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Iron Man (2012) (Single Issues) #Anunal #1
Iron Man: Fatal Frontier
It's the first printed edition of the story previously available in Marvel's innovative Infinite Comics! The moon has declared war on Earth! After stopping a missile aimed at Hollywood, Iron Man travels to the moon to investigate, where he clashes with the robotic Udarnik and his moon-based society! And when Iron Man's old foe Endotherm attacks, Tony realizes that a brand-new moon element called Phlogistone drives those who use it insane. But what is Cortex Incorporated hiding from Iron Man...and is Tony at risk of losing his mind? Tony's old mentor Eli Warren has abused Extremis in his desperate search for Phlogistone, and now Dr. Doom has joined the hunt! How far will Iron Man go to stop the spread of the new element?COLLECTING: Iron Man: Fatal Frontier Infinite Comic 1-13
240 pages, Hardcover
First published December 12, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
January 31, 2016
2/3 stars
Ok, this was a really nice sci-fi comic tale but for a few big flaws...
1) Gillen's ret-con about Tony Stark not being really a Stark and Arno being the real one... Can't stand it.
2) Dr Doom's one and only magic power is now illusion??? Wtf???
Read some Marvel Comics more, mr Gillen. I suggest you "Dr Strange and Dr Doom: triumph and torment"
3)The post end-credits multiple endings were just useless and awful.
Liked very much the "heist" part and Udarnik character.
Ok, this was a really nice sci-fi comic tale but for a few big flaws...
1) Gillen's ret-con about Tony Stark not being really a Stark and Arno being the real one... Can't stand it.
2) Dr Doom's one and only magic power is now illusion??? Wtf???
Read some Marvel Comics more, mr Gillen. I suggest you "Dr Strange and Dr Doom: triumph and torment"
3)The post end-credits multiple endings were just useless and awful.
Liked very much the "heist" part and Udarnik character.
May 23, 2014
I jumped in the Fatal Frontier story in media res, since this was the first chapter I read. No worries though, this was the right chapter to start since I was treated to an excellent Tony Stark versus Dr. Doom fight that tested the limits of both characters. Reading this one first would only stoke the interest to begin from the start.
January 24, 2017
3.5 stars. I'm rounding up.
While this isn't my favorite Iron Man story, it was still very enjoyable. I mean Tony Stark makes friends with a Soviet robot and becomes governor of the freaking moon while trying to keep some poisonous stone that will drive you mad and eventually kill you out of everyone's hands!
This is essentially a sci-fi/heist movie starring Tony Stark playing most of the parts! It's definitely a comic you should read digitally!
While this isn't my favorite Iron Man story, it was still very enjoyable. I mean Tony Stark makes friends with a Soviet robot and becomes governor of the freaking moon while trying to keep some poisonous stone that will drive you mad and eventually kill you out of everyone's hands!
This is essentially a sci-fi/heist movie starring Tony Stark playing most of the parts! It's definitely a comic you should read digitally!
January 17, 2017
One of the few comics that should be read digitally. Honestly, it's a much better experience when you can see it piece by piece. As another reviewer said, it looks almost animated.
June 30, 2017
This book is like the lost volume from the Gillen run. OK, admittedly, the core story is written by Al Ewing with Gillen, but it's still an interesting addition to his too-short run.
The most intriguing thing about it that it's heavy SF in a way that Iron Man typically isn't, but maybe should be. I mean, ancient Soviet robots on the moon. New minerals that can change the world. That's science-fiction, and it's dealt with in a great manner here, with Marvel's chief Futurist, Tony Stark, right in the middle of the fray.
The trick with going so far away from Marvel's genre norms is that it's a little hard to fit it into the Iron Man continuity. Certainly, Gillen and Ewing try, laying the start of the story right after Tony's stint with the Guardians of the Galaxy and advancing forward from there. But it's hard to amalgamate the events of this volume with Marvel continuity, due to things like the empty moon, the difficulty getting there, the emergence of a worldwide moon colony, and Tony acting as a sheriff there for some time.
Nonetheless, it's an intriguing story precisely because it's so far from the Marvel standards.
A few actual complaints: the story does drag a bit, with its long online run becoming a singular graphic novel. The pacing is just off for what you'd expect from your comics. And I wish Marvel would have put this out in a normal format, instead of the obnoxious oversized hardcover.
But I'm glad I picked this up, and think it should be required reading for the Gillen era of Iron Man. Marvel should put it out in a matching format, with a "4.5" on the spine (or whoever it fits in the precise continuity).
The most intriguing thing about it that it's heavy SF in a way that Iron Man typically isn't, but maybe should be. I mean, ancient Soviet robots on the moon. New minerals that can change the world. That's science-fiction, and it's dealt with in a great manner here, with Marvel's chief Futurist, Tony Stark, right in the middle of the fray.
