Invincible Iron Man #181: Review

Apr 1984

Dennis O'Neil, Luke McDonnell

Story Name:

Though My Life Be Forfeit...

Review & Comments

Rating:

Invincible Iron Man #181 Review by T Vernon (April 11, 2016)

Part three of three parts. The climax leads directly into MARVEL SUPER-HEROES SECRET WARS #1. Oddly, there is a major blizzard in Manhattan in the Tony Stark subplot but the sky is clear over Central Park for all the Secret Wars bits, here and in all the connected titles. Maybe the Fates really do have it in for Tony?

Gaah! They've put that weird Mandarin costume on the cover! Have they no sense of decency? Anyways, the story wraps up with some cool action sequences—though nothing tops Shellhead's plunge toward the end. Best part is that Rhodey knows the Mandarin is way out of his league and soldiers on regardless, making him a real hero. And Mandy in turn realizes that this isn't the usual Iron Man he is dealing with. More to come, I suspect.

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Synopsis / Summary / Plot

Invincible Iron Man #181 Synopsis by T Vernon

Iron Man (James Rhodes), under the hypnotic control of the Mandarin, is ordered to cut his throat; as he starts to do so, he is struck by another massive headache, and in the throes of pain he slashes Mandarin and knocks him out. Shellhead then flees the castle, wondering how he can defeat this superior foe of his....
Mandarin, of course, is awfully sore about the cut and takes it out on Radioactive Man while plotting world conquest....
In Manhattan, a derelict Tony Stark searches for his drinking pal Gretl through an increasingly severe snow storm. He unwittingly walks past a cafe where she is sipping coffee, having decided Tony doesn't love her after all....
While Iron Man is flying toward safety in Hong Kong, he sees that the wheat crops are dying, part of the Mandarin's scheme to conquer the world. Chinese military jets spot him and open fire, assuming he is the cause of the blight and threatening war with the USA. Shellhead lures the jets back to Mandy's stronghold and attracts their missile fire to blow holes in the mountain. Mandarin is confused and Radioactive Man, smarting over his treatment by his master, shuts off the monitor which shows that Iron Man has entered the room holding the big bad machine. Shellhead rips out the power supply thus shutting down the protective force field and proceeds to wreck the device. Mandarin takes off in an escape rocket and Iron Man pursues but another headache sends the hero plunging to the ground. And the villain gets away....
Epilogue: Back in the States, Rhodey gets a call from Morley Erwin, telling him about a strange structure in Central Park. Iron Man goes to investigate—and vanishes inside....