Is there interest in a real-time discussion of "One World Under Doom," as we did with "Absolute Power"? It begins in February with these titles:
- ONE WORLD UNDER DOOM #1 (OF 9)
- DOOM ACADEMY #1 (OF 5)
- THUNDERBOLTS: DOOMSTRIKE #1 (OF 5)
- X-FACTOR #7
- FANTASTIC FOUR #29
- RED HULK #1
I haven't been reading Amazing Spider-Man, but I do know the "8 Deaths of Spider-Man" storyline has something to do with Doctor Doom. If that's important to "One World Under Doom," then these titles are also part of the discussion:
- AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #67
- AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #68
- AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #68.DEATHS
Replies
FANTASTIC FOUR #17
12 months ago: Reed and Sue go back in time to find out why an ancient skeleton identical to her own is dug up that dates back to the crossing of the Siberian land bridge in the last big Ice Age. Wouldn't you know it, Rama Tut shows up, too. They do battle, and Rama uses the trick all of us have been asking about since our first Kang story: If you're a time traveler and get beaten, why not take some time to heal and build new weapons, and return at the exact time before your defeat? Then there are two of you, and you know what your enemy is planning and have accounted for it. Rama does this multiple times and eight-year-olds everywhere are going "Yeah, yeah, about time somebody used this!" The good guys defeat this maneuver, while Rama keeps calling Sue "the Invisible Girl." (He hasn't seen her in a while!) Doom doesn't appear, but Rama Tut is related somehow, so there ya go.
FANTASTIC FOUR #25
Four months ago: The team investigates the magical barrier around Latveria. Johnny tries to melt it, when suddenly there is a loud PLLAAAAAANNGG and they are all suddenly elsewhere. Where they are and how they get back, the philosophical issues that arise, the use of the word "omnicide" and Johnny's love affair with an alien are all very interesting. But Doom doesn't appear, so I'll just say it's good issue and move on. They also decide to leave the barrier alone.
FANTASTIC FOUR #28
One month ago: Reed is still banging his head on the wall trying to learn magic, so Sue Googles "science plus magic" and gets Dane Whitman. They visit, and discover he's melted down all his magic artifacts (including the sword) to make a throne. That's weird, and he's acting weird. He does tell them of another magic sword, the "Fated Sword," which can cut through Doom's barrier. But they have to travel to World War I, where it was last known to exist. Turns out Dane has been possessed, by ... aww, you guessed it. The "Fated Sword" is "DoomSword" in archaic speech. It was created by 21st century magicians as a failsafe against Doom and hidden in time. Doom was aware of this, and used Reed and Sue to find it so he could destroy it. Sort of like the plot of Fantastastic Four #5 (1962). Someone's been reading the classics! This issue is also notable for Reed casting his first magic spell.
Captain Comics said:
I read that story and was a little baffled that Reed was having so much trouble trying to learn magic, because he encountered that same problem duiring the Mark Waid/Mike Weiringo run (one of my favorites) in yet another battle with Dr. Doom. This was the storyline, if I recall correctly, where Doom decided to amp up his magic skills because he thought he was too dependent on the science side, and in so doing, found out he had to make a sacrifice, so he did -- Valeria's soul. (It's not like he was going to sacrfice his own soul, y'know.)
In that storyline, Reed was smart enough to contact a real expert, Doctor Strange, who told him: Stop trying so hard. It isn't about exactitude, it's about feeling. It's about going with the flow, not stating the incantations with the precise words and the precise inflection and the precise pauses to get the precise, duplicable results. And, most of all -- as Reed learned when he allowed himself to accept this advice, which, of course, he did not do immediately because all of it is against his nature -- it's about being somewhat self-deprecating.
So, reading this story, I was baffled that Reed had forgotten all about that (okay, okay, I can't expect writer Ryan North to necessarily have read that storyline), and that he and Sue didn't consult a real expert like Doctor Strange (which may go to whatever's happening currently with him in comics I haven't read) and that they were dumb enough to go looking for an expert using Google. Sue's been upgraded from a shrinking violet whose only power was to turn invisible to a pose-and-point gal to an actual scientist; she ought to know better. They both should.
