I think he implies that there is no point in saying it, since he can offer no proof, and there is no reason they should believe him. Johnny, hot-headed though he is, point out that even quoting facts supposedly known only to Reed doesn't prove anything. Doom is capable of learning just about anything he wants to learn
I wonder what that says about how well Reeds knows Doom vs how well Doom knows Reed if Reeds Richard could pull off Doom better doom than doom can impersonate him.
Edit:Then again I seem to vaguely that at least one evil Reed Richards, the ultimate one was accused of being more Doctor Doom than Doctor Doom but given that was the old ultimate universe where Doctor Doom was apparently a bit of a idiot I am not sure that counts.
I wonder what that says about how well Reeds knows Doom vs how well Doom knows Reed if Reeds Richard could pull off Doom better doom than doom can impersonate him.
Edit:Then again I seem to vaguely that at least one evil Reed Richards, the ultimate one was accused of being more Doctor Doom than Doctor Doom but given that was the old ultimate universe where Doctor Doom was apparently a bit of a idiot I am not sure that counts.
Look, this may be a weird and/or stupid concept for a storyline - but that is still one hell of a cover! Doctor Reed forgoes any fancy dress-up for his marriage; he has shown up in elaborate royal dress before, but I guess the iconic look is good enough here. Sue, meanwhile, does pull out the full white dress and corsages. The amusing part of the cover is half a dozen heroes making incredulous 'What the fuck?' expressions all around them, with the funniest two being Daredevil (who is looking in the wrong direction because, duh) and Wolverine (Who just straight-up doesn't give a fuck.)
Story Overview
Say -- What?!
The comic opens with a mock newspaper article - the Daily Bugle reports on the upcoming marriage of the Invisible Woman and Doctor Doom. Creatively, the article is attributed to the writers of the comic book! In a development that rocked the superhero community and the world at large, it was announced today that Susan Storm Richards, the wife of Reed Richards, will be named consort of the infamous ruler of Latveria, Doctor Doom. Beyond that announcement, there was no further comment from representatives of either person involved, or from the other members of the Fantastic Four, especially her husband.
J. Jonah Jameson adds his own commentary - he wonders if Spider-Man is involved? He argues that at this point it's useless to speculate on the reasons behind a decision which can most charitably be described as utter madness, and he hopes that Sue returns to her senses and realizes that she's making a pact with the devil. However, given the Fantastic Four's long association with the equally notorious Spider-Man, perhaps this act should come as no surprise. Since the very existence of these super-beings is viewed by many as a violation of nature, why should they expect even those whom they thought of as the best of the breed to pay any attention to the laws of society…?
There's a whole barrage of reaction shots on the next few pages - Cap has no comment, Iron Man confirms that the Avengers are keeping a close eye on developments, and President Bill Clinton argues he never believes everything he reads in the newspapers. The Black Widow wonders if Sue has gone mad, while the Red Skull (whom someone apparently interviewed for this) asks after the fate of Reed Richards or that lovely little child of theirs… Alicia Masters says this must be a terrible mistake, while a regular joe mentions that he thought the Fantastic Four and Doom hated each other's guts! Jameson just tells the interviewer to read his commentary, Tony Stark says he's reserving judgment (hold on, did they interview him twice?) while She-Hulk is appalled.
Namorita says her heart goes out to Sue's friends, especially her brother, while Namor tells Sue that if she values her life, she should walk away now! Magneto concludes the Fantastic Four shall suffer from this unholy alliance, while the Black Panther agrees that this is cause for the gravest concern. Matt Murdock says that as the team's attorney, he prays that they know what they're doing. Marcie Davenport figures they are trading up from living in a warehouse, while Dr. Valerie Cooper, a government official, says that the administration will make an appropriate response. Nova concludes Doom must have made an offer that Sue couldn't refuse, while Nick Fury states that they're on top of the situation. Queen Dorma of Atlantis just says that Doom will quickly tire of her…
An NPR news reporter, Manoli Wetherell, states that in the absence of definitive information, rumors continue to circulate regarding the impending ceremony. The abrupt disappearance of Mrs. Richards' husband adds fuel to the growing controversy, and as the story grows to worldwide proportions, so too do the questions being posed from every quarter. How can the Fantastic Four conceivably ally themselves with a man who's sought their death on innumerable occasions? What is the significance of the huge spacecraft that appeared without warning over the Hudson River, close to the FF's home at Pier Four? Since the Invisible Woman is already married, how can she ever consider this union? And if her intentions are indeed serious and legitimate… what has happened - what will happen - to her family?
Many believe New York City to be the media capital of the world - it certainly seems so today, as a veritable army of reporters lay siege to Avengers Mansion - facing Central Park on Manhattan's exclusive Fifth Avenue. At the same time, barely a couple of miles across town, news helicopters fly as close as they dare to the giant spaceship whose massive bulk nearly fills the Hudson from shore to shore. If anything, the throng of newshounds and paparazzi and gawkers at the FF's warehouse is even worse. The Avengers at least have a wall to define the boundary of their property! Suddenly an interview with the Fantastic Four - a single candid photograph - has become the most valuable commodity on Earth. For that kind of potential reward, some daredevils will take any risk…
A couple of divers approach Pier Four underwater, locating Reed Richards' lab - one decent shot, and they'll be rich! The other comments that if this really involves Doctor Doom, it's more likely they'll be dead! It's a moot point - nobody's home. What now? They decide to wait for as long as they have air, as sooner or later something is bound to happen! Inside the room, Reed watches the divers and concludes that his Chameleon Glass is working like a charm, placing holographic illusions to mask what's going on inside from whoever is watching, allowing Reed to do his work in relatively complete privacy. What's especially frustrating to Reed, though, is that he's denied access to most of his own equipment. Above all others, the defensive systems - both hardware and software - were designed to repel Doctor Doom. As far as his computers are concerned, Reed now represents his own worst nightmare!
Reed ditches his cape, revealing that he's stenciled a '4' onto Doom's tabard, and admits that ironically, his machines are not completely wrong. Thanks to the Dreaming Celestial he's been trapped inside the armor of his greatest adversary, and the voice he speaks with is Doom's, as are the retinal imprints of his eyes - there's nothing he can say or do to establish his bonafides that Doom hasn't done himself to deceive them in some past encounter. Sue, bless her, and his teammates are willing to accept his identity purely on faith, but no one else will. Doom is simply too dangerous. Everyone will assume this is a trick based on past experience, and they dare not do otherwise. The consequences of a mistake would be catastrophic. Worst of all, that caution is wholly justified - Doom didn't return to Earth alone. He brought with him a quartet of super-powered monarch warlords, whose allegiance was secured partly through the promise of a new world to conquer…
Reed concludes that he's a man riding the tail of the tiger - he needs to be free of this armored prison, yet the only thing that prevents those warlords from launching their campaign is their fear of Doom! Back to basics, then - solve one problem at a time, then worry about the rest. Reed cobbled together an interface module out of spare parts which should allow him direct virtual access to the armor's command network. First order of business is to examine the defensive interlocks and then find a way to disable them. Spoken aloud like that, it sounds so easy…
Reed activates his device and finds himself in a virtual reality representation of Doom's defense systems - which naturally shape themselves into a castle. Reed appears as himself, and is happy for an instant - but immediately realizes that if he'd appeared as Doom, he would likely have been obeyed without question. Regrettably, since the system perceives him as Reed Richards, it's sure to treat his presence and actions as hostile! That would certainly explain why he manifested in a dungeon! Reed can stretch again, even if it's only virtual, and admits that being cramped inside that armor was driving him a little crazy. He wonders how Victor can even stand it! Reed's cell door is open - that's tempting, but too obvious. He decides to pass it by. Judging from the stone and architecture around him, Reed concludes the VR world has to be Castle Doom itself, and water seeping along the walls indicates close proximity to the moat.
Reed notes that the setting may appear medieval, but its defenses will be the ultimate in technological sophistication - the castle is a metaphor for the armor itself, and this scenario is a representational analog for his attempt to decrypt the locking codes. If he can escape from this dungeon, that should likewise bring about his release from the armor! Assuming, of course, they're all playing fair. His interface module acts as a stand-in for the computer built into his uniform, allowing him to make a comprehensive analysis of the structure of the cell and its defenses - so far, so good! Not only are his uniform and powers the same as in objective reality, but he possess the tools he normally carries with him, too!
Reed uses his stretchy body to hide his actions from any monitors, then goes about making his preparations to escape - now for the acid test to see if they work! He goes for the obvious escape route to provoke the cell door into slamming shut and for an array of energy blasters to open fire, after which he uses an array of lenses to bend the beams where he wants them. They're designed solely to incapacitate, but he uses a handheld amplifier to concentrate their energy into one spot to turn them into a beam of sufficient intensity to cut through stone!
He soon breaches the wall, and the room starts flooding - he has no time to waste! With the door sealed, the cell will quickly fill, which means Reed won't have to fight against the current.
One deep breath later, away he goes! It's a tight fit, but the amplifier couldn't contain sufficient charge to make the tunnel any wider. Partway through something happens behind him - there's a crash as the door bursts open and water's pouring down the tunnel at speed again, like a tidal wave. He's being bludgeoned every inch of the way! Finally Reed manages to slip through the far side into the moat, but he's not yet free - his lungs are burning! He has too little air to risk stretching to the surface for a breath, so it has to be all or nothing. Reed isn't sure if the armor would allow him to drown, or to come to any fatal harm…? Reed rushes upwards and bursts through the surface with a cry of: 'I made it!'
As he pulls himself out of the moat, though, he realizes he's once more clad in Doom's armor. The entire scenario is a deception, he concludes, and he fell for it! This first round, Doom has won!
Elsewhere, Johnny is guzzling down energy drink after energy drink, then torching the cans. After the second one Spider-Man suddenly webs away the can and tells him that if he's going to drink in public, he'd better be prepared to share! Johnny tells him he sounds like his third grade teacher. Spidey figures they probably shared the same one, then wonders what's up. 'Family business,' Johnny says curtly. Spidey wonders if he's suddenly in the Godfather - only the family can understand the family business, only the family can deal with it? Man, has being part of a team taught him anything? Like turning to others when there's a need? Johnny points out that Spider-Man himself is the quintessential loner, but he argues that he pays attention - he makes notes. He also likes to think the two of them are friends.
Spidey wonders if Johnny even realizes how nuts this whole consort thing sounds? One morning the Fantastic Four are intact, and life is good. The very next day, Reed Richards has vanished and his wife is announcing her engagement to her husband's worst enemy! Johnny grouches that if only he knew the truth… Spider-Man says the ears, and he'll make the time. Johnny tells him to put a hold on that thought - something more important just came up! As a car-chase drives by, with several goons firing guns at a cop car, Johnny takes a few long range blasts at the scene. Spidey says that seems a tad dangerous, but Johnny says that Spidey shoots web, but he shoots flame. His control is just as precise, so his fireballs melt their engine on contact to stop them in their tracks, after which the sudden stop makes the airbags deploy which keeps the crooks from getting hurt and immobilizes them long enough for the cops to rush in and arrest them.
