Iron Man #24
My Son… The Minotaur!
Then
Following her escape from Midas, the woman now known as Madame Masque found herself caught in the current of the Aegean Sea.[1] Her body is washed ashore inside a cave nearby. There she dreams that she is rescued from the waters by Iron Man. In this dream, she believes Tony Stark is Iron Man and as they fly away they are shot at by Jasper Sitwell who is jealous of Tony’s love for Whitney Frost.[2] When she asks Tony to take her to Jasper so they can talk he continues to fly away. As she struggles to get free, Iron Man’s helmet suddenly transforms the horrifying face of a bull.
This is far from a dream as she was actually found by a creature that resembles the Minotaur of Greek myth. This Minotaur is named Miklos and he is instructed by his father not to kill the girl. As Miklos knocks Madame Masque out, he knocks loose the golden mask she wears on her face. Having no need for it, Miklo’s father, Doctor Vryolak ends up selling it off.
Now
The sale of this trademark mask reaches SHIELD and agent Jasper Sitwell eventually tracks it down. Having SHIELD scientists test it for clues, Jasper soon learns what he always hoped: That Whitney Frost is still alive.
Meanwhile, Tony Stark has travelled to Monte Carlo try and get his mind off the recent death of Janice Cord.[3] However, the playboy lifestyle cannot get him through the feelings of loss and so he returns to his room. There he is confronted by Jasper Sitwell who is furious to know that Tony knew Whitney Frost was still alive and didn’t tell him. Admitting the truth, and that he also shared a brief romance with her, Tony says that after Madame Masque seemingly died he kept it a secret to spare his feelings. Despite this painful revelation, Jasper intends to continue his hunt for Whitney and bring her to justice for her past crimes.
This whole time Whitney Frost has been living with Doctor Vryolak and his son and taken to wearing bandages on her scarred face in place of her golden mask. She has remained here because the Doctor has promised to use his scientific skills to repair the damage done to her face. After assuring her that he can repair her face, the Doctor goes down to his laboratory and tells Miklos that he needs money for more chemicals. Obeying his father, the so-called Minotaur terrorizes the nearby village so they can money as tribute to fund his father’s experiments.
Consumed with hatred over his own hideous form, the Minotaur thinks back to how he was transformed into a bull-headed freak. His father was a great explorer who had earlier discovered an ancient labyrinth in the caverns along the Aegean Sea. At it’s center he found a formula that could give the power of beasts to the mind of man. Shortly thereafter, Miklos fell ill and there was nothing modern medicine could do to cure him. Desperate, the Doctor developed the formula he discovered and gave it to his son. Although Miklos made a sudden recovery he was soon transformed into the Minotaur and has been trapped in this form ever since.
The following day, Tony Stark arrives in Eastern Greece where he changes into Iron Man so he can search the shores of the Aegean Sea to find any clue that Madame Masque is still alive. At this same time, Doctor Vryolak is pawning off the various tributes the villagers made to his son the night before so he can get the funds needed to secure more chemicals. Little does he know that he is being observed by Jasper Sitwell, who then begins tailing him. Back at his lab, the Doctor begins recreating the formula that turned his son into the Minotaur. As it turns out, he has no intention of restoring Madame Masque’s lost beauty but wants to transform her into an ideal mate for his son. Even though he has everything he needs, the Doctor orders his son to attack the nearby village once more.
This time, the attack draws the attention of Iron Man who tries to stop the monster. The Minotaur proves to be much more powerful. When he tosses Iron Man into a burning building, Miklo assumes he is killed and heads for home, unaware that Iron Man is secretly following him.[4] Back at the Vryolak home, the Doctor attempts to get Madame Masque to drink his formula. Suspecting that something isn’t right with this she refuses when the Minotaur returns home. That’s when Jasper comes barging in to try and save Whitney’s life but he is knocked out and Frost is carried down into the Doctor’s laboratory. By this time, Iron Man has found the underground caves and begins drilling through the caverns, eventually getting to Vryolak’s lab. There he tries to stop the Doctor from injecting Madame Masque with his formula but he’s kept at bay by the Minotaur. Luckily, Jasper has recovered and shoots the syringe before Whitney can be injected.
Seeing how Jasper is in love with Madame Masque, the Minotaur realizes that he and his father are evil beings without the hope of redemption. Deciding their lives need to end, Miklos causes the cavern to begin to collapse burying himself and his father alive as Iron Man, Jasper, and Madame Masque make their escape. Jasper is knocked out while they are fleeing but Iron Man checks him out and determines he’ll be fine when he wakes up. When Whitney finds her bold mask in Jasper’s jacket, Iron Man explains how Jasper found it and used the mask to track her down. Removing the bandages from her face and replacing the mask, Madame Masque says that Jasper’s continued love for her gives her new hope and walks off. Iron Man lets her go, wishing her the best of luck on the struggles that she’ll have to face in the future.
Recurring Characters
Iron Man, Madame Masque, SHIELD (Jasper Sitwell)
Continuity Notes
Madame Masque’s apparent demise following Iron Man’s battle with Midas was depicted in Iron Man #19.
Whitney Frost was the leader of the Maggia and used her position to try and seduce Tony Stark since Tales of Suspense #98, she found Jasper Sitwell and easier mark until she was exposed as the Big M in Iron Man #8.
Janice was murdered by Titanium Man in Iron Man #22.
As Iron Man recounts how his new armor allows him to recharge its battery by absorbing heat. This function was added in Iron Man #4.
