Iron Fist (Danny Rand) is pulled into a web of intrigue that appears to have been spun by Stark international. But if Tony Stark isn’t behind the conspiracy to kill him… who is?!And how does is link to Danny’s origins?
IRON FIST MUST DIE! (1975-1976) isn’t an official crossover event, but while it impacts several titles, making it a crossover by default, other stories that launched at the time would later be tied to the storyline and lead to the introduction of the sinister Corporation! This ends up being an unofficial event in itself which will be covered in THE CORPORATION (1977-1979).
Crossover: While the story jumps from ‘Marvel Premiere’ to the ongoing ‘Iron Fist’ series – which was standard for new titles launching from the tester Premiere series – it also jumps over to ‘Deadly Hands of Kung Fu’ and ‘Master of Kung Fu Annual,’ which makes this a crossover; while the ‘Daredevil’ issues appear to be unrelated, their connection is revealed in a later crossover.
Related Events: While some of the optional chapters appear unconnected to the Iron Fist story, it will become apparent that they’re connected by the actions of the Corporation in later stories; the first Torpedo is directly connected to one of the key Corporation bosses; Jack of Hearts’ connection to the Corporation is quickly made clear; the Jack of Hearts/White Tiger storyline eventually converges with Iron Fist’s story.
Title: ‘Iron Fist Must Die!’ isn’t an official crossover, so the Omniverse Comics Guide have named the event after the chapter title of Iron Fist #7.
Must-Reads: In the Quick List , must-read chapters are in bold; in the Fallout section, issues marked with a ✔ are the stories that are most heavily impacted by this event.
Anthology Issues: When an issue contains multiple stories, the relevant story is denoted with square brackets. For example, [2/5] refers to the second story of the five stories in that issue.
Spoilers: The issue descriptions and fallout section contain spoilers, so be warned!
Want to keep it simple? Here’s the chronological reading order without story descriptions, or spoilers:
- Marvel Premiere #24-25
- Iron Fist #1
- Daredevil #126-127 (tie-in)
- Iron Fist #2-4
- Master of Kung Fu Annual #1
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #22 [2/2] (tie-in)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #23 [2/2] (tie-in)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #24 [2/2] (tie-in)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #26 [1/2] (tie-in)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #27 [1/2] (tie-in)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #29 [1/2] (tie-in)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #29 [2/2] (tie-in)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #30 [1/2] (tie-in)
- Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #31 (tie-in)
- Iron Fist #5-7
| Must Reads | Title, Issue & Synopsis |
| ✔ | Marvel Premiere #24 Iron Fist barely beats Colleen Wing while sparring as he’s not keen on fighting a woman. Terrorists free the Skrull robot Monstroid from SHIELD’s Fenris Station and order it to kill Princess Azir of Halwan. Danny Rand finds himself playing softball against the Marvel Comics staff and Lieutenant Rafael Scarfe in Central Park when the Monstroid attacks, killing police officers. As Iron Fist, Danny smashes the robot’s head, utterly defeating it. The terrorists’ boss observes the fight and decides he will make Iron Fist an ally or kill him if he refuses! 1st appearance: Princess Azir, Chris Claremont |
| ✔ | Marvel Premiere #25 Iron Fist is attacked by Princess Azir’s bodyguard, Kumbala Bey, who’s been shamed for failing to protect her from the Monstroid. Though, Azir takes a shine to Iron Fist. Colleen’s father, Professor Lee Wing, is driven mad by a mystery attacker. Men dressed as cops who ‘arrest’ Colleen Wing. Iron Fist and Scarfe give chase, but Fist experiences strange hallucinations caused by Angar the Screamer. Iron Fist defeats him while Scarfe finds a clue that suggests Angar is working for Stark International. 1st appearance: Khumbala Bey |
