SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • Previews
  • Reviews
  • Manga
  • All Ages
  • Young Adult
  • Interviews
  • News

July 26, 2017 by J. Caleb Mozzocco

Review: ‘Invincible Iron Man: Ironheart Vol. 1—Riri Williams’

July 26, 2017 by J. Caleb Mozzocco   Leave a Comment

Invincible Iron Man Riri Williams header

Invincible Iron Man: Ironheart Vol. 1—Riri Williams
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Stefano Caselli
Marvel Comics; $24.99
Rated T+ for Teens and Up

Invincible Iron Man Riri WilliamsThanks to his prominence in the Marvel Studios movies, Iron Man Tony Stark has become one of the pillars of the modern Marvel comics universe, one of several centers at the middle of everything important going on in the fictional shared setting. So kinda sorta killing him off in the pages of Civil War II—technically, he just used his advanced technology to put himself in a coma-like state when he was on the verge of death—was kinda sorta a big deal. So too was the idea of temporarily replacing him with a new hero to carry on his legacy and (perhaps more importantly) keep his monthly title in circulation, which is something that happens to most superheroes at one point or another in their careers.

The new “Iron Man” received a bit of buzz upon initial announcement, on account of the fact that she wasn’t a man at all. Or even a woman. Instead, she’s 15-year-old super-genius Riri Williams, who was experimenting with her own suit of super-armor in her Chicago-area garage when Stark kinda sorta died. This book, with its rather convoluted title, is the first collecting the relaunched Invincible Iron Man with Riri Williams as the protagonist. The title character Tony Stark continues to appear, although now only in holographic form: He’s downloaded his consciousness to make for a very chatty operating system that can serve as Riri’s mentor/smart-ass Siri equivalent.

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

As a young black woman, Riri is a refreshing change of pace from Stark, the quintessential, Cold War-era, middle-aged white guy, dad-substitute superhero, and she stands out as a rarity in the Marvel Universe, even at a time in the publisher’s history when both the Thor and Wolverine titles (and superhero identities) are held by women, and Devil Dinosaur is teamed with another young black girl who is also a super-genius.

Riri hails from Chicago, and the epidemic of gun violence that has afflicted the city is part and parcel of her origin story; both her stepfather and her best friend are accidentally killed by stray gunfire, so her main way to relate to the rest of the world comes from her ambition to be a superhero.

These early issues reveal that backstory via flashback, while in the present day Riri receives the Tony Stark artificial intelligence holographic operating system, redesigns her clunky, Transformers-esque super-armor to resemble the sleek red-and-gold of Iron Man, meets Stark’s ex-girlfriend Pepper Potts (who goes by Rescue when in her armor) and battles villains from the previous volume of Bendis’ work on the Invincible Iron Man title.

Bendis has been writing Marvel comics, particularly those starring younger heroes, for so long now that these sorts of scripts must come to him without too much difficulty, as even at his absolute worst, Bendis is pretty good at this sort of thing. And this is hardly Bendis at his worst.

He ends this particular book with a pretty pressing cliffhanger, but given Riri’s almost certain temporary stewardship of the title, there’s a sort of inherent drama to her future that will seem just as urgent as any particular plot line’s complications. Although the fact that Bendis has gone so far as to give Riri her own superhero identity of “Ironheart”—Stark’s first few suggestions were Iron Girl, Iron Woman and Fe-Male, since “Fe” is the chemical symbol for “iron”—seems to ensure that she will have a place in the Marvel Universe indefinitely, no matter what happens when Stark inevitably returns.

Filed under: Reviews, Young Adult

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments
Brian Michael BendisIron ManIronheartMarvelStefano Caselli

About J. Caleb Mozzocco

J. Caleb Mozzocco is a way-too-busy freelance writer who has written about comics for online and print venues for a rather long time now. He currently contributes to Comic Book Resources' Robot 6 blog and ComicsAlliance, and maintains his own daily-ish blog at EveryDayIsLikeWednesday.blogspot.com. He lives in northeast Ohio, where he works as a circulation clerk at a public library by day.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

February 2023

Kiss Number 8 | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

January 2023

My Sister, the Cat, vol. 1 | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

January 2023

How to Win the War on Truth | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

January 2023

SHY, vol. 1 | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

December 2022

Heartstopper Volumes 1 and 2 | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

Surprise! Announcing CABOOSE

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Jump Into this Guest Post by Shadra Strickland About Her Latest Book: Jump In!

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Kiss Number 8 | Review

by Johanna

Heavy Medal

What’s Coming in 2023, A Feedback Poll, and Goodbye for Now…

by Steven Engelfried

Teen Librarian Toolbox

WRITING FOR YOURSELF FIRST, a guest post by author M. K. Lobb

by Karen Jensen, MLS

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

A Book 25 Years in the Making: Marla Frazee Visits The Yarn

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

26 Chapter Books, Middle Grade, and Graphic Novels for Latinx Heritage Month and Beyond

Graphic Novels for Armchair Campers | Stellar Panels

Funny Books for Unfunny Times

Be Afraid (but not too afraid): Graphic novel horror for middle grade readers

12 Essential Nonfiction Graphic Novels for Kids and Teens

Commenting for all posts is disabled after 30 days.

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

Follow This Blog

Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

Primary Sidebar

  • News & Features
  • Reviews+
  • Technology
  • School Libraries
  • Public Libraries
  • Age Level
  • Ideas
  • Blogs
  • Classroom
  • Diversity
  • People
  • Job Zone

Reviews+

  • Book Lists
  • Best Books
  • Media
  • Reference
  • Series Made Simple
  • Tech
  • Review for SLJ
  • Review Submissions

SLJ Blog Network

  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal
  • Neverending Search
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn

Resources

  • 2022 Youth Media Awards
  • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
  • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
  • Summer Reading 2021
  • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
  • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
  • Summer Programming Survey
  • Research
  • White Papers / Case Studies
  • School Librarian of the Year
  • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
  • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

Events & PD

  • In-Person Events
  • Online Courses
  • Virtual Events
  • Webcasts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Media Inquiries
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Content Submissions
  • Data Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale
  • FAQs
  • Diversity Policy
  • Careers at MSI


COPYRIGHT © 2023


COPYRIGHT © 2023