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Post by sabongero on May 1, 2018 0:27:39 GMT -5
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Post by sabongero on May 1, 2018 0:28:05 GMT -5
 Iron Man #158
"Moms"0.60 ¢ @ May 1982 Writer: Denny O'Neil Penciler: Carmine Infantino Inker: Dan Green & Al Milgrom Colorist: Bob Sharen Letterer: Joe Rosen Editor: Jim Salicrup Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter Synopsis: We join Iron Man plummeting down towards the range of mountains as his armor suddenly had now power/charge. He manually used his hand repulsor rays to blast and slow down his descent. And suddenly his armor's power/charge is back on and flew back to Stark International, which two security guards saw him fly by at low level, wondering who's the man behind the Iron Man helmet. They didn't know Iron Man's amplifiers allow him to hear what they're saying. Tony Stark, Still wearing his armor, was in his laboratory trying to figure out what went wrong with the Iron Man armor earlier. He called his executive assistant, Mrs. Arbogast, to hold all calls until further notice. Several hours later, with the Iron Man armor disassembled, a frustrated Tony Stark slammed the table, still unable to figure out what went wrong after various tests and retests and analysis on the armor. He couldn't find anything wrong. He called back Mrs. Arbogast and asked what is on his agenda. She told him about the charity backgammon tournament he was to attend that evening, and Cheryl Tiegs called. He asked her to arrange the Ferrari to meet him around the building, and Cheryl will have to wait. Dressing up and walking outside, Tony couldn't help but think about what the guards were thinking. Tony himself wondered who's underneath Tony Stark's skin, always wearing costumes and always off to fun and games. In a secluded area in the mountains where Iron Man was earlier, Sonny was being served a meal by his mother. She didn't want him to make her go to the cave again. And then he brought up to her attention when he was a kid that she beat him when his grades were low, or didn't feed him until he studied for eight hours, or let him out for three days and almost died. She admitted she did remember, so he told her, she's going to the cave later. At the exclusive South Shore Country Club, Tony Stark was in the middle of a backgammon game, when one of the workers brought over a complimentary champagne in a glass. Tony Stark refused the alcoholic drink and instead asked for a Perrier with a twist. As he rolled the dice, a starlet actress came over to Tony greeting him with a kiss on the cheeks and telling him about her plane ride earlier losing power over the mountains and then regained power later on. Tony won the roll, and his opponent lost 32 thousand dollars to charity, and Tony excused himself and left the South Shore Country Club ASAP and on board his Ferrari, driving back to the mountains he passed earlier as Iron Man, he got angry at himself for faulting the armor for what happened, instead of perhaps something on the mountain that was the root cause of the problem. He changed into the Iron Man armor and flew. In one of the caves in the mountains, Sonny and his mom entered his laboratory and sat her down in a chair and started the experiment. She pleaded not to use her power as it pained her head very much. Sonny told her to quiet down and start into the hypnotic beam machine which reached into her subconsciousness and activated her power. Under hypnosis, he ordered her to use her power to stop the searchlight in the mountain. From a distance overhead, Iron Man saw a searchlight in one of the mountains and approached it. Suddenly, it started to rain, which was caused by Sonny's mom, and he told her he didn't want rain, but her to turn off the searchlight with her power. Meanwhile, outside, Iron Man was on the ground trying to track the power source of the light when a giant boulder was rolling down his way, which he destroyed with his chest blaster ray. He took to the sky tracking the electrical source of the light using his X-Ray and then all of a sudden, his armor lost power and he plummeted down and crashed on the ground. Inside the laboratory, Sonny ordered his mom to sustain the psi field for a whole hour. He was looking for his candy, so he went outside to his SUV to go back to the cabin and get it. It should only take a few minutes. A depowered Iron Man who is over thirty miles away from town, found the entrance to the cave laboratory. The storm is getting worse outside, so he went inside to investigate. Inside, he removed his helmet so he can hear better, and later on found the old woman sitting in a chair under a trance. He went over to shake her from her trance, but noticed many electronic gears around that he didn't recognize. It didn't seem complicated to him, and he knew this is what was responsible for his armor's malfunction earlier. Still, he cannot believe that he absolutely depended on his gadgets. Unknown to him, Sonny has returned, and sneaking up behind him, hit tony in the head with a rock, knocking him temporarily out. Not wanting Iron Man to discover how he made electrical and electronic circuits depower among his other secrets as well, Sonny dragged him to a hole in the ground and dropped the inconscious Iron Man, who landed in a pool of icy water, which suddenly woke up Tony Stark. Tony negotiated if they can talk about this, and Sonny replied the water is rising, and will let him drown and die which will be in about ten minutes. He further dragged a huge machine to block the hole to prevent Tony from escaping. Bracing himself against the sides of the chamber he climbed upwards. It was slippery. He tried to shove the machine that was blocking the hole away, but he couldn't get leverage and fell back in the pool of icy water. He realized the water was rising and that he just had to tread the water until he reached the console and push. But he kept pushing and nothing happened. And the water was almost to the top covering the last breathable airspace. He tried to manually blast it with his repulsor rays, but it didn't work. And he felt helpless thinking that the great Tony Stark will die anonymously in a cavern nobody's heard of by a fat lunatic and his body will never be found. And he was about to quit and die, when he suddenly realized water must be coming in from somewhere, and that he can take a deep breathe and go down and find the hole where the water is pouring in. He swam and found it but his Iron Man armor is too bulky. He removed it, and then slipped through and made his way up to the top of the water. And upon reaching the top he took in a big gulp of fresh air and felt the gentle warm air as the rain has cleared up. Back in the laboratory, using binoculars, Sonny found the searchlight working again, and inferred Iron Man's armor should be working again, but he's most likely dead from drowning. At the same time, Iron Man's armor is automatically moving through the water in search of it's wearer. Sonny tried to snap his mom back to the woken reality, while gloating Iron Man is dead, when he heard Tony Stark's voice in the laboratory entrance to not bet on it. He further thanked Sonny and is grateful to him. Sonny ran over to attack him, and Tony who is too weary, stood his ground and fought