The Good
Tony's interactions with the Uru smiths are winners; they just seem like a great pair, and their personalities definitely compliment each other. The scene where one of them offers Tony some booze and Tony turning it down was great, as it seems to re-affirm that the wine bottle was a one-time thing, not a slide into madness.
I really liked the duality of the "mystical" portion of the book along with the "real world" Hammer/Stark/GG fight. Definitely kept me entertained, and more importantly, grounded into the Stark Resilient storyline - I mean, it's got to go somewhere after Fear
Pepper's inner dialog after her helmet was ripped off by the Grey Gargoyle was definitely a treat; you could almost smell the fear that was coming out of her pores. I like Grey Gargoyle's role withing Invincible Iron Man, and I hope he receives a bit of a power boost after the series is done.
The Bad
That being said I'm kind of disappointed that GG hasn't shown up more in Fear Itself; it's almost like it's a convenience, just to give Tony a big bad to fight while his corporate espionage thing with the Hammers is put on hold.
The Verdict
Invincible Iron Man has the distinction of being an amazing book that's been made better by Fear Itself; not that the crossover is bad, but there's just so many things that could have been done wrong with the title. Props to Fraction for keeping things together and keeping Tony's supporting cast entertained while the world unfolds around them.
This issue is definitely more of a filler between Fear Itself 6 and 7, and it's a pity that we don't continue that storyline. However, we do get a behind-the-scenes look at Tony's forging process, which I find to be pretty interesting. Keep up the good work, Mr. Fraction.
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