Ironman #500.1 - plus Immortal Steve?

[angel_inoshi]

So we've come to the point issue - a place where new readers are supposed to jump on coming straight off the movie so they can understand things.  [sideways glance] I say it was successful until it went beyond the basic movie point because I can tell you if I didn't understand half the continuity it was implying through the issue I would be lost.

Comments

[penumbren]

Hrm. I just read it, and I think it's a clever setup, although it lets them pretty much blow off the "severe awkwardness" of Tony finding out that he and Pepper had sex that he can't remember. And he wasn't even drunk...

I quite liked it, actually. And I haven't said that about IIM in... well... I think ever, actually. (This volume, anyway.) I do appreciate the fine-hair-splitting explanation for #500 vs. #503, although it made me laugh.

The background... I laughed a LOT as I was reading through it, because I just read all of 1982 and over half of 1983's Iron Man, Cap, and Avengers comics (and spin-offs) over the last week and a half, so I'm smack in the middle of the Obadiah Stane arc. It's a little amazing how very much like the original panels the flashback panels look, really. And that makes me sad for a specific reason: In the flashback panels, Tony looks like Tony. He still looks like crap in the "modern" panels.

And yeah, I'm not impressed with Pepper's reaction, either.

....immortal Cap? Hmm. No comment until I actually read the mini. But... O.o Ick if true.

[angel_inoshi]

[glomps] Yo!
I like the point issue in that it confirms what we at the Cap/Ironman comm knew about Tony all along. It's almost amazing that a comic actually had to be written about how much Tony NEEDS love. At the very least my protectiveness towards Tony went up a degree or two. [sighs] I mean Pepper was as graceful around the subject like a elephant on ice - maybe she just lost all sympathy for the guy, but she should at least been professional.

I actually want to go back and read Tony's history now...I want to go back to the old comics and read what Tony is supposed to be like and how he was portrayed pre-modernization. Though I have read a bit of "The Crossing" that made me go DDDDDD8 Still I have no clue where to start...I might just go with Ironman essentials and have it be that.

The art for Invincible Ironman is...[shudder] I don't like how it. It's realism-ish angle is off putting, BUT the way Larocca draws armor is outstanding. If we didn't have to see people he's downright perfect for Ironman. I don't watch LOST but someone on CBR forum pointed out Tony looks like Josh Holloway and when I googled it I went O____O OMG it's TRUE! The guy doesn't look bad, but...I dunno I like Adi Granov's Tony better...he's pretty, but apparently is modeled on Tom Cruise? [sweatdrops]

As far as immortal Cap....the art and story in the first issue was interesting enough. The art in the second issue got hit by an ugly stick, and then got ran over by a truck in order to make it look better. I mean I thought JRJR's work was blah - this made me think it was some sort of spoof. Mis-leading pretty cover!

[penumbren]

Yeah - pretty sad that fanfic has been getting this right all along and Marvel's barely figured it out. Pepper... is in a bad spot. She was in love with Tony, then fell for Happy and married him, then lost Happy, then started to fall for Tony again (apparently, from the earlier arcs in IIM)... and... yeah. They haven't been doing her justice AT ALL, but I can at least understand why she'd finally just blurt it out and hang up, more or less. It doesn't make me like any better, though.

Honestly, I'm okay with the way Tony is drawn in the Avengers. At least he looks like himself. This semi-realistic-totally-based-on-an-actual-person thing is... weird. (Tom Cruise? Seriously? O.o I don't see it.) He's too... round. I don't know if that makes sense, but Tony's always been drawn with a thinner face and a (relatively) slender body, and his face as currently drawn just BUGS me. The only thing that's really right is the facial hair. (I giggled at the little touch of the 'stache in the flashback panels.)

Hm. Sounds like the reason I haven't read the last Avengers & the Infinity Gauntlet mini yet. I got three pages into issue #1 and just couldn't stand to look at it anymore.

ETA: Almost forgot: about four or five years ago, Marvel released DVDs with complete sets of the Avengers and Iron Man (and I think Cap) through that year. That was a huge boon to me - those DVDs, conversion into something better than PDF, and ComicRack have been my source of most comics reading for the last year now. Not sure what they might sell for or how available they still are, as I acquired them through alternate sources.

[angel_inoshi]

I don't know what it is with Marvel's fail on female characters [shakes head] I absolutely don't get it! I mean looking at Sharon Carter - supposed bad ass Agent 13 - and she absolutely sucks in Secret Avengers with ALWAYS getting captured. I had hope with Pepper...I just wanted a female "hero" who could be a good friend to the male lead and still kick ass...oh well. It's no wonder I ship Steve/Tony so hard...in comparison the females of the MU are - ugh.

In Avengers...everytime I see Steve I think of Clint...lol. But yeah, I rather have Tony's blocky look then his Holloway look. I don't see Granov's Tony looking like Tom Cruise either - but he's probably the best looking Tony IMO. The other one that made him look awesome was Immonen.

Mmm I'll find what I can through my sources [grins] I shall become well verse in all that is Tony!

[penumbren]

Yeah, I'm less than impressed with their recent handling of the women. I do think they're trying -- among other things, it's pretty interesting that all three "regular people" who are the go-betweens/leaders of the Avengers groups are women: Hill, Hand, and Sharon. It's just too bad they can't seem to write them all that well.

I have to agree with you about Granov. That was some gorgeous artwork.

And let me know if you don't have any luck. Through my own sources, I have a surprisingly complete (and HUGE) set of IM, Cap, and Avengers comics (series + minis) at my fingertips. I could probably give you a hand finding some of them if you need it. ;)

[fictivore]

Sorry to barge in, but could you share what the conversion format of the DVD comics is?

And well, wouldn't it be sort of hilarious if Fraction had been lurking on the comm? Very very tiny possibility but not in the realm of impossible, right? @_o;

[penumbren]

As I understand it, the DVDs come prepared to throw into your cd-drive and play. I believe the comics are all PDF format, but as I said above, I have a slightly different set, so I'm not sure of the details on the DVDs. I suspect for more info, Google and/or eBay would be your best bets.