| ✔ | Iron Fist #1 Misty Knight breaks into Stark International in search of her partner, Colleen Wing – the other half of Nightwing Restorations. Tony Stark confronts Knight and Iron Fist as Iron Man, believing them responsible for the murder of his Head of Security, Donald Cauley. Iron Man withstands Iron Fist’s attack before Misty stops the fight to tell them that the treacherous Cauley is still alive and just tried to kill her. Iron Man lets Misty and Iron Fist continue their search for Colleen. Meanwhile at the airport, Colleen almost escapes thanks to a tattooed stranger, but he allows her to be recaptured in favour of locating his true prey… Iron Fist! 1st appearance: Nightwing Restorations Ltd |
| Daredevil #126 (tie-in) Matt Murdock meets his neighbour Heather Glenn who seems very interested in him. A new costumed criminal called the Torpedo steals a safe deposit box from a bank and attacks police. Daredevil tries to stop the Torpedo, but a building falls on the crook during their fight. Disgruntled former quarterback Brock Jones hears Torpedo’s last words before he dies. Jones takes the costume and puts it on. When Daredevil meets the new Torpedo, he thinks he’s dealing with the same man and accuses Torpedo of murder! 1st appearance: Heather Glenn, Torpedo/Brock Jones, Torpedo/Michael Stivak, Blake Tower (full) | |
| Daredevil #127 (tie-in) Matt Murdock heads home where Heather Glenn throws herself at him. Matt finds out the Torpedo had stolen his own brother’s safe deposit box. The new Torpedo attacks the brother’s Westchester Mansion to obtain the plans for the original wearer’s super-soldier armor before his insane family can use them. Daredevil and Torpedo battle it out and end up trashing an innocent family’s house. The mother yells for them to stop, humiliating them both. Torpedo gives the armour plans to Daredevil and leaves. |
| Must Reads | Title, Issue & Synopsis |
| ✔ | Iron Fist #2 Some time ago, in the mystical city of K’un-Lun, Lord Conal D’Hu-Tsien was arrested for teaching martial arts to a woman – Iron Fist’s half-sister Miranda Ran’d’kai. They fled to avoid being mindwiped, but were captured by the tree-like H’ylthri. Iron Fist escaped the H’ylthri, but now knew they saw K’un-Lun as an enemy. in the present, Colleen Wing is taken to Halwan where the terrorists’ Masterlord sets a trap for Misty and Iron Fist! 1st appearance: Lord Conal D’Hu-Tsien, H’ylthri, Miranda Ran’d’kai, Sssethugar, Halwan |
| ✔ | Iron Fist #3 The armoured Ravager attacks Heathrow Airport, causing the plane carrying Danny Rand and Misty Knight to England to crash. The Ravager’s plan to strongarm the UK Government into giving him nuclear material is foiled, though Iron Fist learns Misty gets her strength from a robotic arm. Misty remains in hospital, leaving Danny to find Colleen on his own. He tracks Ravager down in the Post Office Tower and smashes the villain’s armour, revealing the radioactive Radion beneath it who causes a massive explosion! 1st appearance: John Cheever New identity: Radion/Henri Sorel as Ravager |
| ✔ | Iron Fist #4 Iron Fist barely survives the explosion and, for the first time, uses the power of the Iron Fist to heal. He learns Ward Meachum had a hand in Dr Henri Sorel’s transformation into Radion. Iron Fist fights Radion on the tower’s roof until Fist knocks him through several floors and into the chamber that cures him of his powers and dark persona. Meanwhile, in America, the tattooed man has linked up with Ward & Joy Meachum, promising them he’ll kill Iron Fist. |
| ✔ | Master of Kung Fu Annual #1 Under Nayland Smith’s direction, Iron Fist turns to Shang-Chi for help in finding Colleen Wing. A sorcerer called Quan-St’ar transports them both to K’un-Lun’s opposite city – the neighbouring S’ahra-Sharn. They’re immediately captured by Shai-Tahn and are imprisoned for five days while Quan-St’ar gathers his army to attack K’un-Lun. The spy Cybelle frees the duo and reveals Quan-St’ar seeks vengeance over Yu-Ti banishing him from K’un-Lun for killing a dragon. Cybelle’s resistance fighters take on Quan-St’ar’s army while Shang-Chi and Iron Fist shatter his Globe of Eternity, unleashing dark magic which devours Quan-St’ar. Cybelle’s sorcerer then returns them to London. |
| Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #22 [2/2] (tie-in) J Jonah Jameson is enraged that the Daily Globe has scooped the Daily Bugle on the story that the new costumed hero called the White Tiger may be a killer! Student Hector Ayala comes to the realisation that the Amulets of Power he recently stumbled across have been turning him into the White Tiger. And Hector’s family are beginning to suspect the same. Still struggling with his own sense of identity and being hunted by the police, the White Tiger is attacked by superhuman referring to himself as the Jack of Hearts who believes he’s a murderer. Elsewhere, former member of the Sons of the Tiger, Abe Brown, takes on hijackers on his flight to Algeria, which results in his plane crashing in the Sahara Desert. 1st appearance: Nestor Ayala, Jack of Hearts/’Jack’ Hart | |
| Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #23 [2/2] (tie-in) The Jack of Hearts defeats the White Tiger on the rooftops of New York City, then reveals how the sinister Corporation killed his father and inadvertently cover Jack Hart in his father’s experimental Zero Fluid, giving him superhuman powers. He’s been searching for ‘the Tiger’ the Corporation were working with. White Tiger overpowers Jack of Hearts but is cornered by the police. In the Sahara, Abe Brown crawls from the wreckage of his crashed plan to pursue the last surviving hijacker, only for both of them to be taken by a tribe of Bedouins. 1st appearance: The Corporation (Simon Maris), Phillip Hart | |
| Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #24 [2/2] (tie-in) At the hospital, Hector Ayala explains to his sister Awilda Ayala, private detective Blackbyrd and Captain James D’Angelo how he found the Amulets of Power and was transformed into the White Tiger. Jack of Hearts’ powers go out of control when doctors try to remove his armour and Corporation agents arrive intent on Jack’s death. In the desert, Abe Brown is forced to fight the hijacker in an arena battle to the death. | |
| Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #26 [1/2] (tie-in) The White Tiger takes on the Corporation agents singlehandedly until Jack of Hearts blasts the final agent. Blackbyrd suggests joining forces with the White Tiger and Jack of Hearts and looking into the mystery of Jack’s mission, starting at the El Tigre Bar. Elsewhere, Lotus Shinchuko blames herself for the Sons of the Tiger splitting up. In Canada, Bob Diamond is lost in an avalanche. In the Sahara, Abe Brown catches the bullet fired at him by the hijacker who falls down a hole! |
| Must Reads | Title, Issue & Synopsis |
| Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #27 [1/2] (tie-in) The White Tiger joins Blackbyrd and Captain James D’Angelo search for a man called El Tigre turns deadly the closer they get to the truth. The murder of young female gang member Cheeky really shakes White Tiger to his core. 1st appearance: Filippo Alaya | |
| ✔ | Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #29 [1/2] (tie-in) Iron Fist receives a note implying Colleen Wing is being held in the sewers beneath London. Shang Chi is lured away with the promise of confronting his father, Fu Manchu. Instead, the masked former MI6 agent Blevins forces them to fight each other or he’ll blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill Agent Winston Neville. Iron Fist smashes the beam supporting Blevins’ balcony, ending the threat. |
| Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #29 [2/2] (tie-in) The death of Cheeky leads to riots in the Bronx. The rage-fuelled White Tiger almost kills some of the rioters after he’s shot. Jack of Hearts leaves the hospital. | |
| Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #30 [1/2] (tie-in) Abe Brown is granted the role of the Black Tiger by the Bedouins. Jack of Hearts flies to the Daily Globe offices to set the story straight about the White Tiger and reveal what happened to his father at the hands of the Corporation. The White Tiger turns confronts the remaining rioters. Hector’s brother Filippo Alaya shows up with a bomb strapped to him. Bob Diamond continues to fight to survive alone in the cold in Canada. Lin Sun confronts Bob’s agent, believing he’s dead, only to find he’s trying to keep Bob’s entire estate. New identity: Abe Brown as Black Tiger | |
| ✔ | Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #31 (tie-in) Fu Manchu refuses to help the other Corporation leaders, which instead activated Filippo Ayala to strap himself to a bomb. The White Tiger battles Stryke as he hunts Simon Maris of the Corporation so he can defuse the bomb attached to his brother, only to find him dead. The bomb is activated as Jack of Hearts, White Tiger, Shang-Chi and Iron Fist all converge on the same spot and narrowly avoid being killed. |
| ✔ | Iron Fist #5 It’s been weeks since Iron Fist arrived in London and he’s no closer to finding Colleen. He saves reformed IRA terrorist Alan Cavanagh from his old crew. Then, agents of the Masterlord try to kill Danny and Alan. Iron Fist is attacked by the sword-wielding assassin Scimitar who wounds Alan before Iron Fist defeats him. In Halwan, Angar the Screamer brainwashes Colleen Wing, turning her against Iron Fist! 1st appearance: Alan Cavenaugh, Scimitar |
| ✔ | Iron Fist #6 Danny Rand hops on a plane out of London, reuniting with Misty Knight and meeting his father’s lawyer, Jeryn Hogarth. Danny gains his family inheritance of a quarter of a billion dollars. Arriving in Halwan, he infiltrates the fortress of the Masterlord. He’s attacked by Colleen Wing and Angar the Screamer, but uses his chi to break Colleen’s conditioning. Master Khan stands revealed as the man behind Iron Fist’s recent woes. And he orders the exhausted hero to be beheaded. In Ku’n-Lun, Lei Kung the Thunderer confronts Yu-Ti over his suspect claim to the throne that should belong to Danny Rand. 1st appearance: Jeryn Hogarth, Shakirah |
| ✔ | Iron Fist #7 Colleen Wing saves Iron Fist, then takes down Master Khan’s men and kills Angar the Screamer with her sword. Iron Fist easily overcomes Master Khan’s new minion, Khumbala Bey, only to be overpowered by Khan’s magic. Khan reveals it was his ninja who avenged the death of Wendell Rand and that Yu-Ti killed his mother, Shakirah. Khan offers Iron Fist a portal back to K’un-Lun. Iron Fist promises Yu-Ti that they will talk, then smashes the portal. Master Khan is sucked into the vortex. Reunited, Iron Fist and Colleen prepare to head home. |
See how this event fits into the wider Marvel Universe with these reading orders:
- DAREDEVIL, 1964-1976 – The Man Without Fear
| Must Reads | Issue & Fallout | Event / Crossover |
| Daredevil #128 (1975) Matt Murdock almost quits being Daredevil over trashing the family’s home. | ||
| Daredevil #130 (1976) Foggy Nelson loses his election run to Blake Tower; Heather Glenn helps Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson set up Storefront Legal Services. | ||
| ✔ | Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #32 (1977) White Tiger, Jack of Hearts, Iron Fist and Shang-Chi talk part ways after the defeat of the Corporation; Bernie Klieg’s scheme is ruined when Bob Diamond returns to America; the Sons of the Tiger are reunited with the exception of Abe Brown who’s still missing. | |
| Daredevil #134 (1976) Matt Murdock and Heather Glenn become a couple; Daredevil faces the Torpedo again, though the Chameleon makes their meeting more complicated. | ||
| ✔ | Captain America #213-214 (1977) The Corporation rise up again, attracting the attention of Captain America. | THE CORPORATION |
| Iron Fist #13 (1977) Iron Fist reunites with his friend Alan Cavenaugh. | ||
| Iron Fist #14 (1977) The man with the tattoo who’s looking for Iron Fist, the Steel Serpent, makes his first move against Danny Rand. | NIGHT OF THE STEEL SERPENT | |