A while later, sitting high on top of the Chrysler building, Johnny tells Spidey that Sue's his sister and he loves her, and he trusts her and Ben with his life… but then he looks at what she's doing and who she's doing it with, and dude… he's lost. He wonders if Spider-Man ever gets the feeling that maybe fate hates him? Spider-Man admits that, yeah, sometimes he does. He seems dejected enough that Johnny asks him if he's okay, and the wallcrawler says he's just thinking about what Johnny said. To himself, he muses that his wife is dead - Mary Jane is gone forever, and all because of his life as Spider-Man. He never even got a chance to say goodbye! (This references the events of Amazing Spider-Man #13 and Peter Parker: Spider-Man #13, in which MJ took a plane for an exotic photoshoot which crashed/exploded. She got better.) Johnny asks Spidey if there's anything he can do to help - they are pals, after all. Spider-Man points out that's supposed to be his line - but thanks. Seriously though, if he wants to stop this marriage ceremony thing, he'll stand by his side to the end! Johnny never doubted it, but says that if he does that and they succeed… then the whole world is doomed!
Meanwhile, at the White House, an emergency meeting of the Committee of Superhuman Affairs is called to order. Presiding officer, also acting as special liaison to the President and the National Security Council, is Doctor Valerie Cooper. She states that a week ago Reed Richards contacted leading members of the world scientific community, plus the Avengers, to inform them of an impending catastrophic celestial event which he characterized as a 'chaos wave' capable of reordering space and time and even causality itself. In other words - the end of the world. Considering recent planetary history, and the critical involvement of the Fantastic Four in many such similar events, his warning was not taken lightly. Indications were that he was making plans to resolve the situation, to prepare a planetary defense.
Within twenty-four hours of those events, Reed Richards has disappeared along with - they have subsequently determined - his son Franklin and two other members of his household. Richards' place among the Fantastic Four has been taken by his arch-adversary, Doctor Doom...
No sooner had he assumed that role than both Doom and Susan Richards announced that she would shortly be crowned his royal consort. One of the people on the committee asks if that's even legal - there's no proof her husband is even dead! Valeria states that there's evidently ample precedent in the law and history of the Principality of Latveria, of which Doom is the monarch. The ruling Prince has the right to claim a consort, regardless of her marital status, for the good of the state.
A remarkably Fox Mulder-looking guy wonders if they should institute criminal proceedings - or at least a police investigation into these disappearances? Another points out that once the woman is crowned Doom's consort, she may acquire his diplomatic immunity, and they may not be able to touch her. Fox says that's unconscionable! Valeria states that this isn't necessarily the case - the question of who actually rules Latveria is in some doubt due to recent events over there. If he's not internationally recognized as a head of state, he has no diplomatic immunity. A general comments that for the moment, that's the least of their worries - isn't that right?
Valeria says she's afraid so - see, they've identified a quarter of subordinates to Doom who reside on board his spacecraft and possess some measure of ultrahuman powers - the four we've seen before. An admiral asks where the craft came from - what are its capabilities? Unknown. The general asks about Doom's intentions - unknown. Is there anything they do know? Valerie says that their assessment is that the vessel carries a sizable complement of crew and ancillary personnel. Given Doom's history, the conclusion that these are troops is logical. Given his brilliance, the assets at his disposal are sure to be formidable. A Secretary asks that if they assume hostile intentions, where do they stand? Bluntly, the general admits that they're between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Another Secretary exclaims that surely they'd prevail? After all, they have the Avengers on their side!
Valeria darkly comments that even if they did come out victorious, it would be the most pyrrhic of victories. Look what happened in Slorenia, when the Avengers fought Ultron. Make no mistake, ladies and gentlemen - the threat they face is grave. That ship and the man who commands it represent a clear and present danger to the security of the United States and the planet. There is no margin for error here - whatever they decide, they have to get things right the first time. Because if it comes to war, the forces involved, the powers involved, will in all likelihood lay waste to this nation, this continent… and quite probably the entire world.
Back at Pier Four, Sue makes her way into Reed's lab and finds him crumpled on the floor - she guesses it's not one of his better days. Reed says he's never denied Victor's brilliance… Sue fills in that deep down, Reed was always certain he was better. Don't Greeks have a word for that? Reed sarcastically responds that he thanks her so much for her support in his hour of trial! Sue states that if she had any doubts about the eventual outcome, she wouldn't make fun. On the other hand, she also knows Victor von Doom, and has no illusions on that score either - this won't be easy. Reed says that's not even half of it - the defensive system built into the armor is not only a masterpiece of subtlety and complexity - but it's borderline aware! It learns, and the better Reed gets, the better it becomes in response. He just has to find a way to get ahead of the learning curve. He slowly admits that if the situation wasn't so serious, he'd have to say in truth… he hasn't had so much fun in ages.
Sue concludes he at least found a challenge worthy of the name, and Reed agrees that it's something like that. Now, how is she holding up? Sue admits it's quite an experience, becoming the world's premier tabloid news story. The reporters are unfortunately the tip of the iceberg - they've received official notices from the federal, state, and local governments revoking all flight permits, both in and out of the atmosphere, revoking the Special Use Permit for the warehouse's fusion power plant, and they're challenging the Certificate of Occupancy that allows them to live here… and oh yeah, the District Attorney demands proof of the existence and wellbeing of her husband and son, or she may face criminal charges. Aside from that, it was a perfectly normal day!
Sue tells Reed not to worry about it - she's got the situation well in hand. All the legal matters are in the hands of their attorneys, and as for the rest… they'll find a way to cope. Reed says he's heard what the people are saying, and they're wrong. He feels like a fool, though - this is their original rocket launch all over again, when his arrogance led to their transformation into the Fantastic Four. He thought he knew all the answers, and his dearest friends suffered for it. What was it George Santayana said? 'Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it?' Reed anticipated opposition, but nothing so personal and visceral, or long-lasting. There's only one way to put a stop to it. He's canceling the ceremony!
Sue observes that this ceremony, and the consequences, are a small price to pay for the allegiance of Doom's generals. Reed argues he can handle them, and Sue congratulates him on that - but has he considered the consequences of that? They're not talking about just their own lives here, but the future of two worlds! Plus, to set history straight, once and for all, Reed made no mistake during their first flight - they fell prey to the unknown. How could Reed anticipate contingencies and threats in a realm where no one had ever traveled before? And how dare he diminish her and Johnny and Ben by assuming that their own decisions were cavalier and facile? Young they might have been, but they were never stupid. They all understood the risks and accepted them. Now they choose to stand besides Reed, because they're a family. That's where they belong. It's well past time that Reed started accepting that basic truth! Reed says that it's not a woman he married - but a lion! He'll play his part, he promises, but he also swears he'll find a way home to her as himself. She has his solemn oath on that, as Odysseus pledged to his beloved Penelope…
Over at Avengers Mansion, uptown and to the right from Pier Four, in the heart of the Gold Coast neighborhood of Fifth Avenue, Ben has been shanghaied by the super-team that calls the place home to answer some questions. Cap apologizes for the manner in which he was brought there, but he explains that as colleagues and friends, they felt the situation was urgent enough to justify such drastic and extreme measures! Ben concludes this is an intervention, but Cap says there's no time for levity - this is serious. Ben says that all he can say is that this is family business - it's private. As far as Doom goes, everything's cool. Beyond that, they'll just have to trust him! Justice goes 'Excuse me?!' Meaning absolutely no offense here - but this is Doctor Doom. It wasn't long ago that the Mad Thinker turned Ben into a bad guy, and he nearly did the same to the Avengers, so how do they know this isn't something similar?
Ben wonders if the Avengers really didn't scan for that when he arrived, and Firestar admits he's got a point there - no evidence of outside influence, he's clean. But you see, that only makes matters worse! Iron Man says she's right - after all that happened lately with Magneto, the Red Skull, Zero Tolerance and Ultron, the United Nations are scared, and that makes them very dangerous. Justice says that were Doom's concerned, those folks couldn't care less about civil liberties, they just want answers. And they'll do whatever's necessary to get them - the Avengers are just trying to prevent that, doesn't he see that? Ben says he's trying to do the same - and he appreciates what the Avengers are doing and sympathizes with the bind he's putting them in… but sometimes you have to play the hand you're dealt. Now, with all due respect and apologies, he's got commitments. Which means he'll be taking his leave!
Iron Man states that Ben will have to get past him and Thor first. 'Whatever!' Ben snaps and he jumps upwards to grab onto some of the training rings on the ceiling, then swings across the room past the team. Iron Man snaps that this is something they don't need, and commands everyone to take him down. Firestar quickly blasts Ben with a focused beam of microwave energy.
This dislodges Ben, and before he even hits the floor Justice uses his telekinetic powers to bind him tightly. Unfortunately the force of Justice's power is a function of his will, and in that regard - when pitted against the Thing - he falls short. The backlash of Ben's escape knocks him senseless, and Iron Man snaps that the one thing they didn't want was a fight - but now it's started, let's pray an accelerated volley of repulsor rays will put a stop to it before this gets any more out of hand! Ben rolls away from the impact, and Iron Man is not surprised he's proving as formidable an opponent as he is an ally…
Ben concludes that the Avengers are pulling their punches, but he sure doesn't want to take another hit like that - or anything worse! He's got to find a way to make the odds a little more even - starting, he thinks, with a bit of judicious sabotage! He sets off the fire suppression system, and Iron Man states that it's a smart move - the extinguishing foam not only makes it nearly impossible to see, but it's also affecting his armor's sensors. Thor declares there is but one exit from this chamber - so when their foe seeks them out, he will find the God of Thunder barring his way! Ben suddenly swings in and notes that Thor already tried this trick - he's got to ask, is it his good looks as the idol of millions which blinds him to the fact… that he's more than a one-trick pony? With a body like his, and a moniker to match, he figured all the Thing would be good for was a head-on punch-fest? Ben tosses Thor into the Scarlet Witch and they both go down…
Firestar is aghast that Scarlet Witch was taken out, and Black Widow states that it was a great strategy on Ben's part to eliminate not only the Deputy Leader, but also one of the few among them who is capable of doing the Thing serious harm! Iron Man states there are still more than enough Avengers left to finish the job. Yeah… In surprisingly short order Ben punches Wonder Man through a wall and tells him to stay down. He grouches that he supposes he should be grateful for small favors - they've all been pulling their punches, which is only fair since he's been doing the same. Neither side really wants to hurt the other, but the problem is there's so many of them! Ben is nearly outside, only to run into one last problem - Captain America.
Cap states that he cannot let the Thing pass, and Ben tells him that he'll just have to stop him, then. The Avenger observes that Ben is at the end of his tether - he's finished. Ben snarls that Cap might beat him, but the FF don't quit! That's when Cap opens his hand and states he doesn't want to have this fight. Ben agrees - and asks for trust. As Cap offers his shoulder to a flagging Ben, he wonders if he knows what he's asking here. Ben says he's asking for a leap of faith - isn't that what trust, not to mention America, is all about? Cap agrees, and prays that they both don't live to regret this. Amen to that, Ben says, amen to that…
We switch over to the Soho atelier of haute couture designer Kay Cera, currently under siege by the world's paparazzi, who are desperate for a photograph of Sue's new Trousseau… or better yet, something deliciously scandalous. Sue is there alongside her friends, She-Hulk and the Wasp, who tell her they'll stand by her no matter what, but can she at least tell them why? They're suddenly ambushed by paparazzi who recognize the two other heroes next to Sue and wonder if that means she's under arrest? She-Hulk wonders if these clowns have any decency? Or better yet, an understanding of restraining orders?
