Some of y’all need to chill…
Is ‘Tony at his lowest’ are common troupe? Yes. So is Peter being broke or Daredevil being depressed. It’s not that deep.
Story wise I’m enjoying this:
- Good Tony characterisation
- Riri playing a prominent role in this run (which is very rare for marvel legacy characters)
- A mysterious, interesting villain that’s fucking with Tony behind the scenes
- Good usage of IM’s villains i.e. I like that Living Laser wasn’t just a 1 page mook and has his own role in this story arc. He showed a little bit of growth in implying to team up with Tony to take down the enemy, but is still a full blown villain. more

Great first issue. I love the idea of Tony writing his autobiography. The first couple of pages is giving you a rundown of everything you need to know about Tony’s past. This narrative device makes you feel the weight of Tony’s history. He’s been through a ton of shit over his 60 years that isn’t acknowledged enough. Also using the CliffNotes style where he’s editing, deleting and re-wording as he goes, gives you a glimpse of who he is and how he operates. He’s a tinkerer who is, again, using his past to shape his future.

I have to commend the creative team for pulling off a reset where new readers and old readers will be pleased. The first couple of pages retracing Tony’s life makes this run feels like a continuation and not a blank slate, it touches: his origin, the classics (Demon in a Bottle) (Mullet Hair), the modern (Stark Tower, Stark Unlimited), and the current (the Hellfire Gala) (the gear he bought from Source Control) (the Mandarin’s rings). However, it’s done in a way that it’s still a accessible jumping point for new readers.

The characterisation is on point : Tony is focused, confident, self aware, not overly jokey or wallowing in self pity and his altruistic heroic nature shines through & none of the bad characteristics writers have given him over the years (no mention of ego). This is a good balance of classic and modern Tony. He feels real. The irony is that this is what Cantwell was aiming for and yet Duggan has a managed to capture a better voice for Tony than he ever did.

I like this story-arc’s plot. I know some may say “it’s another Tony hits rock bottom” run which is true. However, the difference is the execution eg. Tony’s characterisation is far better than Cantwell’s, instead of the problems stemming from Tony and making the public hate him out of nowhere- here it’s external. It’s done in way to antagonise Tony but highlights someone old/new in his life is manipulating events behind the scenes to show him in a bad light. While this is happening Tony maintains his resolve and altruistic nature in saving people. That’s why this is enjoyable and not the misery porn where past writers invoked how much they don’t like him in their work.

Also, something that is overlooked but I really like is how self-aware Tony and the plot is that his presence puts ppl in danger. I don’t care about Tony having a secret identity, but from time to time it did bother me that there was no consequences. I get marvel stopped caring about most of their heroes having secret identities, but this issue reminded the benefits & negatives when you ain’t got it: Tony’s building blew up and in result his neighbour died, in the A.A. meeting he can’t concentrate because he’s on edge who would be hurt next. Those raised stakes were missing in his books. more

This was my least favorite issue ngl.

There was too much exposition for my liking. Lady Yulan’s backstory along with Tutor could have been told much easier and faster through flashbacks.

I can never understand why people who seem to hate a character always seem to end up writing that character. And oh yea, Cantwell also Cantwrite

What a stupid issue.

Why does Riri suddenly care so much about the Mandarin rings? She’s never fought the Mandarin, never interacted with him and knows fuck all about the rings…

So miss me with the whole “why do you not trust me?!”

This ‘I’ve been studying the rings for years and want to use them for good’ is the most forced bs ever from Cuntwell, trying to self-insert Riri in Iron Man/Mandarin’s story

Also Riri was so… unreasonable??

Why can’t Tony have 5 rings and she have 5 to study? Keeping them altogether is a ticking time bomb waiting to go off.

The ‘I don’t need to l promise you anything…” is proof Cuntwell can’t write Ironheart. Need her freed from him immediately more

It annoys me to no end that Danny was stripped off his powers and reduced to “the guy from the subway” just to make way for a new “Asian Iron Fist”.

I really don’t like the writer choosing Swordmaster as his pet project. Lin Lie was chosen for the Sacred sword, was chosen by Shao Lao to inherit the iron fist… if he was a female he’d be called a Mary Sue. And I wouldn’t argue it

The worst part is Danny already had a student- Pei. Now the girl was reduced to being a background character. Where are the feminists fighting this?!

