Tales of Suspense #40

Dates

Cover date

April 1963

On sale

January 10, 1963

Pages

36

Editions and covers (2)

Copies of #40 are not all the same book. Here is how to tell each one apart.

• Original edition12¢ cover

  Source ↗
• UK pence edition9d [0-0-9 GBP] cover

  British

  Printed cover price 9d [0-0-9 GBP].

  This edition’s page

Creators

Stories

• Iron Man versus Gargantus! · 13 pages

  Tony takes his newest date, Marion, to the circus. When the wild animals escape, he rounds them up as Iron Man. His grey armor scares the onlookers. Marion suggests that a golden metal might make him look more heroic. A golden Iron Man then battles Gargantus, who turns out to be a mighty robot built by aliens. Iron Man defeats Gargantus by hurling three magnets at him. The magnets float around the robot, ripping its body to pieces. Iron Man then throws the magnets at a flying saucer he just spotted. The aliens flee and, next day, Tony has another date with Marion.

• Wrong Number · 1.75 pages

  An ordinary man realizes that he is really a medieval knight.

• Work of Art! · 5 pages

  An unsuccessful artist tries to force a new painter to show him how to paint lifelike pictures. The painter is a sorcerer, and traps the artist in one of his paintings, the secret to his realism.

• Prophet of Doom! · 5 pages

  A man from the future arrives in the present day in order to set himself up as ruler. He attempts to extort 100 million dollars from the Secretary General of the United Nations only to be shocked when the Secretary reveals that he too is from the future and that there are agents planted in every era in order to apprehend criminals who may attempt to alter the course of events.

Characters

Reprinted in

Fantastic! (1967), The Invincible Iron Man Omnibus (2008), Weird Planets (1962), Spider-Man Comics Weekly (1973), Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Tales of Suspense (2006), Spellbound (1960), Uncanny Tales (1963), Marvel Collectors' Item Classics (1965), Fantastic Annual (1967), Titan Pocket Book (1980), The Marvel Saga the Official History of the Marvel Universe (1985), Marvel Masterworks (1987), Essential Iron Man (2000), Marvel Masterworks: The Invincible Iron Man (2003), Tales of Suspense No. 39 [Marvel Legends] (2006), Marvel Masterworks: The Invincible Iron Man (2010), Iron Man Epic Collection (2013), Marvel Famous Firsts: 75th Anniversary Masterworks Slipcase Set (2014), True Believers: Kirby 100th - Iron Man (2017), Marvel Masters of Suspense: Stan Lee & Steve Ditko Omnibus (2019)