one was impressed. Why would we be? The current 12 issue arc is basically dragging Tony through the mud even more telling us how he is losing his mind, so why in God's name would we be impressed with another six issue arc that does it even more? Marvel is obviously excited about Stark getting shit on even more yet is ignorant of the fact that everyone, even non Iron Man fans, are sick of it. Like I mentioned in an earlier post months ago, I was talking to a Spider-Man fan and even he said what Marvel was doing to Stark was ridiculous, and he didn't even read the main title!

Next on to Marvel's pathetic response of it winning an Eisner. Here is the thing about books: people who read them don't give a rat's ass about awards. I had no clue what an Eisner was before Fraction got nominated. People read books for enjoyment and don't care what awards they won and right here is the big problem with Marvel: they think the opposite.

They think winning an Eisner means the book is good and the fans would care. Funny thing is when you talk to long time Iron Man fans none of them like this arc at all. Some consider it a rehash, some like myself are bored with it and others just think it's outright crap. The fans silence voiced their displeasure with this title right now.

The problem is Marvel wont take the hint. They'll go home, wonder why no one was cheering then say "well the fact it won an Eisner makes us right." They will, as they have done many times in recent years, ignore the fans. I have no doubt they are saying to themselves "the fans just don't get it." Unfortunately, it's Marvel that just doesn't get it. People are tired of Iron Man being dragged through the mud. While they made it fashionable to do so by blaming everything in Civil War on him three years later it is tired and boring and the readers are just rolling their eyes at this point.

Matt Fraction is nominated for an award. But why?

2009-07-13T23:15:00.001-04:00

A short while ago Matt Fraction was nominated for an Eisner award for his work on Iron Man when he took over the new series. Now, I don't think Fraction is bad or anything, but I have to ask: why was he nominated?

I wasn’t thrilled with the Five Nightmares story arc. I thought it had potential but I was a bit disappointed the way it went. Hunted has been getting a lot of acclaim, but frankly I don't see why.

What has happened in the Hunted arc so far? Stark is on the run, tells use ten times an issue how his brain is degrading, someone employed by Osborn finds him, he escapes and flees again. Rinse and repeat for about five issues now. The most recent issue, #15 was the first to really break from this mold. For all that has happened in this arc, nothing has really happened. The only thing real memorable thus far is the fight with Namor, every else has seemed kind of like filler and not worth remembering.

My biggest beef with Fraction right now is that multiple times an issue he has Tony telling the reader that his brain is going. Yes, we know, we get it. Don’t tell us, show us! That to me is what Fraction is doing wrong. He keeps telling us things when he should be showing it to us. Dialogue can get the point across quick and easy, but is doesn’t always have the impact of an action or moment. I have yet to see a moment where it caused the reader to say to himself “wow, Stark really is losing it!” Almost shooting Pepper was the closest, but I think we all know he wasn’t going to fire on her. The outcome was predictable.

Another thing I don't like about Fraction is “the Iron Man.” Please, stop putting “the” in front of it, it’s annoying. In addition, it really makes it seem like they are two separate entities, rather than a man who wears a suit. It’s reminiscent of when Rhodey had the Warwear which was its own living creature rather than just armor. I don’t like that detached feeling for Iron Man. Granted that is the way it’s supposed to be with a secret identity, but it’s not really a secret anymore is it?

So what I’m getting at is, I’m not sure why Fraction is being nominated when his work on Iron Man has failed to really make an impact on me and others in any way. I just don't see it.

Captain America Returns

2009-07-06T20:38:00.005-04:00

Starting this month with Captain America: Reborn, Marvel will bringing back the star spangled avenger. Raise your hand if you're surprised?

No one?

Me neither.

Despite their best poker faces and vehemently denying he would be returning, the original Captain America, Steve Rogers is returning. Marvel did their best to try and make it look like he was gone forever but no one believed it. How could they? Given Marvel's predictability, not to mention the fact that Cap is one of their most popular characters, his return was inevitable.

Now things about the story have leaked, including how he didn't die. Yes, it's a spoiler, but it also may save you the $3.99 the book costs. Apparently, Cap never died, he's just lost in time.

