It is enough to stagger the imagination of a wizard! We call it a Cosmic Cube -- and it may well be the most potent device in all the world! 
Appearing in "Disaster!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
Other Characters:
- United States Senate (Mentioned in narration)
- Senator Byrd (Mentioned in narration)
- Pepper Potts (Mentioned)
- Ultimo (Mentioned)
- Happy Hogan (Mentioned in narration)
- Avengers (Mentioned in narration)
- Joan of Arc (Statue)
- NYPD
- Two unnamed police officers
Races and Species:
- Humans
- Horses (Statue)
- Atlanteans
- Cows (Invoked)
- Mutant Atlantean-Human Hybrids
Locations:
- Earth
- North America
- United States of America
- New York
- New York City
- Manhattan
- Avengers Mansion (Mentioned in narration)
- Long Island
- Manhattan
- New York City
- Washington, D.C. (Mentioned in narration)
- New York
- United States of America
- Atlantis (Mentioned)
- North America
Items:
Vehicles:
Synopsis for "Disaster!"
How about that! Must be a costume party nearby! That guy's a cinch to win first prize!
- —A random stranger
Following his battle against the Mandarin and his creation, Ultimo, Tony Stark returned to the States to find his factories closed, his accounts frozen, and a warrant issued for his arrest, (having refused to appear before a Senate committee to reveal the secrets of the Iron Man armor). Now penniless and still attempting to keep his Iron Man persona a secret, Stark has to find a place to change into the armor and recharge before his chest plate runs out of power and his heart is at risk of failing him once again.
Despite wanting to keep her safe from the secret of Iron Man, Stark rushes in pain to Pepper Potts' apartment building, just as his chest plate's power runs dangerously low. Changing to Iron Man so that the power supplied by the suit can temporarily recharge his chest plate, Stark finds Pepper isn't home and decides to try finding Happy Hogan next. Rushing across town to Happy's house, Iron Man passes an empty Avengers HQ[1], only to find that Happy isn't home either.
Low on power with nowhere else to go, Iron Man considers turning himself over to the authorities down by the harbor. Before he can make a decision, he is attacked by Warlord Krang in his flagship Atlantean sub with Lady Dorma in tow. Hoping that he would win Dorma's heart by killing the hero with the weapons from his ship, Krang was instead thwarted by Lady Dorma, who refused to be a party to murder and by attempting to take the controls, and thus gave Iron Man a chance to blast the sub and force it to re-submerge.
With his armor damaged and his power supply moments from failing, Iron Man realizes his only hope is to break into his own lab to recharge and repair himself. Crashing through the skylight and narrowly landing without injury, Iron Man is surprised by the Prince Namor, proclaiming that this is Iron Man's finish.
Appearing in "The Red Skull Lives!"
Featured Characters:
- ⏴ Captain America (Steve Rogers) ⏵ (Main story and flashback)
Antagonists:
- Red Skull's Assistants
- ⏴ Red Skull ⏵ (1st Appearance of the Red Skull in a modern time period, not a tale of WWII) (Main story and flashback)
- THEM (Only in flashback)
- Grand Imperator (Mentioned)
- Two unnamed agents (Only in flashback)
- A.I.M.
- Three unnamed agents
- Count Bornag Royale ⏵ (First appearance)
Other Characters:
- Numerous unnamed New Yorkers
- NYPD
- Unnamed Police Officer
- Harry
- Allies (Mentioned)
- Nazis (Only in flashback)
- Unnamed Psychiatrist
- S.H.I.E.L.D. (Mentioned)
- Colonel Nick Fury (Mentioned)
- Tony Stark (Mentioned)
Races and Species:
- Humans (Main story and flashback)
- Geese (Mentioned)
- Robots
- Ogres (Mentioned)
- Pigs (Mentioned in narration)
Locations:
- Earth (Main story and flashback)
- North America
- United States of America
- New York
- New York City
- Manhattan
- Unidentified Power Station
- Unidentified Psychiatrist's Office
- Unidentified A.I.M. Base
- Manhattan
- New York City
- New York
- United States of America
- Europe (Only in flashback)
- Vietnam (Mentioned)
- North America
Items:
- Captain America's Uniform and Shield (Main story and flashback)
- Hypno-Helmets
- "Candid Camera" (Television Show) (Mentioned) (Topical Reference)
- Cosmic Cube (First appearance)
Vehicles
- Solar Energy Ship
Events
- World War II (Only in flashback)
- Battle of Anzio (Mentioned)
- Vietnam War (Mentioned) (Topical Reference)
Synopsis for "The Red Skull Lives!"
We find Captain America battling a group of costumed soldiers on the streets of New York, trying to stop them from getting away. Unfortunately for Cap, nobody sees the soldiers but himself and they manage to get away leaving the crowd to think that Cap has gone crazy. This is far from the truth, as it turns out that the soldiers are operatives of the Red Skull who were using a Hypno-Helmet to make them appear invisible to everyone but Captain America in an attempt to turn the public against Cap.
The operatives radio back to the Red Skull's base that the mission was a success, and he and his two loyal aides (Wolfgang Brenner and Horst Lederer) recount how they survived their last encounter with the Captain at the end of WWII. As the bunkers they were in collapsed around them, support beams prevented them from being crushed while releasing an experimental gas that kept them in suspended animation. They were recovered and revived by the mysterious group "THEM" (later identified as the scientists of A.I.M.). In appreciation for being recovered and revived, the Red Skull and his men agree to cooperate in the destruction of Captain America. The three men review their plan to continue their attacks with the Hypno-Helmet in an effort to make the public distrust Cap and to make Cap question his own sanity.
Meanwhile, Captain America has sought the help of a psychiatrist when he is attacked once again by the Skull's men, whom the doctor cannot see. The doctor blames Cap for going berserk and destroying his office, but Cap is convinced by the second fight that he is not hallucinating and goes to get help.
While the Skull prepares Horst for the third phase of his plan, the scientists of AIM brief Count Royale on his mission to kill Colonel Fury[2] when he notices they have just finished constructing a mysterious device called the Cosmic Cube.
Hypnotizing everyone in the area including Cap this time, Horst is to frame him for murder. Just as he tries to pull the trigger, he is overpowered by Cap, who had prepared for hypnosis by having a hypnotic wave jamming circuit hidden beneath the A of his head-mask by the scientists at SHIELD who were trained by Tony Stark.
In shock and disbelief of his defeat, Horst explains that he was assured that the Red Skull's plan would succeed. When Cap finds out that his arch-nemesis has returned, he believes his it is destiny to stop the Red Skull...
This story is continued in the next issue.
Notes
Continuity Notes[]
Disaster!
- The Iron Man story begins Marvel's first multi-title crossover, beginning in this issue of Tales of Suspense, continuing into next issue, and concluding in Tales to Astonish #82.
- Namor, Dorma and Krang had all appeared last in Tales to Astonish #81. It was there that Dorma and Krang first began their ascension to the surface world, in an effort to escape the vengeance of Namor after Krang had tricked Dorma into accepting his marriage proposal.
The Red Skull Lives!
- THEM officially becomes Advanced Idea Mechanics this issue.
- In this story, we learn from a World War II veteran that Cap participated in the battle at Anzio.
Publication Notes[]
- This issue contains a letters page, Mails of Suspense. Letters are published from Larry Ahokas, Steve Martinez, Earl Davis, and Ronald W. Lindenboom.
- References: Avengers #29, Tales to Astonish #81, and Strange Tales #146