November 16, 2006
Iron Man Clusterfuck in New Avengers 25
WARNING: Spoilers about the end of Civil War are in this post.
You know what pushes my hot button? When it seems like comics writers haven't read anything about their characters. You don't have to be a slave to continuity, but shouldn't you at least fucking pay attention to some basic tenants? New Avengers 25 is about an ex-Stark employee who shuts down Stark Tower and Iron Man's armor. That would be fine, if Tony Stark gave the Iron Man designs to a division of geeks and said, "Here, go build this while I screw Salma Hayek!" Except that he didn't. Every Iron Man story where a new set of armor was built had Stark doing the whole project alone. While it seems impossible, Stark did have a freakin' laboratory and manufacturing center in his mansion--he's as rich as Bill Gates in the Marvel Universe. Stark's current armor is tied to the Extremis nanobot technology that Warren Ellis conceived. This idea would have worked better if Maya Hansen (the Extremis designer) figured out the weakness in her invention and attacked Stark. So, even though this issue features terrific artwork by Jimmy Chueng and witty dialogue by Bendis, I flub the entire foundation of this story.
Here's one good thing about New Avengers 25: Maria Hill is less of a bitch and more of a well rounded character. I liked her for the first time. Bendis does write good women characters. The ending proves that Rich Johnston's scoop from a couple of weeks ago was correct: when Civil War is over, Tony Stark will be the new director of S.H.I.E.L.D. (click on the above image to expand it). Johnston says the above image is the cover to Iron Man #15. Marvel's own solicitations reveal that She-Hulk will be joining S.H.I.E.L.D. in her own series. As I've said before, I just can't imagine Tony Stark working for the government, but let's see what they do with the concept. How can he run S.H.I.E.L.D. and lead the Mighty Avengers at the same time? Nuff said.
October 18, 2006
Armor Wars: Iron Man Rebels With a Cause
David Micheline and Bob Layton sent the standard for Iron Man stories back in the 70s and 80s. They fleshed out Tony Stark's corporate world (featuring corporate espionage and villains like Justin Hammer, Spymaster) and personal life (girlfriend Bethany Cabe and bodyguard Jim "Rhodey" Rhodes). The classic "Demon in a Bottle" storyline, which told the story of Tony Stark grappling with an addiction to alcohol, will always remain the high point of the Iron Man mythos (no matter what Joe Quesada says). I believe the forthcoming Iron Man movie by Jon Favreau will borrow many of these concepts. Micheline and Layton's first Iron Man (116-153) run ended in 1981. They returned in 1987 to kick off a second historic run (215-250), which included my second-favorite Iron Man storyline of all time.
"Stark Wars" (later re-named Armor Wars) ran through Iron Man 225-232 (volume 1, 1987). The war begins after Stark examines the armor of a former adversary called Force (who went straight in the previous issue). Upon close inspection of the circuitry, Stark discovers that his own technology was powering Force's armor. Since he had never published or patented the designs for the Iron Man armor, Stark thought it was in safe hands--but a villain called Spymaster had stolen Stark's designs and sold them to evil industrialist Justin Hammer. Hammer in turn used these designs to power the armor of numerous super-villains. It infuriates Stark to think of innocent people suffering from something he created. After making every effort to stop them legally, Stark makes a list of these guys (Controller, Beetle, Stilt-Man, Titanium Man, Crimson Dynamo) and goes after them one by one.
Stark's resolve to eliminate all outside use of his technology goes beyond attacking third-tier super-villains. He decides that even the government can't be trusted with it. As long as a government-sanctioned agent uses a variation of his armor, there's always the possibility that Justin Hammer will steal it. At the end of Iron Man 225, Stark makes a declaration: "...with the government's support, or its hindrance...by the law or against it...I'm going to get back what's mine. And Heaven help ANYONE who gets in my way!"