him, landing a two punch combination in the stomach and jaw, knocking out Sonny. Like he said earlier, he was grateful to Sonny, who taught him a valuable lesson that he learned. Tony Stark is more than just a tin suit. Sonny's mom came back to her senses and asked Tony for a favor, to hit Sonny again. Comments: In a span of one issue, we learn a lot about Tony Stark, the man behind the Iron Man armor. In the beginning of the story, he always assumed if something went wrong with the armor, that the fault lied within the armor's circuitry and parts, instead of thinking it might be a problem caused by something external and not the armor itself. He overheard his own company security guards talk about Iron Man, and this lingered in his mind. He cares about what people perceive him to be. And it caused a self doubt that behind the armor is a man, who is somewhat shallow and is only about chasing women and having fun. But the story taught him a very valuable lesson. Tony Stark is more than just a tin suit. He is resilient, and relies on himself and not on the armor, for survival. We get to see that his Avengers training allowed him to knock out a younger man with a two-punch combination, and from a weary Tony Stark at that. I was surprised to see Carmine Infantino in the credits having the pencil duties. He's known for futuristic illustrations that heralded in the Silver Age of comic books. And true to his style, he made iron Man, and a weary Tony Stark a sleek and athletic look. One that didn't look like a helpless billionaire who is catered to all the time. |
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Post by sabongero on May 1, 2018 0:30:08 GMT -5
 Iron Man #160
"A Cry of Beasts"0.60 ¢ @ July 1982 Writer: Denny O'Neil Penciler: Steve Ditko & Marie Severin Inker: Dan Green Colorist: Don Warfield Letterer: Rick Parker Editor: Mark Gruenwald Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter Synopsis: Tony Stark woke up from the same nightmare again. He was in Iron Man's helmet-less armor in a bar, deranged and holding a broken alcohol bottle surrounded with drunks scared on the floor and against the wall. He was screaming he can whip anybody because he's the invincible Iron Man. He hasn't had an alcoholic drink in over a year, but during shower and dressing up in his tuxedo, thought because he's go to that party tonight and there's gallons of alcohol, that he had the nightmare again. He checked with his secretary, Mrs. Arbogast, regarding his arrangements that evening. She told him about his date he's picking up tonight, the cheap person from the television program... and Tony Stark immediately asked her to switch him to his security personnel, Martinelli, who advised him everything is secured in the zoo. On his way out, he doesn't know why he's bothering with security arrangements, what can possibly go wrong in a zoo. At gate four in the zoo, the security guard reported all is secure and that Mr. Stark should be arriving in a couple of minutes. A hooded woman walked up to him. He mistook her for one of the employees. She asked him to giver her a kiss, and he complied even though he's not supposed to smooch during duty. He lost control of his body and toppled over to the ground, dead. The hooded woman, was joined by two other hooded individuals and entered gate four and proceeded to their goal within the walls of the zoo, somewhere near the housing where the celebration in the zoo is to take place. As they entered, the intruders scents carried over in the wood eliciting the beasts within the zoo to growl, whine, and cry. A little later, inside the celebration is in progress and Tony Stark entered with his arms intertwined with his date's arms, Ms. Muffy Cuddle. He was curious there was no security in gate four to greet him, and asked to be excused, wanting to investigate what happened. The servant waiter offered Tony an excellent 25-year old Scotch, which he declined, but his date did not and gulped down her drink, and took Tony's drink and gulped it down as well. Just what he needed, a lush for a date. And the host of the celebration, introduced Tony Stark, who will explain the reason for the celebration tonight. Tony explained his company installed a system they devised around a gadget which is a micro computer scanner that "reads" the zoo animals' bodies. It then sends a message to another machine which mixes the correct feed/food for each animal and delivers it automatically to them at the right time and right cages. It also monitors the entire are for fire and intrusion or disturbances and sends an alarm to a central control room, which he announced was changed in a different location at the last minute. In an empty chamber, the three hooded individuals removed their disguise revealing to be three members of the Serpent Squad, with Black Mamba acting as team leader. Obviously they're not in the control room, so they have to look for the location, but needed a diversion, while they looked for the new location as they're employer don't want them to be found out. Anaconda started ripping the steel bars to free a few of the caged beasts. And panic and freedom attained, a few of the lions, tigers, and apes, scamper into the night. Getting ready to go home and get away from his drunk date, who was holding a bottle and a glass of alcohol, Tony was stopped by one of the security reporting to him that the gate four guard was found dead and his dead body hidden in the bushes. Tony ordered him to get back on his post and don't move, then phoned his head of security to tighten up the place and use all his people and spend whatever is necessary, which the man complied immediately. Tony ran to the control room, followed by his drunk date. The video monitors showed him animals in the zoo are running loose in the zoo grounds. Tony ran out of the control room telling his date he has to call someone. Alone in one of the antechambers, Tony Stark opened his attache case and put on his metallic and weapon-laden armor, and Iron Man flew into action. Above the zoo grounds, he used his uni-beam searchlight to find the loose animals and used a light dose of repulsor rays to knockdown the animals without hurting them. Dodging and handling them he placed the big cats back to their cages and used his lasers to weld the broken steel bars back to the cage. An ape and a tiger is still unaccounted for. Unaware, the ape came across Death Adder who slashed the ape, instantly killing the ape with one blow. Iron Man found the dead ape and wanted to know what slashed it. Confronted by the loose tiger, Muffy screamed for help, which Iron Man heard. He flew back just in time to where the scream originated and whisked Muffy to safety. He wondered if his head of security personnel Martinelli is doing better than he is, and radioed in, and Martinelli reported that he found out from the buzz feeds that one of Stark International's competitors hired three freelance criminals to be saboteurs. Tony asked what kind of saboteurs, and Martinelli told him the weird kind, The Serpent Squad. They were seen heading his way, so the zoo must have been the target. Thinking mutated snake-men caused the panic amongst the animals he ordered Ms. Cuddle to stay put as he flew out in the zoo grounds to find the Serpent Squad. Outside, Iron Man found Black Mamba and Anaconda breaking in