The photographers argue they're just doing their jobs, but the Wasp gets annoyed at them making people's lives miserable and lets loose a few low-strength wasp stings to chase them off. Sue turns invisible to avoid the throng, thinking to herself that there's going to be the devil to pay for this - and it's all her fault! She should never have let Jennifer and Janet come along - not that she could have stopped them. At least she's taken away the photographers' main target for now, so maybe they'll get bored and leave. Nah, fat chance. She's got a nasty feeling this is a small taste of what lies ahead for Baroness von Doom… She'll just have to be strong enough to cope.
Sue is soon approached by several models who are showing off wedding dresses - are those all for her? Kay's done herself proud, Sue concludes, and then some! They're all so beautiful, she doesn't know where to begin to choose! Namor suddenly intrudes and wonders if, considering the circumstances, widow's weeds would not be more appropriate. Sue asks what he's doing here - how did he…? He explains that when he heard the news, he thought it was some vicious joke. When he discovered it was true… he could not stay away. Say the word, and he will free her from this nightmare! He's always believed, from the moment they met, that if she were free…
Sue instantly tells him she's not. To him, above all, she wishes she could explain the situation… but instead she begs him to have faith, to trust her. Namor immediately agrees, and says that it's customary among his people as with hers, to give the bride a gift. He hands her a necklace which vanishes the moment she puts it on - it's magical. Should danger ever threaten her, should she merely need a friend… simply return to the Mother Ocean. That necklace will keep her safe until Namor finds her… and she assures Sue that he will find her. They then share a hug, for old time's sake…
Back at Pier Four, in the shadow of Doom's starship, we meet up with the Fantastic Four in their Sunday Best, with Sue wearing a blue Fantastic Four-themed gown over her dress. It's time! Before they go, Reed would have a word? Just one, Ben wonders? That'll be the day! 'If you please, Ben, I'm serious.' Ben points out there's six words right there! Sue angrily snaps at Ben to keep his mouth shut and let Reed talk already. As Reed was trying to say before that comedy routine, he knows that today will be hard for all of them. It may change the way the world sees the Fantastic Four, it may end friendships that have lasted a lifetime. This is as much a voyage into the unknown as their first ride into space, and now - as then - he has no idea about the outcome. The risks, and the price demanded of them, are likely to be as great as the rewards are uncertain. But the comfort to him, at least, is that they'll be walking this road together.
Reed says he's never been more proud, or honored, or humbled to have them as his friends. And as his family. Now - as Doom would say - let's go save the world one more time! Ben points out to Johnny that this definitely has to be Reed - could you imagine Doctor Doom trying to crack wise with a joke? Johnny belatedly pretends like he didn't get it's a joke - he feels so relieved! Ben figures he's really hankering to die right this minute isn't he? Dying is easy, he says, it's comedy that's hard…
Manoli Wetherell returns with her TV coverage, reporting live alongside Bob Edwards and Neil Conan. You couldn't ask for a more beautiful day for an outdoor ceremony - the irony of course being that a royal union such as this - a formal affair of the state - would normally be attended by a crowd of world leaders and dignitaries. Instead, aside from Doctor Doom's associates, the only guests present are the Avengers, and their presence has more to do with the growing international concerns about the ultimate intentions of the former ruler of Latveria, and the capability of the great space vessel to carry them out. She asks Neil for thought, and he says he can offer only the most obvious - which is to wonder if the Invisible Woman knows precisely what she's doing. Under Latverian law, especially for the Alliance of State such as this, there is no divorce. Once she accepts the crown… unless Doom himself agrees to an annulment, Susan Storm Richards will henceforth be known for the rest of her life… as the Baroness von Doom! We see Reed himself place the tiara upon Sue's head, thereby concluding the ceremony.
Just before the final page, we also get a little (very awkward) cameo panel in which Stan Lee and Jack Kirby burst into the writers room to say that they hope the youngsters know what they're doing, or they'll answer to them! They should shape up, true believers, as they're messing with the primal forces of the Marvel universe! There's a bunch of other cameos present in that room - Chris Claremont, the writer of this issue, Salvador Larroca, the penciller, Art Thibert, the inker, Maria Pilar, to whom the cover is dedicated, and Bobby Chase, the editor. Art wonders why artists look like artists, and writers… like writers. How very deep! This panel is kind of embarrassing and very out of place. Bleh.
We return to the actual story to see Reed announcing to the peoples of the world that for the new year, the new century, the new millennium - Doctor Doom presents: The All-New Fantastic Four!
Rating & Comments
This… is kind of nuts, isn't it? It feels like we've jumped a decade or two into the future from the previous issue in terms of presentation and style of storytelling (though it's still just as wordy.) With its semi-realistic approach to the world's response to this ridiculous premise, the comic feels like we've suddenly left the 90's behind and have stepped into a far more cynical post-9/11 setting. Which is crazy because that hasn't even happened yet! The 2000's are a hell of a drug, apparently. We get the viewpoints of colleagues of the team, the common man, the sensationalist press, the US government, the Avengers, friends and family… everyone. Hell, we get people discussing the legalities, and Sue and Reed have a frank discussion on trust and faith in each other which actually sort of lands. This entire issue is built on a weird-ass quicksand base, but I want to read more like it. Doctor Doom isn't present to enjoy all this attention, but he's never felt like more of a bona fide world issue.
The comic starts with a newspaper clipping, and that already feels like a commentary on the sensationalist press of today, the ones who only really write headlines - nobody has any details, but it's time to bring a story to print anyway! One wonders where they got a photograph of Reed and Sue posing together when they intentionally avoid that situation the entire issue? Jameson's commentary which dismisses the uselessness of speculating before immediately uselessly speculating on the involvement of Spider-Man is a nice touch, though. The next few pages show reporters asking everyone about their opinion - from obvious people like the Avengers to mad choices like the Red Skull or freaking Dorma. Like, these are some ballsy reporters to go visit genocidal supervillains for a soundbite! Red Skull's response is appropriately skeevy, while Dorma's is a bit peculiar - she's sure Doom will tire of Sue, but she was the one who set this up! I guess the implication is that she's counting on this failing so that she can go on conquering like she wants. How long do you reckon it'll be before Dorma escalates again?
It's cool to have an actual news station like NPR report on the ongoing story and speculation, to add a level or realism, and it's pretty neat that it serves as a sort of recap/update on what's going on at the same time. We get an extension of that concept when we see paparazzi attempt to sneak up on the Fantastic Four's base to get a candid shot from underwater. This is all a pretty scathing commentary on the sensationalist press, even if it's couched in newspaper and photography rather than social media and endless TV news broadcasts - not just yet, I guess. It's uncanny how this feels simultaneously modern and dated! This specific combination of older technology with more modern sensibilities places this in a pretty specific and narrow window of time. Of course the presence of the WTC in several scene-setting panels does as well…
Reed recaps most of the last issue after that, then claims his wife and his teammates were willing to accept his identity purely on faith - which is a bit exaggerated, given that Sue spent basically the entirety of the last issue doubting him on that point, and didn't accept it until the actual last page or two. Anyway, it's genuinely clever that Reed is unable to use a lot of his own technology to fix his problems specifically because those machines were all designed to withstand tampering by Doctor Doom! That's a deliciously ironic repercussion of Doom's armor so perfectly mirroring him that even Reed's retina scans are altered to match. If you think about it, this makes total sense - Doombots have to be able to fake their identity to that same level of scrutiny, so why would Doom not use the exact same systems in his real armor? All the better to confuse anyone watching on whether or not he's real, right? Actually, the armor turns out to be a lot more sophisticated than even Reed expected, since he quickly finds out his kit-bashed methods of trying to break its encryption are an issue.
The scene of Reed actually attempting to escape a VR version of the armor's defenses is fun - it's a very 'Hackers' scene where the cryptography is depicted as basically a video game, and it brings to mind various scenes from 2099, where cyberspace worked in a similar fashion. Doom's defenses here are trickery, and even though Reed is careful to use boobytrapped exit to his virtual cell as a method of breaking out somewhere else, it's clear that the VR world adapted to his escape somehow and stopped him from actually succeeding. I'm not entirely sure what it means that he shows up in Doom's armor at the end - wasn't that something he considered would potentially be helpful when he first arrives? I suspect we'll get some follow-up on this later. Seems to me that maybe Reed accidentally locked that thing down even further... For now, it feels like a solo D&D encounter that displays Reed's ingenuity and how it is, ultimately, not enough to outwit his newest opponent... which is an inanimate object!
The comic seems intent on showing what each member of the Fantastic Four is doing while this whole media panic is going on, and it turns out Johnny is hanging out on the street drinking coke. His friendship with Spider-Man is a long-standing thing, so it makes sense that the wallcrawler looks him up to ask what's up with this crazy wedding shit that's happening. The brief aside taking down the robbers is a bit pointless, but the moment they share on top of the Chrysler building makes up for that - Johnny and Spidey bond over being fate's bitch, which seems to be a pretty common theme for web-head. In this case that terrible fate caused Mary Jane to go missing, presumed dead… We'll be following up on that little plot-thread soon, as Spider-Man gets his own Latveria-centric two-parter a month or two after this publication, and it's eligible for this readthrough!
Then we get to the White House scene… and it's stark how grounded and realistic this entire sequence is for a superhero setting. Yes, the people in it talk about superhuman affairs and the risks involved, obviously, but the entire sequence is very much the worried back and forth of various governmental figures on a Committee that's found itself in a crisis. Valerie Cooper lays out the bizarre sequence of events that has happened, notably excluding the events of Fantastic Four v3 #25 because those were retconned after the defeat of the Dreaming Celestial. As such, the government's perception of events goes straight from Reed's panicked warnings about an impending disaster directly to Doctor Doom reappearing out of nowhere with an army, and an announcement of his coming marriage to Sue - with absolutely no transition in between. It's no wonder everyone's freaking out - Reed called out that causality and whatnot could be altered, and then this happened? What the fuck do they do?
There's some smart takes in the committee discussion - people immediately bring up the questionable legality of all this, and it makes sense that a pretty backwards monarchy like Latveria would have archaic rules regarding the 'ruling prince' being able to take anyone as consort regardless of their marital status, for the good of the state. I don't like what Englehart did with that concept that one time, but it makes sense. Some people also suggest beginning criminal proceedings or investigating the disappearance of Reed, Franklin, and Caledonia - I presume they don't even know Valeria exists. Mention is made of diplomatic immunity and how it might extend to Sue, thus preventing easy access to her testimony, and Valeria shrewdly points out that Doom is currently out of power in Latveria due to the succession of takeovers that happened after he vanished, and he hasn't been reinstated to that position. If they just don't recognize his position, there's no such immunity! She's on the ball!
On the more martial side of things, the Generals and Admirals are worried about Doom's foursome of underlings, who are thankfully only a minor part of this comic. They're also desperate to know where on Earth this giant spacecraft even came from, or what it's capable of. Much like Reed, they come to the reasonable conclusion that it's got a whole army onboard, and they point to Doom's brilliance and past history to conclude that things are probably going to be apocalyptically bad. Bluntly speaking, they're stuck - if they do nothing, Doom might end the world. If they act first, Doom might still end the world! Valeria points to the Avengers leaving behind a trail of destruction in Slorenia while fighting Ultron as proof that involving superhumans isn't going to make this any cleaner. That plotline is pretty recognizable from the MCU's adaptation of Civil War. They just called it Sokovia in the movies. In the end, the government's storyline is left to hang there, with the ominous observation that their reaction will have to be right the first time - or they might lay waste to the entire world…
Returning from yet another failed attempt at freeing himself from the armor, Reed is forced to admit that he never quite gave Victor von Doom his due - he never denied the man was brilliant, of course, but he might have to admit that in some regards… he's better. It's pretty telling that Reed tacitly agrees that he may have always, deep down, believed he was better. That is exactly the same belief Doom holds with regards to Reed - he's just a lot more up front about it. These two are pretty similar people, it's hard to argue with that. Sue is confident Reed will manage to come out victorious in the end, but the challenge is great - Doom's armor is not only a masterpiece of craftsmanship, but it's also equipped with some level of awareness - it learns and actively responds to attempts to tamper with its systems, constantly updating to stay ahead of intruders. Reed's admission that he hasn't had this much fun in years goes to show how rarely he feels challenged by anything - and it's Doom's work which gives him that feeling here. There's a pretty good reason a lot of those 'smartest people in Marvel' lists have these two at the top.
