Comic Info
Comic Name: Armor Wars
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer: James Robinson
Artist: Marcio Takara/Mark Bagley
# of Issues: 6
Release Date: 2016
Reprints Armor Wars #1/2-5 (July 2015-November 2015). Technopolis is a world of wonders inhabited by a population that is trapped in armor due to a virus. When Spyder-Man discovers the root of the infection, a dangerous game begins that has Baron Stark and Thor James Rhodes investigating the truth. As Tony’s brother Arno plots against him with the Kingpin, the truth will be revealed…and Technopolis might not survive!
Written by James Robinson, Warzones!: Armor Wars is a limited series and part of the Marvel Comics event series Secret Wars. The series features art by Marcio Takara and Mark Bagley and also collects the prequel story from Armor Wars #1/2.
Iron Man isn’t my favorite character. I always found him boring and the idea of a character who is simply special because of the suit he wears isn’t interesting to me. It was a real shock when the film Iron Man was released because it managed to do something I never expected any story to do for me…make interested in Iron Man. While I went into Warzones!: Armor Wars with a lack of interest, it turned into one of the better Secret Wars spin-off titles simply because it tried to do something different than the movies and the comics.
The comic largely avoids the set-up of Secret Wars and primarily feels like a What If? title. Rhodey is a Thor and there are some mentions of Doom, but it is essentially a world where everyone has Iron Man’s powers. This makes the book a little more accessible than some of the other Secret Wars spin-offs, and it also establishes that the world isn’t the traditional Marvel Universe.
Since the series isn’t based on the traditional Marvel Universe, anything is possible. I like that Stark isn’t the focus of the story since I’m not the biggest Stark fan. I also do like Arno’s inclusion in the storyline since Iron Man 2020 is a rather interesting concept. The story leads to a not entirely shocking conclusion, but it does feel fresher than some of the What If? concepts.
Warzones!: Armor Wars doesn’t entirely play out like you expect it, but it also doesn’t feel completely original. The problem with all the Warzones!/Battleworld titles is that there is a rich world created by the storyline that only gets to live a few issues. It seems like a lot of work to create a new, function world for such a little payoff. If you are going to read some of the Warzone! titles, make sure that Armor Wars is in the pile.
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