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Iron Man #42

Oct 1971
Gerry Conway, George Tuska

Iron Man #42 cover

Story Name:

When Demons Wail

Synopsis

Iron Man #42 synopsis by T Vernon
Rating: 3 stars
Iron Man is in hell, tormented by demons ruled over by a reptilian overlord with the face of Marianne Rodgers—then Tony Stark awakens from his nightmare. As he wonders about her mysterious abilities, the woman in question is also suffering a sleepless night, worried about her premonitions of Tony in danger, and confused by her sudden strong feelings about him. The two agitated lovers seek each other out and find comfort in one another’s arms….
Elsewhere, the mysterious Mister Kline summons a new minion for his scheme to destroy Tony Stark: the mutant Mikas. This villain, who draws power from the Earth itself, is dispatched to manipulate Marianne against Tony. With a great deal of flash and bother, Mikas taps the Earth-power and takes off through the dimensions to the astonishment of the scientists….
Meanwhile, the hospitalized Jasper Sitwell receives a bad prognosis from his doctor. He reacts by forcing himself to his feet and trying to walk. Though he doesn’t get very far, his effort convinces the doctor he has the determination to recover fully (as befits an Agent of SHIELD!)….
Near the Capitol, Iron Man meets with Ben Crandal, Tony’s fellow industrialist targeted by the government. Crandal explains how Senator McJavit considers them all part of a conspiracy and reveals he has led Iron Man into a trap to prove his own innocence. The Senator arrives and has soldiers take the Avenger into custody. In a nearby hotel room Mikas appears to Marianne and brings her mind under his control. As Iron Man is verbally sparring with the Senator, the jail cell is suddenly filled with fire and brimstone and he sees Marianne, in the form of the reptilian demon of his nightmares, accompanied by Mikas (now with horns!) and in a panic smashes through the prison wall to rescue her. The Senator’s aide, who did not see the horrific vision is now convinces Iron Man is guilty; meanwhile the Senator reveals himself as a double planted by Kline, which reports to its master then dissolves in flames….
Shellhead pursues the villain to his lair, a small-scale version of Hell, where he is attacked by nasty little demons. Iron Man tosses the nuisances aside and confronts the Soulfather who boasts of being made a god by Kline and his determination to rescue Marianne from the burden of her visions. The two antagonists battle with their power blasts and topple into a lava pit. When he emerges, apparently victorious, Iron Man is shattered to see Mikas unharmed, Marianne still very much under his power; the hero collapses from exhaustion and despair….

 

Review / Commentaries

Iron Man #42 Review by (June 11, 2013)
Now back to Iron Man: There is no nice way to put this: with that leggy jumpsuit and big medallion, Mikas looks like a dancer at a 70s gay disco. He is the least intimidating-looking baddie of this era and putting him near the reptilian demon Marianne doesn’t help. Plus he calls himself Soulfather, which sounds more like a nickname for James Brown than a skinny white guy given to pretentious displays of power and ego. And the plot still doesn’t make sense: last issue Kline employed Slasher and Demetrius in an elaborate scheme to destroy Tony Stark’s reputation; now the mission is worded as simply, “Destroy Stark.” That could have been accomplished much easier at any point in the prior proceedings. And what was the point of replacing the Senator with a robot double between pages 5 and 9 when the fake does exactly what the real one would do under the circumstances.… Oh why don’t I just sit back and enjoy this silly but fun tale?

Review/Commentary: Between the last issue and this one, Mister Kline appeared in DAREDEVIL #80-81. There he hired DD enemy the Owl to kidnap the hero. Owl and his men went on a rampage in downtown New York to lure DD to them (not clear why they assumed Spidey and the Avengers wouldn’t show up). Owl, double-crossing Kline, trapped the hero in a helicopter and sent it plunging into the Hudson River. Black Widow, who was nearby, leapt in an rescued DD. Kline fired Owl for disobeying orders and the baddie went after Daredevil again and lost. Kline, meanwhile, reported via radio to a mysterious superior that he has set up a potential romantic entanglement between DD and Natasha and that the blackmail scheme against Foggy Nelson is proceeding well; object: to make Foggy Governor and have him in their power. Kline was then revealed to be a robot called MK-9 who will now go by the code name Assassin. Kline ends the issue by deciding to employ the “Silent Ones…” Biggest unanswered question: Why would a robot smoke cigarettes?


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This comic is in the following collection:
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Collecting IRON MAN (1968) #26-67 and DAREDEVIL (1964) #73.

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Main/1st Story Full Credits

George Tuska
Frank Giacoia
Unknown
George Tuska (Cover Penciler)
Frank Giacoia (Cover Inker)
Additional Credits
Letterer: Jean Simek.
Editor: Stan Lee.

Characters

All stories. Listed in alphabetical order.

Iron Man
Iron Man
(Anthony Stark)
Jasper Sitwell
Jasper Sitwell
Plus: Marianne Rodgers, Mister Kline.

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