Tales of Suspense #52
The Crimson Dynamo Strikes Again!
Anton Vanko has put on his Crimson Dynamo armor once again. This time he is using it to shield his body during deadly laser experiments. When Tony Stark sees this, he risks his own life to push Vanko out of the way of the dangerous rays. Anton explains that he has been pushing himself because he wishes to repay Tony Stark for everything after Vanko defected from Russia.[1]
Meanwhile, in Russia, the leader of the country is still furious that Ivan Vanko has defected to the United States. He calls in his best assassins, Madame Natasha the Black Widow and her partner, a man named Boris.[2] After Boris shows off his strength, the Russian leader orders them to go to America and eliminate Ivan Vanko as well as Iron Man.
A few days later, Natasha and Boris are smuggled into the United States. There, they pay a visit to Stark Industries and barge their way into Tony Stark’s office. Natasha convinces Tony that Boris is her brother and a science teacher who wishes for his children to learn about how great technology is in America. Taken by Natasha’s beauty, Tony invites her out to dinner, leaving Boris behind. With Stark distracted, Boris then breaks into Anton lab and restrains the defector with his jet-paralyzer weapon. Bundling up Vanko and the Crimson Dynamo armor, Boris then convinces the guard posted outside that he is making a delivery. Boris then returns to Stark Industries weraing the Crimson Dynamo armor and begins wrecking machinery.
When word reaches Tony Stark, he quickly returns to his business with Natasha. As fire crews rush to put out fires, Tony rushes to cover to change into Iron Man. Coming across Boris, Iron Man mistakes him for Ivan Vanko and thinks that he is trying to save Vanko’s research. Boris takes advantage of this by knocking out Iron Man and taking him prisoner. Boris then takes Iron Man back to the submarine where Vanko is being kept. Unaware of Iron Man’s true identity, Boris then heads back to Stark Industries to finish off Tony Stark. This proves to be a big mistake as Iron Man easily breaks out and saves Vanko. Rushing back to Stark Industries, Iron Man learns the truth.
Confronting Boris in the Crimson Dynamo armor, Iron Man is weakened by the Dynamo’s electrical blasts. He is also distracted by the Black Widow who pretends be in danger. Seeing Iron Man in danger, Ivan Vanko attacks Boris with his new experimental laser weapon. Trangically, the untested weapon explodes, killing both Ivan and Boris in the process. Realizing that their plan is at least a partial failure, the Black Widow flees before she can be tied to the plot and arrested. After mourning the loss of Vanko, Tony changes out of his armor and returns to his office where Happy warns him that Natasha is a Russian spy known as the Black Widow. Tony is unconcerned for his safety as Natasha will be on the run after failing her masters.[3]
Recurring Characters
Iron Man, Crimson Dynamo, Black Widow, Boris Turgenov, Happy Hogan, Pepper Potts
Continuity Notes
For more on Vanko’s defection and the first battle between Iron Man and the Crimson Dynamo, see Tales of Suspense #46.
Boris’ last name is revealed to be Turgenov in the Crimson Dynamo entry in Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #3.
This story is expanded upon in Iron Man: Enter the Mandarin #3
Topical References
The Crimson Dynamo is depicted trying to create lasers as though they are a brand new thing. Which in 1964, the laser had only been around for 4 years.
The leader of Russia is depicted as Nikita Khrushchev.
Even more dated, Khrushchev is watching footage of Vanko and Tony Stark on a film projector.
Boris operates a reel-to-reel tape recording to trick the security guard.
The Failure
The Watcher looks at the future of humanity some three hundred years in the future. Society has advanced but capitalisim is still a driving force for society. Everyone is driven to pursue lucractive usiness. Everyone except for a young man named Kenn Bentley. While others study business, he chooses to learn liturature and music. While his colleagues pursue great wealth, Kenn acts charitably. Although he is heavily criticised by his family, Kenn refuses to change his ways.
As an adult, Kenn Bentley meets a woman named Val who shares his values and the pair instantly fall in love. Kenn and Val are openly mocked by others because they refuse to conform to their captialistic society.
One day, an alien ship lands on Earth. It carries heavily armed alien creatures who can easily melt the weapons of the local police force. Spotting Kenn Bentley in the crowd, one of the alien visitors orders him to come with them. Val refuses to let him go alone and the pair both agree to follow the aliens in the hopes it will save their planet. Once the ship leave Earth, the aliens explain that they are a highly advanced race that used a sophisticated device to choose the next ruler of their planet. The machines were ordered to find the most caring and unspoiled being in the entire universe. As it turned out, Kenn Bentley is just the entity the aliens have been looking for.
Soon, Kenn and Val are crowned as rulers of an alien world.
Recurring Characters
The Watcher
