Iron Man's greatest enemy here isn't the guy who tries to control his suit, nor are the super villains who attack him. Iron Man tells the police about the malfunction, claiming he did not intentionally kill the ambassador. The story opens with Iron Man and Namor teaming up against Roxxon Oil, an evil petroleum conglomerate in the Marvel universe. But can the Armoured Avenger overcome an even more implacable personal demon, invulnerable to technology or wealth?

portrayed Stark as having a personality that was highly addictive, and a desire to exert control when he felt his personal life was out of his control. This is a man that gives other people second chances and that's the most amazing aspect of this character for me.

Following Disney’s purchase and distribution of Marvel Studios films, Tony’s alcohol consumption lessened. While it was surprising to see the main topic of the story only gradually come to the fore, it made since in retrospect.

Hammer escapes, and Iron Man flies into the air and crashes down, damaging the island and causing it to sink. Which I thought was the whole point of the story, he just has a few drinks at the beginning then about 3/4 digs a little deeper in the bottle. From a modern lens, Tony’s alcoholism plays a bit like an after-school special in which Tony’s abuse quickly turns to addiction and then sobriety. While his superhero status keeps him out of jail, he’s lost the trust of the public, his friends, and his colleagues. Beth admits that she was younger, and didn't try to understand his insecurities, but now she's grown and will not abandon Stark like she abandoned Alex.Pushed to the edge by his army of super villains, Tony Stark must find a way to stop Hammer and combat his own personal demons. He's spent his entire life trying to atone for his mistakes and trying to keep others from following in his footsteps.

The casino gets attacked by 3 B list or even C list villains and once again, Tony can't rest, because he has to fight them. and that the one and a half issues that ACTUALLY deal with the "demon in the bottle" (sure there is foreshadowing, but to describe this collection as a whole as dealing with alcoholism is just plain false) were emotionally gripping and character-enriching. I have been a great Iron Man fan since my childhood, for his resourcefulness and intellect, but as an adult the most appealing factor is that Iron Man isn't the stereotyped, spandex-dressed hero, whose faith and moral virtues are unbreakable. A lot of the writing was pretty cheesy, and some of the conflict just seemed to be borne out of a need for suspense.It seemed like a sure bet that when it came time for Iron Man to make his film debut, his alcoholism would be a key part of his character, especially with the casting of Robert Downey Jr. Continuing to drink to forget his problems, Stark is confronted by Beth, who tells him about her former husband, Alex, who became addicted to drugs to deal with his stress and insecurities, which ended their relationship and eventually killed him. It's not until the last issue of this volume that Tony becomes an alcoholic, ruins his life, decideds to battle the bottle, overcomes, and is back in the game. Navy ships approach and soldiers help the passengers to safety, and bring Iron Man to an island base. It's amazing to see the change, although I have a feeling that quite a bit of the visual style comes from Bob Layton's inks: if pencils by John Romita Jr.

Stark admits to his drinking problem and accepts Beth's offer to help him to quit drinking and help him through withdrawal. One last note about this collection: there are golden nuggets of the larger Marvel universe thrown in here and there throughout the story. Even when he does that it doesn't really focus on the alcoholism, which would of been nice to explore. Iron Man and Namor team up to fight and defeat the soldiers, who escape and trigger explosives contained on the island, destroying it along with any evidence that they were ever there. On the other hand, it seems like a big enough issue to deal with over the course of a longer format.In that issue, Tony Stark, overweighted from all the work and the pressure, starts drinking more and more, leading into him going out drunk as Iron Man and causing problems, instead of fixing them. Tony's struggling with the possible hostile takeover of Stark Industries by SHIELD, as well as troubles with his armor. As the MCU progressed onward, it became clear that particular addiction would never make its way on screen. My favourite issue was the last one however, I don't think that it would have been quite as good if we hadn't seen Tony's struggle.