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Tony Stark: Iron Man (Collected Editions)
Tony Stark: Iron Man, Vol. 1: Self-Made Man
From the cusp of tomorrow's dreams to the forefront of imagination, one man always soars on the cutting edge of adventure! You know his name. Everyone knows his name! Tony Stark is Iron Man. And Iron Man...is an idea. Always changing. Always evolving. Now Dan Slott and Valerio Schiti propel the ultimate self-made hero to new heights of inventiveness! But Tony has been holding back an enormous secret since his return, and there's only one person on Earth he'd trust with it: James Rhodes?! This will change everything. Plus: Jocasta! Machine Man! The Gauntlet! The Wasp! The arrival of Tony Stark's new rival...Sunset Bain! And the Manticore, the most powerful assault vehicle in the Marvel Universe! Tony Stark is Iron Man. The future is now. Strap in!
COLLECTING: TONY STARK: IRON MAN 1-5
COLLECTING: TONY STARK: IRON MAN 1-5
128 pages, Paperback
First published January 2, 2019
27 people are currently reading
283 people want to read
About the author
Dan Slott
1,998 books453 followersDan Slott is an American comic book writer, the current writer on Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man, and is best known for his work on books such as Arkham Asylum: Living Hell, She-Hulk, Silver Surfer, The Superior Spider-Man, and Ren & Stimpy.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 119 reviews
December 4, 2019
2.5 stars
Zany.
That's the word I would use to describe this version of Iron Man.
And, I don't know why, but I just wasn't all that impressed by zany Tony.
I mean, it was a lighthearted sort of comic, and I normally love those, but this time around I can't say I did. Something was missing.
It felt like it was trying too hard maybe?
Eh. I don't know.
It wasn't like there was anything awful (except maybe his romance with Wasp) but I still don't think I'll continue with this one - unless someone tells me this gets awesome?
Zany.
That's the word I would use to describe this version of Iron Man.
And, I don't know why, but I just wasn't all that impressed by zany Tony.
I mean, it was a lighthearted sort of comic, and I normally love those, but this time around I can't say I did. Something was missing.
It felt like it was trying too hard maybe?
Eh. I don't know.
It wasn't like there was anything awful (except maybe his romance with Wasp) but I still don't think I'll continue with this one - unless someone tells me this gets awesome?
February 2, 2019
After over a decade of writing Amazing Spider-Man, Dan Slott’s finally left the character behind and jumped onto the MCU’s foundational character, Iron Man. Slott is a very inconsistent writer who can occasionally turn out some great books, like his early work on Superior Spider-Man and Silver Surfer, but can also quite easily churn out complete rubbish – and unfortunately the latter applies for Tony Stark: Iron Man, Volume 1: Self-Made Man.
It has the wispiest of stories: some dull rubbish about corporate espionage that doesn’t seem to bother Tony all that much and a Z-list villain called The Controller, who’s, that’s right, controlling Tony’s head of security. Not that anything happens with that limp storyline. And giving it away right from the get-go takes away any potential drama and mystery it might’ve had. So. Yeah. Real edge of the seat stuff!
In the meantime, Tony pointlessly battles the Marvel Godzilla, Fin Fang Foom, test-drives a new AI program and goes on a date with Janet Van Dyne. Rhodey has claustrophobia/PTSD about the War Machine armour so he gets a slightly roomier armour and seems to be better – don’t think that’s how either claustrophobia or PTSD works? Tony’s brother, Arno, a holdover from Kieron Gillen’s awful Iron Man run, is saving some GM-cows – good grief. This is definitely not the best way to get people excited over the start of a new series!
Oh and apparently robots/AI have the same rights as people so Slott can get all social justice-y about that – one robot, Machine Man, even accuses Tony of “appropriating robo-culture”! Even if Slott is satirising the West’s current ultra-sensitive/cry-bully/protest political climate – though, given that this is 2019 Marvel, he really might be sincere! – it’s still eye-rollingly awful to read. I’m just so fed up with loathsome identity politics artlessly forced into stories where they don’t fit. Jocasta is such an annoying character and I couldn’t be less interested in her Pinocchio-esque sub-plot. But then I don’t like any of the supporting characters or anything they’re doing!
Artist Valerio Schiti is channelling both Stuart Immonen and Terry Dodson HARD, which isn’t a bad thing as I like their styles. And, as pointless as the Fin Fang Foom opener was, it was fun to see Giant Robo Iron Man and then nanobot Iron Man – I can definitely see Kevin Feige using both ideas for future MCU movies! I’m also glad to be reading a Tony Stark Iron Man book and not one starring that stupid Riri character, or whatever her name was. I don’t know, maybe she’s still around somewhere, but “Iron Man is now a black girl!” was such a bad idea. Up yours, Bendis!
As popular as his movies are, there are surprisingly few good Iron Man books out there and Self-Made Man is just another one to add to the crap pile. I was mostly bored and irritated with this one and can’t recommend it to anyone after a fun or entertaining superhero comic.
It has the wispiest of stories: some dull rubbish about corporate espionage that doesn’t seem to bother Tony all that much and a Z-list villain called The Controller, who’s, that’s right, controlling Tony’s head of security. Not that anything happens with that limp storyline. And giving it away right from the get-go takes away any potential drama and mystery it might’ve had. So. Yeah. Real edge of the seat stuff!
