Written by MATT FRACTION
Penciled by CARMINE DI GIANDOMENICO
Cover by SALVADOR LARROCA
The Mandarin is a collection of lies, stories, myths, and legends. But two things are true: He wears, upon each finger, an alien weapon of unimaginable power...and he's going to kill Tony Stark. Is he a violent street crook born in a brothel? The scion of an aristocratic dynasty? Was his father was a petty criminal or an ambassador? Was his mother a British noblewoman, or maybe a dragon-chasing wastrel lost in the underbelly of the world? He's a murderer, a businessman, an artist, a terrorist, a hero. And this is the story of his life
2008 Series / 2010 Annual
BONUS REVIEW by GARY OWENS
Seeing the Mandarin, again, taking center-stage, caught me off guard. Don’t think I’ve seen so many pages devoted to him, watching his machinations slowly unfold, told from his circle of evil. Warning: virtually the whole annual is taken over by the bad guy, which is refreshing. The art by Di Giandomenico worked, mostly, and there were spots that transitioned poorly through time, since the issue covers weeks, and other areas that were vague, but I give Marvel many kudos on the originality of the slant of the tale. The villain swamps this annual, in one, long story, and adds strength behind the battles.