| ✔ | Marvel Premiere #39-40 (1977) Brock Jones’ origin is revealed; the connection between the Torpedo costume and the Corporation is explained; Brock’s wife and two children make their debut; the original Torpedo’s brother – crooked senator Eugene ‘Kligger’ Stivak – tries to reclaim the Torpedo costume from Brock. | THE CORPORATION |
| ✔ | Marvel Team-Up #63-64 (1977) The Steel Serpent finally confronts Iron Fist and almost kills him; Iron Fist is ultimately saved by Spider-Man and the Daughters of the Dragon; Iron Fist and Misty Knight officially get together. | NIGHT OF THE STEEL SERPENT |
| Power Man and Iron Fist #50 (1978) Misty Knight reveals her bionic arm was given to her by Tony Stark. | FREEDOM! | |
| Daredevil #150-151 (1978) Matt Murdock finds out Heather Glenn’s father has a criminal background; Heather learns Matt Murdock is Daredevil and blames him for her father’s death. | ||
| ✔ | Marvel Premiere #44 (1978) The Corporation make another bid to kill Jack of Hearts. | THE CORPORATION |
| ✔ | Captain America #230 (1979) Incredible Hulk #232-233 (1979) Captain America, Hulk and Marvel Man (Wendell Vaughn) have a final showdown with the Corporation, resulting in the deaths of key leaders. | THE CORPORATION |
| Power Man and Iron Fist #60 (1979) Princess Azir returns, though her true intentions prove to be a problem for Iron Fist. | ||
| Marvel Two-in-One #55 (1979) Henri Sorel is revealed to be alive and working at Project PEGASUS. | ||
| Daredevil #166 (1980) Foggy Nelson marries Debbie Harris. | ||
| Spider-Woman #34-35 (1981) Angar the Screamer is revealed to be alive! | ||
| Power Man and Iron Fist #70 (1981) Lee Wing finally regains his senses from Angar’s attack. | ||
| Rom #21 (1981) Torpedo meets Rom and joins the fight against the Dire Wraiths. | ||
| ✔ | Power Man and Iron Fist #81-82 (1982) Abe Brown is revealed to have broken free of his extremist Black Tiger persona. | |
| ✔ | Rom #50 (1983) Brock Jones’ career as the Torpedo ends in tragedy. | WRAITH WAR |
| Power Man and Iron Fist #105 (1984) Princess Azir’s bodyguard, Khumbala Bey, returns. | ||
| ✔ | Namor the Sub-Mariner #20-25 (1991-1992) Sssesthugar and his H’ylthri join forces with Plant Man in a plot to take over the world; after the world believed him dead, Iron Fist shows up in a H’ylthri pod; Sssesthugar is killed by Wolverine. | |
| ✔ | Iron Fist #1-3 (1998) Miranda Rand and Conal D’Hu-Tsien are revealed to have been resurrected by the H’ylthri who want Miranda to steal the Scorpio Key from SHIELD; calling herself Death Sting, Miranda battles Iron Fist for the Key. | |
| Immortal Iron Fist #2 (2006) Despite K’un-Lun’s apparent aversion to female fighters, it’s revealed that there have previously been female Iron Fists, including Wu Ao-Shi. | THE LAST IRON FIST STORY | |
| Immortal Iron Fist #8 (2007) A number of other dimensional cities are revealed to exist when a tournament is held, merging all seven into the same space as the Heart of Heaven. | THE SEVEN CAPITAL CITIES OF HEAVEN |
| Collected Edition Title | Collects… |
| Iron Fist: Danny Rand – The Early Years Omnibus | Bizarre Adventures #33 Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #10, 18-24, 29, 31-33 Deadly Hands of Kung Fu Special Album Edition #1 Iron Fist #1-15 Marvel Premiere #15-25 Marvel Team-Up #63-64 |
| Iron Fist Epic Collection: The Fury of Iron Fist (vol.1) | Iron Fist #1-15 Marvel Premiere #15-25 Marvel Team-Up #63-64 |
| Marvel Masterworks: Iron Fist vol.1 | Iron Fist #1-2 Marvel Premiere #15-25 |
| Marvel Masterworks: Iron Fist vol.2 | Iron Fist #3-15 Marvel Team-Up #63-64 |
| Collected Edition Title | Includes… |
| Daredevil Epic Collection: Watch Out For Bullseye (vol.6) Daredevil Omnibus vol.4 Marvel Masterworks: Daredevil vol.6 | Daredevil #126-127 |
| Deadly Hands of Kung Fu Omnibus | Deadly Hands of Kung Fu #22-24, 26-27, 29-31 |
| Marvel Universe by John Byrne vol.2 | Iron Fist #1-7 Marvel Premiere #25 |
| Master of Kung Fu Epic Collection: Fight Without Pity (vol.2) Shang-Chi: Master of Kung Fu Omnibus vol.4 | Master of Kung Fu Annual #1 |
Reading Order © Omniverse Comics Guide 2026
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