After finishing the last issue of this fantastic miniseries, I paused to reflect upon just what it was that made it so fantastic.  I thought about how I had never really had a previous Iron Man experience, and wondered, could that be it?  Is it because I know nothing about him?  Possibly.  But just what was it that made this series so good?

Pondering my place with Iron Man comics, I came to the stark realization that this book is good because it completely takes everything that Iron Man is and distills it down to this fine comic.  Gone from the pages is the heartbreak of Civil War, the stress of running S.H.I.E.L.D., the 50 State Initiative;  All of it hasn’t even happened yet.  With this retelling of Iron Man’s first battle with the Madarin, we find Tony Stark as he’s just beginning his career as the invincible hero that he would soon become. 

Throughout the series, we see Tony adapt and modify the armor in order to equal the Mandarin. We see him fail, nearly get assassinated, and protect his secret identity like it was the secret to life itself.  We see all these things, and in a way, mourn the time when Tony Stark’s life seemed so simple.

This series has a feel that very few books do these days.  It captures the magic of long ago with the asthetic of the modern tale.  Panels are big and bombastic, but the characters and their choices are classic.  Flipping through the pages of this issue as Iron Man averts a disaster amid his battle with the Madarin is awe inspiring, and I found myself grinning like a child as he saved the world.  It’s just plain fun.

From what I’ve heard, Joe Casey’s had a good run with his throwback Avengers title, and with how good this book was, I can only hope that he fills this niche and takes on some other characters.

But now that I’ve wasted four paragraphs about the series as a whole, how does this issue stack up?  Very well.  Very well indeed.  This issue wraps up the arc and finishes with a bang as the Mandarin and Iron Man finally face off.  The pacing is frenetic, and there are points where you really think the Mandarin is going to pull it off.  And in a way, he does.  You’ll just have to read it to see what I mean.

The pencils on this series have been a highlight with the cartoony/realistic designs really helping the story find a particular voice.  Just flip this book open to where Iron Man blasts into the sky and you’ll see what I mean.  It has this energy that just leaps off the page, and the panels are well crafted to capture as much of the action as possible.

If you missed out on this series earlier, be a pal and pick up the trade.  It really is one of the best Iron Man stories we’ve seen in a long, long while.