Iron Man: Viva Las Vegas

[knight_moves]

If I had a dime for every time a big Hollywood director started writing a comic mini and then it got lost in limbo, I'd have two dimes. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it's happened twice.



Released as a tie-in to the first Iron Man movie, VLV is sorta MCU adaptation-y (Elsa Bloodstone is a tomb raider, Fin Fang Foom is... gold) and sorta comics (Iron Man is Tony Stark's ostensible bodyguard).

Check out our intro to Tony on a quick adventure.



So... why isn't he flying the usual private jet? You'd think it would only take one sentence to explain that his jet needs repairs but he has to get somewhere in a hurry. Something.



I know Marvel Universe citizens are dense, but wouldn't someone notice world-famous Tony Stark going into a bathroom and Iron Man coming out?





It's cinematic and all, but do we really need all these 'widescreen panels' when not much is happening?



God, look at the rage in their faces. They are really pissed that McDonald's is no longer serving breakfast. obligatory no chance of this getting published nowadays mention



Take that, France.



One entire page for an establishing shot? And the best way you can signal that this is Las Vegas is a road sign reading Las Vegas?

Well, you get the idea. Between Favreau's inexpert writing and Granov's dead-eyed art, it's sorta a slog. Decompression hits hard, as was the style at the time. It makes me think one of the reasons this limbo'd was that Favreau couldn't wrap up whatever story he was going for in four brisk issues.

You'd think with Favreau writing Tony Stark in Vegas, the whole thing would be nonstop shenanigans, but it's pretty much just generic build-up to a doomsday villain (needless to say, this 'serious' take on FFF lacks all of Kirby's charm) and then the beginnings of a generic skirmish. It's hinted that someone's deliberately resurrected Triple F, but is there really time to deal with a conspiracy and a giant Power Rangers dragon in four issues? I guess not.

Comments

[thanekos]

The solicit for the first issue winds up with describing this as " the sort of armored adventure that's a perfect chaser after an evening at the movies! ", which - taking that seriously and imagining a reader who was hype for superhero comics after seeing Iron Man (2008), this would not sell them on the medium at all.

(You'd think Favreau, having at least three movie scriptwriting credits before this and almost certainly a nodding acquaintance with storyboards, would've had some skills that transferred to pacing and scripting a story with a visual component.

Apparently, he didn't - or he just dashed this off and editorial rubber-stamped it. Probably the latter.)

[full_metal_ox]

Is it just me, or does this have an air of bad AI in its unlived-in stiltedness (whether or not it was?)

[coldfury]

This is from 2008, so I think this was just the artist employing CGI tools of the time. This is actually the artist whose style pretty much defined this era of Tony's armors. The main book looked very much like this. I agree that it was definitely hit and miss as far as feeling fluid.

That alien feeling worked pretty well with the main book and the introduction of Extremis, but I'm not sure how well it worked overall.

[numeronone]

BARUGABARUGABARUGA

[shakalooloo]

Ah, the comforting sound of a relaxing Vegas vacation!

[shakalooloo]

"Shut that kid up or I will!"
"He was willing to negotiate!"

[viridian5]

He was! He could've just killed the kid but gave them a choice instead.