Synopsis:
Tony Stark sits languishing in his prison cell, pondering his current situation. At that very moment, someone enters the chamber. It appears to be a floating tray holding Tony's "birthday drink". However, it then shapeshifts into an android, who introduces itself to Tony as Recorder 451 of the Rigellian Recorders, The Recorders are probes sent out to gather data, being mindwiped upon their return. Since 451 had a bug, he wasn't wiped and has since come to a realisation, Eventually, it's not enough to watch, you have to act. He says that although he contacted Stark's "friends", they won't reach him before the Voldi laws have had their way with him. When Tony asks what his plan is, 451 replies that he has acquired an extensive knowledge of judicial systems across the known universe, which causes Tony to groan and say "you're a lawyer." Two hours later, Tony is brought before the Supreme Justicar to answer for the death of the Pheonix Force. Tony attempts to explain that it was in self-defence, that the Pheonix attacked Earth, but the Supreme Justicar rebukes such claims, calling them madness. She is about to sentence him when Tony suddenly claims his right to "Shay-Tah-Run", an ancient Voldi rite which amounts to trial by combat. It turns out this is meant to be a distraction so that 451 can retrieve Tony's armour for him.
Tony proves to be a competent fighter against the Voldi warriors, defeating them in quick succession. The Supreme Justicar grows frustrated, saying the Voldi are romantics, and will eventually call for Stark to be released if they do not end this now. Her aide says they have just the person, though they will have to pay him substantially. Meanwhile 451 kills a guard when he fails to manipulate him to move aside. He enters the room the guard was protecting, which doesn't contain the Iron Man armour, but the Heart of the Voldi. He repeats what he said earlier, "it's not enough to watch, you have to act."Back in the arena, The Supreme Justicar tells Tony that they find him innocent of "grievous theological harm". The next charge is "conspiracy of decide". Tony's next opponent towers over hi. He tells him that he will make this quick, but that he shouldn't worry because "Death's Head is a professional, yes?"
Thoughts:
So far, this arc has been quite fun. Kieron Gillen is no doubt taking Iron Man to more lighthearted places when compared to Matt Fraction's run, providing a Tony Stark more in line with Robert Downey Jr.'s portrayal of the character, fully embracing the character's sense of humour, but pulling him back at the right moments so we take him seriously. Not content with referencing Star Trek, Gillen also throws in amusing nods to Star Wars & John Carter, both of which I found very funny. I also like that we don't have a massive debate over whether or not Tony was directly responsible for the death of the Pheonix Force. The character of 451 is very intriuging as well as morally ambiguous, I look forward to seeing his plan unveiled. I didn't care for Death's Head in Avenging Spider-Man and I don't care for him here. This isn't a criticism of Gillen's writing, I just find the character too silly.
Greg Land unfortunately tends to be slightly repetitive in his facial design as all the unmasked characters have similar faces, even the aliens. This is made a little worse by the fact that Tony spends the whole issue separated from his Iron Man armour, as drawing armoured/masked characters, particularly Iron Man, is definitely Land's strong point. I do like that Tony's prison cell looks similar to his arc reactor.
Despite clearly being the middle issue, there's definitely enough progression in the plot to make this feel necessary to the overall story. I'm enjoying this arc a lot despite some of the more negative reviews I've read. Kieron Gillen is beginning to find his footing with the series, I look forward to the third & final part of this storyline.
