Ball and Chain

In Niagara Falls, Thunderball is out looking for his ex-girlfriend, Rhonda, to confront her over the fact that she just married a cop. Trashing the hotel they were supposed to be staying at, he learns that they switched hotels, prompting him to trash the place before looking for her elsewhere.

Meanwhile, Jim Rhodes is practicing the use of Iron Man’s jet boots so he can get the hang of them. He is observed by Morley Erwin, a Stark International employee who is helping Jim better understand the sophistication of Tony Stark’s greatest invention. After they finish for the day, the pair talk about their weekend plans. Erwin plans on going upstate to visit his sister in Niagara Falls. Jim decides that he wants to meet her and offers to drive Morley so he doesn’t have to take the bus.

Meanwhile, Tony Stark is at his apartment still drinking his sorrows away.[1] He is unconcerned about his company anymore, figuring that his vice president — Yvette Avril — can run things while he’s away. When his date, Heather, returns with breakfast, Tony has completely forgot that she went to order something. However, this doesn’t raise any concerns as all Heather wants to do is keep partying.

Back upstate, Thunderball breaks into a electrical plant where he takes the entire staff hostage. Everyone is afraid of the villain except for a surly woman who openly mocks him. Ignoring her taunts, Thunderball uses the phone to tell the police that he won’t let anyone go unless they bring him his ex-girlfriend.

Radio reports about the situation are heard by Jim and Morley as they are making their way up to Niagara Falls and Erwin is horrified when he learns that the facility is the one where his sister, Clytemnestra works. Figuring they have to do something, they pull over so Jim can change into Iron Man.

At the power plant, the surly woman turns out to be Morley’s sister. Seeing that Thunderball could wreck the place, she begins using her feminine charm to keep him in check. That’s when Iron Man arrives to fight Thunderball. Jim quickly realizes that he might be in over his head since Thunderball’s powers are derived from magic. Seeing that the place might get trashed, Cly quickly gets between the two men and suggest that they find a non-violent solution to the problem. Learning that Thunderball just wants to talk to his ex, Iron Man agrees to find Rhonda and bring her to him.

Not far away, at a local bank, Rhonda and her new husband — Billy Leffingwell — are at the bank when some crooks try to rob it. When Billy tries to stop them he gets shot in the arm. Luckily, Iron Man arrives on the scene and quickly subdues the bank robbers. Explaining the situation at the power plant, Rhonda refuses to go with him as Thunderball has been hounding her for months. Iron Man heads back empty handed, wondering what he is going to do next.

Back in New York City, Tony Stark is throwing a party with a bunch of hangers on. Tony is incredibly drunk and neglecting his date because he finds a guy’s jokes incredibly funny. Heather gets annoyed with this an eventually leaves the party with someone else. Meanwhile, Tony has gotten so drunk he has passed out on the couch, prompting everyone else to have a good laugh at his expense.

Meanwhile, Iron Man returns to the power plant where he is forced to fight Thunderball all over again for coming back without Rhonda. Jim’s armor begins running out of power in the middle of the fight, leaving him vulnerable. Seeing this, Cly tosses down two live wires which Iron Man uses to super-charge his armor and get back into fighting shape. This time, he is able to defeat Thunderball with a single punch. However, celebrations are cut short when Morley informs him that they need to head back to the city because Tony Stark has been arrested.

Recurring Characters

Iron Man, Thunderball, Tony Stark, Morley Erwin, Cly Erwin, Heather Glenn, Tarkington Brown

Continuity Notes

1. After being sober since Iron Man #128, Tony fell off the wagon again in issue #167 thanks to the machinations of Obadiah Stane. At this point he has totally given up on everything for the bottle, leaving Jim Rhodes to carry on as Iron Man in his place since issue #169-170. Tony won’t sober up until after a brush with death in Iron Man #182.

Topical References

• One of the motels in this story advertises that they have color TV. Believe it or not, cheap hotels once used this as a sell feature for guests to stay. This should be considered a topical reference because you’d be hard pressed to find a motel that still has black and white televisions today.