Civil War Comic Review – “Fallen Son – Iron Man”

If you name the comic after Iron Man, he should make a more significant contribution than the Falcon.

General Information

Title: Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America – Iron Man

Author: Jeph Loeb

Illustrator(s): John Cassaday (pencils and inks) and Laura Martin (colours)

Original Publication Date: Cover dated August, 2007.

Cover Price: $2.99 US, $3.75 Can

Past comic reviews can be found here.

Premise

The final chapter of the series covers Captain America’s funeral and burial.

High Point

Those who were standing.

Low Point

This didn’t live up to the hype. Yes, there are some nice comments and speeches, but many of the same were made while the character was alive. After the great fourth issue, and after comments from creators saying that the fifth was the best of the bunch, I expected a whole lot more.

The Scores

This isn’t original. Even the last few pages were predictable, based on what’s happened in the series so far. There just weren’t any surprises, or even any elements that don’t seem to have happened elsewhere. I give it 2 out of 6.

The artwork is great. Cassaday does the job extremely well, and Martin’s subdued colour palette fits the tone very nicely. I give it 5 out of 6.

The story is sparse. In fact, the story is composed entirely of two eulogies, given in two different locations, both of which are predictable. I give it 3 out of 6.

The characterization is strong, both in terms of the descriptions of Steve Rogers, and in the interactions between the other characters. I give it 5 out of 6.

The emotional response didn’t deliver as it should have. I think that’s because of the comic book nature of the character. As fans, we aren’t going to get to the acceptance phase, because we know Steve Rogers will be back. It may take ten years, or even twenty, but it’ll happen. Ben Parker, Jason Todd, Hal Jordan, and Bucky Barnes all held huge significance in their deaths, even moreso than in their lives, and in the past three years they’ve all returned in one form or another. Someone else may be wearing the costume when Steve comes back, and it might not happen until after Joe Quesada vacates the Editor-In-Chief position, but it’ll happen. If the speeches given here hadn’t been heard from these characters while they described the man as he lived, they might have had enough impact to overcome this gargantuan obstacle, but they didn’t. I give it 3 out of 6.

The flow is hard to mess up, given the simplicity of the plot. I give it 5 out of 6.

Overall, it’s not a bad issue, but it’s not great. I give it 3 out of 6.

In total, Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America – Iron Man receives 26 out of 42.

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2 replies on “Civil War Comic Review – “Fallen Son – Iron Man””

  1. Complete!
    I’m very interested in this Civil War series but am going to wait until Marvel releases it ALL (yes tie-ins too) in a set. Would ANYone have an idea of when that’ll be?

    • Re: Complete!

      I’m very interested in this Civil War series but am going to wait until Marvel releases it ALL (yes tie-ins too) in a set. Would ANYone have an idea of when that’ll be?

      They’ve just started releasing the "Civil War Chronicles," a bi-weekly series with two comics per issue, reprinting what they feel were the most important parts. While a "Complete Age of Apocalypse" type release was described as likely in the indefinite future by Joe Quesada himself, I’d expect it to wait at least a year or so, which gives them time to wrap up the Chronicles line before the announcement. When I review all seven issues as a set, hopefully this weekend, I’ll also write a wrap up column letting you know which collections I recommend picking up, and which I recommend skipping.

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