IRON MAN #149

"DOOMQUEST"
Plot/Writer: David Michelinie | Plot/Finished Art: Bob Layton
Pencil Art: John Romita, Jr. | Letters: Joe Rosen | Colors: Bob Sharen
Editor: Jim Salicrup | Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: Iron Man rescues a Stark International freighter bound for Latveria from a pirate attack, then orders the vessel to return to America rather than deliver its cargo. Soon, Tony Stark arrives at a regional managers' meeting at SI headquarters and berates then fires one of his men for selling electronic components to Latveria.

Meanwhile, Dr. Doom returns to the present day after studying magic in the distant past with the master mage, Cagliostro. Doom is informed that the electronics he was expecting have returned to the U.S. aboard the Stark freighter. Later, Iron Man stands guard over the electronics when agents of Dr. Doom arrive and best him, stealing the parts and departing.

The next day, Rhodey flies Tony to Latveria, where Tony is immediately approached by the local police. Serving Latveria's current monarch, King Zorba, they provide Tony with the location of Doom, currently considered a criminal, in hopes that Iron Man will take him out. Shortly, Iron Man arrives at Doom's castle and engages in battle with the deposed villain. Their struggle takes them near Doom's time machine, and the doctor's henchman, Hauptmann, activates the device, throwing Doom and Iron Man back in time. Hauptmann then destroys the machine.

IRON MAN #148

"SIEGE!"
Plot/Writer: David Michelinie | Co-Plot-Finished Art: Bob Layton
Pencil Art: John Romita, Jr. | Letters: Joe Rosen | Colors: Bob Sharen
Editor: Jim Salicrup | Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: In the Central American country of Costa Diablo, a Stark International office is invaded by revolutionaries, and the installation's staff are taken prisoner. Iron Man travels to Costa Diablo on a rescue mission, and after getting most of the staff out with Rhodey's aid, he invades the presidential palace to spring the Costa Diablo division head, Ricardo Pruz. But when he finally reaches the building's head office, he learns that Pruz was the true leader of the revolution, having embezzled funds and resources from Stark to arm his people.

Iron Man departs in defeat, cautioning Pruz to watch his back, lest he be betrayed just as he betrayed Tony Stark. And just a few days later, Mr. Pithins shows Stark an article reporting that Pruz was executed as a traitor by his own right hand man, General Caligerra.

THE UNBOXING - MARCH 2014

This may be my smallest box ever from Discount Comic Book Service: two books. It was supposed to be three, but the CAPTAIN AMERICA EPIC COLLECTION: DAWN'S EARLY LIGHT volume dropped off my order to ship next month instead, due to a shortage from the supplier. I had no plans to read that book any time in the immediate future, however, so I'm fine waiting another month. Thus, without that sole Marvel offering, all I have this time are two volumes from DC -- and just as receiving only two books is a first, so is having my entire order be in the form of DC volumes.

First is BATMAN: MAD LOVE AND OTHER STORIES, a trade paperback collecting most of the Batman comics by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini set in the universe of BATMAN: THE ANIMATED SERIES, along with works from some of their other BTAS collaborators. I have most all of these stories in comic book format (I read the cover off of the single issue MAD LOVE when I was a kid), but this is the first time I will have purchased them as a trade. I believe this book came out a while back in hardcover format, but I passed it up. The trade may in fact have been released previously as well, but when this edition came up for pre-order a couple months ago, I jumped on it.

GUNDAM: THE ORIGIN, VOLUME 4

JABURO
Written & Illustrated by: Yoshikazu Yasuhiko
Original story by: Yoshiyuki Tomino & Hajime Yatate
Mechanical Design by: Kunio Okawara

The first half of volume 4 is another fantastic exercise by Yasuhiko in rearranging and re-ordering events from the original MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM to form a more organic and cohesive experience. The White Base makes two stops on its way to Jaburo, one at a Federation base in Lima, and a second in the neutral territory of Cuzco. While both these stops are original creations of Yasuhiko, they incorporate some moments from the original series that had previously taken place aboard ship.

