Iron Man: Armor Wars Prologue

Iron Man: Armor Wars

by David Michelinie, Bob Layton (Illustrator), M.D. Bright (Illustrator)

Iron Man battles villains in space, at the bottom of the sea in an underwater oil rig, and inside Stark Enterprises.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Science Fiction, Superheroes, Fantasy, Comic Book

240 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1987

Reviews

[Chris Moutafis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and cool. Go Iron Man

[William Thomas · Rating 1 out of 5]

Even for the standards of 1987 comic book scripting, we can consider this writing to be severely stilted and hackneyed. This really has nothing to do with the upcoming 'Armor Wars' arc, but is instead a series of single issues without much of a connecting thread. Or even a plot for that matter. Terrible dialogue, terrible scripts. No one wants to see Iron Man fight a bunch of tanks and jets for three issues. If he's fighting against AIM, you better have one hell of an imagination to cook up something seriously insidious. Accompanied by a who's who of B-rate villains, this isn't a shining moment for ol' Shell-head.

Solid art, though. Terrible red and silver-white armor though. Hated that period.

Writing: D
Art: B

[quincy jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

it is what Iron man 4 could of been. I love the 80s and this book takes me there. The stories are solid.It's a good read.

[tony dillard jr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bob Layton co-plotted and provided pencils and inks for the 10 issues inside this trade paperback. With that bit of information, I want to go on a slightly off topic tangent. I think it's creepy that as soon as I started reading this book 5 days ago, I began getting inundated with suggestions to make Bob Layton a friend on Facebook. I also got a multitude of posts from others praising his artwork. I started receiving ads from eBay suggesting artwork by Layton as well as other Iron Man back issues.

Here's the thing, I hadn't put anything on my social media about my reading 'Armor Wars Prologue.' I hadn't taken any pictures, texted, nor sent an email to anybody about this book. I hadn't even mentioned reading it out loud to my wife. I bought this book years ago, and forgot all about it. So how did the Internet know that I was finally reading this book? I'm telling you, this 'coincidence' sure is spooky.

Okay - now about the book...

Tony Stark has pulled himself out of the ashes. Newly sober, Stark is again making a name for himself. Obadiah Stane may have taken Stark Industries away from Tony; but thanks to a lengthy court battle, the billionaire playboy regained his wealth and has started up a new company: Stark Enterprises. Only it's not a smooth transition for Tony.

His new orbiting space station has been rendered unusable by AIM. A beloved member of his inner circle has betrayed him. Rhodey's new helicopter was in reality a malfunctioning transformer that nearly destroyed his company. Now there's a literal ghost in the Stark machine that could cause Stark Enterprises to declare bankruptcy should Tony's new clean energy turbine go bust! Thrown in a handful of B-list villains, the evil industrialist Justin Hammer and the massive headache of California rush hour traffic, it's no wonder that Iron Man will declare war on anyone who steals his technology and there's been a long list of foes who've taken something from Tony Stark and his armored bodyguard.

You know you're getting old when disaster upon disaster faces a beloved protagonist and all you can think of is 'How much did that cost?' For decades, it has seemed that Tony Stark has had a near unlimited bank account. It's actually a little satisfying to actually find the businessman running low on funds. No, I don't secretly want Tony Stark to go broke. But I can't tell you how many issues of The Avengers and Iron Man that I have read where it seemed like Tony had carte blanche to repair any and all damage brought about by his destructive adventures as Iron Man. I just found it a little more relatable having Tony Stark sweating bullets because all of his economic stability rests on a really tricky financial gamble.

I just shelled out a fortune for a new car. Mind you it was used and it seems to be a great car. But I've been on pins and needles, afraid that I purchased a lemon and that's how Tony has been feeling about the new energy tech company he bought with his last line of bank credit.

I came to this book with the mindset that I was going to sell it afterwards. I also wasn't sure if I wanted to read about the Armor Wars. But after reading, I find that I would be completely open to a complete run of the first Iron Man series of stories and I want to read the follow up to this book. So much for trying to clear some room off my shelf. Writer David Michelinie and Bob Layton did too great of a job to part with this read.

[Fizzgig76 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reprints Iron Man (1) #215-224 (February 1987-November 1987). Tony Stark is trying to relaunch his company but his plans to open Stark Enterprises could be waylaid by his enemies. With A.I.M. targeting his new space station, Justin Hammer resurfacing as a threat to his business, and Roxxon hiring a new techno-saboteur named the Ghost to stop him, Tony could be pushed to the edge…and the worse could be yet to come!