In the meantime, Tony pointlessly battles the Marvel Godzilla, Fin Fang Foom, test-drives a new AI program and goes on a date with Janet Van Dyne. Rhodey has claustrophobia/PTSD about the War Machine armour so he gets a slightly roomier armour and seems to be better – don’t think that’s how either claustrophobia or PTSD works? Tony’s brother, Arno, a holdover from Kieron Gillen’s awful Iron Man run, is saving some GM-cows – good grief. This is definitely not the best way to get people excited over the start of a new series!
Oh and apparently robots/AI have the same rights as people so Slott can get all social justice-y about that – one robot, Machine Man, even accuses Tony of “appropriating robo-culture”! Even if Slott is satirising the West’s current ultra-sensitive/cry-bully/protest political climate – though, given that this is 2019 Marvel, he really might be sincere! – it’s still eye-rollingly awful to read. I’m just so fed up with loathsome identity politics artlessly forced into stories where they don’t fit. Jocasta is such an annoying character and I couldn’t be less interested in her Pinocchio-esque sub-plot. But then I don’t like any of the supporting characters or anything they’re doing!
Artist Valerio Schiti is channelling both Stuart Immonen and Terry Dodson HARD, which isn’t a bad thing as I like their styles. And, as pointless as the Fin Fang Foom opener was, it was fun to see Giant Robo Iron Man and then nanobot Iron Man – I can definitely see Kevin Feige using both ideas for future MCU movies! I’m also glad to be reading a Tony Stark Iron Man book and not one starring that stupid Riri character, or whatever her name was. I don’t know, maybe she’s still around somewhere, but “Iron Man is now a black girl!” was such a bad idea. Up yours, Bendis!
As popular as his movies are, there are surprisingly few good Iron Man books out there and Self-Made Man is just another one to add to the crap pile. I was mostly bored and irritated with this one and can’t recommend it to anyone after a fun or entertaining superhero comic.
July 22, 2020
Iron Man meets Ready Player One in a funny and entertaining fresh start.
Maybe Slott's storyline was not best ever at all, but Schiti's artworks were gorgeous ones, I liked a lot the strong Michelinie/Layton classic run vibe and all references to it, taking back Tony and Jan old love affair from controversial Avengers #224 was a real nice touch for me.
Such a shame the Machine Man in this volume is the @$$hole from Nextwave and other more recent tales, but being a long time fan of his classic 1984 4 issues series, the one that introduced the original Iron Man 2020, it was a real blast for me seeing here Jocasta, Sunset Bane and Arno Stark (still Gillen's Arno but I see what the author made here and I'm really happy about it).
I had low expectations about this new run after Gillen and Bendis made me stop reading Iron Man in the past, but Slott and Schiti rekindled the spark for good and made me love again this comic-book after years.
Thank you.
February 13, 2019
I gotta say, this was disappointing. Dan Slott just came off of an epic 10 year run on Amazing Spider-Man that absolutely rocked. This series isn't even really about Tony Stark. It's a half-baked workplace comedy with tiny little plot points that go nowhere. Valerio Schiti is definitely channeling Stuart Immonen, but the art feels overly busy. I found myself losing focus often.
December 5, 2018
Tony Stark has been going through a continuity nightmare between what Bendis has been doing in his solo series and the infinite events Marvel has been churning out lately. So this relaunch by Dan Slott came as a welcome surprise to me because not only does it act as a blank slate for new readers to jump in on, it also finally gives Tony a fun, exciting, sci-fi filled story all of his own. It reads like a mix of Slott's great Silver Surfer run and what little I've read of his Spidey Worldwide, as it draws on Tony's own old continuity but builds something new and different at the same time. Say what you will about Dan Slott, but he knows how to write a modest and hearty superhero comic book, and among all the crap Marvel is mostly putting out right now, Tony Stark: Iron Man is a refreshing and welcome quality read. I can't wait to see what comes next for this series (knowing Marvel lately, probably its cancellation. Let's hope not).
February 13, 2019
I'm not a huge Iron Man fan, but Slott's Silver Surfer run is one of my all time favorites, so I thought I would give this a chance.
I really enjoyed this but, again, I haven't read too much solo Iron Man so it's hard to compare it to what people might expect, and it might be super different from what Iron Man is usually like. The only Iron Man I have read has been pretty serious, and this was Slott's traditional brand of 1/2 endearing and 1/2 irreverent and silly.
I really enjoyed this but, again, I haven't read too much solo Iron Man so it's hard to compare it to what people might expect, and it might be super different from what Iron Man is usually like. The only Iron Man I have read has been pretty serious, and this was Slott's traditional brand of 1/2 endearing and 1/2 irreverent and silly.
November 15, 2022
This was so fun like we have the return of Tony and well seeing how he has made a new subsidiary of Stark Inc and new ideas and all and making new Tokusatsu inspired armors and fighting Fin Fang foom, whatever is going on with Rhodey and the new "Manticore" and well new date, new life and I love it for him plus new enemies in Sunset Bain and his brother Arno seems to be going villainous..