Now this is more original than the "he never really died" and the whole super soldier serum putting him in suspended animation that everyone was expecting, but sadly, it's lamer.

Lost in time? Really? I'll take the predictable yet plausible one instead of the corny "let's try to impress readers" angle.

And I'm sure he's coming back just in time to rally the heroes to expose and take down Norman Osborn and end Dark Lame, err, Dark Reign. When it's over Cap's return will be heralded, he will be blessed as a savior for ending the reign of the villains and Iron Man will get blamed for it all again.

Don't lie, you know you can see Marvel stretching just so they can have Iron Man take the fall for the fourth event in a row.

Speaking of that, has Dark Reign started yet? For all the talk about the villains being in charge, all we've seen is Norman Osborn do a bunch of interviews. This is actually a good idea, why aren't they doing anything with it?

So yeah, Caps back with a lame ass reason why. Did Marvel really expect anyone to get excited over possibly the most obvious thing they have ever done?

Best Iron Man Covers

2009-04-22T13:58:00.007-04:00

They say never judge a book by its cover; though with comics it is a little different. The same rule applies, you can’t tell if the issue will be good solely based on the outside. But unlike a novel you can get a feel for what the story is going to be like from a cover. In fact, sometimes a cover will tell a whole story in itself.

There are many things that make a cover good, be it the story it plans to tell, the art or colors. As always when dealing with art it is subjective to the person, but I give you what I think are the five best Iron Man covers (in no particular order).

Volume 1 #216

This cover instantly caught my eye when I first bought the issue. Ho wouldn’t be intrigued by the Silver Centurion hauling the Classic armor ablaze back into the atmosphere? The details are good, as is the fire surrounding the two, but the most eye catching part of this picture is the black smoke billowing from the eye slits, signifying the true desperation of the situation. You truly wonder if Rhodey is going to make it just from this picture.

Volume 1 #128

The infamous “Demon in a Bottle” cover, and probably the most famous Iron Man cover. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words and it holds true to this. The show of pure desperation, pain, loss and just about every other negative emotion is shown as a reflection of Stark in the mirror. Stark appears to have finally realized how low he has truly fallen and is screaming “I need help” to himself. A classic cover that is just as intense as the story behind it.

Volume 2 #1

Unlike most the others on this list, this cover doesn’t tell a story. However the art is simply fantastic. Drawn by Whilce Portacio for the first issue to re-launch Iron Man in the pocket universe, the art is detail heavy but completely concise. All those wires normally make a picture looked a jumbled mess, but they are done perfectly, the chords not blurring together and the result is a feel of a true technological marvel that has been created with a suit. Fantastic pencils, inking and colors really brought this together.

Volume 1 #230

With Armor Wars coming to an end, it needed to do so in spectacular fashion. Neither the cover nor issue let down that saw the death of the Silver Centurion armor. We see the once mighty armor being taken apart, seemingly helpless against this new titanic foe that is lurking in the shadows. The part of Firepower not being fully revealed immediately intrigues a reader, wondering who this new, monstrous adversary is and how truly powerful he must be to be so easily destroying the Iron Man armor. The cover told the same story as the issue, with Firepower tearing Stark a new one.

Volume 1 #237
Though probably not one of the more well known covers or issues, if you look at the cover it says a lot. Most predominant are Stark’s eyes shown through the armor slits. While a small portion of the cover, it shows the sheer terror he is feeling by being crabbed by the claws and ripped through a wall. In a way it’s like a classic horror movie poster that shows the victims crippled in fear, trying to get away. Only seeing the monster’s hands makes you wonder what the rest looks like; another common trait in horror and scifi movies. I’d guess this to be the most questionable on my list, but if you really look at it, I think you will see where I’m coming from.

Dark Reign? More like Dark Lame

2009-04-16T22:58:00.004-04:00

Pardon the bad pun, but I thought it got the point across.

I'm sick of Dark Reign already. Just like the aftermath of Civil War it has become horribly repetitive on how it affects the Marvel universe. Civil War it was all about heroes being on the run. Sounds kind of familiar doesnt it? How many heroes are on the run again, this time from Norman Osborn instead of the pro-registration heroes? How many are now faced with the consequences of a madman being in charge?

