War Machine: Where Do I Start?

Beneath the armor and mask of Iron Man lays the mind of one of comics’ foremost inventors and industrialists. And with all those spare iterations of his Iron Man armor gathering dust and his businessman ideals, it seems fateful that he’d eventually look to expand. And luckily for us comic readers, the man he chose wasn’t just a nobody.

Marvel’s War Machine is James “Rhodey” Rhodes, a decorated military veteran who after a full career as a soldier and mercenary was hired by Stark to be his personal pilot. That proximity to Stark morphed into becoming a trusted adviser to him; a sounding board, a backstop and eventually a replacement. After filling in for Stark as Iron Man during Tony’s darker times, Rhodey went on to get his own suit of armor — dubbed War Machine — and joined Marvel’s pantheon of heroes. And he became immediately memorable for being a different kind of hero; not someone in the mold of Iron Man (despite his garb), but someone who’ll stand up to Stark and uses a different compass that informs his ways. Where Stark might be imaginative and have a genius-level intellect, Rhodes’ hand is guided more by practical everyman experience and what some folks call their gut.

In this week’s Where Do I Start?, we look at the swath of Rhodey stories there have been in comics. From his time taking up the mantle of Iron Man through his own solo adventures, as well as his surprising team ventures like The Crew. War Machine’s had various series over the years, including one in the MAX line, giving him a diverse backstory to pull from to give you the best recommendations.

Iron Man: War Machine (Iron Man #280 – 291): Although he’d been a featured character in the series before this point, even wearing the Iron Man armor for a time, it wasn’t until Iron Man #280 that the pieces finally came into play for Rhodey to step into his own. These twelve issues chart is evolution into War Machine and his earliest battles under his own name. With Stark infirm, he hands over the deadly War Machine armor as well as the keys to Stark Enterprises and Rhodey comes in, guns blazing. It shows Rhodey sliding into the role as well as the ideological differences that emerge between him and Tony, making him his own man despite owing his suit to Tony.

Iron Man #169 and #170: Another set of issues never collected, this two issue arc is square into Tony Stark’s alcoholic days and sees Rhodey step into the limelight for the first time and takes over the mantle and duty of being Iron Man. Written by Denny O’Neill with art by Luke McDonnell, these two issues builds up Rhodey’s heroic nature and into the ideal choice to take over the job while Tony sorts out his issues.

U.S. War Machine: Unbound (U.S. War Machine MAX #1 – 12): When you think of Marvel’s MAX line, you think gritty, realistic stories that’s less on the fantastical side and more down and dirty — and while not the most obvious choice, putting War Machine into that world was an inspired choice. And done by Chuck Austen no less. This twelve-issue series shows Austen writing AND computer illustrating the story of a legion of War Machines operated by S.H.I.E.L.D. in a bleak, almost Tom Clancy-esque look at the military and geopolitical conflicts going on in the United States. Eye-opening and surprisingly refreshing. This is out of print in both the collection and (obviously) the single issues, but it shouldn’t be too hard to find in back issue bins.

The Crew #1 – 7: Sadly never collected, this forgotten series from 2003 puts the expert team of Christopher Priest and Joe Bennett to work on creating a unique new super-team headed by Rhodey. It all comes about when Rhodey’s sister is killed by drug dealers in a dangerous section of Brooklyn, leading War Machine to visit the area and find adversaries int he form of a local gang called the 66 Bridges Gang. Rhodey makes a unique team with a Muslim minister named Josiah X, the iconic White Tiger and a spy named Junta. It’s a great piece of storytelling centered in the drug alleys of New York, and something that’s both gritty and uplifting.