Mandarin and the Unicorn: Double-Death!

While investigating why his employees have suddenly turned against him, Iron Man discovers that they have been manipulated by the Mandarin who has been operating as a union representative named Gene Khan.[1] In the ensuing battle, Iron Man gains the upper-hand until the Mandarin uses a special headband to summon his newest ally, the Unicorn. The Unicorn, reduced to a mindless drone, attacks on the Mandarin’s commands. Taking a full force blast from the Unicorn’s horn blaster, Iron Man’s armor is seriously damaged. With his power running low, Iron Man has to flee to recharge before his heart begins acting up again.[2]

When he arrives at his office, Iron Man is found by Pepper Potts. He refuses her suggestion to go to a hospital and has her plug him into a nearby electrical outlet to recharge his batteries. However, Iron Man passes out before she can get a chance and she begins to fear for his safety when the batteries fail to recharge.[3]

Meanwhile, at the Milford Mental Health Facility, Tony Stark’s ex-fiancée is being examined by a psychologist after she had a meltdown on the job. Her mind has been plagued with visions of demons. When her visions are called into question she goes into hysterics and has to be sedated.[4]

Elsewhere, the Mandarin has retreated back to his hideout with the Unicorn. There he gloats over turning the Unicorn into his willing slave and recounts the events of how this came to be. It was shortly after the Mandarin recovered his rings. The Unicorn came for help since the process that gave him his powers has also drastically reduced his lifespan.[5] The Mandarin agreed to help and built a device that would save the Unicorn’s life, but keeping the fact that it would reduce him to a vegetative state a secret. Using a special headband that allowed him to control the Unicorn, the Mandarin then began plotting his revenge against Iron Man.

By this time, Iron Man has woken up and pulled himself off the floor. Pepper continues to suggest he go to a doctor but he refuses to do so telling her to leave him alone in Stark’s private lab. Once there, Tony is surprised that he is still alive even though his armor’s batteries are still dead. He suspects that his heart has finally healed after undergoing surgery months ago and his body is no longer trying to reject the synthetic implants. Still, he will still have to wear his chest plate at least some of the time and begins working on repairs and upgrades on his armor.

As Tony finishes his work, some of the Mandarin’s hired goons lead a bunch of irate employees into his office and begin trashing the place. Tony decides to confront them directly and convinces his workers that selling their technology to all nations, regardless of their politics, is all for bettering the entire world. This convinces the workers to stop trashing the office and when the police arrives, Tony declines to press charges. With this latest scheme foiled, the Mandarin’s hired thug retreats back to their hideout, unaware that he is leading Iron Man there. This time, when Iron Man fights his foes he disorientates the Mandarin with a blast from his uni-beam. This causes a blast from the Unicorn’s helmet and the Mandarin’s rings to collide. The crossing of the two streams has an unforseen side-effect when the Mandarin finds his mind transferred into the Unicorn’s body.

Fearing that he will be lost in the Unicorn’s decaying mind, the Mandarin blasts the side of a building, forcing Iron Man to save innocent bystanders while he makes his escape. When Iron Man returns to Stark Industries, his workers have learned that “Gene Khan” was actually the Mandarin and was manipulating them and agree to return to work without further incident. Retiring to his office, Tony begins working on ways to prolong the time he doesn’t have to wear his chest plate. However, before he can go out and enjoy his new freedom, his phone begins to ring. He stops to answer it, little knowing that the person on the end of the line is about to drop a bombshell that will rock Tony Stark’s world.

Recurring Characters

Iron Man, Mandarin, Unicorn, Pepper Potts, Marianne Rodgers

Continuity Notes

1. Tony Stark had decided to shift Stark Industries focus away from munitions to other scientific endeavors in Iron Man #48. The Mandarin had been working up his employees last issue by revealing that Stark Industries was selling its technology to communist nations. Tony’s rationalization was that his technology should benefit everyone, regardless of their politics.

2. Tony Stark has had a long history of problems with his heart starting in Tales of Suspense #39 when he took shrapnel in the heart. Later, Tony underwent surgery to repair the damage in Iron Man #19. However, any undue stress would cause his body to reject the synesthetic parts used to repair the damage. Tony was forced to start wearing a chest-piece to keep his heart beating in Iron Man #37.

3. Pepper mentions how she just recently started working for Stark again and how she is married to Happy Hogan. Pepper previously worked for Stark from Tales of Suspense #45 to 89 when she married Happy Hogan and quit. Tony hired her last issue because he has been in need of a new secretary since his last one went on maternity leave in Iron Man #49.

4. Tony and Marianne had been dating since Iron Man #36 and got serious enough for Tony to propose to her in issue #45. The engagement proved short-lived after her precognitive visions caused her to panic and abandon Tony when he needed help in issue #50. He called off the engagement in the following issue. She later tried to get a job in issue #52 but completely lost her shit and had to be committed. The cause of her madness is revealed in Iron Man #80-81.

5. The Unicorn first got his powers in Tales of Suspense #56 and was later given a power boost in Iron Man #4, but it drastically reduced his lifespan. He mentions how the Red Guardian previously failed to cure his condition, this was in Iron Man #16.

Topical References

• The outlet that Pepper plugs Iron Man into has only two prongs. These have long since been replaced with three-pronged outlets, the third prong being a grounding wire that is there to prevent damage to devices and the electrical circuit should there be an overload.

• Milford is referred to as a sanitarium in this story. This is a dated term and its use should be considered topical.