This was such a fresh breath of air to read like so many great things happen here and I love the way Slott weaves so many sub plots in and it makes for a fantastic read plus the commentary with Jocasta is so awesome, I love it and the comedy because of Andy and Amanda haha! Bendis introduced her and Slott is exploring that and it is awesome! Also there is the main plot with eSCAPE and all and that was fun plus some fun stuff building with Machine man and Controller so that will be great to read!
Its one of those volumes that takes it time but sets up a lot of awesome stuff in the process and the art was just so good. Its one of my fav Iron man volumes easily!
This was such a fresh breath of air to read like so many great things happen here and I love the way Slott weaves so many sub plots in and it makes for a fantastic read plus the commentary with Jocasta is so awesome, I love it and the comedy because of Andy and Amanda haha! Bendis introduced her and Slott is exploring that and it is awesome! Also there is the main plot with eSCAPE and all and that was fun plus some fun stuff building with Machine man and Controller so that will be great to read!
Its one of those volumes that takes it time but sets up a lot of awesome stuff in the process and the art was just so good. Its one of my fav Iron man volumes easily!
March 17, 2021
I liked Slott's recent take on the Fantastic Four, so I thought I'd give this a go too, but it was much too bland and generic as Tony Stark invents like crazy and kicks off another romance. It was a bit off-putting that Slott seemed to be using the issues and ethics around artificial intelligence for an unflattering satire of microaggressions, social justice causes, cultural appropriation, and becoming woke.
June 1, 2019
3.5 stars
There are a few reasons I had/have reservations about this series:
- I hated what Slott did with Tony in his 2005 She-Hulk series
- Tony hasn't been written well since Director of SHIELD
- From the issues I read (I'm buying them in print) Slott has focused on every character but Tony.
However, there are quite a few things I like about this run.
- Schiti's art is absolutely gorgeous! He draws Tony as I've always wanted to see him: sleek, well dressed with very expressive eyes. The colors are beautiful and it just has such a fun look to it! The best Iron Man art since Marquez's
- I like the world here. I love Jocasta's role and I like the SU characters actually having character
- The issue with Jan was a gift! And all the implications in it were much appreciated
- Tony worrying about having a sole after basically writing over every cell in his body is an interesting concept
However, I still have a lot of reservations.
- The Arno issue was just a disappointment and waste of time
- So far, we don't get much from Tony's POV. In a way, it reminds me of the same issue I had with Rucka's older Wonder Woman run. This series features a lot of side characters talking about Tony... and barely anything from Tony's POV. At this point, more character work has been done for Jocasta than Tony. I know more about Andy Bhang than Tony in this series. I've seen more of Bethany than Tony. I've even gotten more emotional moments from Rhodey than Tony. I can't believe editors haven't noticed this? Is this because Slott, like Bendis, took this book on but didn't really want to write for Tony? Because, if so, there's a 4 page rant I can easily launch into because I (and several other Iron Man fans) are so incredibly tired of writers that don't like Iron Man writing for Iron Man.
As we've been saying on Twitter for months: let Margaret Stohl write for him.
- It would be lovely to have a female writer for Iron Man
- It would be lovely to have an Iron Man fan writing for Iron Man
- It would be love to have someone who actually wants to write Iron Man, writing for Iron Man
Come on, Marvel!
There are a few reasons I had/have reservations about this series:
- I hated what Slott did with Tony in his 2005 She-Hulk series
- Tony hasn't been written well since Director of SHIELD
- From the issues I read (I'm buying them in print) Slott has focused on every character but Tony.
However, there are quite a few things I like about this run.
- Schiti's art is absolutely gorgeous! He draws Tony as I've always wanted to see him: sleek, well dressed with very expressive eyes. The colors are beautiful and it just has such a fun look to it! The best Iron Man art since Marquez's
- I like the world here. I love Jocasta's role and I like the SU characters actually having character
- The issue with Jan was a gift! And all the implications in it were much appreciated
- Tony worrying about having a sole after basically writing over every cell in his body is an interesting concept
However, I still have a lot of reservations.
- The Arno issue was just a disappointment and waste of time
- So far, we don't get much from Tony's POV. In a way, it reminds me of the same issue I had with Rucka's older Wonder Woman run. This series features a lot of side characters talking about Tony... and barely anything from Tony's POV. At this point, more character work has been done for Jocasta than Tony. I know more about Andy Bhang than Tony in this series. I've seen more of Bethany than Tony. I've even gotten more emotional moments from Rhodey than Tony. I can't believe editors haven't noticed this? Is this because Slott, like Bendis, took this book on but didn't really want to write for Tony? Because, if so, there's a 4 page rant I can easily launch into because I (and several other Iron Man fans) are so incredibly tired of writers that don't like Iron Man writing for Iron Man.
As we've been saying on Twitter for months: let Margaret Stohl write for him.
- It would be lovely to have a female writer for Iron Man
- It would be lovely to have an Iron Man fan writing for Iron Man
- It would be love to have someone who actually wants to write Iron Man, writing for Iron Man
Come on, Marvel!
January 4, 2019
This was just not for me.
Tony is back from the dead with his best buddy James. Tony is really wanting to enjoy life now, he's more positive thinking, and wanting to basically run the world because...well he's Iron-man. But in a good way. This is a big explosive arc of...not really fun...adventures...kind of...
Good: The idea of Tony being happier and wanting to do all these fun adventures sounds good and I like James in this.