to the control room, seeking the computer and microscanner that made the system work. Black Mamba took the microscanner and inerted it in a gun-like weapon knowing it can be used as a weapon. Meanwhile Death Adder removed the alcohol from Ms. Cuddles hand as they quieted her. And one of the employees walked in looking for Tony Stark, and was zapped by Black Mamba with the weapon. The man lost control and dropped down to the floor, dead. She then ordered Death Adder to kill the starlet so they can leave. Iron Man emerged in the door way but could not confront the Serpent Squad immediately, because they were holding Ms. Cuddles as hostage. He played along as Anaconda went for his helmet to remove it and crush his skull. But before she can do anything, he channeled an electrical charge, electrocuting her and at the same time sot a laser to the liquor flash Death Adder was holding and exploding it, just enough time to hit him with another repulsor blast and punch him out allowing Ms. Cuddles to escape. Death Adder and Anaconda are lights out. And now only Black Mamba remained. He turned around but instead of her, Iron Man was surprised it was Bethany Cabe that was in front of him, asking for a kiss. Then she started blurring and her face changed to Pepper Potts, the first woman he ever loved. Iron Man realized he was under hypnosis which he inferred is one of Black Mamba's powers. She pointed the gun at him and blasted Iron Man, who felt like red-hot needles are going through his armor. The pain is so great that it felt his insides are tearing him apart, and falling forward, he managed to take a step and reached out and struck Black Mamba's face, knocking her out. His limbs trembling, he walked out of the control room. He removed his helmet and saw how bad he looked as blood ran down his nose, and his eyes are swollen. The armor protected him. He didn't know the scanner could be used as a weapon like that, he should have know. He thought he's slipping. Then he heard Muffy screaming for help, for something that is not there. She things snakes are crawling all over her, which they are not, and only in her mind. Apparently her hallucinations are cause by the bottle as she is severely drunk and seeing things. Iron Man pitied her, at the same time wondering if he will ever be free of the nightmare at the bottom of the bottle. Comments: This is not only a story about sabotage and industrial theft, but a story about commentary on alcoholism. Tony is a recovering alcoholic, and has to remind himself he hasn't had a drink in over a year, and tries to avoid alcohol in parties. A constant reminder, showed just how close he is to being back to being controlled by the bottle. Ms. Cuddles showed the negative effects of having too much alcohol, and the end result where your mind plays tricks on you, hallucinating something that isn't there. There is a mystery at hand here. Who is the industrial competitor of Stark International that hired the Serpent Squad? The brief comedic interaction, albeit over the phone between Tony Stark and his secretary Mrs. Arbogast are hilarious bits of comedy. I like the way she described Tony's dates in the two issues written by Dennis O'Neil so far. I can just imagine what she looked like as she described Tony's starlet women, obviously not approving of their quality. |
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Post by sabongero on May 1, 2018 0:31:28 GMT -5
 Iron Man #161
"If the Moonman Should Fail"0.60 ¢ @ August 1982 Writer: Denny O'Neil Penciler: Luke McDonnell Inker: Mike Esposito & Steve Mitchell Colorist: Bob Sharen Letterer: Rick Parker Editor: Mark Gruenwald Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter Synopsis: At Stark International Water Depths Testing Laboratory, Iron Man tested his weapons function at sub-sea pressures in the laboratory, then went to his private chambers and changed into Tony Stark's civilian guise. Tony thinks it doesn't hurt to be prepared for his underwater trip that day to Project Neptune, an experimental power generating facility twelve miles off the coast of NYC. Unknown to Tony Stark, the underwater facility has been taken over by A.I.M. (Advanced Idea Mechanics), the secret society of subversive technologists who have taken of the project and looking forward to receiving the three guests who are potential investors to Project Neptune. Above at the docking pier in NYC, a mini submarine picked up the three wealthy investors, Tony Stark, Steven Grant, and Sissy Host II. On their way, a crewman advised Ms. Host II that she might feel a slight discomfort as the pressure changed due to her asthma, which she told him not to fuss about. Looking at the persicope, they saw the underwater facility did not have many escape pods, but was reassured by the crewman that most of the work is done by robots, as they entered the main airlock. When they disembarked, they were greeted by a group of armed men, A.I.M. who detained them until they receive the secrets they craved from each investors' organization. Steven Grant just assaulted the A.I.M. terrorists, while being warned by Tony Stark, and given a chance to slip away left the melee so he can change into his armor in a secluded location. In order to protect his identity, Iron Man snuck out to see and planned to sneak back in through the secret air vents. The A.I.M. terrorists all boarded the escape pods telling the remaining workers and investors that they are meeting someone at Prince Street and leaving them in the underwater facility. Only one escape pod remained. And they blew up the mini submarine. Inside, Iron Man met the survivors and was suddenly attacked by the facility's robot who are programmed to repel intruders. But Iron Man's armor proved to be more powerful than the robot. Another robot used electromagnetic energy to capture Iron Man, who used his hand repulsor ray to blast the robot holding him. And he took down two more robots that attacked him. A final robot ripped the airlock, allowing seawater to gush in. Iron Man destroyed the robot, and managed to force the airlock closed, but can't keep it that way as it is part plastic and cannot be welded, while the electronic mechanism isn't operating. He ordered someone to get on the radio and reach the designer and ask where the emergency circuits are. Steven Grant got on the radio, only to find out the designer, Darryl Flowers was fired and nobody else understands the system to answer Iron Man's questions. Ms. Host II suddenly had an asthma attack, and one of the crew escorted her and about to enter the last escape pod, when Steven Grant screamed at them not to put her in the escape pod. He got them out of the way, because he's taking the last escape pod and jettisoned it from the facility and is headed upwards to the coast. Meanwhile, Iron Man cannot make the outer airlock airtight and ordered one of the crew to close the inner airlock, thus flooding the room between, which has Iron Man trapped between the inner and outer walls. Iron Man thought it cannot be helped, but at least it gave a chance for the others to have more time. Now Iron Man must figure a way seal off the outer hatch so the water pressure will not break the inner door. But he has only several hours of air supply left in the Iron Man armor. Above water, the Coast Guard rescued Steven Grant, who was