Iron Man #54
Sub-Mariner: Target for Death!
Following his battle with Raga, Iron Man checks the forest nearby to make sure the wildfires started by the villain have been put out.
Meanwhile, in the North Pacific, a satellite is launched into space from a submarine. This vessel is piloted by a bald woman calling herself Madame MacEvil. She has had her sentient computer launch the probe so she can more closely observe Namor the Sub-Mariner, as part of her research of hybrid being that live on Earth. To test his abilities, MacEvil has a torpedo fired at a nearby iceberg putting a ship in danger. Namor quickly builds a life raft for the passengers until they can be rescued.
By this time, Iron Man is heading to a Stark Industries facility in Washington state to see how it is handling the company change-over from munitions to more scientific pursuits. [1] Spotting a robbery in progress, Iron Man races in to try and stop the thieves but Madam MacEvil has her satellite highjack his armor and pull him back out to sea. Luckily, the police arrive on the scene to deal with the situation.
As Namor follows the trail of the torpedo back to MacEvil’s submarine, Iron Man is made to attack him. Unable to communicate with Namor under water, he is unable to tell the Sub-Mariner that he is not in control of his armor. The Madame watches with joy as the battle rages. This entire time she has been belittling her computer, which has been programmed to have feelings for MacEvil’s amusement. The computer, getting tired of the abuse, intentionally neglects to activate Iron Man’s underwater capabilities. Without oxygen to breath, Iron Man quickly becomes defeated by the Sub-Mariner.
When Madame MacEvil becomes aware of this, she orders her computer to activate Iron Man’s life support systems. The computer complies but then begins commanding Iron Man to make near lethal attacks, injuring the Sub-Mariner. This infuriates the computer’s master because she wanted Namor intact for examination. With no other choice now, MacEvil gives the order for Iron Man to kill Namor. Instead, the computer frees Iron Man at the last moment and the hero turns his repulsor blast on the submarine, having deduced that it was the source of the interference.
With her vessel damaged, Madam MacEvil orders a full retreat, leaving the Sub-Mariner and Iron Man to finish their fight alone. As Namor has been weakened in combat, Iron Man only strikes to stun the Atlantean monarch long enough to escape since he never wanted this fight to begin with. As Iron Man takes off, the Sub-Mariner vows to get revenge against the Avenger for this unprovoked attack.
Furious over having her experiment interfered with, Madam MacEvil vows to come back someday and have her revenge.[2]
Recurring Characters
Iron Man, Sub-Mariner, Madame MacEvil,
Continuity Notes
Tony Stark had decided to shift Stark Industries focus away from munitions to other scientific endeavors in Iron Man #48.
Madame MacEvil’s motivations here are unexplained. However, various flashbacks in Captain Marvel #32, Avengers #135 and Daredevil #105 reveals that she is a human born woman who was raised from childhood by the Eternals of Titan. It is also revealed that these studies on super-human individuals was to find allies to help the battle Thanos.