The trick with going so far away from Marvel's genre norms is that it's a little hard to fit it into the Iron Man continuity. Certainly, Gillen and Ewing try, laying the start of the story right after Tony's stint with the Guardians of the Galaxy and advancing forward from there. But it's hard to amalgamate the events of this volume with Marvel continuity, due to things like the empty moon, the difficulty getting there, the emergence of a worldwide moon colony, and Tony acting as a sheriff there for some time.
Nonetheless, it's an intriguing story precisely because it's so far from the Marvel standards.
A few actual complaints: the story does drag a bit, with its long online run becoming a singular graphic novel. The pacing is just off for what you'd expect from your comics. And I wish Marvel would have put this out in a normal format, instead of the obnoxious oversized hardcover.
But I'm glad I picked this up, and think it should be required reading for the Gillen era of Iron Man. Marvel should put it out in a matching format, with a "4.5" on the spine (or whoever it fits in the precise continuity).
September 20, 2014
I can see that most of the other reviewers of this book are extremely disappointed, and I can kind of see why you might be if you were hoping for some kind of profound meditation on power and heroism or whatnot. This isn't that. This is a book where Tony Stark becomes GOVERNOR OF THE MOON, and if that doesn't make you clap your hands together in glee at all the pulp-SF possibilities, you should probably go read something else.
So the moon apparently has some kind of freaky unlimited energy source ("phlogistone," except I thought the word was "phlogiston") that poisons people by making them megalomaniacs, and its caretaker is a malfunctioning Soviet robot that Tony makes friends with. While slowly being driven insane. And then he is governor and sheriff of the moon! And everyone wants this stuff, including Doctor Doom!
I'd say you can guess what happens next, except, well, I mostly couldn't. I think my absolute favorite part has to be the part where Tony basically stars in his own plucky team heist movie, playing all the parts himself. Yes. Bwahahaha.
This is also the first "infinite comic" I've read, and I have to say I absolutely adored the format and I really wish there were a lot more of these. Infinite comics are specifically designed to be read digitally. They contain many more pages than a normal comic, but many of those pages are only minimally changed from the previous one -- from one page to another, a new panel might appear on the same background, for example. It made it feel almost animated. I'm someone who occasionally has difficulty visually parsing comics, especially modern comics, and this was great because it gave me a clear path through the panels: elements go in and out of focus, speech bubbles come up one at a time, and so on. I know a lot of people can't stand it, but I thought it was fabulous and I think it would have been confusing as hell on paper.
So the moon apparently has some kind of freaky unlimited energy source ("phlogistone," except I thought the word was "phlogiston") that poisons people by making them megalomaniacs, and its caretaker is a malfunctioning Soviet robot that Tony makes friends with. While slowly being driven insane. And then he is governor and sheriff of the moon! And everyone wants this stuff, including Doctor Doom!
I'd say you can guess what happens next, except, well, I mostly couldn't. I think my absolute favorite part has to be the part where Tony basically stars in his own plucky team heist movie, playing all the parts himself. Yes. Bwahahaha.
This is also the first "infinite comic" I've read, and I have to say I absolutely adored the format and I really wish there were a lot more of these. Infinite comics are specifically designed to be read digitally. They contain many more pages than a normal comic, but many of those pages are only minimally changed from the previous one -- from one page to another, a new panel might appear on the same background, for example. It made it feel almost animated. I'm someone who occasionally has difficulty visually parsing comics, especially modern comics, and this was great because it gave me a clear path through the panels: elements go in and out of focus, speech bubbles come up one at a time, and so on. I know a lot of people can't stand it, but I thought it was fabulous and I think it would have been confusing as hell on paper.
July 1, 2014
This started out brilliantly, with a return to all that was good in Iron Man back in the golden days. Unfortunately, it really petered out as it went along... I suspect due to the fact that it was an digital first comic... thus any major events have to be wrapped up and things but back to status quo.
As a result, about 1/2 way through the story alot of stupid things started happening.. the conflict with Doom was extremely unsatisfying, the main bad guys turned out to be not very main at all, and the 'hallucination' aspects of the story were really jarring and unpleasant.
Top that off with a terrible series of epilogues by regular series writer Kieron Gillen, and you end up with a pretty average story.
This would have worked alot better as an alternative universe type self contained arc, where things could have developed and come to a better conclusion.
As a result, about 1/2 way through the story alot of stupid things started happening.. the conflict with Doom was extremely unsatisfying, the main bad guys turned out to be not very main at all, and the 'hallucination' aspects of the story were really jarring and unpleasant.
Top that off with a terrible series of epilogues by regular series writer Kieron Gillen, and you end up with a pretty average story.
This would have worked alot better as an alternative universe type self contained arc, where things could have developed and come to a better conclusion.
