Review by CBI’S Brian Lloyd STORY BY Brian Michael Bendis ART BY David Marquez COLORS BY Justin Ponsor LETTERS BY Clayton Cowles COVER BY David Marquez, Justin Ponsor, Adi Granov, Bruce Timm, Skottie Young, Mahmud Asrar, Nick Bradshaw, Sara Pichelli, Valerio Schiti Marvel hasn’t done it for me in some time. Since “Brand New Day” to be exact, and anyone who knows me can tell you that I’ve been more than vocal about my perceived notion of the fall of Marvel Comics, from shotty writing to terrible sub plots, Marvel had become increasingly mediocre and Brian Michael Bendis has almost stood as the spokesman of that downhill fall. Today something has changed. Today I picked up Invincible Iron Man #1 expecting the same blah story and unconvincing photoshop art that I’ve come to expect. Today was not that day, today I was pleasantly surprised. Invincible Iron Man #1 is a joy to read. Starting down the road twards a plot involving the cure for the mutant gene and a robbery of Castle Doom. How could it get any better. I’ll tell you. Bendis has managed to merge the personality of Tony Star from the comics and Robert Downey Jr. to give us something of a hybrid that makes the character completely enjoyable. I loved his internal dialog and his sarcastic banter. I loved seeing him and his AI “Friday” go at it. I loved seeing Tony in a date with a brilliant woman that wasn’t going to give him exactly what he wanted. I loved seeing Tony be a hero again. I have really let Bendis have it over the years and this issue nearly makes up for it completely. David Marquez is pure genius. I’ve never seen this guy before but boy is he great. Setting a tone and a mood that you don’t see in Marvel comics very often and showing a depth for character design and facial expression. I loved this issue and I really hope this is the direction that Marvel wants to take the rest of their flagship characters. Many of them need to be brought back to

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Review by CBI’S Brian Lloyd We Stand On Guard #4 Writer: Brian K. Vaughan Artist: Steve Skroce Publisher: Image Comics Brian K. Vaughan and Steve Skroce are killing it again in issue 4 of Image Comic’s We Stand On Guard. Critics and fans are foaming at the mouth for this series not oly because if the interest in Vaughn’s work but because of the controversy surrounding the content of this book. The issue opens with Amber yet again fleeing the persistent Americans to a remote cabin in northern Quebec. Threatening to burn it down if these “motherfuckers” don’t come out. Vaughan hits the parallels on all cylinders as if he was watching today’s foreign policy headlines while writing his script. Steve Skroce’s art work sets the tone as bleak and unforgiving. He is making every page mean something and every look count. He truly is one of today’s best artists. Taking the styles of people like Frank Quietly and toning it down to a more realistic and subtle level that’s truly impressive. I’m sold on this boom and I can’t wait for issue 5. I’ve always been a big fan of Vaughan and he’s still at the top of his game. Story: 10 Art: 10 Cover: 10  Overall: 10 https://comicbookilluminati.wordpress.com/2015/10/25/cbi-reviews-we-stand-on-guard-4/