While White Base travels, General M'Quve recruits Zeon's ace pilots, the Black Tri-Stars, to join the upcoming attack on Jaburo. In an event created wholly by Yasuhiko, some of the White Base crew, including Amuro, bump into the Tri-Stars in a market in Cuzco. Much like Amuro's encounter with Ramba Ral previously, this encounter adds a personal element to Amuro's eventual battle with the Tri-Stars.

IRON MAN #147

"HOLOCAUST AT HIGH NOON!"
Writer/Plot: David Michelinie | Finished Art/Plot: Bob Layton
Pencil Art: John Romita, Jr. | Letters: Joe Rosen | Colors: Bob Sharen & Roger Slifer
Editor: Jim Salicrup | Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: Iron Man temporarily subdues Blacklash and sets about saving Stark International from an all-consuming inferno. He rescues Pithins, Yvette, and the science students from last issue, and then grabs Mrs. Arbogast from the burning administration building. The fire department has the majority of the blaze contained, leaving only the admin building to be saved. Iron Man grabs an empty boxcar from a nearby train station, fills it with water from Long Island Sound, and extinguishes the last of the fire. However, despite Martinelli's best efforts, Blacklash escapes in the chaos.

Later, Martinelli explains to Tony that he was born Vince Martell, and "Victor Martinelli" is a creation of the Federal Witness Protection Program, following Martell's testifying against his former employers, the mob-run Center City Construction Company in Philadelphia. Martinelli suspects that the heads of Center City saw his photo in TIME and sent Blacklash to kill him.

Knowing Blacklash will try again, Tony and Martinelli prepare a trap for him. And sure enough, the next day Blacklash returns for Martinelli and corners him on Stark's airfield, where Iron Man gets the drop on him. Iron Man returns Blacklash to his bosses at Center City, telling them that if they'll forget about Martinelli, he will forget about them.

IRON MAN #146

"BLACKLASH...AND THE BURNING!"
Writer/Plot: David Michelinie | Finished Art/Plot: Bob Layton
Pencil Art: John Romita, Jr. | Letters: Jim Novak | Colors: Bob Sharen
Editor: Jim Salicrup | Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: As Mr. Pithins escorts a group of science students around the Stark International grounds, Iron man arrives at the administration building and changes to Tony Stark. Tony greets the students, then welcomes SI's new Vice President, Yvette Avril from the Paris office. Meanwhile, security chief Martinelli gives Pithins an earful over his picture appearing in a TIME magazine article about SI. After work, Martinelli returns to his apartment, where he is attacked by Blacklash (formerly Whiplash). Martinelli's dog, Peanut, is killed in the scuffle, but Martinelli survives.

The next day, Blacklash arrives at Stark International to finish the job. He attacks the grounds and Martinelli's security team moves to fight back, but Iron Man soon arrives to take over. However, Iron Man's battle with Blacklash causes a fire to break out, and the entire Stark complex is engulfed in flames.

SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF

The other night I read the first three issues of AVENGING SPIDER-MAN on Marvel Unlimited. Partly to ogle some awesome Joe Madureira artwork, and partly (morbidly) to see if Zeb Wells still has as poor a grasp on the web-slinger's character as he did during the "Brand New Day" era, the last time I read Spidey's adventures regularly. I was not disappointed on either count.

I have no plans to review the issues here (though I will say that nearly any Spider-Man creative team from the Silver or Bronze ages could've easily told this story in a single issue), but I just had to comment on this one scene, at the end of the final installment. I can suspend my disbelief as well as, if not occasionally even better than, the next guy. But that suspension only goes so far, and it certainly does not go far enough to allow for idiocy like this:

There is no way Jameson is unaware he's talking to his long-time employee Peter Parker, here. No. Way. Two-thirds of his face are visible!! This has to be one of the stupidest things I've seen creators do in a comic set in the mainstream Marvel Universe in a long time.

Okay, just had to vent. Carry on.