Appearing in "Convention of Fear!"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Roxie Gilbert (Only in flashback)
Antagonists:
- Death Squad (First appearance)
- Black Lama
Other Characters:
- Mandarin (Only in flashback)
- Sunfire (Only in flashback)
- Yellow Claw (Only in flashback)
- Ultimo (Only in flashback)
- Stark employees
- Roy Thomas
- Mike Friedrich
- Tom Orzechowski
- Frank Brunner
- Milton Caniff (Mentioned) (Steve Canyon)
- Charles Schultz (Mentioned) (Peanuts)
- Bob Foster (Marvel artist)
- Don Glut
- Mark Evanier
- Mike Royer
- Jan
- Larry
- Kenny Lupoff
- San Diego Police Department
Locations:
- Earth
- United States of America
- California
- San Diego
- San Diego International Airport (First appearance)
- Stark Industries
- San Diego Zoo (First appearance; vision)
- El Cortez (First appearance)
- Chula Vista (Mentioned)
- San Diego
- California
- United States of America
Items:
Synopsis for "Convention of Fear!"
Flying around San Diego, Iron Man is shot at by a thermal intensifier. He destroys it and leaves, not seeing the Death Squad arguing amongst themselves. Tony Stark arrives at Stark Industries and chats with some production line workers who suddenly attack. Fighting them off, he notes they look possessed, then leaves as the Black Lama watches. With nothing to do Stark decides to attend the San Diego Comic-Con as Iron Man, where he's startled by some realistic villain costumes, who turn out to be the real Death Squad. Black Lama appears, revealing himself as the Death Squad's organizer, and mesmerizes the crowd into attacking Iron Man. Iron Man wins the ensuing melee, during which some comics are set ablaze. As the Lama steals up behind Iron Man with a scimitar, the Melter shoots him, wanting the honor of killing Iron Man for himself. The Lama teleports away, the defeated Death Squad are arrested, and Iron Man is kicked out of the building as a convention crasher.
Notes
- Credit for "story plot" is given to Barry Alfonso of San Diego, California.
- This issue contains a letters page, Sock It To Shell-Head. Letters are published from Brian Apthorp, Tom Lemans, Dean Mullaney, David Dunn, and Bill Wu.
- Tony notes that the events shown in Iron Man #68-71 was a "hectic few days."
- The comics convention is held at the El Cortez Hotel in San Diego. Given this information and the fact the guest list Tony looked at included Charles Schultz, Milton Caniff, Don Glut, Mark Evanier, and Mike Friedrich, it means this convention was intended to be the 1974 San Diego Comic-Con.[1][2] This is also confirmed by the Next Issue blurb in Iron Man #71 stating that Iron Man "journeys to the eventful San Diego Comic Con '74". This would mean that the events of Vol 1 68-72 took place around July and August 1974. However, this would no longer be the case with the Sliding Timescale affecting Earth-616.
- Comics retailer Chuck Rozanski of Mile High Comics notes that the comic dealer in the story who was concerned about his comic stock catching fire might have been partially inspired by him.[3]
