Iron Man #15
Writers: Daniel & Charles Knauf
Artists: Roberto de la Torre & Jonathan Sibal
Warning: This may spoil the end of Civil War #7 if you haven't read it yet, though the last issue of Iron Man pointed towards this.
Still here? Ok. Tony Stark is now director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and this issue, rather than jump into the 50 - State Initiative looks at the director's other duties, like stopping terrorist attacks. The issue is a conversation between Dum Dum Dugan (who I thought died in Wolverine Origins) and his superior at the Pentagon. Dugan is complaing about Stark's methods, how he is treating it like a Super-hero team and a company, rather than a military division. Stark puts in a suggestion box on the Helicarrier, gets rid of the officer's club so he can spend more money on the enlisted men's cafeteria, and has a day care center for the children when the ship is in port. How the helicarrier enters port, I have no clue. As this conversation goes on, we see Tony leading S.H.I.E.L.D. not as a commanding officer but as a friendly mentor. He oversees missions, and most of the time has to diffuse the situation himself because the soldiers look to him as a secret weapon, rather than doing the work themselves. Maya, the creator of the Extremis virus wants to use it on other soldiers so that Tony does not have to bail them out all the time. There is also an escalation of terrorism post civil war, as small time groups are getting better weapons. Are they being financially backed and by who? This is a great issue that sets up a lot of storylines that can run through the book for a long time, if Tony stays in his postition for a long time as well. I like this idea of Tony as the leader of S.H.I.E.L.D., and if the Knaufs can write stories like this one with this idea for a long time, let them. This is a great resuccitation for a book that was drowning after Warren Ellis and Adi Granov delayed it into oblivion.
The art, while not Patrick Zircher, is great. It has a nitty-gritty feel to it that fits the book, especially with it's new S.H.I.E.L.D. premise. It's a cross between Ariel Olivetti, Tommy Lee Edwards, and Brian Hitch. If this guy took over the art on Iron Man, I would be pleased. Another thing that is great about the art is the coloring. Colorist Dean White uses a lot of red and pink filters in the S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier to give it a "red-alert" feel. It's a great looking book. Here's hoping Iron Man can move up an be one of Marvel's top tier books. A
