In his private lab, Tony Stark is
working on an anti-gravity device; it succeeds in lifting a heavy
piece of machinery into the air but Happy Hogan, entering at that
moment, thinks Tony’s life is in danger and pushes him out of the
way. In the fall, the circuitry of the anti-grav device fuses—the
machine still works but it cannot now be duplicated. The next day,
Tony demonstrates the device for Pentagon officials but a press
photographer manages to sneak in and take a picture of a levitating
tank. Soon the story is in all the newspapers, and the Black Widow
conceives a plan to get back into the Kremlin’s favor by stealing
the anti-gravity ray. Madame Natasha arranges a meeting with Tony
Stark at his office. She shows remorse and Tony, womanizing fool that
he is, believes her and tells her all about the anti-gravity ray.
When he gives her a demonstration, she gasses him and makes off with
the new weapon. Pepper and Happy find the paralyzed Tony in his
office and revive him; they search the grounds until they come to a
levitated security guard; Tony then dons his Iron Man armor and
follows the trail of the Black Widow but he can find no trace of her.
Meanwhile, the beauteous spy contacts
Premier Khrushchev to tell him she has obtained the “new toy” and
asks to be taken back into his good graces. And in Washington,
Congress blames Tony Stark for the loss of the weapon. Iron Man is at
a loss as to where to find her but the Widow makes it easy for him:
she uses the anti-gravity ray to destroy Stark facilities throughout
the area. The hero no sooner heads to one to repair the damage than
she strikes at another. Soon, a team of agents sent by Khrushchev
arrives at her apartment bringing orders to destroy Iron Man and rob
Fort Knox. One of the Red thugs tests the device by levitating a car
and Iron Man, who was (rather conveniently) nearby, spots it and
overpowers the spies. But Madame Natasha gets her hands on the ray
and uses it to levitate the hero—and then to raise and drop the
building on him. By the time he digs his way out, she’s gone. He
adjusts his radar to pick up the frequency of the anti-grav device
and follows her to Fort Knox. There, the Black Widow levitates the
mountain that stands over the gold vault as well as the army tanks
that guard the facility. Iron Man arrives in the nick of time,
breaking the anti-grav beam and intercepting the tanks as they fall
to the ground. He then uses a proton beam to destroy the anti-grav
device in the Widow’s hands and rushes to save the Red spies from
being crushed by the falling mountain—an act which surprises the
bad guys. The Black Widow escapes in the confusion and the military
is grateful that Tony Stark has Iron Man around to clear up his
messes.
“The Magician
[Part Two]”
Writer: Unknown.
Artist: Unknown.
Synopsis: Continued from
last issue: A page at a television studio helps a sorcerer return to his
own future world and is rewarded with a suit that enables him to perform magic!
“The Omen”
Writer: Larry
Lieber. Plot: Stan Lee. Pencils: Larry Lieber. Inks: George Roussos. Colors: ?
Letters: Sam Rosen.
Synopsis: Warlord
Lokar sees a bright light in the sky as an omen that he should invade their neighboring
planet Parthea but the light is a falling star that destroys his world, leaving
Lokar and his people refugees seeking help on Parthea!
“The Way It Began…”
Writer: Larry
Lieber. Plot: Stan Lee. Pencils: Larry Lieber. Inks: Paul Reinman. Colors: ?
Letters: Artie Simek.
Synopsis: The
Watcher describes the origin of his people: their civilization was a utopia so
they decided to share their blessings with other worlds. Creating a method for them
to transform into living energy and so pass quickly between planets, emissaries
visit a neighboring world and offer them the benefits of nuclear energy. But
the inhabitants turn this marvel to military uses and the planet is wiped out
through nuclear war. Uatu’s people chose then to become a race of Watchers,
forbidden to interfere in other world’s affairs!