Invincible Iron Man #514 Review

by Nick Walden, CMRO Contributing Writer

Invincible Iron Man

Issue #514

Written by Matt Fraction, Art by Salvador Larroca

Published: May 2012

This arc just keeps a nice steady pace of goodness. There is really no better way to describe it. The plot has been intricate and involved, but not overwhelming to follow. With that good plot is a serious plan that has been unfurled slowly and methodically which provides a constant tension that really drives the book. So far, I am loving it.

This revenge story with the Mandarin was very well thought out and paced just right. Tony gets screws put to him each issue. While this particular book features less action, there is still a lot going on to keep a reader interested. Mandarin is attacking Tony and Ironman in so many ways that it causes a variety of dilemma’s for our hero to overcome. Some of the ways he handles things are hilarious, such as the use of 19 big rigs filled with information. Hello needle in the haystack!

The art again is good. I really like Salvador Larroca’s style of drawing Iron Man. He has done some great action and page layouts. There are some clarity issues on background and honestly the colors could be a bit sharper, but that is just me nitpicking.

My only beef in this entire book is that Tony agreed to equip the suit with a shutdown option. It is a neat idea, much like adding a breathalyzer to start a car, but come on; this is Iron Man. Adding that ‘failsafe’ does allow for future plot twists. Overall this book is 8.5 out of 10 for me. The art needs to be a little tighter for a higher rating but otherwise this is another great read and it really seems like the arc is
getting better. This is a must check out series in my opinion.