Iron Man is back again for another adventure. This week our hero is not only against some twisting unnatural hurricanes but also on the receiving end of some aggression from the general public.

Plot Outline:

The episode starts with a classy but aged man taking a nice stroll in the evening on a bridge when suddenly he notices the shifting tides and change in the wind only to his surprise be caught in a mighty tornado out of no where. What’s even more mysterious that amongst all the trail of destruction left by the tornado; he seems to be the only casualty.  Meanwhile, Tony is being presented the latest security upgrade, an EMP system, which his team have come up with for the arc station. While Dr. Tanaka and Tony are discussing the functionality and the appearance, Tony being the lover of the flamboyant and not finding the simplicity of the system appealing during the testing phase, the former receives a phone call from a past colleague, Professor Yamaguchi, warning her that she may be targeted as well since the aged man at the beginning was a mutual colleague.The call cuts off with Professor Yamaguchi meeting his demise as well as his car is pulled into another similar tornado, alarming both Tony and Tanaka. Nanami, the star reporter from Tokyo Journal, is intrigued by the deaths and sets out to investigate deeper into the relationship between the victims. On the other hand, the tornado has now hit an American base attracting the attention of Iron Man.

Plunging into the tornado, Tony discovers the culprits behind the events to be the Zodiac organisation again not surprisingly. The machine generating the tornado gains the upper hand on him unfortunately and he ends up with Iron Man suit critically damaged. Nanami’s investigation leads her to Professor Sakamoto and while interviewing him during a chess match, they are joined by Dr. Tanaka which clearly points out that there is a connection between victims and them. We learn of Tanaka being an expert in the field of meteorology and was involved with Sakamoto and the victims on the previously abandoned Tesla Project. Before any further can be revealed about the said Project besides the reason behind its abandonment, another tornado strikes which leaves the premises destroy and Sakamoto apparently deceased. As Tony tries to assist the injured and is met with opposition from the civil workers, Nanami and Tanaka delve further on how this abandoned project was revived as the only people to have access to it are now deceased.

Rating: A-/A+

The Good:

After the first episode which pretty much based on the introduction of Tony and the second revealing the Iron Man in action, it was a refreshing change to see Tony being of assistance as himself and without the suit. Also the revelation of his involvement in the Arms trade previously being the reason behind the hostility he has received so far from the public was an interesting one and it seems Tony has a long way to go before he will be truly forgiven. We also get to see more of Dr. Tanaka’s past before becoming a part of Stark Industries and I am glad that Nanami’s character improved in this episode comparative to the previous two.  Also Zodiac was more in the background and directly involved in the plotline, allowing for more character development. Tanaka’s cold hearted rejection of Tony’s advances was also entertaining.

The Ugly:

Predictability. The major downfall of this episode being that it was quite straightforward and you can pretty much know how the story is going to turn out.

Bottom-line:

An overall good episode which put more importance on character development and less on the shebang action. Since its only been the first few episodes the pace has been steady and not too slow like a snail that you die of boredom or high accelerated that it makes no sense at all.

Preview:

Next week, it seems we will be shown a bit further into Tony’s past while he was imprisoned as he is reunited with someone.