This includes the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D., and Nick Fury. In Iron Man 226, Stark believes the Avenger called Stingray has Stark-related components in his armor. After a battle that leaves Stingray unconscious, Stark discovers that his information was incorrect. The world believes that Iron Man is a renegade, and Stark publicly fires Iron Man on national television. Iron Man 227 features a terrific battle between Stark and five S.H.I.E.L.D. sanctioned Mandroids that were built with Stark's technology. (I had been waiting to see such a fight ever since Avengers 94!) Stark outwits Fury and sets up an ambush against under the S.H.I.E.L.D. directors nose. You have to wonder why Fury is clueless about Stark's secret identity when Steve Rogers knows the truth.
And speaking of Captain America, Civil War isn't the first time he has come to blows with Iron Man. Armor Wars tore his relationship with Tony Stark to pieces and it was years before they trusted each other again. In this case, it was the inverse of Civil War. Tony Stark was the rebel with a cause, while Steve Rogers backed the government's right to use Stark's technology for self-defense. This all came to a head in Iron Man 228, when Steve Rogers appeared in a new costume as "The Captain" (having briefly quit his job as Captain America).
Iron Man invaded a government facility called The Vault (where the most dangerous super-villains were interred) to neutralize the armor of the Guardsmen. Stark attacked the Vault despite Steve Rogers asking him to back off. When the Captain showed up, Stark paralyzed him with an electrical charge--while his back was turned!
Now what recent event does that remind you of? Cap's sneak attack in Civil War #3! He paralyzes Iron Man's armor with an electron scrambler. It makes me wonder if Mark Millar has read Armor Wars and just reversed the situation.
Enough of the crappy present, let's go back to Armor Wars. Stark's paralyzed his good buddy Steve Rogers, who fixes Stark with a steely gaze as he prepares to destroy the Guardsmen armor.
It's a historic moment that was captured with the reflection of the Captain's face on Iron Man's helmet. This could doubtlessly be better executed today with computer effects, but for 1987, it was very well done. Steve Rogers later went after Tony Stark in Captain America 341, which ended in an temporary truce between the heroes. Years later, they kissed and made up, which I am predicting will eventually happen after Civil Wars is over--though it may take years!
Armor Wars ended with a bang. After Stark seemingly causes the death of the Gremlin (who unwisely decided to operate Titanium Man's armor) in Russia, the military sends an armored agent called Firepower after Iron Man. Firepower is an enormous battle suit, equipped with heat seaking missiles and mini-nukes. Iron Man seemingly perishes in battle with Firepower, but it's only a ruse to make the government believe that Stark's former agent is now dead. Stark seems resolved to give up his secret identity for good, but when Firepower rages out of control, he builds a new suit of armor and takes up the Avenging life again.
The outside world (even the Avengers for a time) believed that a new Stark Industries employee has taken the mantle of Iron Man. When he rejoined the Avengers West Coast, they treated him suspiciously until he proved himself once again. The splash page of AWC 54 has Iron Man facing down his comrades and thinking, "maybe this wasn't such a bright idea after all!"
Armor Wars is about to be reprinted again in a TPB from Marvel in early 2007, and it will include the epilogue issue drawn by Barry Windsor Smith. It's essentially a dream sequence where Tony Stark is tormented by visions of the people his technology has killed over the years. But man, Barry Smith draws a technological hell better than anyone! In re-reading these comics, I was struck by the similarities with Civil War, but also with the differences in modern vs classic storytelling. Each issue of Armor Wars packs a good amount of story, with dense layers of plot. I think I can read any issue of most modern comics in less than five minutes, where it took me 10-15 minutes for these back issues. Great stuff, and if you want more classic Iron Man goodness, check out Bob Layton's site below. Nuff said.
External Link:
Bob Layton's Web Site
Continue reading "Armor Wars: Iron Man Rebels With a Cause" »
Posted by Kid Flash at 4:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)October 4, 2006
Tony Stark’s Civil War Crossing Over?
I've written before about how illogical Reed Richards and Tony Stark are acting during the Civil War. Straczynski seems to be hell-bent on casting them both as major Republican assholes, especially in last week's Amazing Spider-Man #535. Tony Stark went from father figure to adversary in twenty two pages. First, he threatened Peter while touring the Negative Zone super-prison: "But I agree with you on one thing, Peter. It would be a terrible thing. To be here. For the rest of one's life." Second, he makes a veiled threat that Aunt May and Mary Jane safety depends on Peter's loyalty. Finally, when Peter does try to escape Stark's Tower with his family, Stark attacks him in full Iron Man gear. And the worst thing is-Peter really hasn't committed any crime whatsoever!