Bad: The art is far too busy, hard to tell what's happening half the time. The fights and such are boring too. The dialogue is far too much to really actually care about the characters. Tony is borderline fucking annoying here as well.
Overall, I expected way better. This is not a title I can recommend really. A 2 out of 5.
Tony is back from the dead with his best buddy James. Tony is really wanting to enjoy life now, he's more positive thinking, and wanting to basically run the world because...well he's Iron-man. But in a good way. This is a big explosive arc of...not really fun...adventures...kind of...
Good: The idea of Tony being happier and wanting to do all these fun adventures sounds good and I like James in this.
Bad: The art is far too busy, hard to tell what's happening half the time. The fights and such are boring too. The dialogue is far too much to really actually care about the characters. Tony is borderline fucking annoying here as well.
Overall, I expected way better. This is not a title I can recommend really. A 2 out of 5.
February 4, 2021
Kind of your definition of a "your mileage may vary" book. I'd say it's a 3.5 for me, there were parts I loved (Newly hired roboticist Andy Bhang as our reader surrogate joining the far out world of Stark Unlimited, Jocasta trying to "fit in", Rhodey's understandable reluctance at continuing to be "the man in the can", etc.) to other parts I found overly silly or contrived (the mole hunt, the bickering robots, the dating app stuff, and - though I guess Slott is not at fault for this - Tony's biological mother is an ageing British Rocker?).
Get out of your garage / Get into my car!
The standout issue for me was the last one following the sleepless endeavours of Arno Stark, on the surface he seems great but of course the closer you look, the more...off he and his behaviour appear. This is apparently a lead in to the Iron Man 2020 event series, so I'll need to check those out.
Get out of your garage / Get into my car!
The standout issue for me was the last one following the sleepless endeavours of Arno Stark, on the surface he seems great but of course the closer you look, the more...off he and his behaviour appear. This is apparently a lead in to the Iron Man 2020 event series, so I'll need to check those out.
January 6, 2019
Tony Stark is back! And with him, his drive to remake the world for the better. But even Tony's irascible personality might not be enough to sell Stark Unlimited's newest ventures, especially when they're under attack from the likes of Fin Fang Foom, The Controller, new threat Sunset Bain, and...Jocasta's ex-boyfriend?
Tony Stark's been a bit of a muddle lately. From Brian Bendis' run (and the less said about that, the better) to his constant status quo shifts from Civil War II and beyond, it's about time we have something solid to rely on, right? Enter Dan Slott, the man who makes continuity work for him and not the other way around. Hot off my favourite Spider-Man run ever, he's here to straighten out all of Tony's history and pave the way for an exciting new future.
Keeping the interesting parts, like Tony's mum Amanda Armstrong and the fact that both he and Rhodey have come back from the dead once again, Slott moves into new territory with some insane plot ideas that can only come from Slott - his inventive mind rivals Tony's own, and puts Stark into some crazy situations including an Iron Man Megazord while keeping the humanity of his main character front and centre which is easy to forget with Iron Man.
Keeping up with Slott at every turn is the versatility of Valerio Schiti, whose gorgeous artwork is always a delight, and his sleek designs for Stark Unlimited's world is exactly what this series needs. Max Dunbar and Gang-Hyuk Lim double-team the final issue of the volume with style as well, two rising stars at Marvel that I expect will have a bright future if they keep turning out pages like they have here.
Tony Stark is back on track, and it's about damn time too.
Tony Stark's been a bit of a muddle lately. From Brian Bendis' run (and the less said about that, the better) to his constant status quo shifts from Civil War II and beyond, it's about time we have something solid to rely on, right? Enter Dan Slott, the man who makes continuity work for him and not the other way around. Hot off my favourite Spider-Man run ever, he's here to straighten out all of Tony's history and pave the way for an exciting new future.
Keeping the interesting parts, like Tony's mum Amanda Armstrong and the fact that both he and Rhodey have come back from the dead once again, Slott moves into new territory with some insane plot ideas that can only come from Slott - his inventive mind rivals Tony's own, and puts Stark into some crazy situations including an Iron Man Megazord while keeping the humanity of his main character front and centre which is easy to forget with Iron Man.
Keeping up with Slott at every turn is the versatility of Valerio Schiti, whose gorgeous artwork is always a delight, and his sleek designs for Stark Unlimited's world is exactly what this series needs. Max Dunbar and Gang-Hyuk Lim double-team the final issue of the volume with style as well, two rising stars at Marvel that I expect will have a bright future if they keep turning out pages like they have here.
Tony Stark is back on track, and it's about damn time too.
March 25, 2021
I like Slott. I mean, the last thing I read was his Spidey which I liked, and before that the Superior Spidey which I loved. So... I don't know what's happening here.. it's a mediocre at best plot and pretty much everyone is trying to be in character so much that everyone gets out of character.
Pros: Amazing covers that's worth having just for that.
Pros: Amazing covers that's worth having just for that.
April 22, 2019
Jumping right into it, Stark is now working completely with Stark Unlimited, the company seemingly in charge of making the Iron Man suits, but really is more like a Think Tank. He hires an old rival, Andy Bhang, to join on his team consisting of himself, Rhodey, Jocasta Pym (previous wife of Ultron/Pym) and security expert Bethany Cabe.
