The Immortal Iron Fist #1

Released: November 30, 2006

Publisher: Marvel

Writers: Ed Brubaker & Matt Fraction

Pencils: David Aja

Additional Pencils: Travel Foreman & Derek Fridolfs

Cover: David Aja

 

A lot of different creators have their pet projects, favorite characters and wish lists of what they’d like to see accomplished. Luckily, both members of the original Heroes for Hire have their patron saints—Brian Michael Bendis loves Luke Cage and evidently Ed Brubaker loves Iron Fist. So with a possible movie (starring Ray Park) floating around development hell and Danny Rand’s increased stock in other books (notably Daredevil), Marvel has decided to launch a solo title for the character, again.

 

Martial arts comics are hard to do from a martial arts perspective alone, look at the failed Shang Chi MAX series for an example, so books with martial arts characters (like Daredevil and Moonknight) focus much more on the dialogue and suspense of plot. This is taking a similar approach, focusing a lot on the legacy of the Iron Fist, BUT it has the best martial arts fighting I can ever remember seeing in a comic. David Aja is able to capture the energy and flow of a fight without confusing me or having thirty panels on the page. Aja achieves a balance of flashy excitement, with a beautiful flair for highlighting key moments, and coherent hand-to-hand choreography.

 

The tone of the book is mainly one of gritty urban vigilantism, which is exactly what Daredevil is. The similarity is reinforced because Brubaker is now writing both, using the same techniques, and the market only has so much room for these stories, especially when told with such similar styles. Even Danny’s business partner (who runs his corporation) is the typical out-of-shape and pragmatic good conscious that Foggy is to Matt Murdock. What Iron Fist has that sets it apart as a whole from Daredevil is his legacy (that and he isn’t a blind lawyer fighting to make everyone think he isn’t a superhero).

 

This focus on the legacy of the Iron Fist is the single most appealing aspect of the book, the depth that makes the great fight scenes dramatically emotional. The first three pages introduce us to this legacy, set the stage for the parallels that all Iron Fists have, and make the legacy of the Iron Fist seem so damn cool to boot. Brubaker and Fraction also wisely decide to reshow us Danny’s origin story (albeit in summary) for the many people that don’t know it, although they leave out the part of the story involving Harold Meachum who killed Danny’s father and who was himself later killed before Danny could get his revenge.

 

Continuing the ‘Immortal’ legacy theme, we are lastly shown what appears to be Danny’s grandfather, one Orson Randall, attempting to fade into obscurity and the depths of opium, a cute implied pun for a character given superpowers from a dragon to be ‘chasing the dragon’. Orson is attacked by two women who transform into cranes (or some kind of water fowl) upon his use of the Iron Fist to defend himself from their attacks, sent by way of nefarious evil doers and reanimated corpses.

 

Despite a lot of similarities to other comics on the shelf, this stands out enough to stay simply similar and not become a carbon copy. A great start to a series no one was really clamoring for but which no one should miss.

 

Rating - 8