Featuring: Iron Man
Release: December 8, 1966
Cover: March 1967
12 cents
A Stan Lee ○ Gene Colan Super-powered spectacular!
Inked by: Frank Giacoia
Lettered by: Artie Simek
12 pages
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|---|---|---|
| Avengers #37 | Reading order | Tales of Suspense #87, Story B |
| Tales of Suspense #86, Story B | Tales of Suspense | Tales of Suspense #87, Story B |
For the first time, man will be able to probe the deepest secrets at the very core of the planet he lives upon!
Tony Stark is experimenting with a dangerous nuclear-powered device that will enable subterranean exploration. It sounds boring.
Some Commie spies want it. They are no match for Iron Man.
Also, bribery doesn’t work.
I’ll note I often complain about heroes fighting mismatched villains, but I don’t mind when the heroes make short work of the villains. I complain when heroes whine about how hard it is to fight some villain they should easily overcome.
Turns out Mole Man also wants this device, and sinks Stark’s factory thousands of fathoms beneath the Earth to get it. (I’m sure my readers know that a thousand fathoms is around a mile.)
We recently made a big deal out of how Attuma had shown up in so many different characters’ titles: Fantastic Four, Giant-Man & Wasp, Iron Man, Avengers, and Sub-Mariner.
Mole Man is catching up: Fantastic Four, Avengers, Hulk, and now Iron Man. That’s four. He just needs to fight the X-Men to make it a tie.
I think the common theme is writers like to send their heroes to new locales. If they want an ocean adventure, they fight Attuma. If they want a subterranean adventure, they fight the Mole Man.
I will note the MCP thinks Mole Man’s next battle against the Avengers should take place before this battle. But that’s not obvious to me, and that Avengers comic comes out four months after this comic. So we’re reading this first. We’ll read that Avengers comic eventually, and consider the question more then.
Rating: ★★½, 47/100
Significance: ★★★☆☆
Characters:
- Tony Stark/Iron Man
- Pepper Potts
- Happy Hogan
- Mole Man
Story notes:
- Tony orders Happy and Pepper to leave and the factory to be evacuated because of his experiment.
- Experimental Earth-borer operates by new method of harnassing atomic energy. It will allow people to explore the depths of the Earth.
- Long Island locals are concerned about the dangers to them of Stark’s experiments.
- Several buildings start sinking below the surface. Locals blame Stark.
- A spy ring sees an opportunity to sabotage Stark.
- Spies try to bribe Iron Man.
- Stark Enterprises now sinking into the Earth.
| Previous | #653 | Next |
|---|---|---|
| Avengers #37 | Reading order | Tales of Suspense #87, Story B |
| Tales of Suspense #86, Story B | Tales of Suspense | Tales of Suspense #87, Story B |