This is a rare misstep from Ryan North; I've been excited about his run in a way I haven't for Fantastic Four in many years. Especially because it's a lot more science-y than it was before the Waid/Weiringo days, which was a leap above what it was before that. I don't know if it's all real, but it sounds real and it's good enough to fool me if it isn't, and that's what I want out of a story.
I remembered that bit from the Waid run, but wasn't sure how it ended -- I haven't read it since it published, and my FF reading has been spotty since Byrne. Now that you've pointed it out, it does seem an odd omission from a guy who clearly read Fantastic Four #5!
I don't know why the FF didn't contact Doc Strange -- they've known hin since the Silver Age -- unless they couldn't (he's in Asgard currently) and Ryan just didn't bother to show that. That'll be my head canon explanation, anyway. Perhaps Doom was subtly manipulating them magically, as well.
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #65.DEATHS
But it’s really more about Phil Coulson, the new avatar of Death, and how he became that way. I don’t know when or where that happened, and how it was not explained there, but this issue gives us some clues.
A nice little side quest, which explains the weird numbering.
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #66
But he’s dropped it big time now. I don’t see how he comes back from this.
Meanwhile, Juggernaut feels the pull of Cyttorak and convinces Cyclops to take the X-Men to New York. (He’s part of that team now.)
Oh, and Black Cat tries to cheer Peter up with a little slap ‘n’ tickle. He’s not opposed to the idea.
This all feels pretty organic, and I’m enjoying it. Especially the running commentary by Cyra (the Cyttorak scion) and Doctor Strange’s astral self.
Phil Coulson became the new Death in second feature stories of the "Infinity Watch" event of a few months ago, featuring Thanos and the Infinity Stones (née Gems).
It would not kill editorial to reference that somehow.
That Death is now a gem (what?) and the gem picked Coulson was mentioned. Where that happened was not. I guess they figure that These Kids Today™ can just Google.
Challenge accepted!
The Death Stone was an artificial Infinity Stone created in the modern era. After Death rejected Thanos, the Mad Titan used his powers to subdue her before proceeding to encapsulate the embodiment of Death within a stone. Despite this, death would still persist as long as the stone was intact.
He attempted to use it to its full potential, but failed to unlock its true power. Figuring that it required to be in the vicinity of the other Infinity Stones to fully function, Thanos sought out reclaim the Stones once again. However, as he went after some of the Stones' current wielders, it caused the Death Stone to finally be activated, only to leave Thanos. The Death Stone later landed in a cemetery that Nighthawk was visiting as he witnessed it reviving Phil Coulson, choosing him as its new wielder.
Apparently, this happened in Thanos Annual (v3) #1
Nighthawk? I had forgotten he existed!
It's been a while since the last OWUD post, for which I apologize. I had retinal surgery at the beginning of April, and couldn't do much for a couple of weeks, which put me well behind on everything. I'm slowly catching up, so have patience with me.
The good news is there's lots to talk about! I'll start with the peripheral series and work my way up to the Big Guns.
IRON MAN #1-6
Roxxon and A.I.M. have teamed up to take Stark Industries away from Tony Stark, and the only ally he has on the board of directors is Melinda May (the "Cavalry" from ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.). His primary antagonists are pretty familiar, too: Monica Rappaccini, the Scientist Supreme of A.I.M., and Justine Hammer. From the dialogue, I gather Justine was dead (who even pays attention to that any more?) but has returned thanks to her silent partner: Belasco. This supernatural angle permeates the story, in that Hammer's takeover of Stark Industries has netted her Tony's entire supply of Mysterium (maybe the world's supply) and she's used it to magically block him from all his technology. Not being particularly adept at magic, Stark is in a pickle. He cobbles together a substandard suit of armor, and goes to war. But not alone. He calls in the Scarlet Witch for one issue to help him with the magic aspect, and both Melinda and Ironheart are with him for the entire storyline. But in the end, it's up to Tony Stark to figure a way out of this mess.
Which is how I like it. The focus should always be on Stark, who is the best part of the series (thanks to Robert Downey Jr.). And his desperation here shows.
And I don't blame him! I've read enough comics that I can generally at least guess at how the hero is going to get out of this one, but here I haven't an inkling. I don't think Stark does, either -- he's a fish out of water. But his RDJ-style confidence in himself doesn't flag. He bets it all in issue #5 and spins the wheel. It's genuinely suspenseful and dramatic.
