Review: Iron Man #47

“Bless Me, Father, For I Have Sinned.”

Painful as this is to admit, I didn’t buy this issue off the rack because I did not like Barry Smith’s art.  More specifically, I didn’t like how Marianne Rodgers looked in one panel.  That was enough for me to decide to see what Archie and his gang were up to that month.  

Because of that one panel, I didn’t pick up another issue until a cousin talked me into buying #52 several months later.  

This issue was one of the last holes I filled in extending my collection back to #30.  Even after finally snagging it, I still came away unimpressed.  I’d always wondering why Issue #48 seemed to pick up after #46 and finally reading this one confirmed that nothing really happened.  

This was the panel that caused me to not buy this issue.

In hindsight, this was essentially a “soft relaunch” that started with another gorgeous Gil Kane cover - the guy was on a tear! - followed by a rehashing of Iron Man’s origin written and drawn by two of Marvel’s A-Team.  Once this issue was completed, the baton would be passed to another writer with George Tuska returning to the art.

While this issue may have seemed a bit underwhelming to me as a kid, looking back, I suspect Roy Thomas’ role was more significant behind the scenes, clearing away as much of the wreckage of the past couple years as possible.

Looking at it now, it's not a bad comic. Kevin O’Brien’s funeral served as an appropriate framing device for a story reminding everyone why a mega-rich guy started wearing high-tech armor in the first place as well as answering “Why Must There Be an Iron Man?”

This slimmed down version also looked odd to me as a kid.

Credits

Writer: Roy Thomas

Pencils:  Barry Smith

Inks:  Jim Mooney  

Letterer:  Artie Simek

Editor: Stan Lee

Cover Art:  Gil Kane & Vince Coletta

Release Date: March 7, 1972

Synopsis

The story opens with dreary, rainy skies which I learned were SOP for every comic book funeral.  A service held in the Gobi Desert would still require dark and stormy skies. 

Don’t ask me why it’s Iron Man making an appearance instead of Tony Stark.  I’m guessing so that we can ramp up the drama for a few panels.  Naturally Simon Gilbert - whom Barry Smith gifts with both a chin and cheekbones - maintains his repugnant manner, immediately blaming Iron Man for O’Brien’s death.  For reasons that appear logical only in the world of four-color comics, the police show up so that they can take Iron Man in for questioning - something I would have thought had been addressed prior to this event and something could certainly wait.  Being the supportive fiancé that she is, Marianne Rodgers also piles on, asking “Why Must There Be an Iron Man?”

Can't say I was wild about Simon Gilbert having a chin either.

Our guy ain’t having any of this.  A warning repulsor blast has the police backing away as he takes to the air - cueing up a golden opportunity for Roy Thomas and Barry Smith to walk us through a retelling of Tales of Suspense #39.  This 1963 comic introduced the world at large to the Invincible Iron Man - courtesy of then writer Larry Lieber and artist Don Heck (with the legendary Jack Kirby having designed the classic grey armor).

Thanks to the 2008 Iron Man movie, I can safely assume that everyone on the planet knows about Tony Stark needing the armor to keep shrapnel away from his heart.  In the original version as well as this update, we’re on set in Viet Nam instead of Afghanistan - although neither are what I consider prime vacation spots.  

You don’t need me to meticulously recite we all already know.  With a short amount of time to live before said metal fragments would usher him away from the land of the living, the rich guy works with a smart prisoner to build a suit of armor to both keep him alive and beat up the bad guys.  The smart Asian scientist sacrifices his life to give the rich guy time to jumpstart his armor.  Pissed off over what the bad guys do to his friend, the rich guy in the armor takes his frustrations out on the bad guys.

Okay, I'm cool with depicting Tony's weak heart in this scene!

Although familiar terrain, kudos to Roy Thomas for providing a third person narration, adding the necessary emotions, well depicted in a number of Barry Smith’s tasteful panels.  Interestingly enough, the original story consisted of thirteen pages with this “remake” consuming fourteen.

Once that Tony's done retelling that story, we find ourselves back in 1972 with several pages remaining.  That means wandering through his thoughts and secluded sectors of his company so that Tony can take his sweet time before deciding to do what we all knew he was going to do.

Credit both Thomas and Smith for making four pages that could have been akin to watching paint dry actually intriguing.  The writer brings up Stark being a “munitions maker” again - a hint of changes to come in future issues.  Smith does his best work with several panels offering reflections of his golden armor and current one. 

Once Tony decides that there must be an Iron Man to face the challenges as few others can, he’s now soaring off into a clearing sky.  With a nifty Bob Dylan reference no less!  All that’s left is a reminder to tune in next time for the return of Firebrand.

You know I can't criticize a page with a reference to Bob Dylan.

Story

As a kid, I was pretty irked that this issue was devoted to retelling Iron Man’s origin.  But looking back now, it’s actually a good idea.  A restarting of the engines was much needed to dispel the mess of Brodsky-Conway issues. What better way to accomplish that than with a couple of Marvel's better talents sharing a story that not everyone knew.

Far as I’m concerned, Thomas’ narration of that origin more than makes up for the rather dumb scenes with the police attempting to arrest Iron Man.  Big props as well that he manages some heavy duty introspection without lathering on the purple prose - something that Thomas had a propensity to do in his comics.

Bottom line, this issue wasn’t his most challenging assignment, but the guy who was on his way to becoming the Editor-in-Chief delivers exactly what’s needed.  7/10

Art 

Although it’s still hard to believe that as a kid, I put this comic back on the rack, the truth is that no one will compare this issue to Smith’s remarkable work on Conan or his later years accomplishments with the X-Men and Weapon X.  I don’t believe Jim Mooney did him any favors either.  Just let me also throw in that Iron Man #47 also came out the same month as the double-sized Avenger’s #100 - meaning the guy was definitely burning some midnight oil.  But even with all of that, Smith provided solid art throughout the book with only a couple “oops” moments.

Simple, but perfectly capturing the needed emotion for this scene.

And yeah, I was a really dumb kid.  7/10

Wimp Factor

Much as I really, really don’t like to talk about Tony’s Stark’s heart, it kinda makes sense to bring it up here since his origin is where it all began.  That and it being his first time dealing with his armor, it’s no surprise figuring it all out offered more of a challenge that the Viet Cong baddies. (Don't forget - a low score is a good thing!) 1/10

Villain Rating

Oh my goodness.  Wong Chu is truly a horrendous and absolutely inappropriate villain.  Nor do his soldiers amount to anything more than cannon fodder.  1/10

Overall Rating

This issue provides a nice closure to a wretched era. 7/10

Additional Nuts & Bolts

• Believe it or not, Wong Chu actually returns in 2000 to torment Iron Man during Joe Quesada’s memorable run in Volume 3's #32.  Even more surprising to the civilized world - it was a decent story.  

• When Iron Man’s origin was retold in 1991's #268, writer John Byrne’s executed some retro-conning to show that it was actually the Mandarin working behind the scenes and pulling Wong Chu’s strings. 

What do you think? Agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments below.

For comparison, here's several panels from Tales of Suspense #39. I still can't believe there was ever a time that it was okay to depict Asian people with that hideous yellow color. (Art: Don Heck)