And that is probably the worst thing about Dark Reign; Norman Osborn is in charge. He's a psychopath and everyone, and I dont mean the readers, the actual Marvel universe, know he is insane and a killer. Yet he's there. Worse, Marvel feels the need to tell us he's insane every time his name is mentioned. Every. Single Time. We got it, we arent as stupid as Joe Q writing Spiderman here.

So if it's so obvious what Osborn is, why doesnt Marvel do something to actually address how he maintains public or political trust? Scratch that, dumb question. Doing that would pose a challenge and they need the quick and easy out of just ignoring to give us more "on the run" stories.

I honestly expected this to be a long diatribe about what was wrong with Dark Reign, but let's be honest, the same problems with this event are the same as the last one. Receptiveness, shallow stories and most of all, weak concept. For the bad guys supposed to be in charge, we've seen little more than "Osborn is insane" "Yeah but he's in charge" coming from writers.

Here's some advice Marvel: if you want people to buy into the story, put some effort into it. It goes a long way.

Also, I do apologize for the extended period between my last post. A lot has happened in my personal life the past month that has slowed things up.

The New War Machine Title

2009-03-06T09:40:00.002-05:00

We're three issues into the new War Machine title and it can be summer up with one word: bad. It's not the theme or art of the book that makes it bad, it's the character. Or, I should say, what's left of the character.

Rhodeynator as I have come to call him, is just bad. He seems driven for violence, and while Rhodey was always more aggressive than Tony, he seems to want to live up to his name o "War Machine." It's not a "I'm bitter cause I'm half robot"kind of thing, he's kind of driven like he was in the first arc of his original title, only Kaminski made it work a lot more. Plus it really seems like a rehash: Rhodey works for an organization trying to correct the wrongs of the world no one else can, and does so by donning the armor. Been there, done that.

They're taking the Rhodeynator concept way too far. He's able to merge himself with other machines, case in point end of issue two where after having his legs blown off (we'll get to that point in a second) he plops himself down on a tank with it's turret ripped off and uses it as his lower body. You know, this wouldnt be bad if it were say Deathlock, but War Machine? No. The cybernetics to Rhodey are what extremis was to Tony: ill suited for the character.

Now that blowing the legs off thing I mentioned. I hould also mention his arms got blown off too. Yes, that's right, it is easy to blow off his limbs. I find it funny that we saw in execute program as Tony's armor took tank rounds point blank without getting denting, yet Rhodey's losing limbs from small arms fire. Yes, troop weapons can blow his limbs off. So not only do the bullets go through the armor, but also his cybernetic parts too. What did they make them out of, cardboard? It's pretty aggravating to see the heroes limbs keep popping off.

In the first issue we find out how Rhodey was injured: combat. Not as War Machine, not on any spectacular mission or duking it out with a super villain, he just got shot up on a regular mission. Well, I think. The writers saw fit to not make it particularly clear what exactly he was doing. You see other dead troops and him torn to bits. SO the reason he's a cyborg isnt even a good one. On the bright side though the first issue also revealed that they've been making a new body for Rhodey, and I'm not talking mechanical. It seems to be a clone or some other organic body grown in a chamber. Unfortunately with Osborn taking over he was able to get his hands on it, which is bad cause aparently Rhodey is dying even with his cybernetics. So that will probably be the next arc, him trying to get his new body back. Of course, I must stress, that's if there IS a next arc cause right now this book isnt even holding the attention of long time Iron Man and War Machine fans.

The armor was conspicuously changed to the movie armor in it's design. There was never any reason given, I'm to assume his model based on Tony's extremis armor was made useless by the Skrull virus so he had to get another. Of course, it never says that anywhere. And it's not just stylic differences of the artists. It is a black and silver version of the movie and definitely not the extremis-based armor. I'd say I want to know why but honestly I dont particularly care.

Right now the only real positive of the book is the return of Bethany Cabe. Missing since I believe the Crossing, she makes her return still as the tough-as-nails friend who knows how to get things done.

If you havent picked this title up, I honestly wouldnt suggest it unless you like seeing Rhodey buchered in more ways than one. Its not that entertaining and seeing Rhodey as a cyborg just doesnt sit well. I dont see this series lasting past twelve issues, and I think that's even stretching it.

The Red Hulk

2009-02-26T21:26:00.003-05:00

As I believe I mentioned earlier I decided to pick up the new Hulk series featuring the Red Hulk. I was going to give it a try for about ten issues to see how it went.

The first arc was good if you like action. As you can expect with a Hulk title there was plenty of fighting and the art by Ed McGuinness was perfect for the title. While the dialogue was weak, as were some plot elements if you're an action guy like me the trade off worked.

The biggest problem was that when Red Hulk fought anyone else, they're were basically toys for him to play with. Iron Man, She Hulk, for god's sake even Thor were manhandled by the Red Hulk. Thor is a freaking god! That more than anything hurt the initial issues because Red Hulk was just too powerful.

Then of course, because Hulk fans need to be shown they're character is superior, the regular Hulk defeats Red Hulk by discovering his weakness. Nope, guys like Iron Man, one of the smartest people in Marvel, or she Hulk, a smart person herself, couldn't figure it out. Instead the guy with the mental capacity of a five year old and behavior of a wild animal figured it out. Enter facepalm.

Since the Red Hulk's defeat, the book has been aimless. Before it was trying to discover who the Red Hulk was (evidence pointed to Doc Samson, but luckily they didn't make it that obvious) but now the story of who he really is seems to be completely irrelevant. And he keeps fighting the lady superheroes cause She Hulk wants revenge. Meanwhile Hulk keeps switching between banner, Hulk and Mr Fixit (his grey incarnation) and that plot doesn't seem to lead anywhere either. McGuinness is no longer drawing the title, so even that strength is gone.

So while the series started out entertaining yet faulty, its devolved into a jumbled mess with no aim at all.

I gave it a shot, but I think it's time to start saving the $2.99.

Some Thoughts From Invincible Iron Man #10

2009-02-09T20:16:00.003-05:00

Picking up the latest issue of Iron Man I came away a bit disappointed. It wasnt a bad issues, but it was an issue where bad things happen, and by that I dont mean bad things happen to our hero. I'm talking bad is in poorly thought out story. So if you havent gotten the issue yet, dont read because there are spoilers.

All the armors are being destroyed. Again
Seriously, how many times have all the armors been destroyed in one way, shape or form? Teen Tony blew them up so no one could get their hands on them. Then they were all destroyed during World War Hulk and trying to save the Hellicarrier from the Red Hulk. Then during Legacy of Doom Tony was melting them down. And again this arc will feature Tony sending Maria Hill to the various armories he has hidden around the world to prevent Norman Osborn from getting them. Even though he has all he needs from the ones left in Stark Tower (horrible writing on Bendis part as we all know Stark would have destroyed or shipped them out before anything). So honestly, how many more times are the armors going to be destroyed, especially since we know all of them are going to be coming back at some point in the future?

Iron Potts
Yes, that's right, Pepper now has her own Iron Man armor. Or would it be Iron Maiden? Regardless, Pepper has an armor and it's just so out of character for her. Bethany Cabe, yes, we can see that and she was fine in issue #300. But Pepper? I'm guessing at some point she is going to be bailed out by Iron Arbogast like Rhodey used to bail out Stark? I just cant see good things coming from this.

"The" Iron Man
Why in God's name does Fraction keep having everyone refer to it as "The Iron Man?" Its not a separate entity for gods sake. And worse, it's just plain annoying. Please stop.

Norman Osborn is already boring
Everything he does is so watered down that you cant possibly believe "geez, everyone is going to take his word for it?" But according to Marvel they are. I mean it's one thing we already know he's a bad guy, but there has yet to be one single convincing element of his rule that could possibly make you think anything but retarded monkeys are following him. Its like Marvel isnt even trying. Just being lazy and telling us to accept the story. Which of those two things is worse?

Someone please tell Larocca to draw Tony with a goatee
Nothing special, just draw him with the proper facial hair.

To be fair, the issue wasnt all that bad. So here are some of the pros:

The Stark-Hill Fling
In a way it was surprising, but we also knew it was coming. I mean, it is Stark. Fraction adds in some nice humor with it too.

The Hall of Armors did look cool
I admit: I'm a sucker for seeing a hall of armors. It's just cool to me, and I'm sure no one else gets sick of it.

