Iron Man (vol. 3) #84

Mar 17

Mar 17 Iron Man (vol. 3) #84

Turf War, Part 1: When Worlds Collide!

At Avengers Embassy, Henry Gyrich is about to head to the United Nations to answer more questions.[1] That’s when he notices that there is a pile of up garbage in the backlot of the mansion. Jarvis, the Avengers butler, explains that since the mansion has been deemed sovereign land, the city unions have stopped municipal services. This has forced them to try and make arrangements for the city sanitation department to pick up their trash. This has been stymied because the head of the union is currently vacationing in the Antilles.

Meanwhile, Tony Stark — in his new role as Secretary of State — is showing off the new Iron Man inspired armor he wishes to outfit the military with in the future. To demonstrate the armor’s combat capabilities, he outfits members of the 147th Infantry to fight Force.[2][3] Tony has put on this demonstration because he believes officials have come to inquire about how he spent his budget. However, they have come to talk about an entirely different matter and asks for a place where they can speak in private.

When in private, Chief of Staff Stuart Conrad wants to talk to Tony about something that was brought up by Senator Zimmer, a top secret program called Project Tomorrow.[4] This was an old robotics plan that was created by Tony’s father, Howard Stark.[5] Tony is very familiar with the Arsenal program, as he discovered and fought the robot years back hidden below what is now Avengers Mansion.[6] However, Conrad reveals that the Arsenal robot that the Avengers uncovered was the alpha unit, there was a beta unit as well. It has remained hidden underground just behind where the Avengers submarine bay is located, hence why it hasn’t been uncovered in the past.[7] This beta unit has been programmed with a “scorched earth” policy should Manhattan ever fall under enemy occupation. They were willing to leave the thing buried, but now that the Avengers have become a United Nations organization, they fear it might be discovered.

Later that day, the Falcon arrives at Avengers Embassy where he is accosted by protestors who has set up camp outside ever since they joined the UN. Their conspiracy minded talk is quickly silenced when Iron Man shows up with a flag on loan to the Avengers from the Allied Museum. Inside, Iron Man sits in on an Avengers meeting with the Wasp, Black Panther, and Ant-Man. Henry Gyrich holds off waiting for the Vision to arrive, but when it’s clear he is running late, Gyrich begins the meeting since there is already quorum. Iron Man is about to tell them about the Arsenal unit when he gets a call from Senator Zimmer. Zimmer orders him not to mention anything about the Arsenal unit. Tony tries to convince Zimmer that they can trust the Avengers to let him search for the robot. Zimmer, however, insists on keeping it a secret citing the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. If Tony reveals anything about Arsenal to the Avengers, it will be seen as aiding a foreign power and he’ll be out of a job.

When Iron Man suddenly gets up and leaves the meeting without a word, the Black Panther figures he was called on some government business. Gyrich immediately becomes suspicious since Stark is heading for the basement.

Soon, Iron Man has reached the lowest part of the mansion and breaks through to the access tunnels to where the Arsenal robot is stored. The whole way he has Senator Zimmer in his ear the entire way. Little does he know that the Black Panther is following him. He also has a nescience in his ear in the form of Gyrich. He knows Iron Man is up to something because an Air Force plane has been circling around the mansion pinging it with radar twice already. Soon, Iron Man locates Arsenal Beta and begins getting the shutdown codes from his connections at the Pentagon. However, as he is doing so, Gyrich’s paranoia prompts him to activate the signal jammer, cutting off Iron Man’s radio at a crucial juncture.

That’s when the other Avengers arrive and confront Iron Man. Suddenly, the Arsenal robot begins activating as a lift raises it to the surface, popping up in the Avengers dining room as Jarvis is training the new staff on how to set the table.

Recurring Characters

Iron Man, Force, Avengers (Wasp, Black Panther, Falcon, Ant-Man), Arsenal Alpha, Edwin Jarvis, Henry Gyrich, Stuart Conrad, Redwing

Continuity Notes

At the time of this story, the Avengers had recently been designated a UN agency. As a result, Avengers Mansion has been deemed sovereign ground. See Avengers (vol. 3) #61.
Tony states here that Force has “apprenticed” with him in the past. This is in reference to the fact that Tony once helped Clayton Wilson get out of a life of crime and the vengeance of Justin Hammer. In order to do so, he set Clay up with a new identity, Carl Walker. See Iron Man #222-224.
When Tony states that he doesn’t have a name for this new development facility, Force suggests the name “Force Works”. However, Tony shoots down the idea. This is a nod to the fact that Tony once led a team by that name. See Force Works #1-22.
Senator Joe Zimmer has an axe to grind with Tony Stark, as we saw in Iron Man (vol. 3) #77. This is because his brother, Abe Zimmer, died while working for Tony Stark in Iron Man #320.
Howard Stark is referred to as Tony Stark’s father. In reality, he adopted Tony, something that won’t be revealed until Iron Man (vol. 5) #17. His biological father was revealed to be a man known as Jude, as will be revealed in International Iron Man #7.
Iron Man previously fought Arsenal in Iron Man #114/Avengers Annual #9. He also fought the robot more recently in a story told in Spider-Man Family #8. The later incident is omitted here because that story was published after this one. For what purpose these robots were built have changed from these other stories see below.
One of the government cites that the beta unit was just outside the footprint of Avengers Mansion’s original foundation as a reason why it has survived “all that’s happened” to the mansion over the years. He is referring to the following events:
- The original Avengers Mansion was heavily damaged during Avengers #273-277. The remaining structure relocated to Hydrobase in Avengers #278. The old property was turned into a park as seen in X-Factor #23.
- After the sinking of Hydrobase in Avengers #311, a new headquarters soon began construction at the site of the original mansion. It opened to the public in Avengers #329.
- Avengers Headquarters didn’t last very long before it was trashed and then replaced with a copy of the original mansion from another timeline that was virtually identical. See Avengers #372-375.

Topical References

It’s stated here that the Arsenal robots were built to defend America during the Cold War. This might not be a topical reference. See below.
Kofi Annan is identified as the leader of the United Nations in this story. However this is a topical reference as Anan left that role in 2006. He subsequently passed away in 2018.
When Jarvis is training new staff on how to set the table he jokingly says he doesn’t know what they are serving McNuggets with these days. McNuggets is the brand name for chicken nuggets sold at McDonalds. This is a topical reference because this is a real world brand.

Was Arsenal a World War II invention or a Cold War one?

In Avengers Annual #9, it is stated that Howard Stark — Tony’s adopted father — built the Arsenal robots during World War II. This story presents them as though they were built for Cold War era defenses. When the story in Spider-Man Family #8 is published, Tony goes back to saying that they were WWII creations and that they were made by Howard Stark, Sr. — his adopted grandfather.

Stories have shown Howard Stark (Tony’s adopted father) being alive between the 1930s to the 1970s. This is an unresolved bit of continuity that Marvel has yet to clarify about Howard Stark. This story is one of the many that complicates the facts about Howard Stark’s lifespan.

My theory on this is explained in more detail here. The TL;DR explanation is that Howard Stark had an extended lifespan through some technological means, likely through his association with the Brotherhood of the Shield.

That said, I don’t think the conflicting details regarding what conflict the Arsenals were built for should be handwaved as topical references. I think that they aren’t mutually exclusive. Perhaps after World War II they were to be repurposed for Cold War defense and perhaps Howard Stark didn’t get around to reprogramming the Arsenal robot that the Iron Man has fought in the past.