The Invinicible Iron Man Annual #1

Title: The Invincible Iron Man Annual #1
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer(s): Matt Fraction
Artist(s): Carmine Di Giandomenico
Colorist(s): Matt Wilson
Letterer(s): VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover Artist: Salvador Larroca

Story/Concept: (10/10) As comic fans we always want to get the quintessential hero or villain story, well this is one and one that is done extremely well. For me the Mandarin is one of my top 5 Marvel villains of all time so reading this issue that delves so deeply into his psyche to show you what makes him tick was fun but also quite frightening to be honest with you.

Writing: (10/10) What more can you say about Matt Fraction that has not already been said he is one of the top writers at Marvel and this issue proves why. This being a annual issue he had plenty of space to really do a great story and not worry about running out of room which is a plus for us as the reader. As I poured through this issue I was taken back to the first time I read the Killing Joke and how it affected my view the character forever. I got that same feeling from reading this story about the Mandarin but it is funny a lot of this story had a more comedic feel but drastically turned deadly serious by the tales ending.

Art: (8/10) No offense to Di Giandomenico because he did a great job, I would have preferred to have seen Salvador Larroca since he is the Cover Artist and the ongoing series artists and one of my top artist. But enough about that Di Giandomenico knocks it out of the park totally his style for some reason reminds me of the art style from the Aeon Flux cartoon but not as loose. He nails all the character beats and does a great job balancing the light hearted moments with the darker character moments towards the end of the story which delivers a subtle nut kick if you will.

Cover: (10/10) A Classic Iconic cover that though simple in design carries so much weight of tying with the story inside the pages.

Overall: (10/10) Not to many times I can say I read a flawless book but this is one of them. Nuff said…

Bottom Line: Super hero comics at it’s best do yourself a favor and pick this issue up you will be glad you did.

Comic Book Savant