Despite some short comings, I think Fraction gets Stark
He seems to have his personality down pretty good, and I am definitely seeing Tony do the things Fraction has him do. This is why I'm not giving up on Fraction (yet). Time will tell, but unlike most writers the past ten years, he seems to actually know who he is writing about.

A classic armor that isnt the Classic
I pointed this out in my last post, but i wanted to point it out again. It's nice to see Tony going to a more recent armor than digging all the way back to his early models. We're making progress.

Oh look, They FInally used...

2009-01-27T19:09:00.002-05:00

... a more recent armor in the Heroes Return model as a replacement for the current out-of-commission suit. I have to say, this is quite the break through for Marvel.

How many times have we seen the current model inactive for whatever reason, so Tony is forced to use an older model, 99% of the time which is the classic red and gold armor?

I mean yeah, we get it. It's the longest running armor in IM's history and was a novelty for most the period. But its so outdated even by the subsequent Silver Centurion you have to wonder why he would actually use it? Why not throw on the Modular, Heroes Reborn, Heroes Return, Grell armor etc?

We even saw this the most recently during Secret Invasion where he was forced to take off the extremis armor and comes back with the classic. And a little before that fighting the Mandarin with the classic. I've always thought this was a very over used gimmick.

So it's finally nice to see a more recent model used. I'd say it's a step in the right direction, but I have a feeling the next time the situation comes up the Classic is going to be back.

Is this Hypocrisy, or Just the Absence of Logic?

2009-01-19T21:22:00.003-05:00

Joe Q. You know my thoughts on him and they aren’t good. I don’t agree with a lot of the things he has done and I doubt I ever will. But more and more I realize his entire way of thinking is a contradiction. I’d say hypocritical, but I truly think he isn’t smart enough to realize it. He comes up with certain rules he wants the writers to follow, yet doesn’t realize that some of them are contradictions to others he makes. Let me explain.

Smoking is not ok
For those that don’t know, Joe Q banned any kind of smoking from appearing in comics, which is why we never see the likes of Wolverine or Nick Fury having a cigar anymore. He says it sets a bad example and can be a bad influence on younger readers. Really? Well, let me list a few things that are WORSE than smoking, but Joe Q finds perfectly alright to be in comics:
-Violence to solve disputes (pretty much every issue of every book)
-Slavery/conquering
-Drinking/alcoholism
-Intercourse/rape
-Racism (the whole mutant thing)
-Murder and genocide (take your pick)
-Incest (Ultimate Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch)

Any one of these are far worse than smoking is, yet are common themes in comics (except the last one). Am I the only one scratching their head on this?

Realism is key
Joe Q stresses realism. Why? Seriously, why? Comics are not about realism. Yes, there has to be a certain amount so that readers can relate, but he wants just about everything to be real. So let me get this straight: you are the editor in chief of a comic book company, which revolves around fiction, science fiction and fantasy, on things that CAN’T POSSIBLY HAPPEN IN THE REAL WORLD, yet he wants things be as real as possible? I mean, Tony Stark uses the most advanced technology on the planet for his Iron Man armor, supplies SHIELD with their weapons and technology, yet they still fly F-15’s? Am I the only person so utterly confused by this?

No more notes for past issues
But retconning things is ok. How can you say that a writer is not allowed to put an * and a note to show a plot line that happened in a past issue, yet instead you allow them to just wipe the story out?

Actually, now that I think of this, it makes perfect sense. Seeing as how the current writer is ignoring what the past writer did, there is no continuity and thus having the note on the past issue wouldn’t make sense. Well, guess you can strike one up for Joe Q there.

Writers and editors personal opinions mean more than the fans
Look at Spiderman with Brand New Day and Iron Man the last few years. Fans have hated the things that have happened, yet what is Marvel’s response to these fan criticisms? “Well, we think it’s good.” I got news for you Joe, the fans buy the comics and pay your salary. They’ll only tolerate your selfishness for so long.

I could probably go into a long drawn out diatribe, but I just wanted to point these few things out. I mean these things just don’t make sense to me. It’s like some twisted form of reverse logic that is anything but. If you can make sense of it, please tell me.

