Issue(s): Iron Man #60, Iron Man #61
Cover Date: Jul-Aug 73
Title: "Cry Marauder!" / "Death knells over Detroit!"
Credits:
Mike Friedrich - Writer
George Tuska - Penciler
Mike Esposito - Inker

Review/plot:
You and i both know that the Masked Marauder doesn't deserve a two-issue story in Iron Man. And it starts off the way you'd want it to. You've got one of his henchmen (a guy named Steele) saying that the Marauder is a genius to "rival Reed Richards" with the proof being a laser tool that "slices through these wires in half the time it'd normally take!"

And then Iron Man just shreds the hell out of the armor the Marauder gave Steele.

    

Even the fight with the Masked Marauder goes well at first...

...but then the Marauder uses his dumb flashlight power...

...and manages to take Iron Man prisoner.

Now don't you fear, the Marauder gets his face-punching in the end.

But it takes the whole second issue to get to it, and then Iron Man has to fight Steele again.

Personally, i blame the solar powered armor. Iron Man talks about it like it's a positive; an advantage over the Marauder's goons. But logically, as much as i'm in favor of solar power, there ought to be some kind of trade-off. This armor is more environmentally friendly, but it's weaker or doesn't hold a charge as long. There's nothing in the story to support this, except for again, the fact that there's a two-issue arc against the Masked Marauder.

This line, where the Marauder says he's "moving up" to blackmail made me wish he was fighting the Thing so that he could say, "Haw haw! You call dat moving up? You sure you're cut out for super-villainy? Maybe stealin' candy from babies is more your level!" or something. Iron Man lets the opportunity slide.

In subplots, Roxanne Gilbert doesn't want Tony to visit her at the hospital because he's a weapons manufacturer, and even the nurses get in on the criticism.

Meanwhile, Happy continues to stew about Pepper's traveling. And Tony's inner playboy can unconsciously sense that Pepper might be available again, so he suddenly starts showing up at her hotel room in the middle of the night.

I guess it's only a total of three issues so far where Happy is expressing his anger over Pepper getting a job again, but since there's no movement in the sub-plot, he just winds up repeating himself and therefore looking more and more like a crazy person. If you're going to have sub-plots you have to actually move them forward.

Granted, at the end of this arc, Pepper receives a telegram from Happy saying he wants a divorce.

Quality Rating: C-

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: The whole period where Iron Man is in Detroit, until Iron Man #67, takes place between Avengers #119-120.

References:

• The Masked Marauder was last punched in the face in Daredevil #27.
  
• Iron Man's armor has been solar powered since Iron Man #52 (incorrectly footnoted as #50), and his heart re-healed in Iron Man #58.

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

I don't know. The Masked Maurader is so over the top in his "villany" and super-villain dialouge that I kinda like him. At least he has the brains here to take on a foe that he can actually use his power against.
And I like that IM loses to a villain less powerful than him. He needs to get taken down a peg on occasion.
I always thought oppurtunities were missed in making IM armour less powerful. Beasically they have a ready made excuse for IM to take on any baddie from the hulk on down to the stilt-man. To make the lesser villians a threat when IM's armour is losing power (I seem to recall this being the reason whiplash was a threat to IM in his first appearance. IM armour was nearly drained giving the whip guy a fair chance.)