Armor Wars Part 9: Retribution

In China, the leader of the country has summoned an emergency meeting with officials to discuss how to deal with the Mandarin, who has been threatening their power since awakening the dragon Fin Fang Foom. As they discuss strategy, the Mandarin — grown to the size of a giant — walks through the wall and addresses the government officials. When soldiers come in to apprehend them, the Mandarin uses his power rings to teleport the troops onto the surface of the moon to die. The villain demands that they turn over the country for him so he can restore the dynasties of old. The Prime Minister refuses, warning the Mandarin that they were able to crush the monarchies of old and that even if he succeeds in restoring the old ways they too won’t last. Amused, the Mandarin decides to give them a week to consider their terms of surrender. With all other options exhausted, the Prime Minister of China decides that their only hope is to recruit the only person who has stopped the Mandarin in the past: Iron Man.

At that moment, Iron Man is in a fight to the death with Kearson DeWitt, the man responsible for hacking into Tony’s bio-chip over the past few weeks and crippling him.[1] Protected in a battle suit of his own, DeWitt activates the bio-chip hack causing Iron Man’s nervous system to flare up in agony, causing the hero to collapse to the ground. Pummeling Iron Man, DeWitt wants him to fight back as he is thirsty for revenge.[2] The thing is, Tony has no idea who DeWitt is or why he wants revenge against him. As the battle progresses, the Marrs building is utterly ruined and while Iron Man manages to cause damage to DeWitt’s armor it is not enough to incapacitate his opponent. Worse, his jet boots are damaged in the flight making him unable to fly.

That’s when Jim Rhodes arrives to lend a hand in a spare suit of Iron Man armor. This is great timing as it gives Tony the resources he needs to put down DeWitt. Cannibalizing parts from Jim’s armor and wiring himself into the additional power supply, Tony is able to super-charge his repulsors enough that it utterly shatters Kearson’s armor. Getting a good look at his enemy, Tony still has no idea who this man is or why he is so hell bent on destroying him. Before they can get answers, part of the building collapses on DeWitt, leaving them to believe he is dead.[3]

Although the battle is finally over and Tony the clear victor, the toll on his body has been massive. Although Tony has risked his life for years this is the first time that he’s been aware of his own mortality and is afraid…[4]

Recurring Characters

Iron Man (Stark), Iron Man (Rhodes), Kearson DeWitt, Mandarin

Continuity Notes

1. Recently, Tony was shot through the spine by a jilted love named Kathy Dare in Iron Man #242. This left him confined to a wheelchair until he had an experimental bio-chip implanted in his spine to repair the damage in issue #248. He has been stricken with bouts of phantom pains since Iron Man #256. As we’ve learned over the last 7 issues is that this bio-chip was a trap set by the Marrs twins — rivals in business — to replace Tony’s nervous system with one that they can used to remotely control his body. Even after this plot is foiled, Tony will suffer lasting effects from it until he is fully cured in Iron Man #290.

2. The reason DeWitt has a hate on for Tony Stark is because his father was apparently a brilliant inventor who died broke and in obscurity. Kearson got it in his head that Stark stole his father’s ideas to create the Iron Man armor. See Iron Man Annual #13.

3. DeWitt isn’t dead, see Iron Man Annual #13 (again).

4. Tony mentions how he first built his Iron Man armor to keep a piece of shrapnel from piercing his heart. This was caused by a bomb exploding while on a trip to Southeast Asia as told in Tales of Suspense #39. After years of struggling with this injury, Tony received a transplant replacing his heart with an artificial one in Iron Man #19.

Topical References

• The leader of the Chinese officials in this story is depicted as Deng Xiaoping. At the time this story was published he was the Paramount Leader of China. He resigned from the post in 1992 and later died in 1997. His appearance here should be considered topical.

Supplimentary Material

• This issue also includes a bonus pin-up of Iron Man.