5 Ways to Instantly Improve Comics

2009-01-05T19:00:00.002-05:00

When I was younger the only thing that really made a comic good to me was the action, thrill and neatness. I didn’t need a deep story, or some underlying issue or personal relationships. I just wanted something fun. And while I still want those in my comics, I have grown to appreciate the sub plots, relationships and all the other deep things that can be included. However, being older and wiser you also catch on to more things that make the comics a lot worse. And some f these problems are easily fixed, yet are stubbornly clung to.

To this end, I’ve gone and picked what I consider the five most prevalent things about comics that could easily be changed that would makes current comics multitudes better than they are now.

Less Emphasis on Shock Value/Impact
It seems every story now is written to either end in a major shocker or have a long lasting, major impact on the title. And I’m not talking the major events where it is expected, I’m talking regular character or team titles. It’s not that there is anything wrong with shock value or major impact per se, but it’s when it becomes the main intent that it turns into a problem. Honestly, when is the last time an X-Men arc was written that didn’t have some major impact on the future of Mutant kind? I’m not saying take both these elements out of comics, but writers need to lay off because it seems they are more interested in impressing their readers than actually telling them a good story.

Lay off the Dark and Foreboding Stories
Like above, it’s not a bad thing until you start doing it all the time, which is exactly what is happening. I get that “dark” is in, but why does every story have to be that way? During the entire Volume 4 or Volume 5 runs of Iron Man, has there been one story that has portrayed a sense of happiness, or some bright future ahead? Execute Program, Haunted, Five Nightmares, they’ve all had a dark and depressing tone. Comics are becoming like the news: gloom and doom. I mean, give us something to smile and cheer about for once.

Brighter Colors
Just like the stories, the colors have become more muted and darker to help get the mood across. I cannot tell you how much I loved the colors in Iron Man: Legacy of Doom because they were so bright and vibrant, and added a sense of life to the series. That’s rarely seen anymore. Bright and deep colors really give a sense of life to comics, I don't know how that’s become forgotten.

Less Politics
Seriously, people don't buy comics for politics. I don't want to know the writers opinion on serious matter x, nor do I care even if you tell me. Some politics is fine, but when it’s a major chunk of the story (i.e. Civil War) the arc takes a huge nosedive. Honestly, why would the readers care? We don't buy comics for that. In fact, we buy comics to get away from that stuff. And worse, we have to sit by and read a story that’s geared to the writer’s personal feelings, so it’s not even going o be unbiased.

That Thing Called “Continuity”
Taken directly from Webster’s Dictionary:
1 a: uninterrupted connection, succession, or union b: uninterrupted duration or continuation especially without essential change.

Let me highlight the important part for any of you who actually write for Marvel Comics:
1 a: uninterrupted connection, succession, or union b: uninterrupted duration or continuation especially without essential change.

In other words: STOP RETCONNING EVERYTHING!!!

My Five Holiday Wishes for Iron Man

2008-12-30T20:38:00.003-05:00

A bit late, but I figured it was still relevant since we have another day in the holiday season. But like everyone, I have my wishes for things to happen for Iron Man in comics. And while it looks like I'm getting one long time wish of extremis being eliminated, I still have a few others. So here are the five things I wish most for Iron Man (in no particular order):

1) New Armor
I don't hide my dislike for the extremis armor. Its neither streamlined nor complicated, seeming unable to decide which is wants to be. The faceplate makes him look alien, and there is nothing special about this armor at all, aesthetic or technical. Its time for a next generation armor that looks cool and actually performs good to, unlike the extremis.

2) A New Colorist
Another pet peeve of mine. I really disliked the colorist during the Knauf's run on DOS, and I don't care much for the current colorist on the Invincible series. I've seen Larocca's work in the past, and it's much better than this. The current color makes his art look very flat and 2D, and every person seems to have a pudgy face. Just look at the Legacy of Doom series and you can see what a good colorist(s) can do for someones art.

3) Rhodey to Lose the Terminator Crap
Not really Iron Man, but Rhodey is easily the best supporting character in his history, and even he has gotten the shaft. His torso and half his face are all that's left of his organic body, and it's just plain stupid and serves no purpose. So here's to a return of the real Rhodey.