We've seen Tony Stark act in this totally over-the-top evil way before, during Avengers: The Crossing, published in 1995. In that series, Stark killed two people in Avengers Mansion and eventually "died" himself. A time-displaced younger version of Tony Stark from an alternate reality became Iron Man. This all went away after Heroes Reborn and it was all kind of swept under the rug when Heroes Return occurred. There's some speculation on message boards that the Civil War Tony Stark is the one from The Crossing. Yet another theory postulates that Stark has been driven insane by the Extremis nano technology.
I can't buy into this, because it wouldn't explain Reed's bizarre behavior. In the last panel of this week's Fantastic Four #540, Reed sings a lyric from the Tom Lehrer song about Wernher von Braun. The song was meant to a satirical view of the ex-Nazi scientist who contributed to the NASA space program. Supposedly it's made up of real quotes from the scientist. Why is Reed singing it? He must have gone off the deep end to let a deep dish like Sue Richards fly the coop. Nuff said.
July 2, 2006
Civil War: Where Have All the Heroes Gone?
Unless Civil War does turn out to have a mind-warping villain behind the whole enchilada (such as Hate-Monger), one thing is for certain: most of the heroes in the Marvel Universe will never be the same. For a lot of them, it means they will no longer be the same set of heroes that grew up in the counter-culture of the 60s and the 70s. Instead, they've joined the Neo-Cons in the Republican Party. Witness Straczynski's recent comments about how he views Reed Richards:
...when asked about Reed Richards' motivation for joining the pro-registration side in Civil War, Straczynski said that in an upcoming issue, he has Peter Parker ask Reed that very question. As Straczynski related, Reed tells Peter about his uncle, who was a writer and creator, and was caught up in a McCarthy-esque witch hunt, and as a result, was jailed and saw his career destroyed. When Peter expresses his feelings of how horrible that must have been for Reed's uncle, Mr. Fantastic says it was, but the law is the law is the law, and his uncle was wrong for not cooperating with the government - a stance by Reed which Peter finds unsettling.
Wow. This ain't the same dude I grew up reading. I remember when Reed Richards stole rocket ships from NASA and helped Bruce Banner evade federal strike teams. A few years ago Richards even defied the US government and S.H.I.E.L.D. by invading Latveria and taking control of the country while Doom was in another dimension (during Mark Waid's run).
Straczynski and the current Marvel Bullpen obviously don't share my history of Tony Stark. Stark became one of the greatest anti-authority figures when he had Stark Industries pull out of weapons manufacturing during the Vietnam War. When he discovered that S.H.I.E.L.D. and other agencies had stolen his Iron Man technology, Stark attacked them mercilessly during the Armor Wars. Suddenly overnight, Stark not only agrees with the government (because they are aligned with his futuristic projections), but he becomes their lapdog to the point where he's hunting down Captain America? I don't grok it unless he's being mind-controlled.
We also see Stark making a deal with Titanium Man in Amazing Spider-Man 531 to manipulate both Congress and Peter Parker. I have some suspicion about Stark confronting Logan in Wolverine #43 during the hunt for Nitro--clearly, he wants Logan to drop out. He almost seems afraid of Logan--the best he is at what he does--finding the villain. Later, after a pretty cool fight (where Logan becomes a skeleton), we see Nitro calling his mysterious benefactor on a cell phone, arranging for transport to another hiding place. I suspect that Stark is the one behind Nitro's school-bus accident and his escape. I hope this is wrong. If it isn't, I'm having a sense of deja-vu over the Avengers Vol. 1 story "The Crossing" where Stark became evil and actually killed a few associates. It took a couple of years for this to get undone during the "Heroes Reborn" event.