Breakdown:
- First has them shutting down a shore attack from Fin Fang Foom, but he is being controlled by the Controller, with a Disk implanted near his brain (thank you Nano Iron Man suit! lol).
- Next, Stark tech is being used for a war mech known as Manticore. Still suffering PTSD, Rhodey takes over Manticore, not wanting to stuck claustrophic in the War Machine.
- Continuing on, Tony has created a vitual reality simulation (eScape) that acts as a template to see how VR controlled humans interact with compute AIs. Jocasta, seeing an opportunity to blend in, shows Tony how great his program really is.
- The employees get wrapped up in a dating app and most of them find love.... but are they in love, or being duped by a rival company into getting through the company's security system?
- In a surprising turn, but I like it... Tony begins to date Janet Van Dyne, the original Wasp.
- The final story deals with Tony's brother Arno and his exploration of genetically enhanced livestock.
Overall, a pretty good Volume. Look forward to see what happens next!
Strong recommend.
Breakdown:
- First has them shutting down a shore attack from Fin Fang Foom, but he is being controlled by the Controller, with a Disk implanted near his brain (thank you Nano Iron Man suit! lol).
- Next, Stark tech is being used for a war mech known as Manticore. Still suffering PTSD, Rhodey takes over Manticore, not wanting to stuck claustrophic in the War Machine.
- Continuing on, Tony has created a vitual reality simulation (eScape) that acts as a template to see how VR controlled humans interact with compute AIs. Jocasta, seeing an opportunity to blend in, shows Tony how great his program really is.
- The employees get wrapped up in a dating app and most of them find love.... but are they in love, or being duped by a rival company into getting through the company's security system?
- In a surprising turn, but I like it... Tony begins to date Janet Van Dyne, the original Wasp.
- The final story deals with Tony's brother Arno and his exploration of genetically enhanced livestock.
Overall, a pretty good Volume. Look forward to see what happens next!
Strong recommend.
September 6, 2020
Slott od Spídi přeskočil k Iron Manovi a FF a ani jedno mu moc nejde. Charakterově tu dostáváme MCU Starka, za což má u mě automaticky mínusový body. Tony je strašnej egoista a v každém sešitu sype z rukávu jednu technologickou vychytávku za druhou - od nano iron manů po revoluční seznamovací appku - a je tu úplně stejný problém jako u jeho X různých Spider-armorů. Tyhle věci slouží jako zápletka jednoho sešitu a zmizí, v normálním světě by ale způsobily revoluci a lidé by je začali hojně používat.
Samotný příběhy? Nuda. Někdo se snaží nahackovat Starkovy techy... tyvado, tohle se recykluje už od šedesátek. Z nějakého důvodu se na Zemi 616 začínají hojně řešit práva androidů (Slott asi hrál Detroit) a shippování s Wasp je příšerný. A Rhodeyho PTSD? Vyloženě k smíchu.
Pokud jste komiksoví nováčci a máte rádi Marvel z filmů, tohle vás asi bavit bude (Crew vybrala dobře). Pokud jste náročnější komiksáci, nic vám to nedá.
Samotný příběhy? Nuda. Někdo se snaží nahackovat Starkovy techy... tyvado, tohle se recykluje už od šedesátek. Z nějakého důvodu se na Zemi 616 začínají hojně řešit práva androidů (Slott asi hrál Detroit) a shippování s Wasp je příšerný. A Rhodeyho PTSD? Vyloženě k smíchu.
Pokud jste komiksoví nováčci a máte rádi Marvel z filmů, tohle vás asi bavit bude (Crew vybrala dobře). Pokud jste náročnější komiksáci, nic vám to nedá.
September 18, 2025
works well as an office comedy
Read
May 29, 2019You wait ages for Dan Slott to take over one of Marvel's big science brains, then two come along at once. Granted, they then go horribly off-schedule so you have to wait ages again, but still. I hadn't been desperate for him to do Stark like I was Richards, but he does have a way with inventors (cf the manner in which he previously made readable leads of Hank Pym and Peter Parker, two characters whose 616 versions, for very different reasons, usually wind me right up), so it makes sense. Where his FF relaunch teased for several issues before getting to the money shot of the reunited team, this one is straight in there with the good stuff; Stark as loveable arsehole tech-bro, weird science shenanigans and madcap office comedy at his corporate HQ, and then into various scales of Iron Man suit for the big superhero finish – and all that in the first issue.
The new status quo, then: Tony and Rhodey are both back from the dead, because of course they are, that's how Big Two superhero comics work. Except here it's not just glided over as a way to get the toys back out of the box; Tony is wondering whether he even counts as human anymore, given his mind was restored from back-up and his body was artificially grown, which feeds into an openly Westworld-inspired strand of the book that's fascinated by the ethics of AI, by what Tony does whenever he gives a suit a personality, and how culpable that might be. Accordingly, Slott has returned to a character who has clearly been a favourite of his back since the Mighty Avengers days, former bride-of-Ultron Jocasta, now working as Stark's head of robot ethics. Also dating Machine Man, as it turns out, who not for the first time is playing a bit of a comedy foil role, but here a less sympathetic one than in his 'MY ROBOT BRAIN NEEDS BEER' phase; he's got deeply into robot identity politics, demanding that cyberspace be kept for the cybernetic, and accusing Stark's suits of being cultural appropriation. I imagine this is going to be the strand of the comic which draws the most flak, but I found it hilarious, with any potentially nasty implications eased by the way the story and the characters are ready to take seriously Jocasta's more thought-through objections to human treatment of machines.