4) Be the Hero Of Dark Reign
Yeah, I know, it's not happening. I'm sure he'll be blamed even more at the end of it. Marvel will somehow make it his fault. Again.

5) Marvel to Treat Iron Man Right
I don't think this is too much to ask. For three major events in a row Iron Man has been blamed, and done so deliberately without even good excuses. He's been written out of character to do it too, adding insult to injury. At my comic book shop the other day I was talking to one of the workers who is a Spiderman fan and doesn't pay attention to Iron Man much. But he even said he's sick of them stretching to blame Iron Man for everything and it's to the point of ridiculous. I'm sorry, but when even a non fan thinks the character is being crapped on this much it's a sad state of affairs.

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-22T21:49:00.002-05:00

Sorry, no real upate this week, way to busy with life.

Hope everyone has a happy holiday season though.

Extremis is Gone

2008-12-16T22:34:00.002-05:00

So if you have missed some recent interviews with Matt Fraction, extremis is gone.

Thank god.

I have detested this since it appeared. Now, thats not to say extremis in itself is bad. Its a good idea especially if used properly. The problem is its so ill-fitted to Stark it becomes a terrible plot device.

One of the main premises to Tony Stark is he's a man. Intelligent, suave, rich. Yes, all of those. But deep down he's human just like you and me. In a way we want to be him, but in a way we would be too afraid to be. And that humanity is what extremis took away, and his quote at the end of Bias Political Commentary (Civil War according to Marvel) of "you know what it took to make me human again? War." shows that.

But now its gone because of the Skrulls infecting Starktech.

Yes, even though Extremis isnt Stark tech, it somehow is linked and is malfunctioning. An upcoming issue is solicited as Stark trying to erase something and it might kill him, the cover showing his head with a bunch of tubes going into it. One would think this is the issue where extremis is finally out of his body as he continues to operate the suit which needs extremis.

The plot device to get rid of it sounds a bit weak, but frankly I'm glad its gone one way or another. I felt this has dragged the character down and ripped out a major element that makes him so unique.

Secret Invasion: Iron Man Gets Screwed. Again.

2008-12-09T20:04:00.003-05:00

Sigh. I'm amazed at Marvel. Not that they completely screwed up the ending of Secret Invasion by making it utterly predictable and lame, but once again they screwed over Iron Man.

Thor saying "I abhor what you've become" ??? Are you serious? Like him or not, Stark has always done what he's thought right, and you cant say the same for Thor, who has shown moral lacking on more than one occasion. And Bucky turning his back on him? The guy that let him be Captain America (against Steve Rogers wishes) and looked after him just goes and turns his back on Tony for no reason?

I mean, what the hell is wrong with Marvel? Why do they feel the need to screw over Stark every major event?

Civil war and Cap's death? Stark was the head for pro registration, so his fault.

World War Hulk? It was his idea to shoot Hulk into space (along with the other Illuminati), but only he gets blamed.

Secret Invasion? Despite the Skrulls infiltrating before Stark was even head of Shield, somehow he should have known. Despite that no other hero on the planet knew, Stark should have known. Despite Shield itself was infested with Skrulls keeping their presence a secret, he should have known. Despite all the Illuminati agreeing to preempt the Skrulls, it was just him who did it.

Oh yeah, and of all the Illuminati who knew when Stark brought them the body of Elektra, Stark was THE ONLY ONE WHO TRIED TO DO A DAMN THING ABOUT IT.

But that doesnt matter. It's Stark's fault.

I have to say, I'm really tired of this crap Marvel keeps pulling. What in god's name do they have against Stark that they have made him the punching bag and scapegoat for the last four years? This is so god damned petty and forced it's ridiculous.

Seriously, Marvel needs to grow up and stop shitting on the character, who they purposefully turned into an asshole by not correctly writing him.

Way to go Marvel, you again prove how childish and idiotic you truly are. You cant even bring yourself to crap all over someone else.

Then again, when you have an idiot like Joe Q in charge, does this really surprise anyone?

Mutant Powers Through Suits

2008-12-01T19:15:00.001-05:00

Am I the only one who finds this idea incredibly stupid? I am seeing this more and more as a way to “re-power” mutants after they were “de-powered” during the events of M-Day.

