Iron Man (vol. 3) #14
To Challenge the Fantastic
This story continues from Fantastic Four (vol. 3) #15…
Having come to the Blue Area of the Moon, Iron Man thinks that he is out of mind for taking on this risky mission. His body is still recovering from a beating he took recently, and suiting up as Iron Man is not helping his healing since it has recently been discovered that the energy field given off by his armor is negatively impacting his body.[1] However, he couldn’t sit back and do nothing when he received a request for assistance from SHIELD agent Carlie Yeager who informed him of the Fantastic Four’s clash with Ronan the Accuser.
Suiting up, Tony then used Reed Richards’ Fold-Space Transceptor Module to instantly teleport himself to the moon. There he assisted the FF in trying to stop Ronan. Unfortunately, Tony’s armor was shut down by an electromagnetic pulse that took the combined effort of the Fantastic Four and their ally Charlotte Jones to repair. They would have left the moon after this had it not been for the fact that Ronan had kidnapped the Invisible Woman and taken her prisoner.[2]
Now Iron Man is sweeping the area to find any trace of Sue Richards. He finds her helping Ronan trying to break into a heavily sealed vault by shielding him with an invisible force field until his Ultimate Weapon can open the doors. While Iron Man fails to stop Ronan from getting inside the vault, he manages to scoop up Sue and return her to the rest of the Fantastic Four. They discover that the Invisible Woman is in a trance like state as their Kree foe has done something to enslave her.[3] When Iron Man directs the FF back to the vault, they arrive just as the doors are blown off their hinges from the inside.
Meanwhile, back on Earth, Jim Rhodes has been investigating the identity of new War Machine, suspecting that it might be an old friend of his named Parnell.[4] His search has taken him to Casablanca. There, a man at a bar tells him he can take him to where he can learn Parnell’s whereabout. Instead, Jim is led into an ambush but easily overpowers his attackers. Threatening his guide, the man agrees to tell him where he can find Parnell.
Back on the Moon, Iron Man is horrified to discover that Ronan has gotten ahold of an old Psyche-Magntron. Having learned about them from Carol Danvers, he warns the Fantastic Four that it can conjure up any weapon known to Kree science and was eventually banned. He also notes that this one looks somewhat different to the one that was abandoned on Earth long ago.[5] Ronan uses his new weapon to create an army of robots. While Iron Man, the Human Torch, the Thing, and Charlotte Jones fight back against this new threat, Reed tries to get his wife to snap out of her trance like state. When tells Sue that he loves her, she is able to shed a single tear. Then she is able to erect an invisible force field to shield herself and Reed from falling debris from the battle. This is thanks to Reed slipping a device on the base of Sue’s neck that cancels out any outside influence but that of her allies.
While Iron Man and the rest of the Fantastic Four keep Ronan busy, Reed and Charlotte begin salvaging parts from the robots to build a device that can counteract the Psyche-Magnatron.[6] Unfortunately, before he can finish what he is working on, Johnny’s flame is snuffer out and Ben is pinned to the ground with a gravitational field.
On Earth, Happy Hogan has come to the local gym to teach the kids about boxing. After the session is over, he is thanked by Hannah Donleavy, who has been seeking charitable donations to keep the gym open. A fan of Hogan from back when he was a boxer, Hannah thanks him for coming out to teach the kids and then invites him out for coffee. She is disappointed that Tony Stark hasn’t availed himself to meet with her, especially since his charitable organization — the Maria Stark Foundation — is donating a lot of money for Seattle’s community projects. Happy assures her that Tony isn’t intentionally snubbing her and he will be present at the next meeting if its humanly possible.
While on the Moon, Mister Fantastic finishes rigging up a device to counteract the Psyche-Magnatron and wires it into Iron Man’s weapons systems. Blasting the device, Iron Man destroys the Psyche-Magnatron, but Ronan is teleported away. Worse, the flare of energy also triggers Reed’s Fold-Space Transceptor causing the Fantastic Four to be teleported to points unknown as well.[7] Before Iron Man can even figure out what to do next, he receives a distress call from Starcore’s moon base that requires his immediate attention. Hoping the Fantastic Four can take care of themselves, Iron Man grabs Charlotte and flies off to help Starcore.
Meanwhile, Ronan materializes aboard his ship and escapes from the Moon. Although the Psyche-Magnetron has been destroyed his Ultimate Weapon was able to scan it schematics. He vows that no matter how long it takes, he will not rest until he has succeeded in recreating this powerful weapon.[8]
… The Fantastic Four’s story continues in Fantastic Four (vol. 3) #16.
Recurring Characters
Iron Man, Fantastic Four (Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, Thing), Ronan the Accuser, SHIELD (Callie Yeager, Charlotte Jones), Pepper Potts, Happy Hogan, Jim Rhodes, Hannah Donleavy,
Continuity Notes
Iron Man exposition drops his current status quo: He got beat up by the Espionage Elite in Iron Man (vol. 3) #8. He has been slowly recovering due to his armor’s energy fields, as revealed in issue #12. He also mentions his recent battle alongside the Avengers against the Grim Reaper and the Legion of the Unliving. That brawl took place in Avengers (vol. 3) #10-11.
This of course is all recapping the events of Fantastic Four (vol. 3) #12-15. The FF got mixed up with Ronan during a SHIELD prisoner exchange that went awry.
Although not clearly explained here, Sue has been taken over by a Mannequin symbiote. A living organism that turns its host into a pliant slave. This happened in issue #14 of their series.
Jim saw the new War Machine in action as he fought Tony Stark in Iron Man (vol. 3) #11-12. Jim’s hunch is correct as we’ll learn in issue #20. Parnell Jacobs was an old war buddy of Jim Rhodes who went on to be a freelance mercenary.
Iron Man drops some facts about the Psyche-Magnarton:
He talks about the one on Earth hidden in New Mexico and how it was responsible for giving Carol Danvers her powers. Carol was exposed to a Psyche-Magnatron in Captain Marvel #18. Her powers would later manifest in Ms. Marvel #1. However, it’s later revealed that the Psyche-Magnatron didn’t give Carol her powers, it merely jumpstarted her dormant Kree DNA that was a product of her mixed heritage. See Life of Captain Marvel (vol. 2) #1-5.
Iron Man also mentions that the Psyche-Magnatron was also sought during the Operation: Galactic Storm even. Specifically in Avengers West Coast #80. See also Captain America #398, Quasar #32, Wonder Man (vol. 2) #7, Avengers #345, Iron Man #278, Thor #445, Captain America #399, Avengers West Coast #81, Quasar #33, Wonder Man (vol. 2) #8, Avengers #346, Iron Man #279, Thor #446, Captain America #400, Avengers West Coast #82, Quasar #34, Wonder Man (vol. 2) #9, Avengers #347, Captain America #401, Quasar #35.
Here the Human Torch boasts that the FF has defeated Ronan in the past. He is referring to their first clash way back in Fantastic Four #65.
The Fantastic Four get teleported to another reality as we’ll see in issue #16 of their series.
Despite Ronan’s bold claims, Ronan (at least as of this writing in September, 2022) has yet to recreate the Psyche-Magnatron. The only individual to pull that off (again, as of this writing) as been Yon-Rogg as we’ll see in Avengers Assemble (vol. 2) #16.