Read
January 19, 2014Actually by Al Ewing and others, how the publisher has been mistaken for the author I dread to think - but this is the best Iron Man comic I've read...possibly ever? He's a charmer on film, but in comics Tony Stark has been quite a dick for some time now, and this story actually admits that, and examines why a character who's supposed to be a futurist seems so frequently to prop up the status quo. Various loose threads from Kieron Gillen's run (and occasionally before) are pulled together as Stark becomes sheriff of the Moon. Not sure how it'll read on the page, but while the art was variable, the Infinite Comics format is very clever in terms of making something that still feels like reading - rather than watching a bad silent animation - but which can make use of movement in new ways.
July 11, 2014
Pretty much an idiotic mess.
Some good ideas but explored so ineptly it defies belief. Starts with a Soviet Robot stranded alone on the moon since the 70s. Okay that would work in the real world but the moon in the Marvel U is a pretty busy place, what with the Watcher and the Inhumans both having bases there.
Dr Doom is also de-powered with only the power to cast illusions? A city, on the Manhattan, scale skyscrapers and all, on the moon that blossoms virtually over night without explanation? The moon's gravity is the same as Earth's?
I could go on with the complaints. Just avoid this one.
Some good ideas but explored so ineptly it defies belief. Starts with a Soviet Robot stranded alone on the moon since the 70s. Okay that would work in the real world but the moon in the Marvel U is a pretty busy place, what with the Watcher and the Inhumans both having bases there.
Dr Doom is also de-powered with only the power to cast illusions? A city, on the Manhattan, scale skyscrapers and all, on the moon that blossoms virtually over night without explanation? The moon's gravity is the same as Earth's?
I could go on with the complaints. Just avoid this one.
September 8, 2014
At the risk of sounding harsh,
this has to be one of the most boring and stupid books that I have ever tried to read.
And the art is pretty weak too.
It makes me hate myself for being so OCD that I desperately tried to finish this simply because I started it.
This is some pretty horrible sh!t.
this has to be one of the most boring and stupid books that I have ever tried to read.
And the art is pretty weak too.
It makes me hate myself for being so OCD that I desperately tried to finish this simply because I started it.
This is some pretty horrible sh!t.
December 24, 2020
I'm happily surprised by how much I loved this. It has such an interesting mix of tones: fun yet dark yet hopeful. It's a heist movie, but also a grittier sci-fi with a dash of psychological thriller. And the setting is so interesting: the moon! Tony Stark is sent to investigate the dangerous element Phlogistone and keep it from infecting humanity, and in the process made governor, or "sheriff" of the moon. The plot can get a little dicey, but I really enjoyed the way this story was told. It's a comic built for digital, and I love the way the panels move and almost feel like it's animated. It also does a great job with Tony's mindset, even as he's an unreliable narrator and not himself, corrupted by Phlogistone. You can feel how intelligent he is, how experienced a fighter he is in and out of the suit, and you see both his flaws and his virtues. I'd love to read more Iron Man comics by Al Ewing.
November 9, 2022
As far as this being an Infinite Comic goes, I'm not sure if the formatting was less than creative or the post-Kindle Comics comic reading experience is no longer optimized to show this comic properly. I know at times that the Infinite format feels like a gimmick, but it's still a fun gimmick that I appreciate given how it creatively uses GuidedView in a new way. So this book doesn't look great in this regard.
The story had a lot of potential starting with the mysterious Soviet-era robot who has survived alone on the moon at this time all the way to a mysterious new power source that could change everything. But I feel like this story could have been tighter as it dragged a bit with all the ups and downs of the story and even pushed to add some epilogue material that I'm not quite sure we needed.
Decent but not the greatest story.
The story had a lot of potential starting with the mysterious Soviet-era robot who has survived alone on the moon at this time all the way to a mysterious new power source that could change everything. But I feel like this story could have been tighter as it dragged a bit with all the ups and downs of the story and even pushed to add some epilogue material that I'm not quite sure we needed.
Decent but not the greatest story.
September 17, 2019
There is a lot going on here and most of the time, its too much. There are some really bug ideas but also some really bug leaps in logic/common sense. I liked Gillen/Ewing's Iron Man as they succeeded showing Tony being smarter than everyone yet still getting himself into terrible situations. The heist part of the story was very good but the rest were subpar, especially those involving Doom. The art, by many artists, was done well. The Infinite Comics format worked really, especially on a tablet. Overall, the story was much too long but had its moments.
March 12, 2021
Iron Man moon sheriff? Ugh … interesting concept that felt way too rushed .. the moon is effected by all the shenanigans of the Marvel universe and now has a wicked resource to mine. Cue boring panels of Iron Man doing stuff and things on the moon. Doom appears … sorta … maybe its all an illusion?
June 9, 2021
I would say that this graphic novel started out as a 4 and finished as a little below a 3. Readable. Some good art. Makings of a good story. Mediocre execution. I enjoyed it either way.
June 15, 2023
Despite the big names involved it’s extremely dull.
March 7, 2015
I loved everything up until the heist and while I enjoyed all of that, my interest just started to wane. Still enjoyable though.
July 13, 2015
a fun read
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews