Iron Man #109
Moonrise!
Iron Man is celebrating the rescue of his friends — Madame Masque, Jasper Sitwell, Eddie March, Jean DeWolff, the Wraith, and the Guardsman — who have just been restored to normal after being turned to gold by Midas.[1] Things are interrupted by the arrival of Tony Stark, who is annoyed that this is going on when there is important work to be done, namely the reconstruction of Stark International. This comes as a shock to those who know that Iron Man is secretly Tony Stark, but they keep their amazement to themselves.[2] Still, Stark thanks them for their help in liberating his company and stopping the Growing Man’s recent rampage. After telling Iron Man to give him a full report, Stark takes off. Not long after this, everyone but Jack of Hearts departs as well.[3]
The reason why Jack has stuck around is because he hopes that Iron Man will take him on and teach him how to become a better crime fighter. The Avenger considers how useful Jack was in the battle against Midas and how he could use some improvement and agrees to take the novice hero under his wing.
When Iron Man and Madame Masque return to Tony Stark’s office, he reveals that the “Tony” who spoke to them earlier was actually a Life Model Decoy he commissioned to help maintain his double-identity.[4] With this explanation out of the way, Tony and Whitney then take this moment of privacy for some much needed romance.
Back outside, Jack of Hearts assists a team of Stark technicians in examining the Growning Man android to learn how it ticks. Channeling his power through a scanning device, Jack suddenly discovers that the Zero Energy in his body allows him to analyze data faster than any computer.[5] With this data he is able to pinpoint where the Growing Man came from: Earth’s Moon. He then races to Tony Stark’s office to tell Tony (the LMD), Iron Man, and Madame Masque about his discovery. Pre-programmed to act like the real Tony, the LMD “orders” Iron Man and Jack to investigate this further. When Madame Masque tries to include herself, Iron Man convinces her to stay behind to keep an eye on things. Whitney agrees, but vows that this is the last time Tony will sideline her now that they are together.
Soon, Iron Man and Jack are heading to the moon aboard an Avengers’ Quinjet that has been modified for space travel.[6] As they approach the moon they are suddenly struck by a piercing scream that causes them to crash land on the Blue Area of the Moon, the only part that has a breathable atmosphere. There they are ambushed by the Russian superheroes Darkstar, Vanguard, and the Crimson Dynamo. They are defending a massive metallic egg they discovered on the moon’s surface. Seeing the Crimson Dynamo, Iron Man assumes that this is Alex Nevin, the man he blames for the death of Janice Cord and begins to attack.[7] Darkstar tries to sew for peace,[8] eventually the two Americans are subdued long enough for explanations to be made. As it turns out, the Dynamo is not Nevin, but Dimitri Bukharin, who was selected to succeed Nevin as his country’s premiere armored hero.[9]
With all the misunderstandings out of the way, the heroes all agree to work together. That’s when the metal egg begins giving off another sub-sonic scream. Iron Man tells the Russians to stand guard while he and Jack of Hearts go in for a closer look. As they approach the egg a doorway opens and when they fly in, they suddenly vanish in a blinding flash of light. Assuming that they have been disintegrated, Vanguard and the others wonder why two American would have sacrificed themselves for a trio of Russians.
Recurring Characters
Iron Man, Jack of Hearts, Crimson Dynamo, Vanguard, Darkstar, Madame Masque, Jasper Sitwell, Yellowjacket, Guardsman, Eddie March, Jean DeWolff
Continuity Notes
Iron Man’s allies were turned into gold during Midas’ take over of Stark International. See Iron Man #103-107.
Tony revealed his secret to the Guardsman in Iron Man #99, while the Wraith found out with his telepathy in Iron Man #105. Madame Masque suspected Tony was Iron Man since Iron Man #19, and had her suspicions confirmed in issue #104.
Eddie March makes a passing reference to how Stark International restored his ability to walk. March suffered from blood clots that forced him to retire from boxing in Iron Man #20. He was seriously injured helping Iron Man battle Doctor Spectrum circa Iron Man #63-66. After undergoing emergency surgery in issue #67, he was confined to a wheelchair. This comment was tossed in to explain how he was suddenly walking on his own two feet again in issue #103.
Tony mentions how this LMD once tried to steal his identity. That was in Iron Man #17-18. Although not outwardly stated here, he probably started using it again after the last time Happy Hogan posed as Iron Man, in issues #82-83, led to Happy getting seriously injured.
Jack states here that he is strong enough to trade blows with the Hulk. This is no idle boast, as we saw in Incredible Hulk #213-214.
Here, Iron Man takes a moment to explain that the Growing Man was created by Kang the Conquerer, as detailed in Thor #140. He also states here that Kang is dead. Kang seemingly died in Avengers #143. In reality, his mind was sent back to the future where it was implanted into a clone body, see Fantastic Four Annual #25, Avengers Annual #21, and Avengers Forever #8.
Alex Nevin first appeared in Iron Man #15, and was a rival of Tony Stark for the affections of Janic Cord. A friend of Anton Vanko (the original Dynamo) Nevin constructed his own suit of Crimson Dynamo armor in Iron Man #20. Janice was murdered during a battle between Iron Man, the Dynamo, and Titanium Man in the following issue.
Darkstar mentions how she fought alongside Iron Man when he and the Champions stopped MODOK. This was in Iron Man Annual #4. Iron Man also mentions how he though Darkstar had defected to the United States. Indeed that seemed to be the case when she chose to go to America with the Champions in issue #9 of their own series.
Darkstar mentions here how Alex Nevin has disappeared. It’s later revealed in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #3 that Nevin was assassinated by the Russian government. This is confirmed when his soul was seen in the afterlife in Vision and the Scarlet Witch (vol. 2) #5. She also mentions how Yuri Petrovitch wore the armor prior to Bukharin. This was seen in Champions #7-10. The same issue of Official Handbook explains that Petrovitch was deemed a failure and was sent to a Russian prison camp where he will remain until his escape in Captain America #616.
Topical References
This story has a lot of Cold War references such as the Russian heroes being referred to as “Red” and Russia being identified as the Soviet Union and the USSR. These should be considered topical references particularly since the USSR dissolved in 1991.