Sue relays some of the various other real world consequences of their marriage ruse - they've become a tabloid story, and all levels of government are quickly locking as many doors as they can manage when they realize Doctor Doom might suddenly have access to everything. It makes sense, and it's yet another sign of the surprising level of realism this issue is going for. Reed sees all this mess and tells himself that this is the result of him making the exact same mistake that formed the Fantastic Four - his arrogance leading all his dearest friends to suffer. The ironic echo/pun of 'who does not learn from history is doomed to repeat it…' is appreciated. Reed regrets his decision to go along with the consort thing, now that he sees the many unintended consequences, and he wants to put a stop to it here by canceling the ceremony. I quite like that, it shows that Reed is more complex than just being a utilitarian - and as always, his family is his red line!
Fittingly, Sue is the one to set the facts straight - she acknowledges the inherent dangers of going into the unknown, and that every one of the people on board that rocket were there voluntarily, and accepted those risks. They stood by Reed then, just as they do now, because they're a family - and it's well past time for him to accept that. Reed's response is… very flowery, which is a bit puzzling, but I like that the two get to actually reconcile rather than the awkwardness that was the finale of last issue, when Sue's hesitant recognition of her husband inside the armor was immediately overshadowed by forced marriage proposals. At least here they get to actually show their love to each other rather than put on an act for the sake of some rando assholes…
The weakest part of the issue, at least in terms of storytelling, is the entire Avengers sequence. Ben is a complete badass in it, yes, since he basically solos most of the Avengers roster while both sides are holding back from doing anything permanent. That said, this enforced intervention feels kind of weird - you'd expect these heroes to just… show up? They know where the Fantastic Four live, kidnapping one of them for a one-on-one seems kind of sleazy. I guess they just didn't want to run into Doom? Much like the others on the Fantastic Four team, Ben keeps his mouth shut about the actual details of what's happening, which still seems kind of silly. Still, I guess it only takes one person to leak the information that Doom's not the real deal, and then a war might spark off, and the Avengers picked up a few new junior members recently - both Justice and Firestar get an unusual amount of attention for relative C-listers. Iron Man lays out what's going on, explaining that the United Nations got scared because of all the recent super-disasters, and that makes them dangerous - they'll stomp on civil liberties if it's necessary to get Doom. More seeds of Civil War are sown, I think - and the actual comic book is still half a decade out!
After Ben decides he's not going to play ball, the Avengers get into fight mode - Iron Man blocks Ben's path along with Thor, and when he jumps over them, Tony tells everyone to take him down. I'm not sure what the intent is here - what is beating up the Thing going to do, exactly? I guess Tony agrees since he promptly declares that the one thing they didn't want is a fight! So, uh, why did he start one? Seriously. I'm not entirely sure what Ben actually does to Thor, since said god gets taken down in a pretty nondescript punch from the fire suppressant foam, while the text claims he did something cooler. I guess his secret move was just doing a sneak attack? The whole fight feels kind of pointless until Cap finally shows up to be reasonable, and he gives Ben exactly what he wanted to begin with before all the fighting started. And all he had to do was mow down the entire Avengers roster by himself. I mean, this scene is an improvement over those pointless brawls with Doom's generals, at least, I'll give it that! I wonder if there was a mandate to have at least one fight in every issue at this time? It feels like it.
I'm a bit unclear why Sue decided to go shopping for a wedding dress at the atelier of a famous designer, but was somehow unaware there would be paparazzi there. I do like that she's joined by She-Hulk and the Wasp though, and I appreciated the assumption by some of the reporters that she's being arrested because both of those superheroes work with law enforcement as lawyer and Avenger respectively. In reality they're just her friends, concerned about this apparent whirlwind engagement with her worst enemy. The transition between that paparazzi scene and the next one with Namor is rough, though - she goes from invisible at the side of the path to suddenly being visible in some other room entirely, even though the dialogue seems to follow on from her thoughts in the last panel. If it's supposed to be a dramatic echo sort of thing, it didn't really come across.
Namor is an odd duck in this one - he came to find Sue the moment he heard about what's going on, of course, and then offers his assistance in freeing her from this nightmare of having to marry Doom… but with the clear implication that he always believed he'd be the man for Sue if she ever lost Reed. I'm not sure if he's there out of compassion or because he thinks this is his shot. That makes him kind of skeevy, but it is true that there was a longstanding romantic subplot between these two in the early issues of Fantastic Four, before the marriage of Reed and Sue happened. Plus, the moment Sue says that there's more going on here than her losing her husband, and he should trust her, he instantly takes her side. No protracted fight scene like with Ben, no repeated questions like Johnny - Namor is a bro about it and gives Sue an invisible Chekhov's Necklace as a gift to keep her safe and, judging by the description, it also doubles as an emergency tracking device…
Reed's final speech to the team is quite corny - especially those awful jokes on Ben's part - but I like that he calls back to his earlier conversation with Sue, when he compared this masquerade situation to their original rocket flight together. This time he does the same thing, but instead of emphasizing his own perceived failings, he focuses on the shared risks and rewards of this venture, and how much comfort it gives him that they'll be walking this road together once again. You can say what you want about this storyline, but the focus of the Fantastic Four as a family first - heh - is pretty explicit. Now, let's go save the world one more time!
Some last minute details to mention - Reed is wearing a white banner across his chest in the final panel, and that cloth bears the symbol of a lion - which I suspect is a reference to his earlier statement that Sue has the soul of one, though it may also just be today's Latverian flag. It changes a lot. Reed also has a couple of white ribbons tied to his cloak, which might similarly be intended to represent his new consort. Some attention is drawn to the somewhat sexist part of Latverian law in which Sue cannot divorce without her husband's permission - but this could just as easily be a 'royal prerogative' sort of thing. It's mentioned before that for the good of the country, Doom could basically compel anyone to be his consort anyway. We'll see if her title as 'Baroness von Doom' sticks - but I suspect the 'annulment' loophole here will be used later in this very storyline. Just a guess.
The actual marriage ceremony's depiction is rather tame - the only thing I noticed there (besides the awful cameo panel) is that the final page resembles one of the flashback ones from Valeria's past, but in that one she was already a small child at the time of the wedding. My hypothesis is that Valeria hails from a timeline in which Reed's second child never died, but the events of this issue still happened. Given that Valeria is currently absent (and will be for a while) we can't really get into that, but I'm pretty sure we get an actual explanation closer to her final departure from continuity, so we'll discuss how close I got to what's really happening here at that point.
This issue… was actually surprisingly good? The premise is dumb, sure, and the Ben vs. Avengers scene is mostly just entertaining because it gives him a neat feat to brag about, rather than really contributing much, but this issue lacks some of the foibles of previous issues. It's still wordy, yes, but Doom's generals are sidelined, and instead we get a surprisingly realistic representation of the popular press, Reed's somewhat precarious mental state - between his physical discomfort, emotional unease with everything that's happening, and his reconciliation with his wife - as well as the government's understandable worries about the stand-off with Doom and the seemingly inevitable escalation. Even Spider-Man gets an emotional moment, and Namor shows that he's learned what consent means. Add a dollop of good old corny family drama, and we end up with about as good a comic as this silly premise could result in. Huh, gonna give this four stars? Yeah, gonna go with that. Unexpected!
Best Panel(s) of the Issues
Dramatic group shots are neat, and this is a pretty cool final shot to leave on!
Most Gloriously Villainous Reed Quotes
"I'm the man riding the tail of the tiger. I need to be free of this prison... yet the only thing that prevents those warlords from launching their campaign is their fear of Doom."
"This first round, Doom's won!"
"If the situation wasn't so serious, I'd have to say in truth... I haven't had so much fun in ages."
"I feel like a fool. This is the rocket launch all over again, when my arrogance led to our transformation into the Fantastic Four. I thought I knew all the answers then, and my dearest friends suffered for it. What was it George Santayana said, those who do not learn from history are... doomed... to repeat it?"
"Bless my soul, it isn't a woman I married, but a lion! I'll play my part, Sue. But I also promise to find my way home to you, as myself. You have my solemn oath on that, as Odysseus pledged in ancient days to his beloved Penelope."
"I know today will be hard, for all of us. It may change the way the world sees the Fantastic Four. It may end friendships that have lasted a lifetime. This is as much a voyage into the unknown as our first rocket ride into space, and now, as then, I have no idea of the outcome. The risks - and the price demanded of us- are likely to be as great as the wards are uncertain. But the comfort, to me, at least... is that we'll be walking this road together. I've never been more proud, or honored, or humbled, to have you as my friends. And as my family. Now, as Doom would say, let's go save the world one more time!"
"People of the world - for the new year, the new century, the new millennium, Doctor Doom presents - the all-new Fantastic Four!"
Reed's Bad Hair Day
This cameo-heavy random panel right near the end seems really pointless and I'm not sure if it's supposed to make sense in-universe...
Doom-Tech of the Week
Doom's armor contains what's basically AI Protections that evolve on their own in response to intrusions, and it can spoof one's voice, retina, and basically ever other bodily reading.
I'm currently getting together images for the third 1967 cartoon episode... and Doom gets some excellent supervillain laughs and a fantastic 'BAH!' in that.
I'm currently getting together images for the third 1967 cartoon episode... and Doom gets some excellent supervillain laughs and a fantastic 'BAH!' in that.
Won't lie, I'm really hoping you get to the 1981 Spider-man episodes so I can pull out a line regarding Doom's role in them I've had in me since I watched them.
The episode begins with Ben Grimm carrying a grand piano over his head while heading down the street. Ben is embarrassed at making a spectacle, and hopes none of his fans are watching… As he walks, however, Ben suddenly begins visibly shrinking, and he gets confused - what's going on here? Is this piano getting bigger? No, worse yet - he's getting smaller!
The moment he becomes too small to actually support the instrument it quite abruptly collapses on top of him, smashing its legs in the process, and the piano momentarily slams open and lets out a discordant note. Moments later Ben's tiny hand gropes its way out from the rubble, and the diminutive hero says there's something funny here, but he doesn't feel like laughing! He'd better skedaddle back to FF headquarters! Ben then, of course, runs across the keys of the broken piano and plays ascending notes as he leaves…
Several cars nearly run over Ben while he tries to cross the street - now he knows how an ant feels! He goes for it anyway, dodging the first few cars, then passing by a couple parked bikers. One of them is convinced that Ben has to be one of those mechanical toys for kids, and the other decides that they should go grab it! They squeal by Ben, who shouts at them to watch it. They swiftly make a U-turn and pass him by a few more times. Ben decides he knows how to slow them down - by grabbing a chunk of wood and tossing it into their wheels to make them crash! After nearly killing the duo, Ben makes his way over to them, still buried in the remnants of their destroyed bikes, and tells them to let that be a lesson: next time pick on someone their own size! He then leaves.
