DAREDEVIL #175

"GANTLET"
Story/Art : Frank Miller | Finished Art : Klaus Janson
Colors: Christie Scheele & Bob Sharen | Letters: Joe Rosen
Editor: Denny O’Neil | Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: Daredevil pays a visit to Elektra as she meditates. She promises she does not love him and throws him out her window. Later, after checking on Heather and finding she's gone off to a party where he believes she can't be targeted by the Hand, Daredevil goes to protect Foggy from the ninja assassins as he makes his way to the courthouse for Melvin Potter’s trial. DD finds a card on one of the defeated ninjas, but Elektra arrives and grabs it from him, then heads for the address printed upon it.

As Foggy stalls, awaiting Matt’s arrival in the courtroom, Elektra arrives at a novelty shop and begins battling the Hand, with Daredevil soon arriving to aid her. As Foggy realizes Matt won't make it to the trial, Elektra encounters a hulking ninja named Kirigi, who proves impossible to kill. Foggy requests a mistrial while Elektra’s duel with Kirigi brings them to his master. Elektra runs the giant ninja through, sending him tumbling down the stairs, then turns her attention to the man who sent him. Daredevil arrives to confront her, but passes out.

Later, Matt shows up at the courthouse to find Foggy’s movement for a mistrial was successful, and Melvin is off the hook. Foggy reaffirms the future of Nelson & Murdock for the television cameras present. Elsewhere, the Kingpin gloats over his victory against the Hand, now driven out of New York thanks to his pitting Daredevil against them.

FANTASTIC FOUR #235

"FOUR AGAINST EGO!"
Words and Pictures: John Byrne | Letters: Jean Simek | Colors: Bob Sharen
Editor: Jim Salicrup | Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: The Thing walks through Ego, carrying a large mechanical device, and recalls how he wound in this situation: the Fantastic Four encountered Ego in space and he pulled their ship into his atmosphere for a crash landing on his surface. The FF found a rocket booster attached to Ego and made their way to it, disconnecting one power pack from the device. They then ventured inside Ego in search of his brain, with plans to stun him using the pack.

But the conditions within Ego proved too great for the FF and one by one they were forced to return to the surface, leaving only the Thing to finish their quest. Finally he finds Ego’s brain and throws the power pack at it. This enrages Ego and he powers up his rockets to increase speed toward Earth. But with one rocket disabled, Ego instead passes too close to the sun and disintegrates. The Thing drifts out into space but his teammates, back aboard their ship, find him and pull him to safety.

Sub-Plots & Continuity Notes: The Thing recalls the destruction of Manhattan last issue. Curiously, the FF no longer seem fazed by this development, even though they were outside Skip Williams’ sphere of influence when he undid the damage at the conclusion of last issue.

PETER PARKER, THE SPECTACULAR SPIDER-MAN #59

"I WANT SPIDER-MAN!"
A Roger Stern/Jim Mooney Production
Principle Photography: J. Strzltski | Titles: Simek Titles Ltd. | Colors: Sharencolor
Director: Thomas DeFalco | Executive Director: James Shooter

The Plot: A documentary TV series called "On The Trail Of..." makes plans for a show about Spider-Man. Their grip operator, Marty Blank, claims to know where to find the web-slinger.

Meanwhile, in New York, the Beetle puts his new armor through its paces in preparation for his upcoming battle with Spider-Man. Beetle's sensors locate the wall-crawling wonder uptown, and he heads out to challenge his quarry. But the documentary crew, aboard a helicopter, finds Spider-Man at the same time. Marty dons a costume and reveals himself as Spider-Man's one-time opponent, the Gibbon, and leaps from the chopper to attack.

Beetle hangs back to observe the fight between Spider-Man and the Gibbon, then, after Spidey defeats his enemy, Beetle topples a brick wall onto the web-slinger then moves in to finish him off.

IRON MAN #151

"G.A.R.D.'S GAUNTLET"
Plot/Writer: David Michelinie | Plot/Finished Art: Bob Layton
Guest Penciler: Luke McDonnell | Letters: Joe Rosen
Colors: Bob Sharen & Don Warfield | Editor: Jim Salicrup
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The Plot: While Tony goes shopping for a new wardrobe with Ling McPherson, Scott Lang, examining the damaged Stark International lab complex, comes under assault by Stark's malfunctioning internal security system, G.A.R.D. (the Graduated Radical Automated Defense system). Scott changes to Ant-Man and eventually defeats the computer. Iron Man arrives to help, only to find Scott, back in civilian attire, waiting casually for him.

Returning to his temporary living quarters, Tony opens the newspaper to find that Bethany has been captured and branded a spy by the Soviet Union.

Continuity Notes: The Stark International complex is still undergoing repairs following Blacklash's rampage in issues 146 and 147. A footnote on the second page reminds readers of Iron Man's duel with Doctor Doom in the distant past as seen last issue. The following page presents a succinct recap of Tony's relationship with Bethany, as Tony reminisces about her yet again.