Invincible Iron Man #1

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis / Artist: Stefano Caselli / Marvel Comics I feel like we’ve been doing this thing a lot recently, where we get a large announcement about a comic book writer or a comic book character (often both) that incorporates a story we should be interested in with a lot of excitement behind it. There’s always some caveat, however. The Black Panther/Ta-Nehisi Coates announcement was met with an overwhelming anticipation with just a smattering of skepticism regarding Coates newness to writing comics. I think it’s safe to say that any fears that people had about that pairing have been assessed. The prospect of Riri Williams has been a complex one, one that has brought excitement, caution, and pushback on the concept and delivery. In theory, the prospect of a Black 15 year old teenager named Riri Williams becoming Iron Man is one that should make your chest swell with intrigue and anticipation. Joining Moon Girl on Marvel’s roster, we get another entry of a Black girl super genius with their own book and story, that’s never a bad thing. Black Girl Magic is not a finite resource, we could always use more. But it’s also fair to question the motivations of “why?” all of this diversity so quickly. You’ll pardon our cynicism, but we’ve been the crux of business initiatives that have little to do with how we are represented before. Throw in the controversial variant covers, the often impractical depictions of Riri’s hair, and the fact that Bendis himself has been und…