Rhodey, meanwhile – another character with whom Slott has a long history – has a not unreasonable dose of PTSD. Because much like Tony, he tends to keep having horrible things happen to him when he dons the armour, and unlike Tony, he has something approaching a normal human personality, rather than coasting through everything on manic chutzpah. The pair of them make for good counterpoints, and between those and the corporate espionage plot you'd already have enough to get a very promising run underway. But the fifth and final issue in the collection puts another piece back on the board. Because, with the calendar where it is, this is an important time for Iron Man; next year we hit what was once the cyberpunk future of 2020. Which used to be the home time of the (even more) morally ambiguous Iron Man 2020, Arno Stark. And of course, since the Gillen run there is an Arno Stark in play in Marvel's sliding present. Still, he's a good guy. Isn't he? Well, I suspect this is where that starts changing, but never in a cheesy heel-turn way, very much step by step, with each of those steps grounded in character and event, not just narrative or nostalgic necessity.
Which is to say, having been far more excited to see Slott on Fantastic Four, I think I ended up enjoying this one a lot more.
The new status quo, then: Tony and Rhodey are both back from the dead, because of course they are, that's how Big Two superhero comics work. Except here it's not just glided over as a way to get the toys back out of the box; Tony is wondering whether he even counts as human anymore, given his mind was restored from back-up and his body was artificially grown, which feeds into an openly Westworld-inspired strand of the book that's fascinated by the ethics of AI, by what Tony does whenever he gives a suit a personality, and how culpable that might be. Accordingly, Slott has returned to a character who has clearly been a favourite of his back since the Mighty Avengers days, former bride-of-Ultron Jocasta, now working as Stark's head of robot ethics. Also dating Machine Man, as it turns out, who not for the first time is playing a bit of a comedy foil role, but here a less sympathetic one than in his 'MY ROBOT BRAIN NEEDS BEER' phase; he's got deeply into robot identity politics, demanding that cyberspace be kept for the cybernetic, and accusing Stark's suits of being cultural appropriation. I imagine this is going to be the strand of the comic which draws the most flak, but I found it hilarious, with any potentially nasty implications eased by the way the story and the characters are ready to take seriously Jocasta's more thought-through objections to human treatment of machines.
Rhodey, meanwhile – another character with whom Slott has a long history – has a not unreasonable dose of PTSD. Because much like Tony, he tends to keep having horrible things happen to him when he dons the armour, and unlike Tony, he has something approaching a normal human personality, rather than coasting through everything on manic chutzpah. The pair of them make for good counterpoints, and between those and the corporate espionage plot you'd already have enough to get a very promising run underway. But the fifth and final issue in the collection puts another piece back on the board. Because, with the calendar where it is, this is an important time for Iron Man; next year we hit what was once the cyberpunk future of 2020. Which used to be the home time of the (even more) morally ambiguous Iron Man 2020, Arno Stark. And of course, since the Gillen run there is an Arno Stark in play in Marvel's sliding present. Still, he's a good guy. Isn't he? Well, I suspect this is where that starts changing, but never in a cheesy heel-turn way, very much step by step, with each of those steps grounded in character and event, not just narrative or nostalgic necessity.
Which is to say, having been far more excited to see Slott on Fantastic Four, I think I ended up enjoying this one a lot more.
January 27, 2019
While most people would consider this at least a 3 stars, I'm only giving it two, for the following reasons:
1) It feels very much like Slott's run on Amazing Spider-Man: Fast paced, multiple plots happening at concurrently, so you never really have a chance to catch your breath. One thing leads to another, and you never really go deep on any one thing. I've grown very tired of this formula. It feels like a popcorn movie with all flash and very little substance.
2) I can't stand the "flippant" version of Tony Stark. He doesn't give a crap about anyone (except for the fact he's Iron Man but even that is to fulfill his ego and addictive personality.) This wasn't created by Slott but he does continue with that personality.
One fascinating idea he brings up though is AI and the relationship between humans and AI. Some interesting concepts that we as their creators need to think about. It remains to be seen how involved and seriously these ideas will be explored.
A few elements of the story occur before this book: Tony's birth mother is present in his life. Arno, his brother, is also out there. For some reason, and somehow, Tony had to actually rebuild his body, which seems like a prime opportunity to make him more likable and more interesting, and if they do that remains to be seen. Something happened to Rhodey which he's still feeling the effects of.
Again, the majority of people will like this it just doesn't suit me (ahem).
1) It feels very much like Slott's run on Amazing Spider-Man: Fast paced, multiple plots happening at concurrently, so you never really have a chance to catch your breath. One thing leads to another, and you never really go deep on any one thing. I've grown very tired of this formula. It feels like a popcorn movie with all flash and very little substance.
2) I can't stand the "flippant" version of Tony Stark. He doesn't give a crap about anyone (except for the fact he's Iron Man but even that is to fulfill his ego and addictive personality.) This wasn't created by Slott but he does continue with that personality.
One fascinating idea he brings up though is AI and the relationship between humans and AI. Some interesting concepts that we as their creators need to think about. It remains to be seen how involved and seriously these ideas will be explored.