No matter what happens, Iron Man is the character that Joe Quesada understands the least. He has a perfect blueprint for Iron Man stories--it can be seen in the work of Micheline/Layton, Busiek/Chen, and even in the recent mini-series by Joe Casey, Iron Man: Inevitable. Warren Ellis' Extremis story pointed the character in a new direction with lots of potential. Why is it all being thrown away? I have to think that Quesada is just baffled by Tony Stark--witness his own attempt at writing Iron Man when he tried a very tired storyline--having Stark's armor develop artificial intelligence and rebelling against his creator. Quesada said the current Iron Man story is the new defining moment for the character, replacing the Micheline/Layton "Demon In A Bottle" arc. I don't think so. It's one thing to take an established character and give them new personal problems, rather them making them commit actions that violate their character. I found this user comment from Stephen, on my Spider-Man No More post very insightful:
I think the test of whether or not a person can write comics well is not what they do if they completely ignore all the traditions of the character and create their own thing, its whether or nor they can still write something interesting that when they adhere to the traditions. Anybody can take a wrecking ball to a popular character (Miller's All Star Batman, Stracynski's Spidey stunt)and call it "creativity." Let's see them try to write within the confines of what's been established like the rest of the writers out there and then see how creative they are.
How true. Alan Moore deconstructred the superhero mythology in Miracleman and Watchmen, two franchises he had direct control over. Yet when it came to writing Superman in "For The Man Who Has Everything" and "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow", Moore adhered to the concept of the character and the rules of his universe. And it didn't seem old fashioned or square, but the coolest thing in the world. Marvel heroes need change, I agree, and it's cool to see them fight each other again--but do they need to violate 40 years of character in order to do that? Nuff said.
Posted by Adam Warlock at 12:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)March 30, 2006
Is That a Skrull, or Is He Really Tony Stark?
New Avengers Illuminati has us loving to hate Brian Michael Bendis all over again. Actually, I think we should hate JMS and Mark Millar, who probably blackmailed Bendis into including their stupid plot points into this special. The scene that I object to is the one above, where Tony Stark tells the other leaders that they should kowtow to the U.S. government's superhero registration act. Never mind that this really makes no sense to everyone assembled. Reed Richards has no secret identity as Mr. Fantastic. Dr. Strange doesn't wear a mask. Namor and Black Bolt not only are public figures, they are rulers of their own countries, so why would they give a fuck? But I just can't see Tony Stark telling them they have to "roll over" (in Namor's words) to the government. It's completely out of character.
Tony Stark is the dude that went after the government in a big way during the first Armor Wars. He discovered that his technology had been stolen and was being used in armor by various individuals and groups. Three of them worked for the government: the Mandroids (S.H.I.E.L.D.), the Guardsmen, and Stingray. In the scene above, Stark pulls the wool over Nick Fury's eyes long enough to hack into S.H.I.E.L.Ds database to get the lowdown on the Mandroids. Stark's very origin is counter-culture in a way: born out of the Vietnam war, vowing never to allow his technology to be used by a government to kill people.
This is a paradigm shift in the way that Marvel's current crop of writers see this character. I have a feeling they must equate it with big business. Sheesh.
There is one thing I loved about this Illuminati special: Namor. He's wearing my favorite costume that just makes him look regal, and he's so full of piss and vinegar. It makes me year to see a Namor comic written by Bendis. How weird would that be? Nuff said.
Posted by Adam Warlock at 8:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)January 9, 2006
Tony Stark and Rhodey, just a couple of buds getting high
During my Iron Man origin story research, I came across this bit of fun in Iron Man #144 (Volume 1). Written by Iron-scribe David Micheline and co-plotted by Bob Layton, it featured one of those Vietnam flashbacks into Tony Stark's first appearance as Shellhead. But with a difference-this story concentrates on what happened after Tony escaped General Chu's army. How did he get back to Saigon?
He meets Rhodey. For those of you under 18, his full name is Jim Rhodes and later on he became Tony's best friend, the second person ever to become Iron Man, and eventually the new hero called War Machine. At this point in time, he's just a helicopter pilot trying to survive the war. And just how does he survive?
Yeah, by rolling a joint and getting high! Tony's try to play it cool and pretend Iron Man is another fella. Meanwhile, he really wants a puff. Almost getting killed in the jungle is a good excuse to get stoned, if you ask me.
