Featuring: Iron Man
Release: March 12, 1963
Cover: June 1963
12 cents
Plot: Stan Lee
Script: R. Berns
Art: Don Heck
13 pages
I read this story in the Invincible Iron Man Omnibus vol. 1.
I also have it reprinted in Marvel Collector’s Item Classics #5 from 1966, and include scans from that reprint below.
Robert Bernstein has been scripting more and more Marvel books. We just saw him in our last Human Torch entry and his name is showing up on Ant-Man and Wasp stories.
As we’ve discussed before, the comic treats Stark’s military work as entirely noble, as opposed to the more nuanced take the movie would have decades later. It’s about changing attitudes. But this comic really seems to push it. Stark invents a disintegrator ray, and notes among its applications that it could destroy a metropolis. Surely we recognize that as a purely evil application? That’s not much better than building a nuclear bomb.
Hulk’s origin had a subtle swipe at weapon-building, given that Dr. Banner was a victim of his own bomb. But it’s not clear to me how intentional that was on the part of Lee or Kirby. Or whether it’s interpretation that comes from reading the comic through a modern lens.
We have another cold war story, introducing a villain, the Red Barbarian, and his agent, the Actor.
The Actor seems indistinguishable in concept from the Chameleon, introduced in Amazing Spider-Man #1.
We see the first example of what will become a common trope: the hero’s secret identity getting revealed. These comics, drawing on past superhero comics, just treat secret identities as a normal thing, and don’t worry too much about whether the characters need them. The Fantastic Four broke the mold of previous superhero stories by not having them, but then the writers decided Johnny Storm would, sometimes. Everyone else has them and treats them as important things to hide. The only one explained is Thor, who was ordered by Odin to keep his identity secret.
So what happens when a character’s identity gets revealed? As when the Actor finds traces of Iron Man’s armor in Anthony Stark’s office. (This proves some connection between Iron Man and Stark, but not that they are the same person, as the Actor somehow deduced.) Well, the writers write their way out of the trap– by having Red Barbarian kill the Actor before he can tell anybody.
I can’t understand the ending of the comic at all. Iron Man has defeated the Actor and recovered the stolen plans. I’m not sure why the story doesn’t end there. Instead, Iron Man visits Red Barbarian pretending to be the Actor, and then leaves. If you’re going to visit Red Barbarian, why not just take him down? And if not, why visit him at all?
Rating: ★★☆☆☆, 33/100
Characters:
- Red Barbarian
- Anthony Stark/Iron Man
- The Actor
Minor characters:
- Gregori (Soviet espionage agent)
Story notes:
- Iron Man working with FBI to trap Soviet spies attempting to steal new Atom bomb.
- Transistor-powered device magnifies the power of a magnet.
- Armor contains alloys which reject magnetic attraction.
- Stark working on pocket-size disintegrator ray; disintegrates a tank and a wall; able to wipe out fleet of battleships or a metropolis.
- The Actor disguised as “Comrade K”, Nikita Khrushchev; then as actor Sir Reginald, then as a US Senator; then as Anthony Stark
- The Actor deduces Iron Man’s secret identity.
- Red Barbarian kills The Actor.
#72 story in reading order
Next: Journey Into Mystery #93
Previous: Strange Tales #109