Written by David Michelinie and Bob Layton, Iron Man: Armor Wars Prologue is a Marvel Comics collection. The series features art by Mark Bright and Bob Layton and was also collected as part of the Iron Man Epic Collection: Stark Wars.

I admit that I’m not the biggest Iron Man fan. I always found most “technology” based heroes the least compelling, and Iron Man is Marvel’s biggest hero in that sense. The snarky playboy attitude of Tony Stark combined with the tech aspect is kind of off-putting to me, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t have fun reading his title on occasion. The Iron Man movie really helped me like the character a bit more so it is interesting to go back and read some his classic adventures with Robert Downey Jr.’s portrayal in mind.

The collection is largely a series of attacks on Stark Enterprises. You have A.I.M., the Ghost (and Spymaster), Justin Hammer, and an agent of Hammer named Force needing help. It shows Stark growing a bit more paranoid and pushed to his limits. It is times like these I kind of wish that aspects of the character would resurface like his fight with alcoholism since it is a lifelong battle and he’s under so much pressure…but alas this volume is largely just Stark “superheroing”.

I do like the Ghost but I also feel that Marvel misused the character. With a nice design and powers that mimic both Kitty Pryde and Sue Storm, the character is pretty powerful and does a lot of damage in the few issues he appears…but it feels a bit squandered. The issues involving the Ghost have jumped over the years especially following a new Ghost in Ant-Man and the Wasp.

The primary reasons I read this collection is for ’80s nostalgia and to set-up Armor Wars which I never actually read. The issues are like many issues of the period and rather more episodic than modern comics which isn’t necessarily a bad thing (I rather enjoy it). If you are a fan of Iron Man, it is a good run and if you are a fair-weather fan like myself, it still is interesting. Iron Man: Armor Wars Prologue is followed by Iron Man: Armor Wars.

[Kris Shaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Michelinie and Bob Layton (with Mark Bright) are simply amazing. I had never read any of these issues before I bought this trade, and I am kicking myself for having missed much of this era of Iron Man on a monthly basis. I bought issues 189-192 off of the spinner racks at 7-11 circa 1984, and the odd issue here and again, but for some reason or another this title never grabbed my younger self. Pity. I think the main reason why I was so put off by Iron Man as a lad was because he didn't have any powers, he had a suit. Anybody could wear a suit and be powerful, so it didn't work for me. Fast forward to 2010, and the world is a much different place. Technology is in everything. My phone could outperform 1987 desktop computers, for chrissakes! This makes Iron Man much more believable, almost realistic. I choose to use the word realistic sparingly when referring to comic books, because quite frankly, there is nothing realistic about guys gearing up and fighting each other. In reality, everyone would get their rockstar paycheck and cash out. Of course I now realize that Tony Stark's "superpower" is his intellect.

I absolutely love the whole Justin Hammer thing, as corporations are evil, right? We all say so, yet we all choose to work for the biggest fish possible. On a simpler level, I like to think of companies as evil, hiring villains like Blacklash, Blizzard, and the Beetle to tangle with their competitor's bodyguard (Iron Man).

[Isaac Woodman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This might be my favorite Marvel comic full stop. I’ve been getting really into Iron Man and on a comics level he’s super slept on. It’s very wordy which is the main complaint I see on this site but honestly that doesn’t bother me at all, Tony’s a super genius so reading him think through problems is really fun. The characters are really good, Rhodey was awesome and I really liked Force. Silver Centurion is one of the best looks Tony the Iron Man suit has ever had, I adore the big shoulder pieces and the silver adds a new level of high tech compared to the previous red and gold. I loved this and I’m eager to read Demon in a Bottle and Armor Wars.

[Christopher Boaldin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this era

I grew up during the silver centurion armor and the armor wars stories. Great stories and amazing art. I love having it digital

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun collection of Iron Man stories. Although the book purports to be a prelude to Armor Wars (considered one of the best Iron Man stories) the stories really don't have much of a link to Armor Wars, and certainly not enough that this book is required reading to enjoy Armor Wars.

As for the stories themselves, there are 8 issues reprinted in this volume, covering 4 different story-lines. The first story involves Iron Man going up against A.I.M. (a group of mad scientists that have been a thorn in the side of many Marvel heroes) who are attacking his space station. The second story features Iron Man dealing with the villain the Ghost, an interesting villain who can become intangible. In this storyline he is responsible for a fairly grisly death. The third story has a much lighter tone, featuring Tony Stark trying to get from Stark Enterprises to his home for a house warming party, and of course, anyone and everyone needs his help along the way. Finally, the fourth story features Iron Man in conflict with some of Justin Hammer's (one of the villains from Iron Man 2) hired goons.