brought to shore and ran to the taxi cab he left near the pier. He felt bad about leaving Ms. Host II but he realized, she would not have survived the pressure change with her asthma. He quickly changed into his Moon Knight costume. Marc Spector and the pilot is on a helicopter above the dark streets of Manhattan. Marc found out that Flowers is the best engineer in his field and unfortunately, is also a junkie. And upon reaching the bar he guessed that the design engineer might be in, Moon Knight jumped out of the helicopter and using his cape glided down to the bar. He needed to act fast as he knew there's even less time for the survivors in the underwater facility, so he can't be subtle. Inside the bar he asked directly where is Darryl Flowers. The bar patrons didn't respond positively and all went to attack Moon Knight, who used various maneuvers to easily take down all his assailants. Then he interrogated the bartender. No info, so he scoured the area, and got a hold of his informant, Crawley, who gave him the newest list of drug purveyors in the vicinity. Meanwhile Iron Man is now totally submerged in seawater and his breathable air in the armor has only half an hour left. In a Manhattan apartment, Moon Knight broke through the window, and took down two armed drug dealers, while grabbing Flowers who designed the Project Neptune airlock system. Moon Knight radioed the helicopter pilot to patch him through to the underwater facility. And Darryl Flowers spoke to the Project Neptune crew and gave them the instructions to access the emergency airlock circuits, which were with the kitchen circuits. And immediately the crew went to work, and the outer airlock sealed, and Iron Man came through the inner airlock. They told Iron Man a guy named Moon Knight got hold of the designer and provided the information. Iron Man left the underground facility to a hideout he guessed the A.I.M. terrorists might be found. At the same time he thought about how Moon Knight got involved and he's the strangest and most mysterious of the good guys. Crashing through the window, Iron Man started punching out all the A.I.M. fellows he can get a hold of and continued pounding an all of them until all are unconscious. He then left them for the police while he returned to the underground dome facility and change back to his Tony Stark guise, just before a crewman found him to come out of his hiding. Comments: It's nice to have a gust appearance by Marvel's "Batman" in this issue. Straightforward and to the point, Moon Knight can come across as a "shoot from the hip" type of guy that somehow puts to risk people in order to get the job done. Then again, there's nothing he could've done to help if he remained underwater. So it was the right decision to get out of there and find the person who can provide the information and bail out the survivors and save their lives. But it was one heck of a gamble. Tony's the opposite. Save first literally to buy some time, and then figure out how to get the survivors out. It's not always the best plan, but at least we know where his head is at. The one thing about Tony Stark, is in the beginning of the issue, he likes to be lucky, and makes preparation that his armor can handle the job ahead, in case any problems arise, thus increasing his chances in positive luck going his way. |
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Post by sabongero on May 1, 2018 0:32:59 GMT -5
 Iron Man #162
"The Menace Within!"0.60 ¢ @ September 1982 Writer: Denny O'Neil Penciler: Mike Vosburg Inker: Steve Mitchell Colorist: Bob Sharen Letterer: Janice Chiang Editor: Mark Gruenwald Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter Synopsis: Two World War 2 fighter planes attacked Stark International's Long Island Complex. Iron Man's work on his armor was interrupted when his people reported to him that they are under attack with the WW II fighters strafing the grounds with machine gun, and one dropping a bomb. Iron Man was on his way and just in time, as he blasted a steel chunk that was about to fall and squash a woman below. Iron Man comforted the woman, but was surprised at the quick arrival of the ambulance team. He took off again in pursuit of the flying relics. He crashed into one's cockpit and found out they are unmanned. Knowing they're remote controlled, he tried to get a fix on where the signal is originating from, and then aimed the fighter towards the ocean. He went after the other one, but it rammed him, thus exploding. Upon reaching the ground, Iron Man removed his helmet, feeling ringing and woozy in his head, symptoms of a slight concussion. Back at Stark International, Tony Stark had his security chief, Victor Martinelli, assess the damage and injuries, which was very minimal. A long-standing employee, a face-bandaged-up Dr. Ainslee who had a business appointment with Tony Stark arrived carrying headphones and a tape recorder with AM/FM radio, of which he had a couple of hundred made up and wanted Tony's authorization to distribute them to Stark's employees for a trial run. Tony then checked with his secretary, Mrs. Arbogast, to see what are his appointments. She told him about the ceremony he had to attend in Albany, party to attend, a fox hunt, a bar mitzvah, a wine tasting event, and a television personality who conveyed a message to him that made Mrs. Arbogast cringe. And he okayed everything except the wine tasting. There's a box on top of her desk, and she opened it, and coudln't believe it was a revolver. She didn't know who gave it to her. While driving, Tony Stark witness another car speeding straight to a tree and crashing into it. Tony changed to his Iron Man armor to help the accident victim and tore open the car and grabbed the accident victim and immediately flew him into the nearest hospital. Later on, the surgeon told a dejected Iron Man that there was nothing they could do to save him. Iron Man requested a full autopsy report by midnight from the doctor who complied. The dead man was one of his employees, and Tony decided to call his secretary to let her know. He was surprised she wasn't answering her phone, since she never left before 5 PM. Unknown to him, she was at her desk with her new headphones on, and clutching the revolver in the dark. Later that night, in the party, Tony couldn't even get rid of the sad face, even while dancing with the beautiful television personality. One of the men in the party brought him a champagne glass to chase his blues away. Tony refused but accepted the glass anyway. The alcohol was a temporary fix to the pain he was feeling of a long time employee dying in his arms as he sped him to the hospital earlier, so he turned the glass upside down and poured the drink down the street. He left the party to go to his office and view the autopsy report which should have been received by now. And it was on top of his desk. He was dumbfounded that there's no reason for the car accident, since the autopsy report advised there's nothing wrong with the heart or brain, and no traces of poison. Then he noticed someone was in his office, and barely jumped out of the way, as several gunshots went his away, barely dodging the bullets. Feigning death, he allowed the attacker to come closer, then threw the lamp and hitting the attacker in the head. A roving security guard investigated and