WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Iron Man #2, by Christopher Cantwell, CAFU, Frank D'Armata, and VC's Joe Caramagna, on sale now.
Tony Stark has gone back to basics since reclaiming the mantle of Iron Man, preferring to use his classic armor rather than constantly updating his technology with the latest innovations. Despite taking the old-school approach with his superhero methodology, the threats faced by the Armored Avenger are no less deadly, with Iron Man going mano-a-mano with one of the Avengers' oldest foes in the ring: Crusher Creel, the Absorbing Man. More dangerous than ever, Crusher also hides a secret directly linked to another longtime Marvel Comics supervillain.
Tony comes to his senses in Murderworld, the twisted deathtrap developed by the X-Men villain Arcade to resemble a theme park, packed with deadly enemies and pitfalls to kill any caught inside. Iron Man learns he is forced to fight to the death in a gladiatorial match against the Absorbing Man, with their battle being broadcasted by Arcade to the dark web on illicit pay-per-view outlets.
Given Tony's insistence on relying on older Iron Man armors, betting has significantly skewed in favor of the Absorbing Man, a trend that escalates as Crusher displays a greater mastery over his signature powers than Tony initially anticipated, momentarily knocking around his opponent. One of the Avengers' greatest saving graces every time they fought against the Absorbing Man has been how unintelligent and unimaginative Crusher had been with his own incredible abilities. Crusher would usually absorb the properties of only a single element at a time and often inheriting its weaknesses to be exploited by his opponents. Here, Crusher absorbs both the properties of the Iron Man armor and its power source making him every inch as formidable in combat as Iron Man himself. As the fight continues, Tony notices a referee observing the proceedings, providing a countdown even as the Armored Avenger stands back on his feet. Realizing the ref is more than meets the eye, Tony pulls off the official's mask revealing him as Arcade himself.
Created by Chris Claremont and John Byrne in 1978's Marvel Team-Up #65, Arcade was a contract killer and supervillain that used his vast family fortune to create Murderworld, with the elaborate deathtrap always leaving open the slim possibility of escape as a sort of proto-Jigsaw from the Saw franchise. Originally targeting Spider-Man and Captain Britain, Arcade would become most closely associated with the X-Men though had targeted Iron Man before when the Armored Avenger alongside The Thing from the Fantastic Four in the fan-favorite superhero's solo comic book series. While Arcade was believed to be killed after subjecting young heroes to his latest incarnation of Murderworld, he was later revealed to be alive and imprisoned for a lengthy period by the Masters of Evil before escaping to set up shop in Las Vegas and Madripoor.
While Iron Man literally had the odds running against him, Tony was able to triumph over not one but two classic Marvel villains in one fell swoop. While Tony may be keeping things old school during his second lease at life, he continues to prove that sometimes the most advanced arsenal isn't necessary to emerge victorious. And before a paying audience, Iron Man has definitively proved that he's not only back but more than able to hold his own against the Absorbing Man without the usual backup from Earth's Mightiest Heroes.