Broken Frontier

Over two years ago, Matt Fraction and Salvador Larroca re-launched Invincible Iron Man with a new issue number one. Hot off the heels of a major motion picture, Fraction’s interpretation of Tony Stark and his particular brand of nonchalant brilliance was fully embraced with the same kind of excitement as the film. But the writer and his creative team didn’t rest on their laurels and continued to breathe new life into Stark’s past, future, and very active present.

Some of the more fun aspects of this new telling of Iron Man have been the alternative, real world thinking and solutions that Fraction attributes to his characterization of Stark. For instance, Stark purchases an entire soda brand and bottling company. Not for product distribution, but because he admires their product’s saturation and availability all over the world. You can’t get meds in some villages in Africa, but they certainly have a Coke machine. Stark purchases the entire beverage entity merely to supply aid in third world countries through the pre-existing shipping and distribution method. Every day, futurist solutions you can wrap your mind around.

The entire run so far has been filled with moments and ideas like this. They’re ideas on how to change the world practically. Sure, sometimes it’s a lofty idea, but it remains true to the character of Stark and the context in which it’s presented. It adds a social consciousness to this tech heavy superhero book, which is a nice change of pace.

With the title’s first annual, Fraction applies this same mentality and style to Tony Stark’s greatest foe, the Mandarin. Having multiple, sometimes confusing, origins, the Mandarin was always the yin to Tony’s yang. The character himself is deeply rooted in otherworldly magic, the exact opposite of Stark’s grounding in bleeding edge technology. They’re both powerful men in their own right, but supplement that natural ability with external armaments, be it ten rings of power (which we get a breakdown of here) or Starktech. It’s a wonderfully realized dichotomy that doesn’t seem like it’s been exploited properly in modern Iron Man comics.

With this Annual, Fraction, along with art by Carmine Di Giandomenico, create a stand-alone story that addresses the Mandarin’s sordid past while also introducing him to new readers. In this tale, the Mandarin kidnaps Jun Shan, a celebrated filmmaker, and his wife after an awards function. Jun Shan is offered the opportunity to capture Mandarin’s life story on film, or his wife’s life will be forfeit. What follows is a filmmaker’s quest for the truth, under duress, and a battle to separate his emotions from his art. Through it all, we get to see the Mandarin’s version of his origin (as told by him) with the much harsher realities.

Emotionally, this story hits all the right spots. You really feel for Jun Shan and his plight. He is forced into a life and death situation where his only ammunition, the truth, may result in the death of his only love and very own life. The book is well constructed and paced. It’s a meaty read that escalates in pace along with the stakes of the story. As a fan of the filmmaking process, it also hits beats that are comical in their familiarity with the language of cinema.

Having actually read very little of the Mandarin in a story, I found Fraction’s depiction of him engrossing. He’s a power drunk dictator that really has a lot of power. You can’t help but like him a little, but then be absolutely appalled by his actions. It’s a sickening glee that grows the more and more he’s on the page. Reading through this, you can’t help but wait for when he finally squares up with Iron Man, because you know it’s happening (it better be happening).

Part exposition, part origin, and part hopeful set up for things to come. Through the twisted and tragic story of Jun Shan, we’re introduced to this charismatic crazy man and can’t help but want more of him. I sure hope we don’t have to wait too long to see these enemies finally lock horns.