upon pointing the flashlight at the unconscious attacker, Tony realized it was his secretary, Mrs. Arbogast, that shot at him. He had the guard call and bring in Victor Martinelli, who told him about the many computer mishaps, fistfights, small fires, and minor accidents that happened since the flying relics attack earlier that afternoon. If this continued, Stark Industries will be a disaster area. Tony told him they'll inspect every inch of the plant and find those problems and eliminate it. Early the next morning, Tony and Victor witnessed problems immediately, like an employee walking into a glass door. They're look for things out of the ordinary, but did not realize most of the employees wore headphones, and had a dead look in their eyes. Then inside the train ride, Tony witnessed a fight between two employees which he tried to stop. And then all the employees suddenly attacked him. They were all on top of him, and he's underneath, like the end of a play in NFL Football.He tried to reach his armor inside his briefcase. He got hold of his chest plate and power unit, and blasted a hole in the side of the moving train car. He made his way out, and finished putting on his armor outside. He broke the train door open and fired a repulsor ray to stun the attacking men, to save his security chief. Iron Man removed the headphone from one of the men, and he suddenly was out of the trance and didn't know what he was doing or where he was. Iron Man immediately flew his security chief to the nearest hospital to receive medical care. In Tony Stark's lab, he patched the headphone's wiring to his amplifier, and he heard the instructions being braodcast that The Tatoo is to implement Plan Ultra at precisely 1800 Hours. There's only fifteen minutes left before it is implemented, and Iron Man flew out to go to the destination of The Tatoo, whom he has a good guess as to who is behind that guise. The people acted under hypnosis, and Iron Man bursted into Dr. Bart Ainslee's office, who was surprised to see him. Iron Man removed his face bandages to reveal it's not the doctor, but The Tatoo, who told him, he killed the genuine Dr. Ainslee. Iron Man asked him who he worked for, and what is Plan Ultra. The Tatoo didn't know who his employer is because it was temporarily erased from his memory, but did share what Plan Ultra was all about. It's when all five hundred plus Stark International employees in the premises will receive orders to carry out, which consists of destroying the nearest object and killing the nearest person to them. The Tattoo pulled a gun and shot at Iron Man to no avail. Iron Man crushed the gun and threw The Tatoo against the wall, thus knocking him out. He then flew out to find the origin of the broadcast, and re guessed its located in The Arch after what transpired the day before, with a fake crew fixing The Arch which was bombed by the ancient planes. They arrived too early before even being summoned. And Iron Man destroyed The Arch. Iron Man returned to question The Tattoo, but he was dying from poison he was given prior to the mission. If the mission succeeded he would have received the antidote released in his brain, but his employer doesn't tolerate failure, and died. Iron Man is trying to guess who is behind all this. Could it be the return of the Mandarin after all these years? Whoever it is, has a vast amount of resources behind him, and is very ruthless. Comments: Tony thinks his secretary, Mrs. Arbogast, is a godsend, and she doesn't realize what a treasure she is. On the other hand, loyal, it has crossed Mrs. Arbogast's mind that she'll never know or believe how Tony Stark ever became a millionaire industrialist (the comic book was published in 1982, if it was published today, she would have said to herself "billionaire" instead of "millionaire" due to time and dollar devaluation and inflation). In the hospital, the surgeon told Iron Man to have a couple of stiff drinks after delivering the bad news, which he initially said was bad advice, but thought about it making sense when he flew back to Manhattan. Could this be foreshadowing that he will be back to an alcoholic again in future issues? I don't know if it was a snafu in communication between Dennis O'Neil and Mike Vosburg. But in the morning scene where Tony Stark and his security chief inspected the plant to find something out of the ordinary, the illustration on one of the panels showed them in the midst of all the employees, and each one had a big headphone on. And they didn't realize that is out of the ordinary? This made Tony Stark look like an idiot moron to the reader, for not picking up on that. Looks like this is an illustration snafu. Tony can't be that moronic, when he can tell there's something wrong with the slightest realization to his surroundings in other comic book issues. However, earlier in the issue, Iron Man remarked about receiving a slight concussion after being rammed by the plane and exploding. Perhaps that's why he's slightly slow in "picking up" surrounding details that he could have noticed if he didn't have a slight concussion. This is a good action-adventure issue, with mystery included to have the reader guessing who is behind the attacks on Stark International? Also, how long can Tony Stark stay off the alcohol until he finally takes a drink? |
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Post by sabongero on May 1, 2018 11:23:10 GMT -5
 Iron Man #163
"Kinight's Errand"0.60 ¢ @ October 1982 Writer: Denny O'Neil Penciler: Luke McDonnell Inker: Steve Mitchell Colorist: Bob Sharen Letterer: Rick Parker Editor: Mark Gruenwald Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter Synopsis: Iron Man is busy flying around Stark International's premises putting out fires and saving people from accidents like the woman trapped in the car, and flying her to the nearest hospital, where he told the doctor to have the medical report on her ready and provided to Tony Stark ASAP. Apparently, he prevented Plan Ultra in the previous issue, but some of the personnel were still able to carry out the destructive instructions. Later on, inside Tony's laboratory, Jim Rhodes and him analyzed the explosives used by the saboteurs and traced it to Aloysius Lafferty in New Mexico. They had the plane readied to go to Mexico, but first, he visited the woman he took to the hospital, whose name is Indries Moomji. And he made sure she's okay and secured a dinner date with her once she's better. An hour later inside the airplane, Jim Rhodes told Tony that he looked happy. And Tony made a phone call to order six dozen roses to be delivered to Indries Moomji. At that moment elsewhere, a man holding the knight in a chessboard commented that Tony Stark and his bodyguard, Iron Man, were more formidable than he anticipated. He ordered his Knight, to take care of business. The Rook and Bishop argued, where the King told them to shut up as another Knight informed him an airplane approached them. On board the airplane, Jim Rhodes was piloting the craft, with no problem from the weather, and then were suddenly attacked by blasts from a Flying Knight. Tony Stark changed into Iron Man and prevented the airplane from crashing fixing up the damaged engine. The plane landed soon and Jim and Tony disembarked. In the airport, one of the women from Tony's prior engagements