So far, Joshua Williamson’s run on Iron Man has all the makings of a top run for the character. There’s new armor, there’s good personal life stuff like dating, and there’s high stakes with lives on the line. Now with his back against the wall, Iron Man has to break out of a prison designed to be like the cave that turned him into Iron Man in the first place. Can he do that, let alone save the genius being tested to spark his genius? The answer may surprise you.
Iron Man #4 is a good blend of new character development and pushing Tony to be a different kind of Iron Man. You can see the gears proverbially shifting as the character realizes change is necessary, or he and those he’s responsible for will die.
The issue opens with Professor Ware teaching a lesson in college, intercut with him working on a helmet in captivity. The juxtaposition of his bright teaching and his battered self imprisoned by Madame Masque is quick but impactful by Carmen Carnero. Similar to the last issue, it serves as a reminder of what the villains are putting their kidnapped geniuses through, while also subtly teasing a tech solution that’ll pay off later.
Given the attention Ware gets in this issue and what he symbolically means to Tony, one can see the importance of him and how he could shift things dramatically for Tony Stark. Saying too much will spoil things, but know that Ware is starting to feel like a potential ongoing supporting-character mainstay.
Trippy Spider-Man!
Credit: Marvel
After some key villain squabbling, the story shifts to Tony with an armor divvied out so he can find a way out of his trap. There’s some fun and trippy action that eventually spins into plot progression.
Also thrown in is an ongoing tease of a new Citizen V. Likely a second-story-arc character, Williamson’s teasing of the character helps seed future stories so they feel earned.
If you’re looking for direct confrontation, this issue has it, from a breakout to a major new villain reveal. There are also good twists and page turns, like a quiet moment where Tony asks someone what they built, and the very next panel shows a massive explosion knocking the flying ship hurtling towards Earth.
Carnero’s character acting is always on point, but she gets to do a lot more with big guns and explosions in this issue. A harder trick to pull off is a mind-meld, which has a trippy Matrix feel that works well enough while showing the isolation of two characters. The new villain reveal is a showstopper, be it the flames licking up around them or the bulky armor that feels unique yet harkens back to another armor we’ve seen before.
Iron Man #4 continues Williamson and Carnero’s impressive run, challenging Tony to evolve while keeping the stakes high. The prison break angle adds urgency, and the issue balances spectacle with meaningful character beats. It feels like a turning point for Tony, with new ideas and threats taking shape in ways that promise even bigger developments ahead.
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