From this first issue, Tony is a womanizer, he's a recovering alcoholic (who actually worries that he'll give in and fall off the wagon), and he's super-smart but a definite futurist. And Sal can sure draw the futurist Tony really really well.

Actual commentary so it doesn't look like I'm just stoking someone's ego. Ezekiel Stane (son of movie villain and Iron Monger Obadiah Stane) makes his way into the Iron-verse from the Order, Pepper Potts comes back into the universe, and a group of terrorists using Iron-tech go suicide bombing in Africa. It all starts with a bang, and moves right into Iron Tony in space fixing a space station, then with a hottie who barely speaks English, and then straight into the Director of SHIELD role.

And all the while, he complains about his sex life. Pepper Potts gives him grief for the type of girl he is attracted to (all while flirting with him in a very human way) and Tony gets suited up for some Iron Manning. If that can be used as a verb.

Is he Invincible? Not quite yet. This book makes it gloriously obvious that he will never be Invincible as Ezekiel updates the tech and makes it better. Makes it more enhanced, more easily accessible, more human. And then makes his way through a bigwigs meeting at a Tobacco company that he was contracted to work for. And we find out the terrorists are using his tech (duh).

Okay. All of that is the book. And that is a first issue. When this book takes place is unknown, but presumably it takes place outside of Skrullmageddon so probably right before it all went down as Dum Dum is still on board the helicarrier. And still acting with much pomp and circumstance as a member of SHIELD.

But Tony proves that he is an acting Director of SHIELD by taking part in the attack against the presumed terrorists so that he can find out exactly what went on.

The only thing that really gets me about this book is all of Tony's back-up. His interaction with Rhodey is pretty awesome and is just a few panels but completely sums up their friendship, but Iron Man is just that, a Man. He shouldn't be part of an institution. He shouldn't be part of an army or global peacekeeping task-force. He should be an Avenger only in those books and just Iron Man in these. So that is what is missing.

If they take him out of SHIELD, or at least barely touch on the interactions of himself with SHIELD in this book, I feel like it may have more chance of being Invincible in the long run (groan).