Sue Richards, meanwhile, has gone to a bargain sale at a clothing store to look at bits of fabric with a gaggle of other women, and wonders to herself why she comes to these things. Suddenly she begins shrinking, just like Ben did - what in the world? This is impossible! She's almost immediately trampled by a mob of cheap shoppers, so decides she must get to the wall to avoid them. She sees a mousehole and quickly ducks inside - it's not the Ritz, but at least she's safe!
Something hits her from behind as she ducks in there, and when she turns she discovers that it's the tail of the local - it's a mouse caring for a pair of babies! The mother mouse threatens Sue, who realizes that becoming invisible wouldn't make a difference here, since she'd just be sniffed out instead. The mouse takes a few claw-swipes at her, but Sue uses her force field to protect herself. Still, she's trapped and can't stay forever - good thing Reed taught her Judo! She tries it, dramatically judo-flipping the angry mouse off her feet, before apologizing to the animal and taking off. If only she can just get home to the Baxter Building, maybe Reed can figure out what has happened to her!
Reed Richards himself is flying around the city in one of his bizarrely designed flying machines - seriously, it looks like someone stapled a boat to a shoe and attached a rocket engine. He's pleased that the new fuel he designed is a success, and decides he might as well head for home! The moment he says that, though, he starts shrinking like the others, and moments later the craft goes into a steep uncontrolled dive. Reed hangs onto the steering column, but can't seem to move the controls - soon he'll crash! Reed clambers across the dashboard to reach a switch which will activate the auto-pilot, so the craft will land itself back at the Baxter Building. He manages that and as the craft immediately flattens its trajectory, so Reed takes a seat and muses that as soon as he gets back he can try and figure out this shrinking business.
Moments later the craft comes to a stop on top of the building and Reed rushes inside. He calls for Sue, Ben, and Johnny - the former two soon show themselves and lament that Reed was affected by this shrinking too. That tears it, Ben agrees, they're all runts! Suddenly a mysterious woman's voice resounds - who's that? The voice tells them to beware - the Fantastic Four should beware!
Elsewhere, Johnny is working on a fancy car's engine - next to flaming on, this is the most fun a guy can have! Johnny suddenly starts shrinking, but he manages to hold on to the side of the car's side. Unfortunately the fan inside the engine - which is apparently a thing - is about to blow him away. Flame on! He lights up, and decides he'd better get back to headquarters to see if Reed can explain this. Johnny then flies into the Baxter Building and wonders where everyone is. He hears Sue calling for help but doesn't see her - where is she? 'Over here!' Johnny finds the three other heroes, also tiny, and they're about to be pulled into an air intake! Reed warns him that it'll pull him in too if he's not careful. Sure enough, he ends up holding onto a table leg like the others. As they all hold on for dear life, the voice returns, telling the team to beware… beware of Doctor Doom! There's then a sudden commotion, and a cry for help before the voice vanishes. Reed observes that he thought they'd seen the last of Doom - but he's still alive!
The scene then shifts to show that Doctor Doom is watching the situation in the Baxter Building on some monitors, and he's holding captive a woman in a yellow dress with an elaborate headdress. He tells this 'princess' that her warnings were useless - and now she can watch the Fantastic Four struggle in the clutches… of Doctor Doom! Some excellent mad cackling follows. Doom tells her to observe their puny efforts in their endeavor to avoid the air duct! The princess wonders how anyone could be so cruel, and Doom declares that is why the world fears him! What follows is yet more cackling…
Sue warns Ben that she's slipping, and he calls out to Johnny - he should do something, and quickly! He should get that fan turned off! Johnny decides to try and weld the air duct shut, and flies closer to blast the grating with his flames while Reed and Sue warn him not to get too close. He should get back, it's too risky! Johnny says it's their only chance to get out of this! After a few moments Reed says he's getting there - just a few more fireballs! Johnny stops his flamethrower act and throws a couple sparks at the wall, and that finally reduces the metal to slag and covers the opening entirely. He got it, and just in the nick of time! Good shooting, hot stuff!
Ben requests that Reed explain all this, and he admits he does have a theory - but first they'll have to climb up to the eyepiece of his new Electronoscope! I guess that's his way of saying electron microscope. Ben suggests he gives people a boost to get up, while Reed stretches - it should be no problem. Let's go! The scene fades to black for commercials, and when image returns the team has already made it up onto the table - Johnny apologizes he couldn't fly everyone up here, but Ben's been putting on weight! Ben tells him to stop his yakking and climbs up to the eyepiece manually to join up with the others. Reed tells them that if they look into this machine, they'll be the first humans besides himself to have ever seen an atom!
They stare into the device and see a pinkish spherical nucleus surrounded by three visible pathways of closely orbiting yellow particles, and a single larger one further out which goes much slower. Reed says that it looks much like a planet with satellites orbiting around it - they are protons. He declares that it is possible that atoms are actually tiny planets, capable of supporting microscopic lifeforms similar to themselves! Johnny is incredulous at the idea - life similar to their own in so small a form? Reed concludes that Doctor Doom may have ended up on some such atom-planet, or Micro World! It's quite possible this could be his headquarters!
Doom's voice resounds from nowhere and declares that this was a clever guess by Richards - but it will take more than guesswork to get him out of this situation! Suddenly the team starts shrinking once again - this is getting to be a habit! We see the team twirling around in a vortex, and Sue asks what's happening. Reed theorizes they're heading for a Micro World like he just described! Soon enough they shrink into nothing and reappear on a throne room's floor surrounded by several guards armed with barbed spears. Sitting on the nearby throne is a familiar figure who welcomes them… to the Micro World of Doctor Doom! Intense cackling! Doom says he enjoyed toying with the four of them - they managed very well in front of that air intake duct, but now they are prisoners! He commands his minions to put chains on the whole group.
Ben shouts that nobody chains the ever-lovin' Thing - it's clobberin' time! He grabs two spears and lifts their wielders off their feet, then launches them away. Johnny activates his flames and flies up before melting the tops off the enemies' spears - that ought to take care of them! A swordsman attacks Sue, but she blocks the blow with her force field.
Doom, meanwhile, waves his arms and just yells: 'Stop them, you fools!' Ben rushes at Doom himself - now for him, old iron face! Doom exclaims a very dramatic 'BAHHH!' He asks if the Thing really thought he'd catch Doom unprepared? He hits a button on his throne and a ray impacts the whole team. What's that? Reed realizes it's another shrinking frequency ray - they're getting even smaller! Here they go again!
Now barely ankle-height compared to Doom, the villain chuckles, and asks how they're enjoying their diminutive size. Ben flatly states that they don't. Not with him around, the big tin ape! Doom kneels down next to the group and says that's enough of that. But he's curious, what does Reed think of his power over human reduction? Reed admits it's absolutely amazing, and asks how Doom discovered these Micro Worlds. Doom sees no harm in relating his scientific discovery. Is Reed really interested? Reed acknowledges that the Fantastic Four are always interested, and asks him to proceed with the exposition!
Doom flashes back to some time ago, noting that it all happened quite by accident - it was when he accidentally received a full burst of the Shrinking Ray he was working on. It was then that he began his descent into the Micro World, just like the Fantastic Four did. He reached his current size and found himself in a peaceful, happy world… It made his blood boil! Upon meeting the king, Doom presented him with a simple telescope he had constructed out of scrap, and this won him an appointment as Royal Scientist. Doom used that position to immediately build a new molecular shrinking ray that would cause growth as well as reduction.
The first to sample its power were the king and his daughter Pearla, whom he turned miniscule and imprisoned. Thus, Doctor Doom became the ruler of this land! His latest invention allowed him to see and communicate with the land above, the normal-sized world - hence the Fantastic Four's presence!
Doom states that now, however, the game is over. And the Fantastic Four have lost! Ben announces that they haven't lost yet! He rushes over to Doom and grabs his boot, shoving the kneeling man over onto his back. 'Guards!' Doom calls as his boots clang loudly back to the floor.
Reed says he's with Ben, and Johnny does too - Flame on! Reed instructs Sue to go invisible and head for the controls of the shrinking ray! Ben, meanwhile, dodges various guards trying to poke at him with their spears, while Johnny quickly flies after him. Reed uses telescopic punches to still hit the much larger guards in the face until they stay down. Sue, meanwhile, sneaks by Doom as he poses in front of his throne and tells the guards to surround the Fantastic Four - they can't get away! Sue then grabs the controls but an alarm immediately goes off and outlines her in light, and moments later Doom grabs her. 'Got you, my dear!' Her invisibility is useless now!
Doom shouts that the puny mites should hold - because they should hear what Doom has to say. He has their Invisible Girl! Ben agrees that they can see he has her, and they're going to get her back! Come on, gang! 'Really?' Doom wonders, pulling a gas-gun from his belt. ' That may prove difficult!' He sprays the three miniature men with gas and they soon fall unconscious from their inability to breathe. Doom tells his minions to grab all four heroes and put them in with the others. Sue figures at least that's good news - they'll all be together…
Later, Reed wakes up and asks Sue where they are. She explains that they're in prison along with the king of this world and Princess Pearla. As the other two also start waking up, the king has already learned that they are from the same world as the tyrant Doctor Doom. Reed agrees, and Ben says they're not bragging about it. Wait 'til he gets his hands on Mister Tin! Pearla says that will be hard, because they're in a stone prison under a sea of deadly acid! There's no escape! Ben recognizes Pearla's voice as the one that was warning them earlier, and she admits that was her, but that Doom caught her in the act of transmitting before she could explain the circumstances. Ben decides he'll get them all out, acid or no acid! He gets ready to punch, but Johnny ricochets a fireball off the wall to impact his fist. Ow! What's the big idea? The two bicker for a moment, with Johnny telling him it's a terrible idea to just start destroying stuff, and calling Ben a big ox.
'So, you fight each other now?' Doom asks, a pseudo-image appearing on the wall, just like in the previous episode. He explains that he sent this image to tell them of his plans - observe these thought-projections of their future! Hypothetical simulations of the future appear, and Doom states that soon the 'Lizard Men of Tok', a nearby Micro World, will arrive. They are feared far and wide, and are coming here for them! The Fantastic Four shall all be slaves! Richards shall be chained to the scientific equipment for the rest of his days. The Thing, because of his great strength, will slave in the mines of Tok, digging and burrowing until he drops. The Human Torch will be forced to to help the lizardmen in their wars, exhausting his powers and destroying him when they're done. Sue, finally, will pass the years as a kitchen drudge for the merciless lizardmen! (...Hi, sixties.) Such is their fate! Thus they will pay for thwarting the will of Doctor Doom! The image fades, and Sue says that it's horrible. Pearla declares it's too late for them to save themselves - the lizardmen are here! 'Don't bet on it!' Reed responds.
The lizardmen of Tok show up in a rocketship of their own - though it mostly just looks like a variation on a regular airliner. Doom welcomes the people of Tok with 'Hail Tok!' and a gesture that, at least for a moment, seemed a bit too… WW2, let's say, but the hand is turned the other way around. He claims that their arrival does this world great honor, and the slaves he promised them await. He asks the foreign leader if they have brought him the material he requested, and the lizardman agrees that the 'reduction' is aboard his ship - for what purpose does he use the mineral? It is worthless! Doom explains that it might be useless to them, but 'reduction' is the essential ingredient for his shrinking process, and he is happy it is so plentiful on Tok! The lizardmen get slaves, and Doom gets the means of shrinking the Earth's entire population - a good trade. At last he will rule the world, and the Fantastic Four are helpless to stop him!
