Review: The Invincible Iron Man #9

With the fallout of last issue—everything from the nefarious Feilong coming for Tony Stark and mutantkind with Sentinels made with Stark tech to Rhodey incarcerated to the attack by Orchis on Emma Frost and the mutants of Krakoa—Tony and company are at the lowest points we’ve seen them in some quite some time. Tony is penniless and without rights to his Iron Man armory, Rhodey is in danger while in jail, and Emma is wanted by INTERPOL. But not all hope is lost—and depicting that kind of glimmer a better tomorrow is something at which writer Gerry Duggan, artist Juan Frigeri, colorist Bryan Valenza, and letterer Joe Caramagna excel on a consistent basis.

The Invincible Iron Man #9, out now from Marvel Comics, is titled “The End of Iron Man,” and that’s appropriate, but not just because Tony finally returns his last armor to Feilong. He’s at rock bottom, somewhere he’s been before, but this time it’s different. Regardless of his financial situation, he can’t just whip up the same type of armor he’s made before; Feilong owns rights to those. He’s going to have to reconsider his next move and that requires building a new type of armor from the ground up. That sort of endeavor necessitates resources, which, again, Tony has in short supply, so he’ll have to look to other allies that aren’t the Avengers.

From THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #9 (2023)

It’s no secret that The Invincible Iron Man #10 will feature the marriage of Emma and Tony, as Marvel has been advertising about it for the last few weeks. This issue shows the whys of that upcoming union, but not through any contrived plotting exposition or dialogue. We feel the desperation of why the nuptials are a necessity, as both Emma and Tony seem to be out of options and out of time. But as much as we get a window into that, Duggan, Frigeri, and the rest of the creative team show us some borderline tender moments between the two strong-willed personalities. (There’s one particularly affecting moment when you see Tony reach his hand out to comfort Emma, but pulls back his hand quickly after. It says more than any dialogue could.) Tensions may be high, but they do respect one another as caped comrades in the superhero game, and that respect is going to be needed if Emma, Tony, and the mutants hope to survive.

From THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #9 (2023)

The Invincible Iron Man keeps proving to be a compelling read month-in and month-out, and this upcoming paradigm shift with so many of Marvel’s four-colored players impacted will continue to keep readers coming back to see Tony knocked down, but not out.

From THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #9 (2023)

The Invincible Iron Man #9 is on sale now from Marvel Comics.

From the official issue description: