Books like Iron Man: Demon in a Bottle

It's important to remember the original audience of old comic books. When the "Demon in a Bottle" storyline originally ran in 1978 the average comic book reader was closer to 10-12 years old; much younger than the 25-30 year olds who make up the bulk of comic book readers now.With that in mind this collection is quite an achievement, and even more important to think about critically. It is in this storyline that the Tony Stark character was given the deep human elements that will make him timeless. He was shown at his most humble and at his noblest. The opening lines to the final issue of this story arc say it all:"By definition, a hero is a man who battles against overwhelming odds for a cause, an ideal, or for the lives of innocents. The cause and ideal may vary with the morning headlines -- while the innocents in today's world of muddy morality, may ultimately prove to be guilty.Which leaves but one constant in the definition: that a hero is, above all, a man......A man subject to pressures and responsibilities far beyond those of his peers. Such is a burden that must take its toll, eventually, from even the most valiant warrior.And it is then that the test of a true hero begins."It's worth noting that the "test of a true hero" was not the villain "Whiplash," "Melter," or any of the other generic costumed creeps that fill these pages (the only negative thing I'll say about this book), but that it was something anyone can encounter, especially the 25-30 year olds reading comics today: Alcohol. Addiction. Selfishness. Or as writer David Michelinie says in the foreword "obsession."(Knowing that Tony Stark battles "obsession" how does that affect your reading of the "Civil War" story arc?)Another element that makes this collection worth reading is the early art of John Romita, JR. (JRJR) I see JRJR has a highly stylized artist today. Anyone who's familiar with his work can spot it ten miles away. You can just tell when something is drawn by JRJR. This collection offers a look at his beginnings as an artist, before his style was so immediately recognizable, and there's great value in that. A comparison of this collection with his recent work on Spider-Man clearly shows the elements of his style that he's kept, developed, or discarded. Though I'm not a graphic artist, I'm fascinated by the obvious artistic journey JRJR has been on, and I imagine art students and future comic artists would benefit from observing it too.One last note about this collection: there are golden nuggets of the larger Marvel universe thrown in here and there throughout the story. Whether its the Avengers' butler, Jarvis, talking to himself about his mother's bread pudding recipe, or the usually articulate and ultra-agile Beast juggling poorly on the back of a couch and saying things like "kinda spooky", the little elements of the Marvel universe made me smile every time.Recommended for Marvel fans, folks new to Iron Man (there would be no movie if there had not first been stories like this one) and anyone who's ever obsessed over something, even comic books.