Unfortunately, those iron mitts aren't built for smoking. Tony crushes it and just has to deal with reality. I can't believe this made it through Marvel editorial. Would it pass through today? Maybe.
It does give Rhodey a kick in the butt to make it back to Saigon, where he makes the best friend he could ever have. Who wouldn't want to be Tony Stark's wingman when he goes out cruising for babes? I liked Rhodey. I liked Bethany Cabe, too. Nuff said.
Posted by Kid Flash at 12:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)January 8, 2006
Iron Man #5 and Reinventing Shellhead
Iron Man #5 (by Warren Ellis and Ari Granov) came out this week. My records indicate that issue #4 came out around August; I don't know if this is really true but it was a long time ago! The series is hurt by these delays, as the story structure is decompressed storytelling at its peak. Issue #1 sets up the new villain (a terrorist injected with Extremis nanotechnology) and Tony Stark takes a ride in his Iron Man armor. Issue #2 has Tony taking a trip to see an old friend while the terrorist starts killing people. Issue #3 they fight. Issue #4, Iron Man is critically injured when the terrorist drops a car on him. And in the latest issue, we get to the meat of the story--Tony undergoes a dramatic change in order to survive. I'm not a big fan of decompressed storytelling, but this particular tale has me hooked (although I'd advise anyone to wait for the trade). Ellis' new technology for Iron Man is fascinating to me for a few reasons. One, throughout the last 40 years, there's been a constant need to make Tony Stark's life depend on technology. Two, Ellis is competing with Orson Scott Card, who has revamped the Ultimate version of Iron Man.
Way back in Tales of Suspense 39 (the first appearance of Iron Man), Stan Lee wrote the classic origin. While Tony Stark is visiting Vietnam (working with military on new weapons), he steps on a landmine and gets captured by the Vietcong. A piece of shrapnel is lodged near his heart. General Wong Chu tells Stark to build him a new weapon and in return, he'll save Stark's life. Yeah, right, buddy, you just gave Stark free access to a lab--he's going to kick your butt! This was how that scene looked when it was drawn by Don Heck, but it's constantly been retold and revamped through the ages.
Archie Goodwin and Gene Colan recapped the origin in Iron Man #1 a few years later. Tony was helped by Professor Ho Yinsen to build the first Iron Man armor. Not only would it help Tony kick butt, it would keep him alive by stabilizing his heart beat. Kind of like a pacemaker, which didn't exist in such a small form in the 1960s.
Kurt Busiek and Sean Chen also revisited this scene in Iron Man #1, volume 3. Pretty much the same story. Tony's dependence on the armor to keep his heart beating was a useful plot device. He would fight a baddie, get his power depleted, and limp over to Avengers Mansion, where Jarvis would plug his chestplate in for a battery recharge.
Flash forward to 2005, with Ellis and Granov's version of the origin in Iron Man #5, volume 4. This updates the origin, getting us out of Vietnam and into the Afghanistan invasion. Marvel time, ain't it great! As we saw previously in issue #1, Stark was injured in Afghanistan while working with the military. The twist is that he was injured by one of his own landmines. He's taken prisoner by Al Qaeda, but we don't see a General, Bin Laden, or anyone in charge. His predicament is explained by Ho Yinsen, who again helps him build the armor that will save his life. Pretty incredible that the terrorists leave those guys the fuck alone for hours or days to build this incredible weapon!
What happens when puts on this armor for the first time? In the Stan Lee version, he falls down and stumbles before he gets good feel for it. Professor Yinsen distracts the Vietcong and gets killed while Stark is getting his act together.
In the Ellis version, it's time for revenge. His armor still resembles the grey prototype from Tales of Suspense 39. Presumably because the room that Stark and Yinsen were in had old computers and outdated electronics. We don't really see Yinsen get killed in this version, maybe he's still alive.
Even though Ellis has updated the origin, we still have to assume that some of the pre-existing continuity is still intact. What happened to that pesky shrapnel in Stark's heart? It was removed and Stark's heart was repaired with artificial tissue. Archie Goodwin wrote this issue, but later on, many other writers regretted losing this device.
