TITLE: Iron Man vol. 1, issue #199
YEAR: October 1985
COMPANY: Marvel Comics
Written by Denny O’Neil
Penciler: Herb Trimpe
Inker: Akin & Garvey
Letterer: Rick Parker
Colorist: Bob Sharen
Editor: Mark Gruenwald
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter
From the early-to-mid ’80s, there was a slow tearing down of Tony Stark. From his alcoholism to watching Stark International being taken over by Obadiah Stane and renames the company Stane International. While James Rhodes takes on the Iron Man uniform.
Making his first appearance in “Iron Man” issue #163, Obadiah Stane is a man who wanted nothing but to tear down Tony Stark. And as a master of psychological manipulation and munitions dealer, as the new President and CEO, he ordered Rhodes to give him the Iron Man uniform, which Rhodes declined.
Meanwhile, Tony Stark had to go through major soul searching, from sinking into alcoholism and becoming homeless, his life is changed when he meets a homeless woman named Gertl Anders, who dies during childbirth and Stark promised her to protect her child. This promise was what he needed to beat his alcoholism but because he’s not 100% alright and doesn’t want to endanger anyone, he won’t become Iron Man.
As Rhodes continues to learn the armor, Stark creates Circuits Maximus in the Silicon Valley and joining him are the Erwin twins Morley (who is a gifted engineer helping Stark build his armor) and Clytemnestra and starts to construct a new Iron Man armor, which would become to be known as “Silver Centurion”.
Issue #199 features Stane ordering his disguised men to kidnap anyone who was once close to Tony Stark. As James Rhodes as Iron Man tries to warn Stark’s former employees such as his security honcho, Vic Martinelli, Happy and Pepper, Stane’s men has abducted Pepper. And now they are after Happy but to make things worse, they go after the baby which Stark sworn to protect.
Unfortunately with no armor, Stark is beaten badly. And as Iron Man was able to rescue Happy, Stane decides to take things to a new level (thinking that Stark is back to being Iron Man).
As Cly goes to pick up Tony at the airport, when they head to their Silicon Valley HQ, we see Rhodes accepting a package and not long after, once Tony and Cly are near the station, it blows up.
When Stark comes to and sees the paramedics with a dead body, we see Tony going to find out who was killed in the explosion.
This storyline concludes in issue #200 but it was no doubt a shocker, as one of the characters associated with Tony Stark and featured multiple times on “Iron Man” was killed.
But it no doubt sets up a confrontation that fans had waited for and that is Tony Stark as Iron Man taking on Obadiah Stane. Since Tony Stark has not been Iron Man for a long while, it was a return that had been highly anticipated since issue issue #170 (nearly three years prior).
So, this was no doubt an enjoyable and surprising issue!