1872, for those who aren't familiar, is a four-issue mini-series that re-imagines our heroes as Wild West figures living in a tiny boom town. Steve Rogers is the sheriff, Bruce Banner is the apothecary, Wilson Fisk is the evil mayor -- I think you get the idea. 1872 was one of the alternate universes that spun off the Secret Wars event from a few years ago -- and I have to say that four issues is not nearly enough to satisfy my appetite for this particular setting. Why? I'll give you regular readers one guess.
Yep, that's right: Tony Effing Stark. 1872 Tony is absolutely precious. In this post, I will show you why.
(Cut because this is going to be a bit image heavy.)
1872 Tony is the town blacksmith -- when he can keep his shit together, that is. He made weapons during the US Civil War but feels so guilty over the carnage his inventions wreaked that, when the mini-series opens, he's spending most of his days in a whiskey-fueled haze. We see Steve trying to straighten him out, but -- this Tony is just so broken that the sheriff's hen-clucking isn't having much of an effect.
At the same time, though, 1872 Tony is inexplicably and bizarrely charming. I was ready to listen to the first issue's pitch on this character the moment I read the panels in which Tony drunkenly sings "Danny Boy" outside Steve's window (which, amusingly, Steve greets with a half fond, half exasperated "Not tonight, Stark"). And by the time I read this --
-- the sale was clinched. Basically, Tony and Steve get in a fight with some baddies, and Tony - despite being utterly sozzled - downs a guy with a last minute bit of technological cleverness. Yes, yes, YES: Stark-brand improvisation is my life! And the surprise captured in the panels above is so. freakin'. adorable that I can't even.
Then comes issue 2, in which we discover that 1872 Tony - like his counterparts - has no chill whatsoever. In said issue, you see, the villains gun Steve down in the street, and Tony loses his mind. Indeed, he has to be restrained by the women gathered at the scene:
Just a note: 1872 Tony swore off guns after his Civil War experience. So the fact that he picks up a piece in this scene is a hugely significant marker of his distress over Steve's death. This Tony - like the others - cannot abide his loved ones coming to harm. He will fuck you up if you even try it.
Blocked from exacting immediate vengeance, Tony copes the only way he knows how: by getting wasted. But then he's handed a mysterious fortune that convinces him, at last, to try. He sobs brokenly -- then crashes into his forge, smashes his bottle of whiskey, and starts building.
Yeah, you were wondering when Iron Man was going to enter the story, weren't you? Well here you go: the turning point in 1872 Tony's beautiful - if miniature - redemption arc.
In issues 3 and 4, Tony shows up to battle Fisk and his henchmen in his brand new armor. And oh my God, I loved this moment:
"My coffin." "My coffin." Like I said: Zero. Chill. This Tony's ready to die if necessary to set things right -- another Tony trait that's apparently universal across the multiverse. Another Tony trait that makes my heart explode whenever I see it. Don't kill my friends. Kill me.
And just in case you didn't get enough of Tony being the awkward, stumbling hero from the scene in issue 1 above, there's also this:
And this:
Pull all of this together and what you get is a Tony I want squeeze until his ribs break. As I said on Facebook: GIVE ME MORE OF THIS SWEETHEART. The cuteness demands continuation!
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