David Micheline and Bob Layton were one of the greatest creative teams on Iron Man, serving two stints on the book (116-157 and 215-250). Tony Stark became a hedonistic playboy, resembling a modern day Richie Rich with his vehicles, mansions, and babes. One of the women, Kathy Dare, couldn't get over being dumped and shot Tony in issue 242 (volume 1). The bullet grazed Tony's spinal cord and left him unable to walk. But he could walk and fly--as Iron Man! He got an operation in issue 248, where a microchip implanted into his spine allowed Tony to walk again. Later, this chip was hacked and it caused Tony to be trapped inside the Iron Man armor.
In the Ellis version, we also have to assume that Tony's shrapnel situation has been resolved. He gets pretty banged up during the fight with the Extremis terrorist. It's so bad he can't lift a bloody car off his chest. Stark is seriously injured. Whatcha gonna do?
Tony works with the scientist who helped create the Extremis nanotechnology, who just happens to be an old girlfriend. He gets shot up with a specially configured dose of this Extremis goo, and he becomes a living, breathing nano-machine. I don't want to show it here and spoil it, because it's rather cool. Suffice to say that Tony's life is intertwined with the tech and the Iron Man armor will now once again fit into a briefcase. Although I didn't see a Tivo in there.
Now here's the interesting part. At the same time that Ellis is revamping old Marvel Universe Iron Man, Orson Scott Card is doing the same thing for Ultimate Iron Man. Card just throws out that business about being in a war and captured by terrorists. He looks at the problem with Tony Stark needing technology to save his life. Card asks, why wasn't it that way from the beginning? We see how Howard Stark, Tony's father, developed a nano bio-armor that protects the wearer from physical harm. His mother, Maria, is working on a regeneration virus that will help missing limbs grow back. She's accidentally infected with the virus while pregnant with Tony. On a fetus, the virus causes Tony's neural tissue to develop at an advanced rate. Tony will be a super-genius kid, but his skin will feel like a bad third degree burn. Right after he's born (and his mother dies), Howard pours the bio-armor over the baby to protect him. Tony has to wear the bio-armor everyday for the rest of his life!
So which origin is cooler, Ellis or Card's? I like what Ellis is doing, but Card's premise is such a departure that I love it. Maybe I'm just a sucker for super-smart kids like in Ender's Game and I love seeing that with Tony Stark. I'm not yet sure why a regeneration virus can grow back Tony's foot in issue 3, but it can't fix his burning skin or his brain tumor in the Ultimates. We are still in the early stages of both revamps, so it will be interesting to see where they go from here. Nuff said.
Posted by Kid Flash at 1:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)December 27, 2005
She-Hulk 100 cover an homage to Starlin
Earlier this month I wrote about the greatness of She-Hulk, written by Dan Slott. This week She-Hulk 100 goes on sale, 100 pages of material for $3.99. Newsarama has an interview with Slott about the issue. There's a great double page spread by Mike Mayhew that depicts She-Hulk in various costumes (I love the 80s leg warmers) getting replaced through history by the Time Variance Authority. Slott is correct, that will make a great Windows desktop.
No doubt by now you have seen the cover to She Hulk 100. This is painted by Greg Horn, who mentions it here on his site.
As Horn says, this cover is really an homage to Jim Starlin's classic Iron Man 100 cover. Starlin drew this cover in 1977 for Shellhead's anniversary, and I thought it was the single best Iron Man drawing I had ever seen. The interior work by George Tuska was decent but it couldn't match Starlin's depiction. I wished for many years in vain that Starlin would one day write or draw Iron Man.
I hope that the interior of She Hulk 100 will mention that the cover was inspired by Jim Starlin. I've seen a lot of classic covers re-painted and no mention of the original source. Back in the 80s, I remember Walt Simonson getting pissed because Art Adams had taken a Kirby Thor drawing as his inspiration for an X-Men annual cover (with Storm in place of Thor). He made a good point in the trade magazines, that original artists need to be credited. Nuff said.
Posted by Adam Warlock at 6:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
