Recorded March 30, 2012. Hosted by Justin Vactor, Willie Gillis, and Hunter Camp.

A return to the digital comics question – Are digital comics the death of the brick and mortar store?

Welcome comic book fans to another episode of Comics Of Doom, the official comic book podcast of Geeks Of Doom! On this week’s episode, Chris McDavid leaves to pursue an acting career, while Justin, Willie, and Hunter discuss a myriad of topics in the comic book world including current Marvel creator runs and the possibility of digital comics killing off brick and mortar comic book stores, as well as Willie’s first experience with last year’s comic book hero films. Also discussed is what second and third tier comic book characters could carry their own films.

Make sure to listen, because you won’t want to miss this one.

Invincible Iron Man 500.1
Written by Matt Fraction
Art by Salvador Larroca
Colors by Frank D’Armata
Letters by Joe Caramagna
Marvel Comics
$2.99
Release date: February 2, 2011

A couple of months back when Marvel Comics announced their Point 1 Initiative, their stated goal was to get new readers to give some of their books a chance. Not just current comics readers who may not be reading particular series they were releasing, but they also wanted these issues to rope in new readers who had never picked up an issue before. The first of the these .1 issues has been released, with Invincible Iron Man 500.1, so it’s time to see if Marvel will be able to reach their stated goals.

So, is this issue going to bring in those unfamiliar with Iron Man, or maybe those only familiar with the movies? In my opinion, no. This issue is page after page of Tony Stark telling his past during an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. There is a lot of talking and hardly any action, and while it may be an interesting character study, it is page after page of talking, and I don’t think that is going to get you a lot of new readers. Hardly any mention is made of the current status quo of the book, and if you don’t already know a fair amount about Stark and his past, this issue isn’t going to make a whole lot of sense to you. Writer Matt Fraction clearly has a handle on the character, and he shows off his understanding in this issue, but that doesn’t make it an enjoyable read.

The Point One initiative is Marvel’s latest attempt at bringing new readers to some of their comics. They will be crafted to be great starting points for first-timers to the series. It all begins in February with the release of Invincible Iron Man 500.1. The Eisner-winning creative team of writer Matt Fraction and artist Salvador Larroca that have made this series a must-read will be starting a new story arc in this issue as well as setting up all of the characters and as Marvel puts it “providing a unique insight into the mind of Tony Stark”.

Invincible Iron Man 500.1 hits store shelves February 2, 2011 for a buck cheaper than the regular books, also in an attempt to try and get new readers to give this series a try.

We have a bevy of images below for you to check out from the upcoming issue!