Demon in a Bottle Part Deux?
I actually have not read Demon in a Bottle which I hear is quintessential Iron Man reading so I probably have no idea what I'm talking about. Matt Fraction and co. have decided to go big with this story arc. Zeke Stane who is arguably smarter than Tony Stark and Mandarin, smart in his own right and crazily powerful, have combined forces and come out swinging. They're bringing the heat and Tony Stark is at another one of those low points in his life. Getting his drink on while in armor during Fear Itself, still low on money with a struggling company to run, and post-Ragnarok on Earth has put our hero in a particularly vulnerable position and a pair of his greatest villains have decided run a classic team up. Fortunately Tony has a new ally in the form of fellow recovering alcoholic Splitlip. ((sidenote: I previously wrote that I would miss the dwarves as Tony finished his business at Odin's forge, but I'm glad one of them has tagged along)).
With 2 geniuses in the mix, Tony has the odds stacked against him and as it appears to be customary in his solo titles these days, he is on the defense, possibly the run, and fighting for his life. With so much in play, this issue has been such an exciting read. From Tony's fading charm and Splitlip's apparent sarcasm to Zeke Stane's calculated insanity, this has been a fantastic start to an amazing story. I have faith in the team to pull out another amazing story.