Synopsis
Avengers, The (1963 series) #224 synopsis by
Rob Johnson
Rating:
The Avengers respond to a subway accident that has ruptured a gas main. Iron Man rips a hole in the ground and Thor descends into the tunnel. Whirling Mjolnir blows flames out and disperse the gas. Captain America, Hawkeye and Wasp help passengers to safety. When the danger is over they look round and find She-Hulk holding up a building that's trying to fall over. (She now has a costume, a sort-of 1-piece bathing suit.) Hawkeye uses a buzz-saw arrow to cut through 2 lampposts and Thor uses them to prop the building up.
Newly-single Janet Van Dyne has resumed flirting with her male companions (and Iron Man/Tony Stark is taking notice). She fends off reporters who suggest the millionairess is dating a celebrity. But she leaves quickly when they bring up her jailed ex-husband Henry Pym.
Scott Lang sees this interchange on his TV news. The divorced ex-con sympathises with his friend Hank's situation, and decides to do something about it as Ant-Man. He and 2 flying ants visit Henry Pym in jail. Scott shrinks Hank and suggests they escape the way he came. But Pym refuses - he wants to clear his name legally and win back Jan's respect.
Next evening Tony Stark hears that Jan will be at a society do and decides to attend. They dance and have a drink (non-alcoholic in Tony's case). All the while it niggles at the back of Tony's mind that Wasp wasn't there in #216 when some other Avengers learned he was Iron Man - he should tell her. Later Stark's helicopter piloted by Jim Rhodes takes them to Jan's house. Jan and Tony kiss goodnight.
Tony is worried how him dating Jan will affect Henry. (Egghead just gloats when he sees them in the Daily Bugle next day.) But that doesn't stop him taking her to Jamaica next day, and other places over the following days.
But 1 night he gets home to find Captain America waiting for him. Steve Rogers is concerned about Tony dating their friend Hank's wife before the ink's even dry on the divorce papers. Tony counters that he's using his money to do all he can for Hank's legal problems, but Steve suggests that's just a way of assuaging his guilt.
Steve also guesses that Tony hasn't told Jan that he's Iron Man. Surely she deserves to know. After Cap leaves Tony has to resist the call of a whisky.
Next day at Avengers Mansion She-Hulk is complaining about being bored sitting around doing nothing between cases. Hawkeye snipes that the rest of the team are good at doing nothing - none of them have even been to see Hank in prison. He'd spring Pym himself if he didn't think that would make things worse. Cap just cryptically hopes no-one else will do anything to hurt Hank. Half the team don't know what he's getting at, but when Thor gets the Golden Avenger alone he adds his advice that IM should be honest with Wasp.
That evening Jan is expecting Tony for another date, when Iron Man shows up instead. And unmasks in front of her. She is shocked. And then she says she can't betray Hank with 1 of his friends. Their affair is over.
Henry Pym sees in a newspaper next day that Tony Stark has jilted Jan.