The sixth abruptly shifts to the "One World Under Doom" crossover, complete with the trade dress and a name change to The Insurgent Iron Man. It's basically all set-up. The issue is mostly a conversation between Tony and the leader of the Latverian resistance, who is extremely unsavory and being in his presence for a whole issue gets old (and makes me want to shower). Fortunately the Winter Guard shows up, Tony gets into his new high-tech armor, some unexpected allies crash the party and the story begins ... next issue, really. After all the fun in the last five issues, this was a bit of a let-down. But I'm not going anywhere.
AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #67-70
But Parker really didn't have that -- he was just bummed by a horrific experience and needed time to heal and process. Once he did, he was back in the fight -- a bit too abruptly for my part; I'd like to have seen a tougher road back. But they only had a few issues to wrap this up, so he's rarin' to go by issue #68 and his friends and family all accept his apologies instantly.
Which brings us to the actual battle, which is now against The Blight, which is no small thing -- built into the fabric of the universe, it is an inevitable doom that is only forestalled by Cyttorak hiding our dimension from it. The annual contest between Earth's Sorcerer Supreme and Cyttorak's Scions held as its prize the continuation of Cyttorak's efforts; should the Champion fall, The Blight arrives. And, needless to say, when Parker forfeited The Blight arrived.
So what now? Again, like the Iron Man story, Spider-Man is way out of his depth and is a fish out of water. That means it was really hard to guess where this was gonna go. I like it when I can't guess where a story is gonna go! And I really like the Ed McGuinness art, which is flavored with a little John Romita Sr. McGuinness, unlike "pastische" artists who just copy other people (you can make your own list), McGuinness is a fantastic artist in his own rightm, and isn't swiping. He just models his Spidey on the Romita version -- a whole different thing -- and the flashes I see of the old master make me happy.
I won't spoil the ending, because it seems to really shake up the magical side of things. Doctors Doom and Strange, Cyttorak, Cyttorak's remaining two children and the Juggernaut all have interesting roles to play. On the Spidey side -- well, No. 70 is the last issue before the first issue of the new series, so Joe Kelly basically has to put all the toys back in the box. It's status quo for Spidey, which is a little disappointing.
STORM #1-5
But now I'm going to peace out. I'm not very happy about this series, which seems more interested in establishing Storm as The Greatest Person Who Ever Lived, rather than entertaining us with any drama or struggle. Storm is so naturally wonderful that gods exalt her. It's hagiography, not characterization. They should just change the name of the book to Mary Sue for truth in advertising.
I still have two more issues ordered from Westfield, so I'll let y'all know if anything Doom-related happens there. I doubt it -- I think Storm's brief participation was a one-off.
I’m back for more “One World Under Doom.” I order the peripheral books from Westfield Comics, which arrive once a month, so as it happens I’m not far behind on what I have in hand. I do get One World Under Doom the maxiseries “live” at the comic shop, so eventually, when I catch up, I’ll be talking about that series in real time.
Meanwhile, some more peripheral books:
WEAPON X-MEN #1
And yet, it failed. Weapon X-Men is already canceled, with the upcoming issue #5 the last.
I’m not going to know why that happened by reading one issue, but I will say that I wasn’t all that entertained. For one thing, Deadpool is famous as the Merc with a Mouth. But his dialogue here wasn’t funny, largely because it was over-written. Note to would-be comedy writers: Explaining the joke sucks out whatever funny it ever had.
There's also the membership. I have no interest in either Jonathan Starsmore (whatever his code name is) or Warbird, whose niche was filled by his brother while he was dead, and I think the whole world would agree we like the brother more. I haven't the slightest idea why these two obscure X-Men got to stand in a spotlight that includes Wolverine, Deadpool and Cable. But it did not make them more interesting by proximity.
It’s also not connected to “One World Under Doom” in any substantial way. The story takes place in Latveria (briefly), but the hidden villain turns out to be someone not named Victor. The connection to “One World Under Doom” is nearly non-existent.
I’d say I don’t recommend this title, but the market has already spoken for me.
X-FACTOR #7
A lot happens for X-Factor, though. It is here the team learns of Doom’s takeover, Angel takes over from Havok as team leader (who was disgraced in some fashion in the previous issue), we meet a mutant assault team from Chechnya called Black Wolf and we learn what has become of Genosha.
