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International Iron Man comic contains questionable approach to geography and history

Get ready to scratch your heads, Marvel fans

Jacob Stolworthy
Thursday 17 March 2016 11:27 GMT
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Iron Man 3
Iron Man 3

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A new spin-off comic has been released tracking Tony Stark's search to uncover the truth behind his legacy.

Titled International Iron Man #1, the story goes back 20 years into the future philanthropist's past - something that seems to have confused writer Brian Michael Bendis.

Bleeding Cool is the one that first noticed the discrepancies; alarm bells began ringing when a scene in the comic contained a crowd of West Ham fans singing club anthem "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles" - at Cambridge University.

International Iron Man #1
International Iron Man #1 (Alex Maleev)

Now, it's not too much of a stretch to assume that, with students attending from all over the UK, Stark may have happened upon a group of friends who had Hammers fandom in common. Or perhaps back then, for whatever reason, West Ham were playing Cambridge at an away game.

But this is where things get a little cloudier.

It's suggested that the confusion may have stemmed from the established Stark biography that states he went to university in Cambridge, Massachusetts and not the UK city. However, in issue one of the comic, the Cambridge University attended by Stark is, in fact, based in the UK - but in London, not Cambridge.

International Iron Man #1
International Iron Man #1 (Alex Maleev)

That explains the West Ham fans, at least.

Geography isn't the only sketchy subject featured in the comic, either; Bleeding Cool has noticed how historical accuracy is thrown into question also.

There are allusions to Google, as well as drawings of characters casually using sleek mobile phones, which would be fine if the story's not supposed to be set in 1996 (Google was created in 1998 while mobile phones were basically bricks back then).

Still, in a universe that features armoured suits and Norse gods, we're sure readers can overlook a little inaccuracy. Maybe.

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