Judgement in the stars for the Armored Avenger! Tony Stark rockets into space in this week’s Iron Man #6. In this new arc Tony could face judgement for a cosmic crime in The Godkiller.
Kieron Gillen talked about Iron Man’s team up with Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Trek fantasies, and Tony paying for his actions in Avengers versus X-Men with Marvel.com.
“Tony Stark is in space. Issues #1-6 are why he leaves. This is the story between Tony leaving Earth and hooking up with the Guardians of the Galaxy,” Gillen explains.
Cyclops went to prison but I believe Iron Man is in part to blame for the destruction caused by the Phoenix Five. It was Tony’s invention that deflected the Phoenix from Hope and into Scott, Emma, Colossus, Magik and Namor.
“What Tony did to the Phoenix during AvX catches up with him,” Gillen explains, “Tony is having a crisis of his beliefs. Fans know it’s because of AvX. Newcomers may be lost. We catch up here.”
Space adventures are a big part of the Marvel Now with a brand new Guardians of the Galaxy series and movie on the way. The ultimate futurist will be part of the new space age.
“Tony is living his James T. Kirk fantasies. That’s how I put it, that’s how he puts it. He thinks he’s in a space opera, then it all turns badly,” Gillen teases, “Not only does Tony try to live out his Kirk and Han Solo fantasies, he’s keenly aware he is doing so. He wants to make out with a green lady. There’s a lot of space bar flirting in issue #6. Maybe he gets his Kirk moment, maybe it goes awesomely wrong.”
The Armored Avenger may meet the Guardians but don’t expect his fellow Mightiest Heroes around.
“You know how the Hawkeye book is about Hawkeye when he’s not in the Avengers? Iron Man is about Iron Man when he’s not with the Guardians of the Galaxy. It’s a question of what space means in the Marvel Universe. Brian Bendis and I are on the same page.”
“We are in space with Tony, so we do not find out what is going on back on Earth with the supporting cast. People have been asking me a lot about why the supporting cast was not in issue #1, and it’s because I knew he was going into space. We’ll see them when he comes back to Earth. However…there is a connection between Pepper and Tony even when he’s in space.”
“This is about the way that Tony sees the world. What can reason do? What are the limits of what my thoughts can be? That’s what I mean about Tony and faith.”
“There are a lot of real hard wake-up calls for Tony in God Killer. A lot of things will make him go ‘Hmm.’ This really picks at Tony, at who he is and why he does things.”
I loved how Gillen used UNIT in his Uncanny X-Men run and I’ve asked if Tony will encounter the sinister android.
“You never know. There’s an interesting pairing. I will say Death’s Head shows up in this arc. He’s our Boba Fett.”
Tony will build a new suit of armor seen on the cover art above.
“He built the suit to travel. He travels with everything he needs. He’s in tune with the holistic nature of what is needed to support Tony Stark. The suit is designed to go into space as an adventurer, an explorer and a hero. The only thing he doesn’t really have is his support network. I would be surprised if we don’t see him ‘in the cave’ metaphorically speaking.”
I personally feel Steve Rogers and Tony are partly responsible for the action of the Phoenix Five because their interference created them. Gillen reflects on Tony’s actions in the mega series.
“I’m of the position that if Tony hadn’t disrupted the Phoenix Force during AvX, it would have killed everybody on Earth. I’m not sure he would agree with me. He made leaps of faith in Fear Itself and AvX and wasn’t comfortable with either. He’s been avoiding thinking about it. He’s not depressed, but he’s hungry to discover things he hasn’t thought about previously. He’s driven.”
Iron Man #6 blasts off this week. Guardians of the Galaxy launches later this month. Here’s a preview of Iron Man #7.
By Editor