A few elements of the story occur before this book: Tony's birth mother is present in his life. Arno, his brother, is also out there. For some reason, and somehow, Tony had to actually rebuild his body, which seems like a prime opportunity to make him more likable and more interesting, and if they do that remains to be seen. Something happened to Rhodey which he's still feeling the effects of.
Again, the majority of people will like this it just doesn't suit me (ahem).
April 9, 2019
I consider Dan Slott a reliable writer. A solid 3* average with few ups and downs along the road. I'm afraid Tony Stark is a solid down.
Nothing really enthralling in this first volume: the Controller wants to control Tony's stuff (yawn) and uses the Godzilla rip-off nobody gives a shit about as an opener (re-yawn).
Artificial Intelligences fight for their rights (?) and their culture (??) with Machine Man as the agressive militant and Jocasta as the stuck-up AI ethics director of Stark Industries (???).
What. The. Fuck? Has Slott so much ran out of ideas he had to pick these mothballed D-lister to run this ridiculous sub-plot?
As for Tony's moral and romantic issues and the sociopathic brother intro, yawns became zzzzzs.
The characters are all bland and I cared for none of them. I didn't like Bendis' idea of Tony's real mother and, tough luck, she's part of the crew. The hard ass bombshell as head of security is a laugh and the sixty-something-but-never-grew-up guy rather pathetic. Only Rhodey and his difficulties of dealing with is "death" are remotely interesting.
In a way it looks a bit like a "Tony Stark for dummies", teenager oriented. Safe, innocuous, without relief. Not even funny.
Nothing really enthralling in this first volume: the Controller wants to control Tony's stuff (yawn) and uses the Godzilla rip-off nobody gives a shit about as an opener (re-yawn).
Artificial Intelligences fight for their rights (?) and their culture (??) with Machine Man as the agressive militant and Jocasta as the stuck-up AI ethics director of Stark Industries (???).
What. The. Fuck? Has Slott so much ran out of ideas he had to pick these mothballed D-lister to run this ridiculous sub-plot?
As for Tony's moral and romantic issues and the sociopathic brother intro, yawns became zzzzzs.
The characters are all bland and I cared for none of them. I didn't like Bendis' idea of Tony's real mother and, tough luck, she's part of the crew. The hard ass bombshell as head of security is a laugh and the sixty-something-but-never-grew-up guy rather pathetic. Only Rhodey and his difficulties of dealing with is "death" are remotely interesting.
In a way it looks a bit like a "Tony Stark for dummies", teenager oriented. Safe, innocuous, without relief. Not even funny.
March 22, 2020
Im probably in the minority here but this has been my favorite Iron Man series in recent years. Dan Slott has combined the movie version of tony stark with the classic comics one. And storywise crafted a modern story with a retro call back of characters and concepts. Old and new fans of 'ol Shellhead will thoroughly enjoy this!
February 26, 2019
Comics are weird; this was fun. I mean how can you not enjoy a comic where Tony Stark defeats an enemy simply by setting up such a hot online dating profile that it breaks the internet?
March 1, 2020
Another library find; something I hadn’t previously known existed. Rather weird, loopy plots with thought-provoking moments. Whatever the weirdness, this is better IMO than Tony being dead.
I like the addition of Andy Bhang—whom Tony beat in a robotics competition 25 years before—to Team Stark. Andy’s an earnest, likeable, somewhat socially awkward tech geek; and he’s a good contrast to Tony’s brashness. He helps save the day a couple of times.
I’m not quite sure what to think about Jocasta Pym, a robotic life form who works as the chief robotic ethicist at Stark Unlimited. She’s conflicted, and some of her complaints seem like a send-up of the most extreme politically correct thinking. And, physically, she’s sort of like Mystique.
Tony’s on-again/off-again relationship with Janet Van Dyne (the Wasp) is okay. She’s quite arrogant in her way, but she’s very capable and a decent match for Tony. Because I didn’t know anything about the Iron Man storyline before the movies (MCU), I always find it a little odd when Tony’s not with Pepper. But, okay—alternate storylines.
There are a couple of nice touches dealing with the fallout of previous storylines that bring some dimension to the story. Tony is concerned that when he rebooted himself (made a new body for his consciousness after the Civil War II storyline) he “came back wrong.” Rhodey has some PTSD after being brought back from the dead, and it’s manifesting in the form of claustrophobia inside the War Machine suits.
There are 3 villains, and I didn’t find any of them particularly intriguing. The soap-opera-esque turn involving Tony’s “brother,” Arno, is pretty bizarre. Arno is a genius, but everything he does has a dark side and he has an ax to grind with Tony. (In this storyline, Tony was adopted, but Arno seems to be the biological son of Howard and Maria Stark but was disabled and kept a secret from Tony).
The art is good—expressive, detailed.
There was enough to like in this that I forged on to the next volume.
I like the addition of Andy Bhang—whom Tony beat in a robotics competition 25 years before—to Team Stark. Andy’s an earnest, likeable, somewhat socially awkward tech geek; and he’s a good contrast to Tony’s brashness. He helps save the day a couple of times.
I’m not quite sure what to think about Jocasta Pym, a robotic life form who works as the chief robotic ethicist at Stark Unlimited. She’s conflicted, and some of her complaints seem like a send-up of the most extreme politically correct thinking. And, physically, she’s sort of like Mystique.
