Issue(s): Iron Man #138, Iron Man #139
Cover Date: Sep-Oct 80
Title: "Facades and ruses" / "Facades, ruses and masques"
Credits:
David Michelinie & Bob Layton - Writer
Bob Layton - Penciler
Tom Palmer / Bob Layton - Inker

Review/plot:
Tony Stark has Rhodey land his helicopter in front of the hospital that Ling is being kept in. Ling is in stable but guarded condition. The helicopter is given a ticket by a police officer that looks suspiciously like Steve Martin.

Instead of going home, Tony, Rhodey, and Beth all go to investigate the guy who hired Beth in the first place. But it turns out he's been replaced by the Spymaster, who kidnaps Bethany and steals Stark's briefcase. Tony finds a check that shows that Spymaster is being paid by Williams Innovations, which he knows to be a front for the Maggia. Indeed, Spymaster is working for Madame Masque (see note below).

Tony and Rhodey infiltrate Masque's base dressed as telephone repair men, but Whitney catches Tony just as he's putting his armor back on. Oh, and she's got a whole bunch of Dreadnoughts with her.

Meanwhile Rhodey gets involved in a cool helicopter chase with the Spymaster, leaving the Spymaster dumped in the water.

I don't know about you, but i can just hear the Magnum P.I. theme music.

And Bethany and Masque have a confrontation. Masque tries to reveal that Tony Stark and Iron Man are one and the same, but Beth just casually says "I know." and proceeds to harangue Masque for leaving Stark, which created a desperation in him that led him to drink.

Whitney is overwrought and falls apart. Beth lets her go.

The Dreadnoughts suffer from a bit of Diminishing Threat Syndrome, and Bethany & Whitney's confrontation may be a little overly dramatic, but overall this is was good. Layton does a fine job on pencils. Probably inspired by the Dreadnoughts, he gets into a little bit of Steranko-esque panel layouts.

A note on the Madame Masque appearing here: per Kurt Busiek's Avengers run (vol 3. Avengers #32-34), all Madame Masque appearances after Iron Man #116 (the death of her father, Count Nefaria) are actually a "Bio-Duplicate".

Quality Rating: B

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: Takes place soon after Stark got the news last issue that Lindsay was put into the hospital, so no Iron Man appearances should take place between #137 and #138.

References:

• Williams Innovations (formerly owned, of course, by Simon Williams before he was Wonder Man) was shown to be a front for the Maggia in Marvel Premiere #55. We also saw evidence of it in Avengers #193.
  
• Iron Man accidentally killed Madame Masque's father Count Nefaria in Iron Man #116.
  
• Dreadnoughts are "robots which have been used to battle Nick Fury and his agents of SHIELD many times in the past."
  
• To defeat the Dreadnoughts, Iron Man uses a freon tube that we haven't seen him use since Tales Of Suspense #82.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

bleh, I hated that they made Madame Masque just another angry woman scorned.

Bethany Cabe must have been listening to Rod Stewart's Maggie May a lot, because y'know there's always a woman to blame for every man's shortcomings. Wonder how smug she'd be if she knew she was only talking to a bio-duplicate. Meow.