- Written by: Gerry Duggan
- Art by: Juan Frigeri
- Colors by: Bryan Valenza
- Letters by: VC’s Joe Caramagna
- Cover art by: Kael Ngu
- Cover price: $3.99
- Release date: July 26, 2023
The Invincible Iron Man #8 overlaps with the events of the 2023 Hellfire Gala (sorta) when Feilong’s Iron Sentinels take flight to apprehend Emma Frost and Tony Stark uses the last suit he has to stop them.
Is It Good?
The Invincible Iron Man #8 is a good comic or a bad comic, depending on your point of view and your knowledge of events surrounding Krakoa and the X-Men. If all you care about is Iron Man, you’ll be lost at several points in this issue. If you’re up to speed on the X-Titles, Krakoa, and the Hellfire Gala, The Invincible Iron Man #8 reads like a well-done tie-in. Tony Stark is still a main character in his comic, but Gerry Duggan’s script definitely leans toward Tony participating in a larger event outside of his story. You’ve been warned.
When last we left Tony Stark, he and Rhodey infiltrated Feilong’s manufacturing facility to destroy the Iron Sentinels before they came online. Later, Feilong killed one of the facility workers to frame Rhodey for murder. Now, Tony resigns himself to the fact that Feilong is the rightful owner of everything related to Stark Tech. When the Iron Sentinels come online and enter New York to capture Emma Frost, Tony delays turning the over the last bits of armor he has left to save Emma’s life, sacrificing himself in the process.
To Duggan’s credit, you get plenty of armored action with Tony fighting two sentinels decked out in Stark Tech. Where the issue falls short is in two areas.
First, the number of half-scenes, and referenced occurrences will make no sense unless you’re up to speed on everything happening to the X-Men. Yes, Marvel is an interconnected universe, but either reframe this issue as a Hellfire Gala 2023 tie-in or keep the Krakoan references to a minimum. Half-measures make this issue feel clunky and incomplete.
Second, the same problem with external references applies in the opposite direction. Feilong is instrumental in what’s happening with Krakoa, but here, his presence is ill-defined. Since Feilong’s presence was made known, he appears to have no purpose other than to acquire Stark Tech for himself, which he accomplished several issues ago. In effect, the plot is treading water because Iron Man is incidental to Feilong’s plan outside of the Iron Man comic. Again, half-measures are the problem holding up this title.
How’s the art? Juan Frigeri lets loose with heavy doses of armored battles, and it’s fun to see. Frigeri’s action choreography is great, the figure work is excellent, and the panel compositions are cinematic. The story may be half-baked, but the art is stellar.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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Bits and Pieces
The Invincible Iron Man #8 delivers heaps of armored action, but the plot suffers from half-measures by acting as an ad hoc tie-in to the events of Krakoa and the Hellfire Gala without fully committing to the tie-in. As a result, you constantly feel like you only get half the story, punctuated by stellar armor fights.
Weird Science Marvel Comics 