Superior Iron Man #9 - A Review

This is it! The final battle between the Superior Iron Man and Pepper Potts over the soul of Tony Stark.  Even with a back-up of Tony's mind, a new Rescue suit and an army of Tony's old designs at her disposal it will be a close thing...


There is little I can say about this issue beyond it being a perfect conclusion to Tom Taylor's run on this series. All the plot threads are sewn up and the ending is a satisfying one. It remains to be seen what Tony's life will be like post-Secret Wars but if there was never another Iron Man comic ever, this would be a good ending for Tony Stark's story.


The artwork is excellent, despite some of the fight scenes being a little cluttered at points. Still, one can't accuse Yildiray Cinar of giving anything less than 110%. As always this book's artwork is the equal of its scripts in quality.

Superior Iron Man #8 - A Review

Round One between Tony Stark and the "clean back-up" of his mind from several years earlier is over.  Now they are preparing for Round Two, with the back-up Tony heading to the lab to build and plan while the flesh and blood Tony throws an epic party with enough booze to get The Hulk smashed. Who will prove to be the superior Iron Man?


I'd say words cannot express how much I love Tom Taylor's writing on this series, but then I'd have nothing to say here! There's a lot of Taylor's famed comedy in this issue and the Superior Iron Man is the kind of anti-hero/quasi-villain that we all love to hate. Yet Taylor still finds time for some softer scenes, like the subplot involving Teen Abomination.


The art team matches the quality of Taylor's scripts. Felipe Watanabe's pencils look great as do the colors by Guru-FX. And I would never have known that there were three different inkers working on this book had I not checked the credits page!

Superior Iron Man #7 - A Review

The Superior Iron Man is growing out of control and Pepper Potts was just barely able to thwart his efforts to buy his own media empire.  Now the new Tony Stark must face Pepper's ally - the old Tony Stark!  Well, an old Iron Man suit containing an A.I. based on Tony's memories from eight years ago, created for just such an emergency... but close enough!


It should be no surprise that this series continues to be a wonderful read.  The action of the issue, featuring a battle between one of Tony's earliest suits and his latest digital symbiote suit, is a thrilling one. And the dialogue is filled with Taylor's trademarked witty banter.


The artwork was finished by two separate teams but you'd never know it from how well the images fit together. Both Yildiray Cinar and Felipe Watanabe are to be commended for their pencils on this issue.  The inks by Ruy Jose and Cinar are also excellent as are the colors by Guru-FX.

Superior Iron Man #6 - A Review

If there weren't already evidence that Tony Stark was no longer the man he was, his selling weapons plans to the highest bidder would be a big neon sign that something is wrong. And as Pepper Potts and her mysterious ally investigate just what is going on, the Superior Iron Man is eyeing another target. His new goal?  A multimedia news network of his very own.


This issue lacks the action of previous issues, but that fact proves to be a welcome change. Tom Taylor is at his best when he is letting the characters play off of one another and twisting expectations. He's also a master of dark comedy and we get a fair bit of that in this issue as Tony gets to play the asshole in a most delightful way. The end of the issue, however, promises that next month will more than make up for it should there be anyone lamenting this issue's relative lack of violence.


Laura Braga continues to impress. Braga is a wonderful visual storyteller and there is a smooth easiness to the panels of this issue. And I think she may have captured the famous Stark smirk better than any artist in recent memory.

A-Kon 24 Cosplay Photos - Part Three

Rogue from X-Men.   

Captain America.   

An unusual trio, this.  Dark Phoenix, Cartman from South Park and Pepper Potts from Iron Man 3.   

Poison Ivy.   

Prince Adam from He-Man.   

Jedi Little Mermaid.   

Two Panty. Should that be Panties?  Either way, there's One Stocking.   

Amber Sweet from REPO! The Genetic Opera.   

Starfire from Teen Titans. The New 52 costume.   

Professor Snape from Harry Potter.