Issue(s): Power Man & Iron Fist #67, Power Man & Iron Fist #68
Cover Date: Feb-Mar 81
Title: "Power men" / "Where enemies gather!"
Credits:
Mary Jo Duffy - Writer
Bob Layton - Co-Plotter
Kerry Gammill - Penciler
Ricardo Villamonte - Inker

Review/plot:
Power Man & Iron Fist try to stop what seems to be an ordinary bank robbery, but it turns out that some of the hostages were actually robbers in disguise, and they're armed with nerve gas that disables our duo. Iron Fist lasts longer thanks to his Slow Breathing proficiency.

Iron Fist later awakes to find that Luke has been taken.

With the help of Colleen, Misty, and D.W., Danny scours the streets looking for clues to Luke's whereabouts.

It turns out he's been taken by the Bushmaster, who's also kidnapped Dr. Noah Burstein (not seen since Power Man #49) and his new wife, Emma.

Bushmaster was given the same powers as Luke Cage, but soon afterwards his powers went bad and his body is now literally turning to steel.

Cage is there because Bushmaster wants Noah to try and remove the powers, and he wants Cage to be the guinea pig. The issue ends with Bushmaster crumbling after Iron Fist stops him from pulling the lever that would have killed Noah's wife.

But Cage's powers are removed, as he learns when he's shot by the Bushmaster's goons while fleeing the boat.

Cage survives, but he's forced to think differently now that he doesn't have his powers. And while the Heroes are still trying to rescue Noah's wife, Arthur Nagan - the Headman with the gorilla body, shows up looking for vengeance for the times Luke went up against him as a member of the Defenders.

Luke regains his powers during his fight with Nagan and Iron Fist and Colleen and Misty are able to rescue Noah's wife.

Power Man & Iron Fist remains a consistent second tier book. Not particularly great, but not bad, either.

Quality Rating: C+

Historical Significance Rating: 3 - death of Bushmaster

Chronological Placement Considerations: N/A

References:

• Dr. Noah turned Luke Cage into Power Man in Hero For Hire #1.
  
• The Bushmaster received the same treatment in Power Man #50 but was subsequently hit with chemicals that are now causing the powers to act incorrectly.
  
• The Headmen fought the Defenders a number of times in a period starting in Defenders #21 and running through Defenders annual #1 (The actual footnote gives some inaccurate issue numbers).

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

A big problem with Powerman is that hes a street level hero but has powers to strong for street level problems. I mean, knives, guns even bombs can't hurt him. Even spider-man could be killed by any of these. It makes for a lack of drama in powerman fights.
In Bushmaster we have a street level villain with powers that equal or surpass Cage. Bushmaster should be his archrival. But here, he just gets killed off. what a waste.

Finding appropriate villains seems to be a problem for Duffy. I agree Bushmaster would have made a good recurring villain. Instead, Bushmaster is gotten rid of, but we have a fight here with a gorilla with a man's body. In earlier issues, we have El Aguila stinking up the place, and he isn't even a villain. Other issues also seem to lack any real super villains. Sabretooth & Constrictor make a good team, but they are used only a few times and without much menace.

Duffy has decent craft, but her stories aren't very appealing. It isn't bad writing, and people who like these characters will continue to read them. But this isn't what you do when you want to grow the book's readership.

Idk this recap seemed pretty gripping to me. And I can't hate on the Gerber Defenders callback. Admittedly, I'd be expecting the death of Bushmaster to cast a pall on Cage's powers--that perhaps the same fate might await him also--and cast an ominous shadow over the book going forward, but de-powering Luke for the rest of the arc plays against that kind of development, I would think.