Infamous Iron Man #4
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Alex Maleev
If I had to sum up my recent feelings towards Brian Michael Bendis I would say he writes entertaining comics. Not good comics, (in fact, I think a lot of his comics are quite bad) but entertaining comics. His fast-paced dialogue is always fun to read but once you start breaking down the substance, it’s always quite underwhelming. Bendis has developed into a predictable writer. You know what you’re getting when you open a Brian Michael Bendis comic. A plodding story loaded with redundant scenes, good characters, and swift dialogue. Infamous Iron Man #4 is exactly that. Nothing worse than average but nothing much above it either.
I was never a fan of Victor Von Doom suddenly picking up the Iron Man mantle. I’ve never been a fan of Bendis’ cryptic portrayal of the new Doom. I understand that after Secret Wars, changes need to made while writing Doom but I still don’t feel that Bendis is the right man for the job. There’s something so bland about his portrayal of Doom that pales in comparison to the genius of Jonathan Hickman’s version of the character. I enjoyed Doom’s processing of the fact that he was God (in the last issue) but I still felt that in the hands of a better writer, that scene could have been a contender for "moment of the year".
All that being said, there were improvements to the characterization of Doctor Doom in Infamous Iron Man #4. The layers are starting to peel off and Doom is hinting at the darkness within him. The comic starts with a very typical-Bendis scene between Doom and Mariah Hill that should have been cut from the issue. Fortunately, Bendis delivers strong character beats right after he’s done wasting his first pages. Doom returns to Latveria to see his country turned into a mismanaged police state and he is not pleased. He immediately hunts down the man in charge and reveals that the old ruthless monarch still resides behind his renewed features. This moment, where Doom steps all over the temporary leader, is the single-best Doom moment in the series thus far. The scene was able to make-up for the opening bore-fest with Mariah Hill. Bendis is hinting that he is able to write a good Doom here and the question is whether he can consistently bring moments like these to keep this comic above the mediocre level.
If it weren’t for Alex Maleev, I probably never would have read even a single page of Infamous Iron Man. Alex Maleev made himself one of my favorite artists with his phenomenal run on Daredevil. Naturally, I want to read anything he draws and I couldn’t resist picking up Infamous Iron Man despite my reservations with the premise. Maleev never disappoints. His pencils are dark, moody, and expressive. His style is unlike any other artists and I have always connected with his ability to add aspects of levity to darkness. His style has always made me feel that everything thing is doomed but it doesn’t matter because we can find joy in that anyway. That is far-fetching but that is what I have always felt reading Alex Maleev comics and I feel that here as well. Maleev is the star of Infamous Iron Man. He is the reason you even give this comic a thought.
Infamous Iron Man #4 overcomes a tedious opening scene with a characterization of Doom that shows the beloved villain still resides within this new version of the character. I still maintain that Bendis is not the right man to steer this new Doom into the Marvel Universe but he’s not completely screwing it up so far, it’s actually somewhat decent. Though make no mistake, Alex Maleev is the real star of this book and I would say you should pick this book up for his art alone.
Artist: Alex Maleev
If I had to sum up my recent feelings towards Brian Michael Bendis I would say he writes entertaining comics. Not good comics, (in fact, I think a lot of his comics are quite bad) but entertaining comics. His fast-paced dialogue is always fun to read but once you start breaking down the substance, it’s always quite underwhelming. Bendis has developed into a predictable writer. You know what you’re getting when you open a Brian Michael Bendis comic. A plodding story loaded with redundant scenes, good characters, and swift dialogue. Infamous Iron Man #4 is exactly that. Nothing worse than average but nothing much above it either.
I was never a fan of Victor Von Doom suddenly picking up the Iron Man mantle. I’ve never been a fan of Bendis’ cryptic portrayal of the new Doom. I understand that after Secret Wars, changes need to made while writing Doom but I still don’t feel that Bendis is the right man for the job. There’s something so bland about his portrayal of Doom that pales in comparison to the genius of Jonathan Hickman’s version of the character. I enjoyed Doom’s processing of the fact that he was God (in the last issue) but I still felt that in the hands of a better writer, that scene could have been a contender for "moment of the year".
All that being said, there were improvements to the characterization of Doctor Doom in Infamous Iron Man #4. The layers are starting to peel off and Doom is hinting at the darkness within him. The comic starts with a very typical-Bendis scene between Doom and Mariah Hill that should have been cut from the issue. Fortunately, Bendis delivers strong character beats right after he’s done wasting his first pages. Doom returns to Latveria to see his country turned into a mismanaged police state and he is not pleased. He immediately hunts down the man in charge and reveals that the old ruthless monarch still resides behind his renewed features. This moment, where Doom steps all over the temporary leader, is the single-best Doom moment in the series thus far. The scene was able to make-up for the opening bore-fest with Mariah Hill. Bendis is hinting that he is able to write a good Doom here and the question is whether he can consistently bring moments like these to keep this comic above the mediocre level.
If it weren’t for Alex Maleev, I probably never would have read even a single page of Infamous Iron Man. Alex Maleev made himself one of my favorite artists with his phenomenal run on Daredevil. Naturally, I want to read anything he draws and I couldn’t resist picking up Infamous Iron Man despite my reservations with the premise. Maleev never disappoints. His pencils are dark, moody, and expressive. His style is unlike any other artists and I have always connected with his ability to add aspects of levity to darkness. His style has always made me feel that everything thing is doomed but it doesn’t matter because we can find joy in that anyway. That is far-fetching but that is what I have always felt reading Alex Maleev comics and I feel that here as well. Maleev is the star of Infamous Iron Man. He is the reason you even give this comic a thought.
Infamous Iron Man #4 overcomes a tedious opening scene with a characterization of Doom that shows the beloved villain still resides within this new version of the character. I still maintain that Bendis is not the right man to steer this new Doom into the Marvel Universe but he’s not completely screwing it up so far, it’s actually somewhat decent. Though make no mistake, Alex Maleev is the real star of this book and I would say you should pick this book up for his art alone.
A Look Inside