Overall: I like the story, but hate the agenda behind it more

Vic Martenlli, Force, Titanium Man, Mandarin rings, Technovore easter egg

Man, can I first say I love how Cantwell brings back all this Iron man lore & characters.

Now, onto the criticism:

Wtf Cap?! How do you go see Tony in a coma and go "Oh my god... Welp Rhodes looks like there's a spot in the Avengers now. Want to join?" Like Cantwell I know u suck at writing Tony, but not Steve too.

I do not like Titanium man's armour. I get using theme of this run is to callback to classics, but I'm sorry that suit is goofy and lame af. Always has been. Idk why they didn't give him a updated new design when they did it with Tony. Plus it would fit the context of the story considering Titanium Man works for Source Control and gained upgrades to his suit but not a new one...?

Source Control seem interesting. They have potential to be a good recurring supervillain organisation for Iron Man. What I don't like is this storyline of Tony spending every Stark money to stop them. Like it's just a cop out in order to make Tony broke. Idk why comic writers are obsessed with doing that to wealthy characters.

Mandarin rings... I feel like we're retreading old ground here since Kieron Gillen had a arc with them already.

I didn't see Tony faking his coma for the world. Smart move. As for telling Cap/ Patsy? We'll have to wait and see... more

This issue captures the essence of Moon Knight and why I love this character so much.

It’s a deep introspection delving into Moon Knight’s psyche.

The constant shifts between Marc, Steven and Jake as they try to help Marc through his problems and realise his condition was never the problem and they need each other was beautiful.

The characterisation was perfect.

You could feel the emotion in every page. Also, anyone suffering with inner struggles not just D.I.D. could relate to Marc’s feelings.

Jed Mackay knocked it out of the park

alescappuccio’s art is amazing as always. The shading, facial expressions & body language was *chefs kiss* 👌

Using different colors & the locations is a subtle but brilliant away to differentiate Marc, Steven & Jake. I can’t believe that was never done before.

If I could rate this higher it would be a 100/10.

This is truly one of the best Moon Knight issues ever. Highly recommend more

Thus the finale to the long drawn out Korvac arc.

I have to say, I like that Tony and Korvac didn’t have a massive brawl and he was able to defeat him with words, to the point Korvac killed himself. That’s good subversion.

However….this run is still a steaming pile of garbage. Idk how Cantwell can show he can write Tony well and then give the most ooc characterisation the next issue. There’s a few good gems like this issue, but the majority was badly executed.

It annoys me Cantwell has single-handedly destroyed all of Tony’s relationship so the only person he has left is Hellcat- his self insert.

For the love of god, no more substances storylines. I’m tired of them. This one focused more on drugs or instead of alcohol but it’s still the same shit just decorated differently.

Tony has already gone to rehab. There was a time when he was bloody Carol’s AA sponsor, now look at him… he even says he knows the drill.

Yes, Tony is one of the most human and flawed marvel characters. But we do not need to focus on flaws, especially the same ones all the time. This run barely highlighted any positive traits with him which is ridiculous

Overall: Solid conclusion. There were more lows than peaks. And while the concept of Tony wanting to restart his life is great, the execution was bad and needed refining. 6/10

PS: Frogman sending Tony a letter was sweet of him more

It’s gonna be difficult to Google maps The Midnight mission since its now located in the House of Shadows!

Well done to Jed Mckay, he's doing a great job leaning into the idea that Moon Knight exists in his own strange corner of the Marvel Universe that's a intersection of "gritty street-level" and "supernatural horror", and is capable of both bringing in old "forgotten" characters and bringing in new characters and blending them together to build on his story and mythos. more

Hunter Moon is dope.

Needs to become a mainstay in moon knight mythos

This is a good world's finest book.

Derek Landy really understand the voices for Tony and Cap.

I didn't see the plot twist coming but it was good.

My only gripe is I wish Veronica's arbor wasn't just a mishap gear from Iron Man armour/Goblin Glider/Doc Oak tails

Really like the voices for Tony and Cap, especially for Cap, much better than what Cantwell or Coates did with him recently. I could do with less Veronica Eden, who I still have a hard time caring about. And yes, enough with the self-hate from Tony, if only Cantwell would get the message. I really liked how Cap got super mad when he saw the Hydra Supreme suit (yet another shitty thing Coates did, killing "Captain Hydra" for nothing). I'm excited for what comes next, I really hope this book maintains this level of quality, these characters deserve better than what Marvel does with them these days. more

I know i'm late to the party and at that a party, for which not that many people are hyped for or attend even, but a party that like, now that i am here. Call me basic, but civil war is most definitely one of my favorite comics stories. And you know Civil War is complex story, so seeing after so much time Cap and Iron man talking about their motivations, during that time in a way, that's calm and understanding to the other's position,without throwing fist at each other gives me so much joy. To this day, i think that both sides had some nice arguments and for sure it's nice to see, that both of them understand. You can also feel, the disappointment and rhe regret that Tony feels about the whole thing, especially the initiative, not working out, while Cap also has an appreciation for the idea, but at the same time he has his critiques of it, resulting in a more nuanced point of view. The whole conversation comes really naturally, i get why Tony brought it up and at the same it feels as a conversation between 2 friends that respect and get each other, which pretty much can be felt through the whole series.

I remember that some issues long ago Marvel tried the same thing actually, it was right after the Brubaker's era, when Cap has some issues, dedicated to him, teaming up with teammates with whom, he has an interesting relationship like Hawkeye, Winter Soldier, Black Widow and of course Iron Man. While issues are pretty much forgotten by now and for good reason, (they were pretty bland for the most part, especially i remember that the Hawkeye ones were pretty disappointing,but the black widow was alright) this one really puts the relationship between the 2 characters upfront, something i consider a right way, when a approaching a series like this and the best thing about this series. So that's why we get those talks about how the characters are feeling, which are not terribly necessary for the plot to move.

So while that part of the issue was great, was also quite short. Like there is a plot going on, which gets the focus and honestly i'm not that interested in it, but it's passable, it keeps me going. Veronica kinda oversells it, but it's an entertaining enough. But yeah the plot most definitely do not shine, like there is nothing that grabs me in it, which is weird for me, having in mind how great Iron Man and Captain America's relationship is here.


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This is basically superior iron man 2.0, need to see it concluded to decide if it’s better or not

Bringing in the cosmic power and Iron Man together has definitely been one of the highlights of the series and this issue continues to explore that along with Tony's journey to find himself. The dialogue is interesting and the ending of the issue simply keeps you hooked for more. I'm not a huge fan of the way they are building up Tony to eventually have everything blow up in his face, it feels too repetitive for the character. more

Another dumb issue of the Hellcat... eh, sorry I meant Iron Man book. Though in all honesty the Hellcat title would have been much more genuine. She is the hero of this story. She is the one who came to Tony after ONE fucking panel where Janet broke up with him like it was nothing because that's how human beings behave in Cantwell's mind. It was fairly obvious by that fact alone what character Cantwell wants to shine his light on. The dialogue was atrocious, the art was bad and the fact that Doom appears at the end makes me think this book will only get worse. Cantwell's Doctor Doom book was awfully bad, much worse than his Iron Man, he just doesn't get the character but he insists he does so we'll have to suffer yet another one of his pathetic attempts to write Doom. This whole arc seems like it's going to get even worse. more

Fucking called it last issue, Zdarsky can't handle letting a "rich guy" being mayor, dude is so predictable with his ideological fixations. Imagine being so disturbed and petty as a human being to hate people richer than you that you need to "get your revenge" on a fictional character. I'm making another prediction: Tony will turn out villainous here, he won't handle letting Cage run as mayor. Because when you're so blinded by ideology, you're eager to destroy beloved characters without hesitation, that hate is just pouring out of Chip. I did like the Spider-Man parts, those were really good. And the part with Elektra is interesting, too. Everything else is just garbage. more

I hate when Zdarsky writes Tony SO much.

Whenever he writes Tony it’s just to shit on him to hype someone else up like a hype tool and to say “rich guy bad”

He always gets the most ooc characterisation as well.

It doesn’t make sense for Tony to run for mayor or for why kids would positively recognise him here rn, but Zdarsky clearly hasn’t been following the current IM run and is contradicting everything Cantwell is doing and instead showing he misunderstands the character.

Not looking forward to what he’s gonna have Tony do next. more

Korvac vs Iron God in a battle to save the universe is something I didn’t know I needed in my life.

It seems Tony has made a new nemesis with Korvac. Hopefully we see him again since he’s shot up to being one of the best Iron Man villains

And still the craziest thing about this issue was the Living Tribunal and other Gods actually doing their job