Whiplash Returns!

The villain known as Whiplash has been plotting his revenge against Iron Man since his last defeat. Having built a new force-field belt and whip, he has been spending his every free moment training for an eventual rematch against the hero.[1] He has been staking things out at the Stark Industries facility in Cincinnati. When Tony Stark and Pepper Potts arrive as part of their ongoing business trip, Whipslash figures that Iron Man can’t be very far behind.

Whiplash changes out of his costume so he can resume his cover as a Stark employee named Mark Scott.[2] As it turns out, Whiplash got a job at this facility and has been working his way up the corporate ladder as part of his revenge scheme. Mark then joins Tony and Pepper as they meet with Vicki Snow, the plant manager. As it turns out Mark is in relationship with Vicki. Polite introductions are made, but Mark gets Vicki upset when he expresses how he wants her to quit her job after they get married. This upsets Vicki, who doesn’t want to give up her working life to become a house wife. This hits home with Pepper Potts, whose husband — Happy Hogan — has threatened to leave her after she refused to stop working for Tony Stark.[3]

Mark then excuses himself, as this interaction was supposed to cement his cover identity. With Scott gone, Vicki gets down to business and gives a progress report on the new scientific space station that is being developed by Stark Industries. The only thing holding back production of the Quantum IX space station is the energy cell that Tony is personally designing. When Tony presents her with the energy cell, Whiplash arrives and snatches it out of Stark’s hand using his whip. Tony quickly runs off, telling Pepper and Vicki that he’s going to get Iron Man. This is merely a cover to allow Tony to get to a secluded area to change into his alter-ego.

When Iron Man faces off against Whiplash he quickly discovers that his foe’s force-field renders his repulsor rays useless. Soon, Whiplash ends up smashing the weapons with his whip, making Iron Man’s gauntlets useless. Discarding the ruined pieces of equipment, Iron Man continues his battle with his foe. Realizing that he needs to get rid of Whiplash’s weapon, Iron Man uses a bunch of powerful magnetic discs that allow him to yank the whip out of his enemy’s hands. Whiplash quickly discovers that he is no match for Iron Man in hand-to-hand combat and decides to flee. In order to cover his escape, Whiplash knocks down a piece of equipment onto Iron Man. Although Iron Man manages to shove it out of the way, he ends up cutting his hands on some jagged metal.

With the battle over, Iron Man quickly disappears and Tony Stark returns. When Pepper notices his hands are bandaged up, Tony explains he tripped and cut his hands while looking for Iron Man. The two women buy this flimsy excuse, allowing Tony to maintain his secret.

In the aftermath of the battle, Vicki has been inspired by Iron Man’s bravery that she is even more determined than ever to keep working. When Mark comes back and learns that she intends go for a promotion that would make her Mark’s superior, Scott can’t being himself to be ordered around by a woman and abruptly quits his job. The loss of his cushy job and girlfriend give Scott even more reasons to Iron Man and, as Whiplash, he goes back to intensely training for their next encounter.

Recurring Characters

Iron Man, Whiplash, Pepper Potts, Vicki Snow

Continuity Notes

1. Whiplash last clashed with Iron Man when he was a member of the Maggia in a story that took place in Tales of Suspense #97-99, Iron Man and the Sub-Mariner #1, and Iron Man #1. This story omits the fact that Whiplash had a more recent clash with Iron Man in Marvel Team-Up #72.

2. Mark Scott is an alias, not Whiplash’s real name. Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #2 reveals that his last name is actually Scarlotti.

3. Pepper just recently started working for Stark again. Pepper previously worked for Stark from Tales of Suspense #45 to 89 when she married Happy Hogan and quit. Tony hired her in issue #57. Happy has been upset that Pepper is working and trying to pressure her into quitting since issue #59.

Topical References

• The narrative of this story states that Cincinnati is the home to the Royals, Reds, and Bengals sports teams. This is not longer the case for the Royals as they moved from Cincinnati in 1972 and since changed their name to the Kings. While the Reds and Bengals are still in Cincinnati, the Royals are a great example why references to real-world sports teams should always be considered topical.

• This story states that Vicki Snow is the first female plant manager for Stark Industries. When this story was published in 1973, women were not typically found in management positions at major corporations due to systemic sexism in the workplace. While there is still a long way to go before women are treated as equals in the workplace (as I write this in July 2021) things have changed a great deal and the idea that Vicki is the “first” and apparently only female plant manager should probably be considered a topical reference.

• The Quantum IX space station is referred to as a the first space station to be constructed by a private company. When this story was published in 1973, most space shuttles, satellites and stations were constructed by government agencies like NASA. However, commercial enterprises have long since begun getting into the space travel business. While there has yet to be a commercially produced space station, commercial space travel is quickly becoming a thing at the time of this writing (July 2021) and the idea of a commercially constructed space station doesn’t seem that outlandish. As such the assertion that Stark’s will be the first will eventually become a topical reference.