The stories are fun, but the dialogue gets too verbose, and characters say things that people would never say in real life. To be fair some of the dialogue and thought balloons were due to editorial policy at the time where the philosophy was that any comic book could be someone's first and so there was a lot of expository captions, dialogue, etc., to clue a new reader as to what was going on, and explain a specific character's abilities. Not counting dialogue existing due to editorial policy, the rest of the dialogue could be downright corny, particularly when James Rhodes was talking.

Another frustrating aspect about these stories was the inconsistency in handling Tony Stark's wealth. One of the ongoing subplots was that Stark was building a new company, Stark Enterprises, and that he was barely above water and pushing his credit to the limit to keep the company going. On the other hand, there were times Stark wasted ridiculous amounts of money. For example, in one issue, to recruit his head of public relations he offers her twice her salary, and takes her to lunch to discuss the details. So far so good, except lunch was at Disneyland, and Stark bought every ticket Disney sold that day so they could have privacy!

The art is nice, which alternated between Marc Bright doing the pencils and Bob Layton inking those pencils on most of the issues, and with Bob Layton doing all of the art on the remaining issues. The two styles mixed well together, and the art was clear and has a nice flow.

Final verdict: Fun stories, but not required reading.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I first started reading comics as a teenager, Iron Man soon became my favorite title, thanks in large part to the work of David Michelinie, Bob Layton and Mark Bright, whose work is highlighted in this Armor Wars Prologue collection. This collection, which includes issues 215-224, leads up to the famous Armor Wars storyline, and features some very memorable adventures of the red and silver Iron Man.

Michelinie and Layton had a terrific run on Iron Man, and the issues collected here are some of their best. Yes, there's a degree of `80s cheesiness, and the dialogue is a bit silly at times, but they did a great job adding depth to both Tony Stark and James Rhodes, and the introduction of the Ghost was one of the best Iron Man issues of the decade. As far as calling this collection the Armor Wars Prologue, I guess that's true in the sense that these issues preceded that storyline, but the events in Armor Wars weren't even hinted at here.

The artwork in this volume may seem dated compared to the modern Iron Man artwork of Adi Granov and Salvador Larocca, but for me the team of Mark Bright and Bob Layton will always be the "gold standard" of Iron Man artists. Iron Man always managed to look both bulky (like a guy in a suit of armor should look) but fluid, and their attention to detail was incredible. The issue where Tony and Rhodey both suit up and fall from space still amazes me. I can't tell you how many of those dynamic Iron Man illustrations I painstakingly copied as a teenager.

Obviously I'm a fan of the issues collected here. The Armor Wars Prologue isn't a "must-have" Iron Man collection the way Iron Man: Armor Wars, Iron Man: Extremis or Invincible Iron Man Omnibus, Vol. 1 are, but it's still a terrific run of classic `80s Iron Man issues, and one that all old school Iron Man fans will enjoy.

[Javier Alaniz · Rating 1 out of 5]

David Michelinie wrote it
Bob Layton and Mark Bright drew it.

This is an example of the utterly pedestrian quality of the majority of super hero comics. The artwork is straightforwardly boring. Unimpressive except for occasional, unintentional, hilarity e.g. When Tony Stark goes for an impromptu haircut while shopping for his 5th Rolex ("every man has to have a hobby" he explains) and comes out with a jerry curl/mullet (no, for real). His best buddy/personal pilot "Rhodey" comments "Whoa, That's some chillin' 'doo chief."

The dialogue is worse than the art. Great moments like the one above excepted. When the menacing villain Whiplash leads an attack on a man under Tony Stark's protection, his whip poised in the air ready to snap, Wiplash declares "Say "sayonara" to yer butt Wilson! Yer Dead!"
Sayonara? To your butt?

Perhaps it's because this was written back when comics cost 75c and the writers could be reasonably sure that their readers were kids. But I can't see any reason for anyone to put themselves through reading this collection. It's like renting a bad movie for bad movie night, expecting to be able to laugh at the awfulness, only to find out that it's not that kind of awful. Just the unfunny, what a waste of time kind of awful.

The only strong reaction I felt throughout the experience was the severe What The Fuck? moment when I saw the positive comments and ratings here on Goodreads. What is wrong with you people?

Don't borrow, don't buy. Just don't...

[The_Mad_Swede · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume collect issues #215–224, which serve as the prologue to the Armor Wars saga. Plotted by David Michelinie and Bob Layton, and scripted by the former, the issues are, for the most part, pencilled by Mark Bright and inked by Layton (who does all the art chores on the those issues where Bright is not pencilling).

