Iron Man 2020 #5 has Tony Stark return to stop his brother Arno thanks to Christos Gage, Dan Slott, Pete Woods and VC’s Joe Caramagna. After all of the carnage of the 2020 event, Tony Stark makes his appearance and intends to make it clear he is the real Iron Man. It’s a phenomenal issue, topped off by a cliffhanger which will leave the audience in suspense.
Summary
Tony Stark is back! But is this the REAL Tony? How is that possible?! Where did that all-new armor come from?! WHAT’S GOING ON?!
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Writing
This issue feels like what Dan Slott and Christos Gage have been working towards since the beginning. After putting Tony through a journey of self-doubt, seeing him back and revealing a plan to take on Arno is beyond entertaining. Also, the showdown between the two brothers becomes the highlight of the entire issue.
After all the chaos of the 2020 event (and what has been happening in the real world), seeing Tony Stark back and eager to reclaim his title as the Invincible Iron Man is a welcomed sight. This issue brings together the side stories of Rescue 2020 and Machine Man 2020 making the event feel grander. With only one issue left, the team will hopefully wrap this story up and set up the next installment of Iron Man’s journey.
Artwork
The art by Pete Woods is on point. One of the biggest achievements comes in the attention to the different facial expressions and how impactful they are to each scene. Scenes like when Tony is creating in the virtual world on a forge and the happiness on his face or Sunset Bain’s expression as she decides to adopt an old persona is chilling.
The colorwork by Woods stands out as Tony unveils his new armor. Instead of a traditional suit of metal, the new suit uses a hard light/hologram system. It wraps around Tony’s body but shows the clothes underneath. Thanks to the coloring the effect is mind-blowing to observe.
The lettering work by VC’s Joe Caramagna helps the story to flow with the distinct placement of word bubbles. This helps a lot thanks to the way Woods likes to use a stylized flow to the issue across the two pages. Also, the specific format with the word bubbles for many characters helps with the audio aspect as you read the issue.
Conclusion
Iron Man 2020 #5 truly feels like where the event was leading to the entire time. The issue also features a tribute to the late Denny O’Neil. His run on Iron Man featured some of the best stories and moments in the character’s history. He will be missed.