Now I understand why they went and took a lot of mutants powers away. There were too many and soon the Earth was going to be overrun. It may be a Dues Ex Machina, but honestly, it was one that was actually good for once.

But like anything, there are ups and downs. The downs being that many mutants who were the stable of stories (Magneto being the biggest one), now are no longer powered and hence little to no threat at all. So like the good writers they are at Marvel they work around this and come up with new characters right?

Haha, sure. Like we could actually expect that of Marvel. Why work around something when you can just come up with a way to ignore it? And that’s exactly what they’ve done by giving de-powered mutants suits that give them their powers back, at least to a degree.

Sigh. Yet again Marvel writers go for a cop out rather than actually taking the time and thought to work around something. But you know, maybe it’s not just laziness. What if the writers just aren’t good enough to get around it? Maybe they actually can’t think of a way to build around a story that wasn’t there doing.

Plus, it’s almost like they are admitting they made a mistake. Like they thought it was a good idea at the time but once they saw the consequences, went “aw shit!” and just came up with something really lame.

And here’s another thing. If these mutants are getting their hands on a suit that can simulate their powers, what’s stopping the likes of Shield or Dr Doom from getting it and making vast armies of people with these suits? I mean if someone can create a suit that can simulate powers as great as Magneto’s, wouldn’t every military organization want to get their hands on it? Now that I think of it, it would be kind of like the What If issue where Stark went public with his Iron Man technology.

I don't like this idea. It screams laziness and incompetence to me. But until they just retcon or do another Deus Ex Machina to reverse the de-powering we’re just going to see more of it.

Iron Man's Fate at the End of Secret Invasion?

2008-11-24T19:17:00.006-05:00

I think we're all wondering what it is. And frankly, I have no idea where it is going to go. But I do know this: I dont feel comfortable with it.

Right now things are set up for Iron Man to be the hero. The Wasp is now a living bomb and has caught the heroes and Skrulls in some sort of energy field. Iron Man flew back to Stark Tower to get a new armor because his was about to fall apart. But it also means he's not caught in the energy field holding the other Earth heroes (and villains) captive.

Now, part of me wants to say Tony grabs a new armor, discovers Jarvis is a Skrull, says "you're fired" while lasting him with a repulsor saving Luke Cage's baby. He then flies in, grabs the Wasp and lifts her out of the atmosphere where she explodes (but he is out of the blast range), thereby saving the day, being the hero and getting rid of a crappy character in the Wasp.

But it sounds too good to be true. And that's why I dont think it will happen.

Marvel is keeping things under wraps, not even local comic shops have the images for post SI covers, meaning some real nasty stuff is probably going to happen.

One of the few things we know of in SI's wake are the Dark Avengers, who's picture (albeit shadowed" can be seen here:

Who it seems in that picture are Ms Marvel in her original red costume; Spiderman in his black costume, possibly even re-attached to the symbiote, Hawkeye who you'll remember grabbed the Young Avenger by the same name's bow and arrow and starting killing a bunch of Skrulls, and finally Wolverine in what appears to be his old brown costume.

The guy in the Iron Man armor? The only thing we know is he's called the Iron Patriot, and Marvel said the questions people should be asking is "who is the Iron Patriot?" (again, that worries me). He's got an armor that looks like Iron Man's but with a red, white and blue paint scheme. That's it. It may be Stark, it may be the current Captain America Bucky Barnes, or it could even be the return of Steve Rogers (possibly not fully healed from his wounds and needing the armor)? We just dont know, and no one at Marvel is talking.

We also dont know much what Dark Reign is going to be about, only it deals with the fallout of SI. It's widely speculated the villains take over, even if for a short time, following the possible decimation of Earth's heroes during the invasion. The Dark Avengers may be an underground team fighting to free the world from the villains control. Are they a team that works for the villains? They may be the characters we know whose personalities were changed due to the Wasp's energy field.

Guesses, guesses, guesses. That's all we've got.

Sadly, the way Iron Man has been treated over the last few events, not to mention how disappointing those events were (remember, a crappy ending can kill a story no matter how good the rest is), I just have a bad feeling us Iron Man fans are going to hate how this ends.

Let's hope I'm wrong and Stark comes out as the big hero after all is said and done.