“Yesterday’s” Comic> The Immortal Iron Fist #5 (2007)

“Wow, your aim is terrible.”

The Immortal Iron Fist #5

Marvel (June, 2007)

“The Last Iron Fist Story” part 5

WRITERS: Ed Brubaker & Matt Fraction

PENCILERS: David Aja & Travis Foreman

INKERS: David Aja & Derek Fridolfs

COLORIST: Matt Hollingsworth

LETTERER: Dave Lanphear

ASSISTANT EDITOR: Alejandro Arbona

EDITOR: Warren Simons

Orson explains why the Steel Serpent is after him. After the war, Orson lost the will to fight, which annoyed the Crane Mother, the ancient consoul or whatever they are for K’un-Zi. She believed a living weapon who refused to fight was an affront to their living weapons and convinced the others to force K’un-Lun’s champion to relinquish the Iron Fist by sending her champion, the Steel Serpent at the time. Orson ended up killing him, which is even more against the rules, and ran off. Now they’re coming for him but Orson and Danny manage to recover a book that will give Danny the knowledge he needs to survive the battle. Meanwhile, the current Serpent welcomes his new girls/batteries, and Jeryn hires Luke and the Heroes For Hire to rescue his mother from Wai-Go (Hydra) but as they talk on a videocall Hydra forces place a more in person call on the heroes.

What they got right: It took five issues but now we know what all this nonsense is about. Nice reveal on who Jeryn is talking to on the videophone.

What they got wrong: The fight scenes are not well met by this art style. I can tell what’s going on but the “cinematography” needs work at times. There’s even at least one reused panel when Jeryn calls Luke for help. You’ll know it immediately and it’s not a very good drawing to use once, nevermind twice. I don’t know when the “immortal weapons plural” became part of Iron Fist history since I don’t follow Iron Fist much, but it must be fairly new if Danny doesn’t know anything about it. It also feels like an unnecessary addition, like the technicolor Lanterns over at DC.

What I think overall: This is proving less and less to be my kind of story. It’s very lore heavy, you’d think the “weapons” were supposed to kill each other, it makes me feel less favorable towards K’un-Lun, and just overall both the story and art are way too dark for me.