As the story opens, Tony Stark is rebuilding his reputation and working on his new company Stark Enterprises, while being Iron Man in the red and white armour (with Jim Rhodes still being around as the red and gold Iron Man, while still working for Stark). But building a new company is not always easy, especially when one of your partners have secrets and A.I.M. are after your technology, as Stark learns the hard way.

Then there is Roxxon, one of Marvel's major nasty corporate villains (as it were), which brings Tony Stark and Iron Man into conflict with both the mysterious Ghost and the Spymaster. Justin Hammer also makes his comeback together with Force, the Beetle, the Blizzard and Blacklash, and perhaps this final arc is the one which most clearly leads into the Armor Wars saga.

All in all, a very enjoyable collection with great artwork. Bob Layton is one of the best Iron Man artists around, and that is makes the dish all the more sweet.

[AJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

While not the best Iron Man comic I've read I have to say I enjoyed it quite a bit. It could be a little corny at times (many times) but seeing Iron Man stop a health fanatic from destroying a Burger King in one issue and reluctantly retrieve a little girl's kitten from the top of a tree in another was actually a refreshing break from the more recent Marvel comics that in which nearly every character has horrible, depressing personal issues and on top of them must deal with events of nearly apocalyptic proportions.

The comic did have interesting plot lines (none as interesting as that kitten, though), like The Ghost and the Machine and the following two issues. I thought Ghost was a cool villain in Matt Fraction's the Invincible Iron Man and I loved reading the first issues of his appearance.

I haven't read the follow up Armor Wars series yet, but I will soon.

[Doug Luberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great, old-school, Iron Man.

This is a great rear-view mirror look back at the cultural mindset of the times...If you can keep in mind that it's just that, and that the cultural stereotypes are in a place that we have evolved from.

The stories are simplistic, and the themes are almost juvenile from today's point of view. From the Cold War stigmatized view of 'enemy' Russians to an afro-wearing, jive-talking, Rhodey as Stark's subordinate, it's kind of mind-blowing to see just how far along we've come as a society in about 30 years.

Most of the stories are self-contained, and it's before the art and printing evolution of the '90s that brought with it an almost overnight evolution of the art form.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

These are some good, but not great Iron Man stories from 1987, appearing before, but not having much to do with the Armor Wars arc. Roughly half the book just has Tony swatting down planes, tanks and other armored vehicles, and is not that interesting, despite a surprisingly minor subplot about his suit slowly killing him. The second half is more fun as he faces off against costumed villains like Ghost and Spymaster. The art by Bob Layton and Mark Bright is uniformly excellent, if awash in goofy 1980s detail such as James' flat-top, Tony's mullet and and an absolutely hilarious jogging ensemble. Worth reading if you enjoy this era of Iron Man.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very 1980's. Big hair, woman's shoulder pads, tank tops, and legwarmers and bright cartoony colors. Bob Layton's art is great as always, but the stories are kind of silly.
Not sure why this is called the Armor Wars Prologue other than it reprints the issues before the Armor Wars story line. There is no lead-in for the Armor Wars, nor any foreshadowing that something big is about to happen, just seemingly normal Iron Man issues.
This stuff was good when I was a kid, but time has not been kind to it.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume is still as fun as the previous but not as memorable. The term "Prologue" is used liberaly here, these stories taking place before the Armor Wars but having little to do with that story. There were some good moments with Justin Hammer and his group of villains (poor Blizzard can never catch a break). This book also had the introduction of the Ghost, who I'm enjoying in Thunderbolts. Good, solid storytelling, just not much to tell.
I hope the Armor Wars lives up to the hype.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of differing stories. Stark Enterprises is trying to start up again. Not everybody is happy. A ghost in the machine tries to stop it. Force wants to become a good guy. There's lots of really short stories here, not sure how it is a prologue. Though it does look at both Starks and Rhodeys attitude to the Iron Man suits. A good read.

[Devero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Questo volume raccoglie, come da titolo, le storie precedenti alla prima Guerra delle Armature.
Storie già molto buone, sia per testi sia per disegni. Il vero Tony Stark lo troviamo qui, non in alcune storture recenti.

[Dusty · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cali Stark building his West Coast business... contains issue 219, one of my first comics. A buff Tony jogging on the beach with all the babes eye humping him... classic. Plus Ghost shows up and kicks his teeth in. Love this era of Shellhead!

[Christopher · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh. Calling this a prologue or even a collection with a common theme is really stretching it. Typically early 80s comic book fare.