Issue(s): War Machine #9
Cover Date: Dec 94
Title: "Once upon a time in China"
Credits:
Scott Benson & Len Kaminski - Writer
Geoff Senior - Penciler
Pam Eklund - Inker
Mike Marts - Assistant Editor
Nel Yomtov - Editor

Review/plot:
Imagine my dismay when i turned to page 114 of my Hands of the Mandarin trade and saw the cover of this issue saying that i was only on part two of the crossover. It was at this point that i realized that the Marvel Comics Presents stories were not getting numbered, and also that the trade included the Iron Man and War Machine issues leading up to the crossover but which were not officially part of it. On the latter point, i am unironically grateful. And it's only because of those dire Marvel Comics Presents issues that i was feeling dismay; the actual crossover is fine. Certainly nothing great. But decent fun super-hero stuff.

The main story in this issue follows War Machine and Century. They of course were not disintegrated last issue. Instead they teleported away and were pushed miles away by an anti-technology field created by the Mandarin. This is the first formal meeting of the two characters.

Century was separated from his staff, Parallax, and because of that he is suffering spasms of pain and occasional bouts of returning memories.

Mandarin recognizes a connection between Parallax and his rings.

War Machine and Century travel through what is now medieval China. They come across a woman being attacked by samurai.

War Machine's armor doesn't function, but Century is able to knock out the warriors. And it turns out the woman is Dr. Su Yin. She knows Tony Stark from when she tried to help him with his nervous system problem, and figures out that Rhodey was Iron Man at that time.

Century figures out how to attune Rhodey's armor to the time period.

While Rhodey is waiting for Century to do that, we get what is really the only attempt in this crossover to sell the idea that the Mandarin's anti-technology vendetta might have some merit.

It's pretty half-hearted.

Then they go and attack a local gangster (a former politician, actually) who is trying to grab power in the confusion caused by the Mandarin's anti-technology wave. It was his samurais that attacked Yin.

Meanwhile, the rest of Force Works interrogate their captured Avatar, Lich, and learn the location of the Mandarin's headquarters. They know that the info is a trap but head there anyway. But they're unprepared for the anti-technology field. Recorder collapses, and their Pegasus ship shuts down, leaving them on a crash course.

Quality Rating: C

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: Hands of the Mandarin

References: This is part two of Hands of the Mandarin. Part three is in Iron Man #311. But the War Machine/Century story in Marvel Comics Presents #171 takes place during this issue, so i'll place that next.

Crossover:

• Continues from Force Works #6.
  
• Su Yin tried to help Tony Stark and also fell in love with him in Iron Man #270.

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: Hands of the Mandarin TPB

Wait... samurais? In *ancient China*???

To be clear, i don't think they're called that in the comic. It's just what they look like to me.

That’s how powerful the Mandarin is, western dogs!

That is what they look like. But as we know, samurai were Japanese, not Chinese. I suspect this was sloppy and culturally ignorant writing and/or art (in other words, inserting samurai where they don't belong), but medieval China DID have armored warriors. They didn't look EXACTLY like samurai and I don't remember what they were called, but I suppose it's POSSIBLE these were meant to be those. They just look like samurai here. I'm not sure whom to primarily blame for this (writers, artists, or editors), but it reeks of lumping all of East Asia together as one thing.