Back in prison, Ben wishes they'd let him poke a hole through the wall. Reed explains that's impossible, since the acid would finish them in seconds! Sue points out that the walls of this cell are acid-resistant, or it would have burned through by now. That gives Reed an idea. If they could get some strips off this rock without causing a leak, they might be able to use it to get out of here! He asks Johnny to cut some strips off with his fire, and soon they realize that the stone, when heated, becomes just like soft clay - malleable. Reed concludes that it couldn't be better, and they should get started before it's no longer pliable! Soon enough we see the little project complete - Reed built a lifeboat of sorts that's entirely made of the hardy stone, so that the inside will be insulated from the acid. He then tells Sue to concentrate her force fields on the part of the wall where they removed the stone slabs… then get into the lifeboat! This made a little more sense in the comics, when it was metal…
Sue leaves her invisible construct in place until she gets into the hollow stone sphere, then Ben grabs the final slab and closes the hatch behind her. Sue activates her force field and blows a hole in the wall and the room immediately floods with acid, and the sphere begins to drift around.
Eventually they (somehow) move through the hole they just made and start moving upwards towards the surface of the acid pool. Reed tells the others that they should immediately find Doom's shrinking equipment after they surface - stand by! They get to the top and Johnny quickly burns a hole and runs out, pointing out the building where Doom's equipment is kept. He and Reed quickly set off, deciding Pearla can bring the others over.
It seems they didn't find any opposition, because the entire team soon congregates in the room with Doom's shrink ray, which is beeping ominously. Reed tells everyone to spread out - they need room to move when they grow! Reed then activates the machine and everyone begins bloating in size, returning to 'regular size' for the Micro World. Ben comments that nobody told him that it'd tickle! Reed announces to the king that the Fantastic Four will now fight the lizardmen on equal grounds - they want to fight for him and Pearla, so they should stay behind. The king agrees, but decides they shall stay close behind them. He suggests they should head to the Royal Gardens outside the throne room, as that's where they will find King Tok and Doctor Doom!
One of the lizardmen guards loudly yells that all is well, only for the camera to move and reveal that Ben is right behind him. Ben grabs the guy's tail and twirls the guard above his head for a bit, while said lizard calls for more guards, and that the prisoners are free! Ben announces (again) that it's clobberin' time. Two more guards rush in, demanding a surrender in the name of Doctor Doom, until Ben throws their fellow guard into them and sends them all to the floor. Johnny uses small fireballs against a few more lizardmen, while Sue uses her force field against some running ones who just smash their faces into that invisible wall. Reed shouts that's all for the lizard guards - let's get to the palace!
The human guards from before realize that the prisoners have escaped when the group bursts into the entrance hall of the palace - Doom will have their heads! Attack! That's when the king of the Micro World suddenly intervenes and announces that the Fantastic Four are in his service. All four guards immediately kneel and realize that 'the emperor' is alive, and not dead as they were told by Doom! The king explains that the FF are their friends, and they will save this world from the horrendous Doctor Doom! They should gather their troops, and follow the Fantastic Four!
Doctor Doom and King Tok are sharing drinks over a sumptuous meal right next to the throne, with the lizardman congratulating Doom on his achievements, and wishing him the best with his conquests! Now, where are his slaves, the Fantastic Four? Reed and Ben suddenly pop up just out of frame and declare that they're right behind them! Doom is shocked that they've somehow gotten free - that's impossible! Reed warns Doom to surrender - they've rescued the emperor and the soldiers guarding the palace are now on the Fantastic Four's side! Doom pulls his gun and snarls: 'Surrender? BAH!' He can still defeat them! That's when Sue invisibly runs up to him and quickly disarms Doom, who responds by… just legging it! I mean, he was going to do it at some point, right? Ben yells that he's getting away, but Reed tells the others to let him go.
King Tok angrily proclaims Doom a coward - before immediately running away himself to rejoin his men. A bunch of lizardmen then rush into the room to cover their king's retreat. Pearla's father tells his men to seize them, but Reed instructs Johnny to head for the controls on the throne - using the shrinking ray on the lizardfolk is a lot quicker! That takes care of that! Sue warns that King Tok got away with two of his men, and the king concludes that he'll bring reinforcements if he isn't stopped. The team chases the lizards back to the aircraft they came in, but it's already taking off when they arrive. Ben quickly rips a huge pole out of the ground from nearby and goes in for a little 'batting practice', smashing the craft to smithereens with a single superpowered blow. As it explodes in the distance, probably killing everyone onboard, Ben cheerfully yells: 'Home run!'
Reed states that the empire is now safe - the lizardmen are gone. Now for Doctor Doom! The king warns that they won't find him here, as he turned his ray-machine on himself, and is now back on their world! Reed concludes that if that's so, their own world is now in imminent danger. They must hasten their return! They'll use the big machine and leave immediately! Not much later they regather in the room from before and say goodbye to the king and Pearla, admitting they're leaving them with regret. One more reversed twirly shot later the team reforms at their normal size in Reed's laboratory, safe and sound. Johnny says he's been on a lot of rides, but that was the wildest! Ben just laughs. Johnny asks why, and Ben reminds the others of what he said before - the shrinking machine tickles! We exit on him laughing inanely…
Analysis & Comments
This is a fairly simplified version of the original story from Fantastic Four v1 #16, which cuts out a bunch of the weird turns the comic book took, like having the Fantastic Four each recount random instances in which they shrunk before and grew back to normal size later, instead of just having them tiny from the start. The stories don't quite match - Reed's is pretty accurate, and Johnny's still has the car in it, but here he doesn't total the vehicle after growing back to human size. Sue turned tiny on TV in the comic, which doesn't really match anything here, while Ben was still carrying something heavy that he dropped, but it wasn't a piano and there were no bikers - he just hid out with the guinea pig for a while, which is presumably what inspired the mouse scene in the cartoon.
Another notable change is the absence of Ant-Man from the narrative - it makes sense that this is the 'Fantastic Four' show and that's who they focus on, though. After several fairly simplistic shrinking scenes with some crazy character moments like Ben casually causing several vehicular crashes and Sue judo-throwing a mouse, there's an adaptation of the comic scene in which Johnny burns closed an arbitrarily powerful air vent. All of this is serviceable, but it's nothing too special - it's the obligatory 'wacky opening scene' that all these cartoons seemingly prefer to have before the actual plot starts moving. At least the shrinking actually ties into the plot here, even if the 'Micro World' doesn't show up until after the ad-break.
It's interesting that the cartoon decides to include Princess Pearla at all, given that she doesn't actually really do anything in the episode - at least the king/emperor (they can't quite decide) gets to tell his soldiers to stand down at the end, robbing Doom of his army. Pearla, though, gives a supremely vague warning at the start that is useless because Doom is boasting about his involvement anyway, and then she just tags along for everything for the rest of the episode. Riveting. To be fair, the comic doesn't really give her much more to do - but Pearla reappears in several later micro-world stories, so I guess they were hedging their bets here and including her just in case they ever have a reason to involve her in a sequel? Suffice to say, none ever came.
The science of this episode is complete nonsense, of course, but I liked the straightforward seriousness with which Reed delivers the idea that all atoms are actually tiny planets, especially when he shows an old-school motel and immediately misidentifies electrons. Brilliant. The whole 'Electronoscope' thing didn't end up mattering though, since everyone's soon sucked into the micro-world Doom took over, and the story continues there. I presume that Doom took them to a specific one he motors around somewhere, because I doubt Reed was keeping Doom's planet in his lab somewhere, hiding among a few quintillion others! I guess it's near the micro-world of Tok, wherever that is?
While a lot of things were changed at least somewhat from their comic counterpart, the weirdest in my opinion is turning the metal prison in which the team was locked up into a stone dungeon instead. Like, I get that this is Doom's aesthetic, but they're currently on another planet, not in his castle. Stripping layers of metal off to melt together a primitive bathysphere of sorts makes more sense than doing the same with rock, so I don't see why they felt the need to change this. A positive change, though, is the Tok. The comic only barely shows the aliens Doom intends to sell the Fantastic Four to - but here they get a bunch of appearances in Doom's mental images, and their leader is actually semi-relevant as a secondary antagonist! Doom's interest in doing that is also explained when it's clear this is a trade for materials he requires to make more shrink-rays. I guess his loss here explains why he doesn't use the tech as much anymore in later appearances.
Of the three episodes, I think this is actually my favorite Doctor Doom, at least in terms of how entertainingly cartoonish he is - he has maniacal laughs galore, he chuckles and threatens and lets out a fantastic 'Bah!' Besides that, this Doom is always happy to explain stuff to an interested Reed, and seems positively thrilled to get some recognition for the brilliance of his shrink-ray invention. Add to this the dramatic poses he gets - kneeling next to the tiny hero-team, getting knocked on his ass, and several instances of dramatic arm-flailing at his throne. Plus, let's not forget that the final shot we see of Doctor Doom is - what else - running the hell away! Nothing is more iconic about this Doom than his constant urge to get the hell out of Dodge when things get complicated.
The episode ends abruptly - the team hurries back to the normal world in a hurry because they're worried that Doom might be getting up to no good there, but we never actually see that since Ben just gives everything a laughing exit. Since Doom never reappears on this show, I guess he just went home to sulk. Not that he's actually lost anything, because presumably his own shrink ray is still at his castle, and there's trillions of other micro-worlds to conquer if he wishes… Trying to order these by which is my favorite, I think it might go in the middle… the origin one is not bad, but that's mostly because of one scene, and this one has several great ones, and that 'Bah!' is just great. I'm glad they got it in there somewhere!
Favorite Moment of Doom
"BAH!" Or, if that's not enough, my runner-up is Doom arriving on a peaceful planet and instantly getting furious about that.
And if I've got my chronology right, the next animated Doctor Doom appearance will be his one episode in the New Fantastic Four Adventures (aka, 'the series with the stupid robot instead of the Human Torch'). And then come the Spider-Man appearances, and well, yeah, that's gonna take you a while, because he shows up for a whopping six episodes, plus one episode of the quasi-spinoff Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends.
And if I've got my chronology right, the next animated Doctor Doom appearance will be his one episode in the New Fantastic Four Adventures (aka, 'the series with the stupid robot instead of the Human Torch'). And then come the Spider-Man appearances, and well, yeah, that's gonna take you a while, because he shows up for a whopping six episodes, plus one episode of the quasi-spinoff Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends.
Actually, he's in two episodes in the show with the stupid robot instead of the Human Torch!
I'll quote the forthcoming animated stuff from the index:
1978
Fantastic Four - S1E08 - The Fantastic Four Meet Doctor Doom Fantastic Four - S1E12 - The Final Victory of Doctor Doom
1981
Spider-Man - S1E02 - Doctor Doom, Master of the World Spider-Man - S1E08 - The Doctor Prescribes Doom Spider-Man - S1E12 - The A-B-C's of Doom Spider-Man - S1E17 - Canon of Doom Spider-Man - S1E19 - The Doom Report Spider-Man - S1E21 - Countdown to Doom Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends - S1E03 - The Fantastic Mr. Frump!
