Invincible Iron Man #14 Review

Written by: Gerry Duggan
Art by: Andrea Di Vito
Colors by: Bryan Valenza
Letters by: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover art by: Kael Ngu
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: January 17, 2024

Invincible Iron Man #14 takes a trip into space where Ironheart and Forge build Tony Stark’s Mysterium Iron Voltron.

Is Invincible Iron Man #14 Good?

“Iron Voltron?” you gasp. Don’t worry. I’ll get to that in a minute. Gerry Duggan’s Invincible Iron Man #14 delivers an Ironheart-centric issue to witness the construction (sort of) of the Mysterium armada in preparation for O-Day, the counter-offensive to Orchis’s war against the mutants. Things happen, but this feels more like a setup issue that acts as a prelude rather than a strong comic that stands on its own.

When last we left Tony Stark and Emma Frost, they visited the storehouse of Mysterium and thwarted a heist in progress to get the metal that can “do anything” in the hands of Riri Williams. On the way to her rendezvous with the Mysterium currier, Star Fox, Riri crossed paths with Forge and one of the space dragons whose brethren inhabit the Ten Rings Riri wields. Yeah, there’s a whole lot of coincidences happening in issue #13.

Now, Tony and Emma consummate their “marriage” because they can. Forge and Riri head to the Asgardian outpost where the metalworking trolls reside to restart the fires and build out the Mysterium Iron Armada. During the work excursion, Riri learns the Ten Rings are bad for her, so she sends them to parts unknown. With the Armada finished and the seeds of misinformation planets by Firestar in Orchis’s upper ranks, the stage is set for O-Day.

“Wait a second, Mr. Reviewer Man. What about that Voltron crack?” you’d rightly ask. Riri finishes the Mysterium Armada, which are five uniquely shaped ships that likely form some configuration when combined. The art team isn’t fooling anybody, so it’s likely the ships will come together for a wow moment.

What’s great about Invincible Iron Man #14? Things happen. At the risk of sounding curt, this is one of the few titles on the LCS shelves that feel like a clear, purposeful push toward resolving the conflict with Orchis. As a plus, Riri Williams gets a new status quo via relinquishment of the Ten Rings.

What’s not so great about Invincible Iron Man #14? The way Riri encounters a space dragon and gets the information needed to relinquish the rings feels tacked on and contrived. It feels like Duggan/Marvel forces Riri into this scenario to realign her placement in the universe, presumably to realign her character with the forthcoming (now delayed) Ironheart Disney+ show. That forcefit unfortunately steals focus away from Tony Stark, who barely shows up in this issue.

The construction of the Mysterium Armada is way too quick and easy. For all the buildup and chatter surrounding this game-changing Armada, you don’t see what’s involved in the build, you’re expected to believe Riri and Forge assembled five massive ships in a matter of days, and you don’t learn anything about what they do.

Lastly, the way Riri gets rid of the Ten Rings seems foolish. If the Rings are so dangerous, why shoot them in random directions in space? Why not give them back to the space dragon? The resolution comes off as recklessly foolish.

How’s the art? Andrea Di Vito’s art looks great. The figure work and panel compositions look great. The minor downpoint is the lack of details on backgrounds.

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

Invincible Iron Man #14 delivers an Ironheart/Forge-centric issue that realigns Riri’s status quo and sets up the forthcoming O-Day attack. The Mysterium Armada looks good, possibly hinting at a Voltron-style capability, and seeds are planted for the battle to come, but Tony Stark barely appears in his comic, which makes this issue feel like a shoehorned opportunity to sloppily reset Ironheart.