Iron Fist #1

By Ed Brisson, Mike Perkins, and Andy Troy

Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and now, Iron Fist. All of these characters have gotten the Marvel Netflix treatment and following that, they each also got a new solo comic series. It makes sense, push the show and the book will benefit. Where those books stack up critically has been fairly successful too. This week, we look at Iron Fist #1 by Ed Brisson, with art by Mike Perkins and Andy Troy.

There have been many Iron Fist series to hit the shelves over the years and each has had a very different feel to them. Ed Brisson’s take gives us a broken down Danny Rand disconnected from the world. Brisson shows us a Danny that gets no satisfaction out of beating countless tough guys at once; he’s constantly looking for something to satisfy him. We’re used to seeing a cocky Iron Fist that takes pride in what he does and this issue shows us a Danny who has lost faith in everything. Brisson succeeds in making us feel for Danny as he looks for some semblance of drive and emotion. Brisson also does a good job of mixing the action and the drama together in this issue. Danny has a couple of fights, but he also has some self reflecting moments where he takes a good look at who he used to be in the mirror. For a first issue, the writing was very good. Ed Brisson plays off of the last Iron Fist series, and has Danny dealing with his own personal demons.

The pencils this issue are handled by Mike Perkins with colors by Andy Troy. The pencils by Mike Perkins are phenomenal. There is a gritty style to what Perkins does in this issue, especially during the fight scenes. There is a different feel as Danny looks at himself in the mirror to contemplate who he is. Perkins work in these mirror panels has a very realistic quality to them, so much so that they almost look like photographs in some panels. You would be hard pressed to find a bad panel in this issue. Perkins draws some excellent fight scenes, even Danny getting hit through a table looks great.

The colors by Andy Troy play just as important a role in this issue. His moody colors add to the dark narrative of the title. This is an issue that has tons of necessary shading, and Troy doesn’t miss a beat. Panels are shaded, but not overly done or too dark, especially in panels where Danny battles his inner demons and we get close-ups of his face. The art as a whole is amazing and really helps this issue have a stellar debut.

This was an excellent first issue and everyone involved deserves a huge pat on the back. Iron Fist has had some mediocre series in his tenure as a hero, but this one is off to a great start. Ed Brisson’s script and the art by Mike Perkins and Andy Troy will leave you wanting more as you finish this strong introduction.