Tony’s on-again/off-again relationship with Janet Van Dyne (the Wasp) is okay. She’s quite arrogant in her way, but she’s very capable and a decent match for Tony. Because I didn’t know anything about the Iron Man storyline before the movies (MCU), I always find it a little odd when Tony’s not with Pepper. But, okay—alternate storylines.
There are a couple of nice touches dealing with the fallout of previous storylines that bring some dimension to the story. Tony is concerned that when he rebooted himself (made a new body for his consciousness after the Civil War II storyline) he “came back wrong.” Rhodey has some PTSD after being brought back from the dead, and it’s manifesting in the form of claustrophobia inside the War Machine suits.
There are 3 villains, and I didn’t find any of them particularly intriguing. The soap-opera-esque turn involving Tony’s “brother,” Arno, is pretty bizarre. Arno is a genius, but everything he does has a dark side and he has an ax to grind with Tony. (In this storyline, Tony was adopted, but Arno seems to be the biological son of Howard and Maria Stark but was disabled and kept a secret from Tony).
The art is good—expressive, detailed.
There was enough to like in this that I forged on to the next volume.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 17, 2021
Admittedly: I wasn't caught up on where Tony Stark was currently as I hadn't read the books the recently preceded this. I enjoy a good Iron Man story and I think that the character has the potential to go a lot of interesting places in time and space... That was not what this was.
This was a jumbled mess. To call this "Tony Stark: Iron man" would be a stretch as Tony was hardly the central character here. I get that there is some larger 'world building' happening, but there were so many characters taking up space here that it was more like a poorly written team book. I get that there are supposed to be some "big-questions" being asked about robotic ethics, but it became so ham-fisted that it turned to distraction. I also have to go back and figure out when they introduced a different woman as Tony's mom and some guy as his brother, which for the record is some piss-poor, soap opera b.s. that better minds would simply have not bothered with in canon.
This was a jumbled mess. To call this "Tony Stark: Iron man" would be a stretch as Tony was hardly the central character here. I get that there is some larger 'world building' happening, but there were so many characters taking up space here that it was more like a poorly written team book. I get that there are supposed to be some "big-questions" being asked about robotic ethics, but it became so ham-fisted that it turned to distraction. I also have to go back and figure out when they introduced a different woman as Tony's mom and some guy as his brother, which for the record is some piss-poor, soap opera b.s. that better minds would simply have not bothered with in canon.
August 7, 2019
More than anything else, Self-Made Man is frantic. It feels like Dan Slott was directed to reboot Iron Man while also including the dozens of extraneous hangers-on that Iron Man has found over the years. Each scene is packed with people who are not Tony Stark or James Rhodes. It's a mess.
Slott is a fine writer, though, so there are some fun patches. But that's about all it amounts to: fun. For about ten seconds, Tony worries about whether he's human or AI and someone named The Controller pops up for maybe one scene every other issue. The overarching narrative seems to be "let's throw some plots at the wall and see what sticks." Suffice it to say, nothing sticks. The last issue is about Tony Stark's brother Arno as he tries to tame some genetically modified cattle. Like, what the hell.
Slott is a fine writer, though, so there are some fun patches. But that's about all it amounts to: fun. For about ten seconds, Tony worries about whether he's human or AI and someone named The Controller pops up for maybe one scene every other issue. The overarching narrative seems to be "let's throw some plots at the wall and see what sticks." Suffice it to say, nothing sticks. The last issue is about Tony Stark's brother Arno as he tries to tame some genetically modified cattle. Like, what the hell.
May 1, 2021
Self-Made Man (#1-5). Slott sets up a new supporting cast for Tony that nicely combines the old (Rhodey,Friday), the recent (his birth mom), the new (Andy Bhang), and the Avengers (Jocasta, Janet Van Dyne). From there, it's a bit uneven. There's a lot of focus on AIs, which is a good look for Tony, and on an evil corporation attacking him (which was old and done in the '90s). There's VR too, and a bit of transhumanism, with the question of whether Tony came back "right". It's a nice melting pot of futurist ideas, but in the end a hodge podge that just doesn't find its focus here. [3/5]
The fifth and final issue is something different, because it's all about Arno, and it's just a bit scary, revealing what a genius might do if his ethics aren't in line. Very nice! [5/5]
The fifth and final issue is something different, because it's all about Arno, and it's just a bit scary, revealing what a genius might do if his ethics aren't in line. Very nice! [5/5]
March 20, 2020
I really like this. Dan Slott has taken a long time to catch the spirit of Fantastic Four, but he has Tony Stark figured out from the get-go in this series. It's just the right mixture of silly and serious and I like the workplace aspect of it. Also, there's an interesting issue that shows Arno Stark developing into Marvel's version of Lex Luthor. Artwork is great throughout. Looking forward to the next collection.
May 6, 2019
There are some ideas here that could have been fun to explore, but it is very episodic and piecemeal, ultimately adding up to nothing but a long preview of what might turn into plot threads to be tied together if you stick around long enough with future issues.
November 27, 2022
I loved it!!!!!!
I love the references in the comic!!!
I love the references in the comic!!!
May 7, 2019
I reserve the right to up this to four stars of the next volume pays off this set-up.
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