It is the latter that is the crux of the story. Genosha has been bought by a billionaire techbro who has renamed it Gigosha and has built a society run by algorithm and populated by refugees from around the world. There’s some social commentary here about such things, which I mildly enjoyed, although it was pretty predictable.
The best part of the book is the presence of the world’s most forgettable mutant, Forget-Me-Not. If you've forgotten who he is, well, you're supposed to! Ha! OK here's his deal: His mutant power is that no recording device can record him, and no one can remember him if they’re not looking directly at him. That makes for a lot of situational humor, but kudos to whatever writer realized it makes him the greatest stealth operative in the world.
No recommendation, but again, this book is already canceled.
DOOM’S DIVISION #1
By the end of the issue the team is forced to accept three new members (Karma from Vietnam, and formerly the X-Men; Aero, from China; and Wave, from the Philippines). They are to become a “pan-Asiatic” superhero team renamed Doom’s Division, but really, they’re main target is Sunfire, who is apparently leading a one-man insurrection against Doom in Japan.
I can’t say that anyone outside of Luna Snow (the singer who gets most of the attention) was very interesting to me. I do like Sunfire, probably from long familiarity more than actual pleasure, so that gives me something to look forward to in what promises to be four long issues to come.
AVENGERS #24
RED HULK #1-2
Ross connects with some of the prisoners, the ones who know Morse Code. There are probably more—possibly many, many more—but Ross is only aware of those who can communicate with Morse. And those are the only ones who can organize a jailbreak. That’s kind of sad.
So Ross, Machine Man and Deathlok escape. Spoiler, all the other Morse-talkers get killed. It’s not exactly The Great Escape, although that is, ironically, the title of the second issue. Which ends with the trio being pursued in the mountains of Latveria by Doombots—and Doom himself arriving (by proxy) at the climax.
I have to say that I just don’t like Thunderbolt Ross, not one little bit. Doom can dissect him, for all I care. But I’m game for anything that complicates Doctor Doom’s life, so I’ve got that to look forward to in the issues to come.
Red Hulk is an ongoing, but I won’t be following it after the crossover. I just hope it doesn’t stick with the crossover for a whole nine issues. Have I mentioned I don't like Thunderbolt Ross?
THUNDERBOLTS: DOOMSTRIKE #1-2
Of special importance is that it seems Bucky led a Thunderbolts team whose purpose was to track down and kill The Red Skull. According to these issues, they succeeded, although (for reasons I don’t know), Bucky let Doctor Doom strike the fatal blow.
And it makes sense Doom would have no love for Johann Schmidt, as Doom is Romany, which was one of the groups the Nazis tagged for The Final Solution. It really doesn’t make sense that Doctor Doom or Magneto (who is Jewish) have suffered the Skull to live this long. But apparently, he is dead. (For now. Sigh.)
This all took place in Thunderbolts (fifth series) #1-5 in 2023, when Bucky (now called The Revolution) teamed with Sharon Carter (now called The Destroyer), Red Guardian, Black Widow (who now has a symbiote), White Widow, Shang-Chi, USAgent and Contessa Valentina Allegro de Fontaine (who turned out to be an LMD).
So Doom feels like he owes Bucky a debt, which is why he’s not dead already.
Also, Bucky is currently teaming with the Ghost Rider of 1944, Wolverine, Peggy Carter and Nick Fury in a five-issue miniseries set in WWII called Hellhunters. That’s significant because Ghost Rider ’44 makes an important appearance in issue #2.
Just about everybody else from the previous iteration makes an appearance in these two issues, albeit not always on Bucky’s side. And the Buckster goes on two missions in these issue, both of which Doom planned for and blew up in his face.
Which is why a lot of his former allies are joining Doom, going to ground or otherwise telling him to shove off.
All of which I find very entertaining. What really makes it work is the sense of — and I apologize for using the word, which is the only appropriate one — doom that permeates the series. Bucky has always been the unlucky superhero, and things really aren’t going very well for him. This miniseries (five issues) is almost half over and nothing's gone well for Bucky yet.
I like everything about this series except for Bucky’s code name. The sooner he becomes “Winter Soldier” again, the better. “The Revolution” sounds like a band name.
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