Iron Man #153
Light Makes Right!
After helping Bethany Cabe and her husband, Alex Van Tilburg, escape from the Eastern European prison called Heaven’s Hand, Iron Man was knocked out by the Living Laser and taken prisoner. When the hero comes around, he finds himself chained up in front of a massive laser cannon. His foe warns Iron Man that if he tries to move he will be instantly blasted and that his repulsor rays have been rendered useless after being wrapped up in aviation tape so if he tries using them he’ll break his own hands.
After ordering the soldiers out of the room, the Living Laser decides to entertain Iron Man by telling him how he got to working for this Eastern European nation. He reminds Iron Man about his last battle with the Avengers, when he was in the employ of Count Nefaria. Nefaria had offed the Laser and his allies increased power, little knowing that the Count was siphoning off these power boosts to increase his own strength.[1] Although Nefaria was defeated, the Living Laser discovered that his power boost had some unforeseen consequences. Now his body was constantly absorbing energy from every source of light threating him to suffer a deadly overload. That’s when he was approached by spies who had a use for his power. Smuggled into Eastern Europe, the Living Laser was given a device to siphon off his excess laser power which in turn was transmitted into space to power Russian spy satellites.
While the Living Laser is telling this story, Iron Man had been channeling heat into his gauntlets to melt away the aviation tape and is able to break free before the laser cannon can destroy him.
Meanwhile, Jim lands his stealth craft at the airport in Berlin where Alex is rushed off to the nearby hospital. It’s then that he learns that this man is Bethany Cabe’s husband. She tells him it’s a long story and she’ll explain everything later.[2]
Back at Heaven’s Hand, Iron Man fights off both soldiers and the Living Laser. The Living Laser tries a number of new tricks he learned with his powers including making himself invisible and creating creates made out of laser energy. Unfortunately for him, Iron Man is able to survive all of these attacks and the build up of energy is causing the Living Laser to begin overloading. About to explode, the Laser fires a blast that cuts through Iron Man’s arm so he can get to the siphoning chamber. However, Iron Man sacrifices one of his energy pods to blow up the controls, preventing the the siphoning process. With his body about to be explode, the Living Laser begs Iron Man to help him but there is nothing that can be done. Before the villain explodes, Iron Man tosses him high into the air where he harmlessly explodes.[3]
Retreating back across the border and is back in the United States 36 hours later. There he pays a visit to Bethany Cabe at a private hospital in Maryland. Tony learns that Alex is recovering well. However, he is shocked when Bethany decides to end their relationship because she is still legally married to Alex and he needs her. She feels guilty for abandoning him while he was dealing with his addiction issues. Tony puts on a brave face and tells her that he understands and tells her to call him if she ever needs anything. He then goes back to Stark International where he carries out his day-to-day duties. It’s not until he returns home for the night that Tony allows himself to cry.
Recurring Characters
Iron Man, Living Laser, Jim Rhodes, Bethany Cabe, Alexander Van Tilburg
Continuity Notes
Count Nefaria’s used the Living Laser and his allies back in Avengers #164-166.
Up until last issue, Bethany believed her husband had died after a drug bender, as per Iron Man #128.
This is not the end of the Living Laser. His energy form is just absorbed by a Russian space satellite and he will reform himself in Iron Man #211. However, he will make two chronological appearances before this in Code of Honor #3 and Secret Wars II #7. The Laser profile in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #6 is somewhat vague about this, saying that the absorption process took a lot longer and that he was active in the conflicting stories before Iron Man #211.
Topical References
This story is stated as taking place in East Germany. Following the end of World War II, Germany was split up into two countries. West Germany was democratic while the east was communist. However, Germany was later reunified in 1989. As such, this aspect of the story should be considered topical. The Bethany Cabe entry in All-New Iron Manual #1 replaces East Germany with a “Eastern European Nation” in order to keep the story from becoming topical again.
