Broken Frontier

A disgruntled employee does what no one on Captain America’s side has been able to do. Let’s just say it involves Iron Man and it isn’t pretty.

The "Disassembled" storyline running through New Avengers has been, on the whole, well done. In each issue Bendis explains why an individual Avenger decides to stand with Captain America or Iron Man, giving the readers more of an insight into why characters behave the way they do in the Civil War comics. This issue was touted as the one explaining some of Iron Man’s motivations. Through an amusing, disturbing, and sardonic altercation we do see what one man thinks of Tony Stark’s recent behavior. This dialogue then leads to another with possibly huge ramifications for Iron Man and the future of Earth 616. But does this go through the inner conflict of the showcased hero the other issues have? Sorry, but no, not really.

In this issue we see what one disgruntled employee thinks of Iron Man’s new stance on superheroing while Tony says, does, and thinks very little. Of course the impact of the meeting does resonate with Tony as well as Maria Hill, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D, since she too had to deal with the situation. I don’t want to give away too much, but it should be enough to say the writer understands that in war a soldier does what he/she has to do. In future months, I hope Bendis proves he understands a leader (whether it is one we like or not) has human emotions and is affected when a man is driven to insane actions based on what said leader has done. Will Tony get introspective like the other New Avengers have? If Bendis is as good a writer as I like to believe he is, then the events in this issue should make him.

While Iron Man may be doing very little in this issue, Jim Cheung does a lot. He has the flair, the flash, and the sharp edged modern look the kids seem to like these days, whether he is drawing a splash page depicting the New York City skyline or an 8+ paneled page showcasing dialogue. His line work is smooth, clear, and powerful but at the same time soft and just realistic enough to appeal to those who are against the surrealistic look running rampant these days. Mixing the archetypal with the human, Cheung is just the kind of artist Marvel is using lately, and with good reason. The company strives to make their books more sophisticated, but never seems to lose sight of the fact that they feature superheroes. Cheung’s art reflects that mentality to a tee. In case you are still wondering, that is a good thing.

Does all this make it worth dropping the cash? (Because that is the ultimate question anyway, right?) I guess it depends on what part of the Civil War story you consider more important, the whys behind Iron Man’s behavior or the future of ol’ Shell-Head. Here, one is addressed greatly . . . the other, not so much.