Post by Van Plexico on May 4, 2006 10:38:40 GMT -5
This was the bottom section of my CIVIL WAR #1 post, but I felt it also belonged here, in case any Shellhead fans aren't reading CIVIL WAR-- I want to know what you folks think about this:
Iron Man as major character in the Marvel Universe [than before, say, 2004].
"But Van," you say, "Iron Man has ALWAYS been a major character in the MU. To which I reply, "Well... sort of."
What I mean is this: Iron Man has always been one of a dozen or so tip-top Marvel heroes, buuuuuut... In the past couple of years, I have noticed his stock dramatically going up, WITHIN the MU. I don't mean his stature as a comic book character-- in fact, ironically enough, it has coincided with the near-absence from the comics stands of his own series. What we've gotten instead, at precisely the same time, is Iron Man much more heavily involved within team books (everything from the TBOLTS/AVENGERS mini to Bendis's NEW AVENGERS to YOUNG AVENGERS to CIVIL WAR, among numerous examples).
And not just more involved-- more important. A bigger figure in the MU.
Previously, he was always the rich guy that paid the Avengers' bills, etc., but he was never of much bigger stature, IMO, than just about any other Avenger-- at least as Iron Man, the superhero.
In some ways, this has paralleled Cap's rise in stature within the MU, too-- though Cap's came a bit earlier, exemplified by moments such as his dramatically standing up to Korvac and Thanos.
Those moments, and scenes around them, lifted Cap from "Living Legend of WW II" to the stature he has today, as basically "Earth's Most Respected Hero," held in reverence and awe by all other heroes. Cap hasn't always been that way, and I think a lot of that comes from how readers, growing up, perceived him, and how writers then completed the cycle and put that esteem and respect for Cap back into the stories.
(Don't believe me? Go back and read Jim Shooter's well-loved AVENGERS runs from the late '70s, for example. I'd argue Iron Man and Cap aren't really portrayed as that much "loftier" in stature than Hank, Jan, Vizh, etc.)
Iron Man, now, has somehow achieved... well, not quite Cap's stature within the MU, certainly... but far more importance than he's ever had before. And not all of it in a good way-- there's a somewhat new, darker edge to him, that I can't quite pin down.
It's probably helped that Thor's been gone during that time, too. With only Cap and Iron Man left, of the Big Three, they've both seen their statures rise within the MU. Look especially at Bendis's work and their appearances in YOUNG AVENGERS. To some degree, it is as if they are the Avengers, and everyone just tags along, seeming vaguely out of place.
I'm not sure I can explain it any better than that, but I'd love to hear other comments and thoughts on this phenomenon. Because, one way or another, I'm convinced it's true.
Iron Man as major character in the Marvel Universe [than before, say, 2004].
"But Van," you say, "Iron Man has ALWAYS been a major character in the MU. To which I reply, "Well... sort of."
What I mean is this: Iron Man has always been one of a dozen or so tip-top Marvel heroes, buuuuuut... In the past couple of years, I have noticed his stock dramatically going up, WITHIN the MU. I don't mean his stature as a comic book character-- in fact, ironically enough, it has coincided with the near-absence from the comics stands of his own series. What we've gotten instead, at precisely the same time, is Iron Man much more heavily involved within team books (everything from the TBOLTS/AVENGERS mini to Bendis's NEW AVENGERS to YOUNG AVENGERS to CIVIL WAR, among numerous examples).
And not just more involved-- more important. A bigger figure in the MU.
Previously, he was always the rich guy that paid the Avengers' bills, etc., but he was never of much bigger stature, IMO, than just about any other Avenger-- at least as Iron Man, the superhero.
In some ways, this has paralleled Cap's rise in stature within the MU, too-- though Cap's came a bit earlier, exemplified by moments such as his dramatically standing up to Korvac and Thanos.
Those moments, and scenes around them, lifted Cap from "Living Legend of WW II" to the stature he has today, as basically "Earth's Most Respected Hero," held in reverence and awe by all other heroes. Cap hasn't always been that way, and I think a lot of that comes from how readers, growing up, perceived him, and how writers then completed the cycle and put that esteem and respect for Cap back into the stories.
(Don't believe me? Go back and read Jim Shooter's well-loved AVENGERS runs from the late '70s, for example. I'd argue Iron Man and Cap aren't really portrayed as that much "loftier" in stature than Hank, Jan, Vizh, etc.)
Iron Man, now, has somehow achieved... well, not quite Cap's stature within the MU, certainly... but far more importance than he's ever had before. And not all of it in a good way-- there's a somewhat new, darker edge to him, that I can't quite pin down.
It's probably helped that Thor's been gone during that time, too. With only Cap and Iron Man left, of the Big Three, they've both seen their statures rise within the MU. Look especially at Bendis's work and their appearances in YOUNG AVENGERS. To some degree, it is as if they are the Avengers, and everyone just tags along, seeming vaguely out of place.
I'm not sure I can explain it any better than that, but I'd love to hear other comments and thoughts on this phenomenon. Because, one way or another, I'm convinced it's true.
