Appearing in "This Ancient Enemy"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- ⏴ Radioactive Man ⏵
- Morley Erwin (Referenced)
- Obadiah Stane (Mentioned)
- Winston Phlan (Referenced)
- Sisterhood of Ishtar (Mentioned)
Locations:
- Sol
- Earth
- Sun (Referenced)
Items:
- Iron Man Armor MK V
- Mandarin's Rings
- Mandarin's Iron Man Projector
Synopsis for "This Ancient Enemy"
The Mandarin is using his rings to inflict punishment on Radioactive Man for failing to protect the equipment he needed. He seeks to set a trap for Iron Man to come to his base of operations in Hong Kong. Meanwhile, Rhodes is receiving acupuncture treatment for his headaches while Tony Stark and Gretl Anders seek entrance to one of Stark’s apartments but are rebuffed by the doorman. Gretl runs away in anger accusing Tony of being like every other man she’s been with.
Rhodes is walking around Hong Kong when he suddenly sees a giant hologram of Iron Man hovering in the sky. He dons the Iron Man armor to seek out the source of the illusion and is drawn to Mandarin’s mountain base. During Iron Man’s flight, Mandarin launches a number of heat-seeking missiles to destroy Iron Man and Rhodes struggles to use the right tech to elude or destroy the weapons but eventually succeeds by diving into the ocean. He continues to follow the Iron Man hologram and eventually gains entrance to Mandarin’s base. Radioactive Man meanwhile fails to attack Mandarin and sustains further humiliation at his hand when he is forced to break his own thumb.
Inside the base, Mandarin and Iron Man battle and despite his best efforts, Rhodes is unsuccessful in overcoming his foe. Mandarin eventually uses his rings to mind-control Rhodes, demanding that he remove his helmet and showing surprise that Iron Man isn’t Tony Stark when he does. He then gives Rhodes a sword and demands that he slowly cut his own throat which he begins to do.
Solicit Synopsis
Notes
- This issue contains a letters page, "Printed Circuits". Letters aere publsiehd from Jim Stephen Anderson, Stephen Smith, Richard Allen Lessman, Carles Stec, Jon Reidford, Arnie Slater, Robert Bonazoli, and Eric J. Swann.