recognized him, and a dinner date was arranged. Jim asked him what's the difference between this woman and the woman in the hospital, which Tony replied this one is here right on their premises. Elsewhere, The King told his minion that their earlier attack on Tony Stark failed, and to summon The Knight to deal with Stark immediately. Tony Stark just finished having dinner with the woman at the airport, and he met with Jim Rhodes. The plane is still under repairs, and security chief Martinelli's boys forward them a copy of the map with the location of Lafferty. Tony told him to go back to the airfield and he'll call him before nightfall. Then he called Indries Moomji to see how she's doing, and she sound happy after receiving all the flowers. Putting on the costume, Iron Man cannot wait to encounter the bomb-maker Lafferty and flew off. In the lobby, The Knight got a hold of the room Tony Stark was staying in, and busted in, but no Tony Star in the premises. He received instructions perhaps he's on his way to Lafferty and to follow him. Thirty miles away Iron Man arrived on Lafferty's hidden small shack in the middle of the mountain ranges. He bursted in surprising Aloysius Lafferty. He offered Iron Man an alcoholic bottle, which he shoved aside, instead requiring information, which Lafferty couldn't provide other than a wire transfer from a bank in Scotland. Then The Knight attacked them. Iron Man flew outside and the two engaged in a slugfest. One of Iron Man's power packs was destroyed cutting his offense and power in half. And The Knight was moving too fast for him, causing another damage to his Iron Man armor, this time the chest repulsor area. Lafferty, scared about these two super-powers, grabbed some dynamite and fled the premises. Iron Man saw him, but is too pre-occupied with The Knight to prevent Lafferty from escaping. Iron Man is hovering overhead the shed filled with explosives, when The Knight suddenly attacked him again, and Iron Man blasted the shed with his replusor causing a massive explosion engulfing him and The Knight, who crashed to the ground. He disarmed The Knight, and asked who he was talking to and knocked him out. Elsewhere, The King was informed by The Bishop that The Knight is down. The King told him, he has other pieces to go after Stark. In the plane over Kansas, Tony and Jim were discussing about the clues and leads they have gotten, and that they're going to follow up on them to the end. Landing in NYC laterm Indries Moomji in an arm sling met Tony at the airport ramp. It was a pleasant surprise, and Tony told Jim he'll be with her someplace in Manhattan. Someplace expensive Jim told him. Comments: When people are hurt, Iron Man is not in the mood for jokes. Just like in the hospital when brought in Indries Moomji to get medical attention, the doctor told him he's bringing in so many patients he can open up his own hospital. This did not sit well with Iron Man. Then there's Tony's biggest kryptonite... women. He can't help himself when women "throw" themselves at him, he cannot refuse a woman who is interested in having dinner with him amongst other things. It's like the power of the vagina has a grip on his mental faculties. It's good to see Jim Rhodes in this issue, and it showed how he and Tony are real close, as he brought him along to New Mexico instead of other employees. He trusted Jim with knowing that Tony and Iron Man are the same person. Again, who is this "King" that wanted Tony Stark and Stark International destroyed? |
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Post by Deleted on May 1, 2018 13:30:57 GMT -5
sabongero -- These reviews are excellent and I do like Dennis O'Neil handling it.  |
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Post by sabongero on May 2, 2018 2:02:46 GMT -5
sabongero -- These reviews are excellent and I do like Dennis O'Neil handling it. My first exposure to Iron Man was around the middle of Dennis O'Neil's run with the transition from Tony to Jim temporarily assuming Iron Man's role. Then having the helmet's circuitry wired to Tony's brain patterns, it eventually messed up Jim, and then Tony's triumphant return in the Red and Silver Armor, which he used in the ongoing West Coast Avengers series. |
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Post by Deleted on May 2, 2018 9:09:17 GMT -5
sabongero -- These reviews are excellent and I do like Dennis O'Neil handling it. My first exposure to Iron Man was around the middle of Dennis O'Neil's run with the transition from Tony to Jim temporarily assuming Iron Man's role. Then having the helmet's circuitry wired to Tony's brain patterns, it eventually messed up Jim, and then Tony's triumphant return in the Red and Silver Armor, which he used in the ongoing West Coast Avengers series. Thanks for reminding me about this, and I've mixed feelings about Tony's going back to Red and Silver Armour of which he used in the West Coast Avengers Series. His handling of Jim (O'Neil) was good (not exceptional) and that's why I've liked the way he got Tony back into the Iron Man role -- and rightly so. I've did not read every Dennis O'Neil's books of Iron Man and I did read some West Coast Avengers from my friends and that's why I've liked your reviews -- in a general sense of the word here and that's when -- I knew eventually Tony is being back as Iron Man. FYI -- I'm not a fan of the Red and Silver Armour, just to let you know that -- it's seems a bit odd for me to accept it. |
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Post by sabongero on May 2, 2018 11:32:46 GMT -5
My first exposure to Iron Man was around the middle of Dennis O'Neil's run with the transition from Tony to Jim temporarily assuming Iron Man's role. Then having the helmet's circuitry wired to Tony's brain patterns, it eventually messed up Jim, and then Tony's triumphant return in the Red and Silver Armor, which he used in the ongoing West Coast Avengers series. Thanks for reminding me about this, and I've mixed feelings about Tony's going back to Red and Silver Armour of which he used in the West Coast Avengers Series. His handling of Jim (O'Neil) was good (not exceptional) and that's why I've liked the way he got Tony back into the Iron Man role -- and rightly so. I've did not read every Dennis O'Neil's books of Iron Man and I did read some West Coast Avengers from my friends and that's why I've liked your reviews -- in a general sense of the word here and that's when -- I knew eventually Tony is being back as Iron Man. FYI -- I'm not a fan of the Red and Silver Armour, just to let you know that -- it's seems a bit odd for me to accept it. You're not the only one to have problems against the Red and Silver armor. It was great to see Tony defeat his demons and return to superheroing. The problem I had with the Red and Silver armor was the chest repulsor was shaped like those triangular "Vicks Menthol Candy" and the shoulder pads reminded me of the women in business attire who had oversized shoulder pads like the way the Red and Silver armor had. But those were the times, and it is what certain parts of the armor reminded me off. |
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Post by sabongero on May 2, 2018 17:31:20 GMT -5
 Iron Man #164
