"Yesterday…and Tomorrow" (1989/07/01) from Iron Man 244 (July 1989)

Reader Rating: Average; Thunderbolts Interest: Medium

Summary: In the present day, a crippled Tony Stark is unable to defend his latest invention against attack from The Fixer. So Clay Wilson, formerly Force, dons the armor in his place. In flashback, Tony recalls how he invented the armor – and how a good woman led him to become a superhero.

Continuity: Perhaps trying to drive Rita Demara from his mind, The Fixer again becomes a gun-for-hire, this time for Roxxon corp. He is captured again, but quickly escapes.

Comments: There’s a decent story to be told here, about Tony’s struggle to overcome his physical limitations. But it is told in the clunkiest fashion, through a head-spinning double-flashback. The flashbacks feel as if they may have been tacked on as an afterthought, and the finale is damaged by coloring mistakes that confuse two different armored heroes. The Fixer gets some goofy expressions on his face, but he gives as good as he gets.