Debut of Tony Stark’s ‘War Machine’ armor, a heavy artillery suit
⚠️ Debatable Firsts: Tony dons the armor but continues to refer to himself as Iron Man. James Rhodes does not appear in this armor until Iron Man #284 and later assumes the codename War Machine in West Coast Avengers #94
1st cover appearance of the War Machine armor, worn by Tony Stark
⚠ Misconception: cited by many as the first appearance of War Machine. "War Machine" is splashed across the IRON MAN title in reference to the armor’s incredible armaments but the name is not official. The armor, (piloted by Tony Stark in this issue, not James Rhodes) actually debuts in the previous issue, Iron Man #281. In Iron Man #284, James Rhodes suits up in the War Machine armor but does so as Iron Man and does not officially assume the War Machine codename until West Coast Avengers #94, though he is referred to as War Machine in X-Force #21 but as Iron Man in X-Force #20
1st appearance of Rhodey Rhodes in the War Machine armor but he still refers to himself as Iron Man
It isn't until West Coast Avengers #94 until the codename ‘War Machine’ is used
[December 2020 - Don Cheadle will reprise his role as War Machine in an Armor Wars series on Disney+ / November 2022 - an inside source passed along an unconfirmed rumor that Armor Wars has been removed from Disney's production slate]