"Deadly Blessing"0.60 ¢ @ November 1982 Writer: Denny O'Neil Penciler: Luke McDonnell Inker: Steve Mitchell Colorist: Bob Sharen Letterer: Rick Parker Editor: Michael Carlin & Mark Gruenwald Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter Synopsis: The Bishop broke out The Knight from prison. Prison security was too late to arrive even though they heard the explosion blasting the side of the prison wall. Above the prison, The Bishop with his staff, levitate the two "chess" pieces up in the air, but he explained to The Knight that their leader was disappointed in him failing to take out Tony Stark and must be punished. Then an energy surrounded the staff and The Knight could not hold on, and fell to his death. Tony Stark rented the whole floor of a restaurant at the World Trade Center in Manhattan, NYC. All that for his date with Indries Moomji. She noticed he didn't like to drink alcoholic drinks as he ordered drinks for them. Their date was interrupted when the maitre d' told him he had a call for his security chief. He reported that they were able to trace the Knight investigation back to Northern Ireland just what the Irish bomber told Iron Man, but somebody busted out The Knight and killed him. Tony instructed him to get Jim Rhodes and fuel the plane and file a flight plan to Scotland. Tony cut his date short with Indries, which she told him not to worry. They were getting really close together. A little later, he headed out, and as he was driving, Mrs. Arbogast told him a Laird of Glen Travail invited him to discuss a possible deal in Northern Ireland. In the Chessmaster's castle, he was informed by a minion that Tony Stark has accepted the Laird's invitation. The Chessmaster hopes the Bishop will kill Tony Stark, where the Knight failed to do so. Inside Tony's laboratory, he was making final checks on the Iron Man armor, again he question which is really him, the armor or the flesh wearing it. Later on, in the sky, Tony told Jim to get them as soon as they can to Scotland, and Jim told him go relax and leave the flying to him. He was surprised to find Indries in the plane ride with them, who told him that she convinced Jim to let her come along as she had this feeling of terrible danger she wanted to share with him. Hours later, they landed, with a limousine waiting for them at the airport to take them to their destination. That night they arrived in the Laird's castle, where they were invited by the host, Jaime. They were to rest and meet up for breakfast. Each had their own room. In his room, Tony opened his suitcase and with the Iron Man helmet jammed any possible transmission in the room in order to prevent any camera functions or video recording. He put on the rest of the Iron Man armor and bent the steel bars on the window and flew out for a quick reconnaissance. He flew around and found the countryside serene with sheep grazing, a lake, and fields of flowers. He was about to tell himself how can evil exist in such a place when The Bishop is suddenly with him and told him to repent and zapped him with his wand. He wasn't hurt, but Iron Man should have been able to dodge such a crude attack. In one of the castle rooms, Indries yelled outside that she didn't know Iron Man was there and asked if he was hurt which he replied nope, but someone else will be. He hit the Bishop with is repulsor rays which the Bishop again hit him with his wand, this time hurting Iron Man, and repetitive hitting finally nailed him good and Iron Man crashed through a wall to his friend Jim's room. He went outside to resume his battle with the Bishop, who is getting the better of him and finally the wand/staff shorted out his repulsors, so he flew away hoping to get enough distance for him to have a systems reboot of the armor. From a distant castle, The Chessmaster is pleased with The Bishop's success against Iron Man. But the Rook, who is with him told his master not to count out Iron Man as the battle is not yet over. Iron Man is having difficulty against the Bishop. At ten feet he couldn't believe he missed shooting the Bishop's staff from that distance, and got whacked again by the staff. He tried to go to the ground and hide. And for some reason he felt better for a second, then he felt not himself again. He's not resisting. Why is that? He's fared better against tougher opponents. He's about to be slaughtered and doesn't know why, and got smacked by the Bishop again, this time landing in the loch, or lake. Meanwhile Jim and Indries were watching the action from a video feed in the castle. He bolted to help out Iron Man who's in trouble, but in his way, the host, Jamie hit him in the back of the neck. Back in the battle, underwater, Iron Man is starting to feel thinking normally. He felt he couldn't attack him earlier, but with the sheep for an instant he thought normally, and now underwater is back to normal. He read at a technical journal somewhere about how electromagnetic waves can affect the midbrain causing involuntary reactions. He thought about how the Bishop is doing this, and concluded it's not from his staff but perhaps from his hat. And Iron Man threw a rock from below, hitting the hat and removing it from The Bishop, showing it's electronic wirings. And they resumed the battle, but this time Iron Man had no problems blocking his staff attack and threw the Bishop up and broke his staff in two and then caught a falling Bishop who fainted into unconsciousness. They arrived in the castle Laird and no one opened the main door, so Iron Man punched his way in, and laid the unconscious Bishop in front of the castle host, Jaime. He told Iron Man what was going on about putting Stark out of business, and Iron Man grabbed him by his tunic and lifted him up. Jaime told him he can't talk and that his friends are lost motioning him to look at the television screen. It has Rhodes tied up to the stakes and poisonous spiders all over him. Jaime told him in an hour the poison will act up and kill him. He defeated the Knight and Bishop, but not the Rook, which is Jaime himself. Comments: Tony had a second date with this Indries woman, and for the second time she subtly gets him to drink alcohol, and this time knowing he's a former alcoholic. And then, she somehow convinced Jim Rhodes to allow her to fly with him and Tony to Scotland? And where was she at the end, only Jim Rhodes was in danger in the television screen. I don't trust this woman. She might be in cahoots with the enemy, or be a possible future enemy for Tony Stark. The mysterious Chessmaster has a hard on for Tony Stark to go after him so many different times in successive issues. Is he a new enemy, or a former enemy that just wants to put Stark Enterprises out of business? It's a pretty standard romp with the villain of the month for Iron Man in this issue. He's beaten two, so now it's the third underling of the Chessmaster in the next issue. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on May 2, 2018 17:50:18 GMT -5
I always have liked the Red and Silver myself. I don't love O'Neil's version of Tony Stark, but he did handle Rhodey really well (and most of the supporting cast really), IIRC. This was the 2nd set of Iron Man stuff I read (I went back after starting from Armor Wars and going through a couple years worth that were easily available at my local shop)...I remember being annoyed as a kid at the alcholism relapse, but I didn't really get it at the time.