1994
Spider-Man - S5E09 - Secret Wars (Part 1) - Arrival Spider-Man - S5E11 - Secret Wars (Part 3) - Doom Fantastic Four - S1E08 - The Mask of Doom (Part 1) Fantastic Four - S1E09 - The Mask of Doom (Part 2) Fantastic Four - S1E10 - The Mask of Doom (Part 3) Fantastic Four - S1E13 - Silver Surfer and the Return of Galactus
1995
Fantastic Four - S2E01 - And a Blind Man Shall Lead Them Fantastic Four - S2E09 - Nightmare in Green Fantastic Four - S2E13 - Doomsday
It just kind of tickles me that Doctor Doom winds up in nearly a quarter of the episodes of Spider-Man's own show from this period, while getting... well, significantly less appearances in either of the two Fantastic Four series.
Oh, joy, these jokers are back! This time the cover depicts Ben, Johnny and Sue taking on the four generals of Doom's army - Dorma, Shakti, Divinity, and Technarx. And that's about it. The bandages on Ben's arm are the same ones Shakti used last issue, while the others are just doing their generic attack poses - in fact, Technarx's art is partially traced from a fight he had with Reed two issues earlier - that shot with the light-quarterstaff. Reed is conspicuously absent in this picture, so I'm thinking this might have been some unused art from that issue, from an iteration where the team got involved in that conflict instead of Reed soloing it? Anyway, the only presence of Doom's armor here is still in the top left corner.
Story Overview
Flashpoint!
We begin as Doctor Doom states: 'In the name of Doom… let us begin!' Behind him we see four pictures of different locations - the Pentagon in Washington D.C., the command headquarters of the armed forces of the United States; Hammer Bay, the capital city of the free mutant republic of Genosha, ruled by the self-styled master of magnetism, Magneto; Fort Sam Sawyer, current command headquarters of SHIELD; Avengers Mansion in New York City, headquarters of the world's premier team of metahuman heroes. The first strike is executed with brutal precision - since a majority of the targets are located on the East Coast of North America, they define the timing of the attack: just before dawn on a Sunday morning at the Pentagon, and just before dinner half a world away in Genosha off the coast of Africa. There is no warning - there is no mercy.
The weapons of choice are focused plasma charges composed of anti-matter suspended in a containment field, hurled around the globe at the speed of light. By the time you see them coming, it's too late. They interact with the matter of the target itself to create a miniature version of the blast that theoretically created the universe. Colloquially they're referred to as the 'Hammer of God' and they're considered the ideal weapons of mass destruction - the damage they cause is horrendous, but there's very little secondary radiation. They may well obliterate a city, but they won't poison the landscape. On Earth, there are no defenses capable of withstanding them - in the blink of an eye, both Washington and Manhattan are in ruins. As for Fort Sam Sawyer and Genosha… they both utterly cease to exist.
Most of the world isn't even aware it's already at war when Doom's great starship, almost the size of the city it has just devastated, rises into the crisp morning air. From its launch bays pour vast numbers of assault craft of every size and description, more than can easily be counted. Their orders are simple: to achieve absolutely supremacy over the air, the land, and the sea… and thereby, for their Master, absolutely supremacy over Earth! From the dreadnought's command bridge, Doom and his generals watch the battle unfold. For them, the narrator states, there is no doubt of the outcome. Dorma tells Doom that strike reports indicate their primary targets have been annihilated - collateral damage and casualties are within projected parameters, and all units are now proceeding to neutralize secondary military targets.
At sea, the navies of the world are quickly decimated by Atlan shock troops, while amidst the ruins of New York, the city's surviving heroes wage a valiant but futile defense of their home. Notably we see Spider-Man, Doctor Strange, and the Hulk at work, as well as the Punisher, who now wields the deceased Captain America's mighty shield.
Also among their number are the unsung outlaw band of mutants known as the X-Men, who hurl themselves at their foes with such courage and abandon that, for a while, it actually seems like a fair fight. In the end, however, numbers make the difference - when a hero falls, there are none to replace them, while Doom's legions appear numberless. It's said that it took God six days to create the heavens and the Earth, but it takes Doom far less time to make them forever his own. We see a white flag emblazoned with a red lion floating in the wind, making the enemy's victory…
At the Pentagon, a general orders an end to this simulation, and concludes this can't be real! No shit. Another explains that this simulation is their best assessment, given the current data available on Doom's assets and capabilities, of what a full-scale conflict would look like. They'd be massacred if Doom decided to move against them! Over at Avengers Mansion we see the same Avengers from last issue, who are watching the same dramatic simulation with dread. Thor muses that they've always known that Doom is the most formidable of foes, but Firestar wonders if Thor was even watching that footage - Doom killed millions of people, conquered the world in a matter of days! Justice reminds her it's just a simulation, and everything will be fine - she'll see! Cap agrees with that, and says this will only be the outcome if Doom is given the chance to carry out his plans!
A third group is also watching the simulation, and those would be Doom's generals themselves. Dorma enjoys the prospect of victory, naturally, but Lancer points out that the locals of Earth are running these scenarios already, so Doom's side won't have the element of surprise that this simulation depicts. Technarx says that's irrelevant - their database of terrestrial military capabilities is far more comprehensive than Earth's is of theirs! They can anticipate any conceivable stratagem and compensate for it. The details of specific engagements may change, but the eventual outcome remains the same! Spying on the group from the bridge of the starship, Reed curses Technarx's inhuman soul - he might be right!
Sue asks him how many scenarios this makes, and Reed says this is the eleventh, and each time the conflict is more extreme, the casualties significantly higher. As Technarx said, the specifics change but the outcome stays the same - Doom always wins! Sue wonders if Reed is forgetting something… There is no Doom! He's Reed Richards under the armor, and even though he's trapped in there, she's betting he'll still find a way to win this. Johnny wonders if the Avengers are aware that Doom has a direct pipeline into their cybernet, since that's how the generals were able to snoop on that simulation. Reed admits that they apparently don't, and that he's found that Doom actually has access to the strategic datanets of all the great powers - which explains a few things about why he's always so well-informed. Reed intends to find a way to leak word to Tony Stark that their computer security has been compromised…
Ben mutters that this assumes that there will be a Tony Stark left to report to, not to mention the Avengers themselves! Jonny retorts that he sure is cheery this morning, but Ben argues that watching the approach of global Armageddon will do that to a man. The Pentagon has issued a covert war warning, and they've got SHIELD and military units galore taking positions around the city. It's a classic 'snake in the grass' situation, he explains. It starts with a Mexican Standoff - two sides, both armed to the teeth, but neither wants to attack because they figure that's sure suicide. But neither wants to back down either. Then somebody sees a snake in the grass, threatening themselves or maybe one of his leaders. They kill it. The other side assumes that's the signal for the attack and starts shooting - result: instant war. Except in this instance Doom's generals have convinced themselves they can win - so the situation is not only dangerously unstable, but deteriorating!
Johnny wonders why they don't just tell Doom's goons to beat feet and go home to their own planet? End of threat, end of story! Ben says it's a nice idea, but it won't work. Why not, Johnny wonders if Reed is Doom? When he talks, they obey! Ben notes that telling his people to go back home is not an order Doom would actually give. Doom promised his generals this world to plunder - if he reneges on that deal, that may spark a rebellion which could prove just as devastating to the Earth as what's going on now. Johnny angrily snaps that this is just great - Reed took on this idiot masquerade to save the world… Only now, because of that same masquerade, he can't save it!
In the back of the starship, Doom's four generals leave the simulations behind to go review their troops. Their plans have been honed to near perfection, and now they must determine if their forces can carry them out! Of the four, only one commands a true army: Dorma, warrior-queen of undersea Atlan. Her three companions, easily as much a match for her in arrogance as in personal strength, prefer to think that they don't need one; they are each powerful enough in their own right. We're once again reintroduced to Technarx, primal combat node of the techno-organic species who call themselves the Host, Shakti the battle mage of the Enchanter's Guild, and lastly Divinity. The best way to think of him is as a living nightmare, the comics says, a parasite who draws life from the bodies of a succession of hosts, thriving on the essence of their being. The stronger the character of his prey, the richer the feast… We see him abandoning one man as a mere skeleton and latching on to another identical man to feed… Clones? Not sure what's going on there, it's not explained.
As she arrives to greet her troops Dorma gets an enthusiastic greeting, and she shouts 'Hail Atlan!' back at them. She prays that Mother Ocean shall turn from blue to scarlet with the blood of their enemies! This day, she pledges to her sharks that they will receive a banquet worthy of them. And at the battle's end, she instructs, they should make sure that among the fallen lies Susan Storm Richards, Doom's newly crowned Baroness. Doctor Doom dreams of a world to rule - and before she is done, she shall have both that world, and that man! Shakti dryly observes that Dorma is clearly feeling a tad full of herself, committing to an attack like this without orders from Doom. Dorma wonders if they are lackeys, that they need permission to do what they all know is right? They have a plan, and the means to execute it - delay only aids their foes, the time to strike is now!
Divinity observes that these are bold words, which should only be spoken in private - in his experience, Doom will not take kindly to defiance. Dorma snaps that Doom has forbidden Divinity to consume human life, yet he continues to do so - he's a hypocrite! If they're victorious, she's confident that Doom will applaud their initiative! Shakti reminds her that she should not forget the alternative, should they fail… Dorma figures if Shakti is so afraid of what'd happen, she should just keep her magic to herself, and Dorma herself will do all this without the rest of them! Technarx comments that Shakti's concerns are merely a reflection of prudence, and when deciding on a course of action all risks must be comprehensively assessed. His analysis is that lacking Shakti's support, the likelihood of victory becomes minimal… His conclusion is that they must stand together. Dorma says that caution is for the weak - they have the means to face the moment, and this world is ripe for the claiming! And the first to fall before them are this world's greatest defenders - the Avengers!
'Not today, sweetheart!' a voice proclaims from off panel. The Fantastic Four have arrived - or, to be precise, three of them. But hey, Johnny figures that's still more than enough to clean their collective clocks! Ben mentions that the generals are pretty good when they're fighting simulations, but would they care to try their hand against the real deal?
Dorma snaps that she'd do so with pleasure, but Shakti warns her that this is an obvious trap. Dorma rips herself free from her anyway and warns Shakti that if she touches her again, she'll be casting spells one-handed! If the Fantastic Four are fool enough to challenge them, then they should pay the price in blood! Ben tells Technarx to back away from the wall, where he's messing with some electronics, but the robot warns that his reaction came too late - the attack order has already been issued, and cannot be recalled. Dorma swings her sword and declares that the war has begun - it can only be stopped over their dead bodies!
On the bridge of the starship, Reed realizes what's happening - Technarx sent an order to the ship's systems! He tells Lancer to issue an immediate countermand, but she tells him that she's scanning launch signatures across the mainline status board - weaponry systems are fully enabled, acquisition matrices locking onto target - the ship's main guns are preparing to fire! Reed's counter-orders get transmitted, but the Atlan soldiers serve Dorma first and decide that they're not inclined to obey that tin-shelled walker - her orders take primacy. Lancer realizes that they're not listening and tears her way out of the bridge in an instant - even as she realizes the danger, she jumps down to the nearest turret and from each finger extends a lance of blinding energy composed of raw nuclear plasma, the primal substance of the Sun. A single slash opens the turret to its core, rupturing the catalyst chamber at the moment of ignition. 'Doom!' goes the explosion. Reed follows her down and finds Lancer unconscious - after a blast like that, it's a miracle she's even alive!
