Appearing in "Unholy Ghost"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- Rhino (Aleksei Sytsevich) (Mentioned)
- Beetle (Abner Jenkins) (Mentioned)
- Kathy Dare
- Mrs. Fruitbagel (Mentioned)
- Bambi Arbogast
- Felix Alvarez
- Hank Williams Jr. (Named only)
- God (Yahweh) (Referenced)
Locations:
- Italy
- Rome
- Electronica Fabrizzi
- Hammer's monastery lair
- Hilton Roma Hotel
- Ristorante Laytonia
- Rome
- United States
- Atlantic Ocean
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "Unholy Ghost"
Justin Hammer’s hired mercenaries, Blacklash, Boomerang, and the second Blizzard tour the grounds of one of Hammer’s front companies in Rome – Electronica Fabritzi. But the superpowered saboteur known as the, Ghost, arrives and begins antagonizing the three criminals. The ghost is completely intangible thereby defusing the effectiveness of Blacklash’s electrolash and Boomerang’s shatter-rang. The Blizzard is too much of a rank amateur to put forth an effective showing. The Ghost easily toys with them, forcing them to trip over themselves before leaving. Humbly, they report their failure to their boss, Justin Hammer.
Back in California, Tony Stark and Rae LaCoste are sailing in the San Pedro Channel, when Tony gets a business page over his corporate line. Disheartened, he is forced to angle the boat back to shore. But upon reaching the dock, he finds that the source of the page is Kathy Dare, who wanted to get Tony’s opinion on a new dress that she had purchased. Tony rips into her for spoiling his afternoon and using a priority network to page him for something as superficial as his opinion on a dress.
Later that afternoon, Tony returns to S.E. and meets with legal expert Felix Alvarez. Felix tells him of a potential corporate buyout of the Electronica Fabritzi Company. Both men are curious about the investment potential of the acquisition as their bid was accepted at a below market-value level. Tony calls Abe Zimmer at Accutech Research and asks him to check the background of the Electronica Fabritzi Company. Tony decides to investigate the company personally.
Rhodey and he hop aboard a new experimental jet and fly to Rome, Italy. They check in to the Hilton Roma Hotel, where a chauffer addresses them and offers them a ride to a restaurant. Their host at the restaurant is Justin Hammer. Tony learns that Justin is the owner of Electronica Fabritzi and he is almost disappointed that Tony did not buy the failing company from him.
But the real reason that he asked Stark to attend dinner is to hire the services of Iron Man to stop the Ghost from sabotaging his business interests. In exchange for Iron Man’s help, Hammer gives his word that he will leave Donny Gill (Blizzard) alone and not influence him to be part of his crime cartel.
Iron Man goes Electronica Fabritzi and naturally runs into the Ghost. He begins flying after him and the Ghost tricks Tony into slamming into a wall that he had rendered invisible. For the slight moment that Iron Man is distracted, the Ghost slaps a small electronic device to him that turns both the device and he insubstantial, like a ghost. In this form, Tony cannot touch anything – even food, and within days he will die of starvation.
Notes
- Iron Man first dealt with the Ghost in Iron Man #219–221. At that time, he believed the Ghost had been killed.
- Tony has taken a shine to young Donny Gill (The Blizzard) and is trying to help keep his life on the right track and abandon this quest to become the new Blizzard.
- "Ristorante Laytonia" is obviously a reference to long-time Iron Man creator Bob Layton.
- For some reason, the Italian chauffeur and maître call Stark "señor Stark" or even "sẽnor Stark" while in Italy the manner of address is "signore Stark."