Iron Man welcomes back artist Whilce Portacio for a fresh series of covers

Last seen working with the hero in “Heroes Reborn”, Whilce Portacio is back and ready to rumble with some Iron Man variant covers.

Hey, is that that armor

The Heroes Reborn armor is not coming back in Marvel Comics’ current Iron Man run. We thought we’d get that out of the way right at the top, since you’re probably wondering. It’d be natural if you were too, since we’re talking about one of the 90s’ hottest artists, Whilce Portacio, and Iron Man fans should know his former impact well.

Portacio provided some spectacular interiors for Iron Man in that classic run, and created the pocket-universe version of the titular armor. And despite what you might think of that suit, it’s become a bit of a fan-favorite since. Now the artist is returning to the title for its latest run, though not as penciler.

Instead, Portacio will be joining writer Spencer Ackerman and artist Julius Ohta for a series of variant covers. Those will depict the current Iron Man armor, but will also showcase a destroyed version of the Heroes Reborn suit.

Check ’em out below.

Portacio’s first cover depicts the destruction of Tony’s iconic “Heroes Reborn” armor, which was designed by Portacio and used throughout his run. Then, Tony gets to work on his new “Improvised Armor” in the artist’s second cover before powering it up for the first time on the final piece in Portacio’s series. Colored by series colorist Alex Sinclair, the trio of covers spotlight the signature way Portacio brings the inner workings of Tony’s technology and craftsmanship to the page.

“Whilce Portacio is one of the most unique and visually dynamic artists in the history of comics,” Ackerman said. “Even before we learned we’d be blessed with Whilce’s variant covers, Julius and I talked about how we could incorporate the tangle of cables that Whilce used to show how powerful the Heroes Reborn-era Iron Man suit was. You’ll see Julius directly homage Whilce’s legendary design in our third issue.” 

Marvel Comics press release

Portico’s covers will be served up across Iron Man #3 through 5, which kick off on Christmas Day, December the 25th. While your local comics shop will likely be closed that day, you can plan on grabbing that first cover some time that week.

Following that, Iron Man #4 lands on January 22nd, and Iron Man #5 hits to close out February, on the 26th.