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Post by sabongero on May 2, 2018 18:21:05 GMT -5
I always have liked the Red and Silver myself. I don't love O'Neil's version of Tony Stark, but he did handle Rhodey really well (and most of the supporting cast really), IIRC. This was the 2nd set of Iron Man stuff I read (I went back after starting from Armor Wars and going through a couple years worth that were easily available at my local shop)...I remember being annoyed as a kid at the alcholism relapse, but I didn't really get it at the time. I don't think any of us got it at the time. I was just happy to have Tony back as Iron Man after a couple of years with Jim as Iron Man. Jim was great. And re-reading after decades passed, I am appreciating and enjoying the little appearances of Tony's supporting cast here and there, particularly his secretary's opinion about his various women. Those are funny. |
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Post by sabongero on May 3, 2018 14:40:13 GMT -5
 Iron Man #165
"Endgame"0.60 ¢ @ December 1982 Writer: Denny O'Neil Penciler: Luke McDonnell Inker: Steve Mitchell Colorist: Bob Sharen Letterer: Rick Parker Editor: Mark Gruenwald Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter Synopsis: Jaime told Iron Man to look at the viewscreen where Jim Rhodes is tied to stakes and has poisonous spiders all over him. Ordinary spears attack Iron Man to no effect. But it allowed Jaime Laird to escape from him. The Chessmaster is with another minion, The Rook, who guaranteed Iron Man will fall as he has three traps set up for Iron Man, but the first one will do him in. Meanwhile, Iron Man followed a cable to bring him to Jon Rhodes. As he followed the cabe, a huge slab of stone weighing several tons dropped on him. He used up a lot of the armor's energy but Iron Man was able to lift it and throw it away. He couldn't use his hand repulsors as they are still damaged from his battle with The Bishop in the previous issue. Again he followed the cable. Chessmaster told The Rook he failed, and the dwarven man will go witness the second trap and see the slaughter himself. Another minion reported to the Chessmaster that Tony Stark's investigators back home is getting close to their knowledge of the Chessmaster. And at Stark International, chief of security, Victor Martinelli tells Mrs Arbogast he is close to finding out who hired The Tatoo in issue #163 to take out Stark International. Iron Man kept following the cable and it led him to another door. As he opened, clamps from the door attached to his wrists and ankles. Then the door started going up showing a mechanism that would stretch him and eventually kill him. He used his jet propulsion to haul him upward into a ball, then suddenly stretched out, thus breaking the bonds, and he's free. He flew towards a wooden door and destroyed it, and inside was Indries. He reassured her Tony Stark is okay, and to stay put and he'll return to her shortly. Iron Man felt like taking her into his arms and not leaving her, like tearing a part of his skin, but he's gotta find Jim Rhodes before he dies. Back in America, Tony Stark is shown in the news taking the sultry beauty, Indries, into the plushiest places and reported he is no stranger to beautiful women. This was being watched in Pepper Potts' living room with her daugther. She was just remembering what she knew. In Scotland, Iron Man arrived at another door, and The Rook snuck up behind him, and closed the door behind Iron Man. Inside the room are many nozzles. And The Rook activated it, and acid gas filled the room and will dissolve anything. Iron Man kept punching at the walls, and his armor started melting. And the acid vapors kept melting Iron Man's armor. He tried to pull the nozzles free and punch the wall, but Iron Man is not strong enough now. Then he noticed a part of the door not melting... he thought it must be resistant to the vapors. So he utilized the diamond cutter in his fingertips and concentrated a blaster in small concentrated blasts and he opened the door sheet, and allowed the acid fumes melt the rest of the door. He made his way outside and flew and reached a cave and entered its cavern. He heard Jim Rhodes voice and he freed Jim and took him to the nearest doctor. Jim will live but he's very sick. Iron Man plugged his armor to the local electric circuit in the doctor's office to recharge the armor. A little later Iron Man made it back in the castle, surprising Laird. Jaime Laird tried to escape in an escape hatch on the ground, but wasn't quick enough as Iron Man grabbed him preventing his escape. And he threw him against the wall, and Indries suddenly showed up. Iron Man dragged Jaime outside to take him to the local police, while Indries asked him where is Tony Stark, and Iron Man told her he's at the local doctor's office and will meet her there. Later that night, Indries met Tony at the doctor's office. Jim Rhodes is getting better. And she kept Tony company that night. Elsewhere Chessmaster told his minion it will be a pleasure to checkmate a resourceful opponent in Tony Stark, who thinks Laird is the Chessmaster and thinks he has won. Comments: This Indries woman just suddenly appeared as if she wasn't in danger. Perhaps she is in cahoots with the Chessmaster. And she seems to have a hold on Tony Stark/Iron Man's psyche that he can't seem to think straight when he is in her vicinity. Somehow, Tony will eventually either pay a price because of this woman, or I guessed wrong. |
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Post by String on May 4, 2018 12:18:04 GMT -5
#165 - my very first issue of Iron Man. Hooked from then on.
Back then, I don't think that his alcoholism made much impact upon me beyond being a story point. However, I now appreciate O'Neill's treatment of the subject. This wasn't something that was going to be resolved in two issues and then everything's back to normal. It's a significant weakness made worse by the manipulations of Stane. Tony dealt with the repercussions and the long crawl back to sobriety and renewed confidence for a huge chunk of issues all while his friend Rhodey did his best to adapt to being Iron Man (not to mention the effects that had on him).
As for the Silver Centurion armor, I liked it. New start, new abilities, new colors, why not?
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