Reed quickly manages to deflect the second cannon off its target by physically shoving the barrel upwards so the charge will detonate harmlessly in space… but the damage has been done. As far as the Avengers - and the Pentagon - are concerned, they've just attempted a preemptive sneak attack! They're sure to strike back with every weapon in their arsenal! At Avengers Mansion, Cap is startled by the cannon blasts and Jarvis warns him that the alarms are going off. They conclude that what they feared most has finally come to pass - Doom is trying to blindside them! He's not sure why the salvo missed, but he's not about to stand around waiting for a second. He sounds an All-Points Alert - Defense Plan Beta!
As the Avengers fly up towards Doom's ship, Firestar wonders if this idea isn't a little bit nuts. Shouldn't they wait for reinforcements? Iron Man argues that if the battle escalates that far, then they're all in a world of trouble. There are twenty million people in the New York metropolitan area, and right now they're counting on the Avengers to protect them. The best way to do that is for the active team to end this fight as quickly and decisively as they can. Thor tells Firestar to fear not - a battle against nigh-impossible odds is the truest test of a warrior's mettle! Should any among them fall, then they'll have earned a place among the Hall of Heroes in fabled Valhalla! Firestar tells him not to take this the wrong way - but that is so not a comfort! The sky around them lights up with pulse-cannons and fusion-casters as the starship starts bringing its defensive systems to bear…
Thor comments that whatever else may be said about their foes - they are most proficient in the arts of war! Iron Man says they're pretty fair shots too, since they just nailed Cap's sky-cycle with a blast and sent him flying. Justice catches Cap from the air and tells him to hang on a second while he squishes what's left of his broken bike with his telekinetic powers and turns it into an instant cannonball! Reed blasts the sky-cycle projectile apart with his fusion cannons, and admits that Justice might be a comparatively new Avenger, but he's proving himself as formidable as his predecessors - that shot could have done real damage! Scarlet Witch tries to use her hex powers, but is suddenly surrounded by scores of ping-pong balls… filled with sneezing powder? (Why…?) Thor swings Mjolnir over his head to sweep her free of the offending particles, then tosses the unfettered force of his enchanted mallet at the starship itself, to try and take down this behemoth in the sky…
Unfortunately for Thor, the hammer slams into a force field with a gong that actually spells 'Doom' again, because of course it does. The good news is that Thor still managed to impart enough raw kinetic force to nearly capsize the vessel! The Asgardian announces that no construct of technology is a fair match for one of the true Aesir - he will strike again and again until that field of energy is breached! Iron Man comments that he gets the impression the opposition doesn't much like that idea - he should watch himself, as he's scanning a whole catalog of weird energies centered on a transmission array that's drawing a bead on him. Evasive maneuvers, now! Iron Man realizes only belatedly that the impact force of Thor's hammer wasn't actually dispersed by that force field… it was being focused into that gun and projected back at him! The gun fires, and Thor is blasted far, far away.
Justice, incredulous, asks if the others saw the power of that thing? They got to make sure that they can't take another shot like that! He says he's going to use his telekinesis to jam the gears of their turrets so they can't move! He drops Cap off on Scarlet Witch's sky-cycle, and she mentions that her hexes are dismoding the kinetic charges in the main weapons so they can't generate enough energy to fire. Cap notes that apparently those physics tutorials with Tony Stark came in handy, and Scarlet Witch wonders if that means Tony really does love her for her mind…? Justice mutters that they're in the fight of their lives, and everyone's cracking jokes - he's never been so scared, but if they can hack it…!
Suddenly a storm breaks out, and Justice wonders where that just came from. Iron Man dryly wonders if Justice really needs to ask. This is interesting, though - his sensors indicate that the active combat systems aboard the starship are being shut down by none other than Doctor Doom himself! Cap decides he'll be sure to ask the man why, once he's taken him into custody! The moment they land on the starship's hull near Doom, though, Lancer intervenes and tells Cap to back off - nobody lays a hand on Doom while she's there to defend him!
At the same moment, within the deepest recesses of the Dreadnought, another frenzied and desperate struggle reaches its climax… While Technarx attacks Sue, she tells Johnny to perform 'maneuver Phoenix.' Johnny creates a flame, and Sue quickly catches the raw plasma of his flame with her force field globe to compress it, making it denser and denser until it's microscopic black hole - then she reshapes the globe into a spike and drives it right into the heart of Technarx, where she releases the containment field. The flames become a tiny fusion charge, and the resulting chain-reaction triggers a localized EMP. Technarx's shell protects him from such external attacks, but her gamble is that he has no comparable defenses against its internal equivalent! Sure enough the robot goes down in a heap, and Sue tells it goodnight. If you hang about a man as brilliant as Reed Richards for long enough, you'll be amazed what you might learn!
'Class is over, Baroness!' Dorma snarls. The only thing left to teach her is how to die! She swings in with her sword, declaring that Sue exhausted herself defeating Technarx, and it's only a matter of time until her vaunted force field shatters! Ben suddenly grabs onto Dorma's hand and disarms her - impossible! He wrenched that sword from her grasp with such ease… and her hands, her skin is all cracked and blistering… What is happening? Johnny steps up and explains that he's quietly been using his flames to turn this room into a sauna by sucking all the moisture out of the air - and from her body! Sue snarls that one-on-one, Dorma might be able to beat any one of the Fantastic Four, but their hallmark is that they work together and stand by each other. They're a team! Sue then takes back what she said - between her and Dorma, on the best day of her misbegotten life, it's still no contest! She delivers a haymaker to Dorma's face and knocks her out, and she tells Ben she learned that one from him. Now they'd better hustle topside, odds are Reed could use their help!
Up above, Lancer is still fighting Cap - the man's a marvel - as fast, strong, and sneaky as she is, he's always a step ahead! He's a good man too, so she doesn't want to hurt him - but it's starting to look like the only way to defend Doom is to employ lethal force! As she activates her energy claws to rip him apart, Reed jumps forward to stop her from going too far, and in the momentary confusion their momentum unbalances them - and they both go off the side of the ship.
They land in the water below, and Reed quickly carries Lancer out again in a similar fashion to the real Doom rescuing her during Lancer's debut. As they rise up from the river, though, Thor reappears in front of them and states that if they would continue this fray… they should think again! More Avengers converge on them, but then Johnny arrives with the other members of the Fantastic Four and states that it's a funny coincidence that they were thinking much the same thing…
With some semblance of calm returning, notes are compared and explanations are made about the untoward attack that triggered this whole crisis. Reed states that they were fortunate today - next time, fate may not be so charitable. Cap explains that the presence of Doom's ship is the flashpoint here - it, and him as its Master, represent too dangerous a threat for the world to ignore. Reed believes he has a solution that rebounds to the benefit of all concerned - if Cap will but trust him! Thor snarls that he'd sooner embrace Loki than trust Doom, and Cap agrees - what he's asking is insane! While Sue levitates Reed and Lancer away for a private conversation, Cap muses to himself that this is insane… yet Doom did just save his life from Lancer's attack without a moment's hesitation. He guesses he must be crazy, because his instincts tell him to listen to the man.
At the same time, Reed privately tells Lancer that he has a charge to lay upon her shoulders. Lancer has already guessed what it must be - she is supposed to find the real Doctor Doom, isn't she? Since Reed is here on Earth, and they've seen no sign of Doom… what, he figures the man must be back on Counter-Earth, on Planet Doom? Reed agrees, and says that if Doom is as essential to the well-being of her world as Lancer maintains, then he needs to be found, and they should restore the proper status quo between him and Reed. He suspects they both want their rightful lives back. To that end, he names Lancer regent over Doom's forces, so they'll obey her as they would Doom. Lancer asks if he's not coming, and Reed explains that this world is his home - his place is here, with his family…
Cap mentions to Iron Man that he feels like he should get his head examined. 'For choosing peace over war? Shame on you!' Iron man jokes. Cap points out that if they accept Doom's word that this attack was an accident, then they might just save the world from potential disaster without further trouble. Iron Man agrees to that, but slyly asks what makes Cap think that the man they're dealing with is even Doctor Doom? Cap is confused by that comment, but Iron Man says that sometimes solutions are so obvious they're staring you in the face. Now, he doesn't know Doom that well, but he knows women. And the look on Sue Storm's face has always been reserved for only one man, exclusively. Whatever the news reports, those things don't change. Emotions that fundamental can't be faked…
Johnny soon arrives with prisoners to hand over - they're the four generals of Doom's army. Dorma snarls that he will die for this effrontery, in agony! Ben notes that, as always, ladies go first. Reed then steps up to Dorma, getting back into his role, and asks how she dared to do this. She quickly tries to justify her actions, but Reed cuts her off. Her arrogance and ambition nearly ruined everything, Reed snarls. Doom alone is responsible for their forces being able to withdraw from the field of combat with at least a modicum of honor, to fight another day. As for the four 'faithful' generals - they must now face the consequences of their actions. He hereby cedes authority over them to the Avengers! Ben whispers that these bozos won't be too pleased about this, the next time they meet, and Reed admits that he hopes at that point they'll be Doom's problem.
Reed tells Lancer that her world needs more people like her, and she says it's funny, she was thinking pretty much the same thing about him! She comments that Reed and Doom are more alike than they are different, and Reed sincerely hopes that was a compliment. Lancer insists that she's serious - there's a nobility to both of them that can't be denied, and a courage and intellect. Each in their own way, they're both worthy of respect. Reed says that for what it's worth, Lancer has certainly earned his respect. He adds that if she ever needs him… he leaves that open.
After Reed teleports away, Lancer muses to herself that it's actually more the other way around - see, Doom's genetic engineering made her simpatico with the armor and the person wearing it. She can sense things which Reed may not even realize… and in this case, she prays that she's wrong! The starship soon takes off for Counter-Earth after the Fantastic Four rematerialize on the ground. Sue asks if the others can hear the noise - every siren and horn in the city must be sounding at the same time, and listen to people cheering! Anyone up for joining the victory celebration? Ben tells Johnny that they can't, because this time around they're the bad guys! Johnny wonders what happens now, and Reed tells them that, since he just claimed himself a royal consort, he wonders if he could interest Sue in a second honeymoon…?
Rating & Comments
We've now passed the halfway point of issues that feature Reed inside Doom's armor. I'm treating them as effectively two three-part arcs, since in terms of content there's a pretty sharp cut-off point here, since the threat of the generals is removed from the board. Which is honestly pretty anticlimactic, for all that this issue involves a bunch of super-fisticuffs. There's all this buildup across several issues about how massively overpowered Doom and his army are, including at the start of this very issue, with simulations of the entire world getting annihilated by super-nukes and armies of troops… but then the actual issues have the generals lose to Reed by himself, or like half of the Fantastic Four. What gives? Why was so much time spent on hyping up a bunch of chumps?
The introduction simulation in this issue is a neat way to show why the government and the Avengers are pants-shittingly terrified of Doom, but it's not terribly visually interesting for the most part since it's just a bunch of location establishing shots (for places which won't matter) which seems to just exist as filler material. The government and heroes evidently believe that Doom conquering the planet with light-speed antimatter charges that he can blast across the entire world without warning is a viable possibility - he can just casually evaporate entire islands containing millions of people, and that's before he brings in his armies to take over the entire Earth within a week. If they know Doom is capable of doing this level of damage, that probably explains why they tend to be fairly cautious about interfering with Latveria or his operations in other issues, you know? When SHIELD finds out Doom's being a dick to some superpeople again, it's probably a relief compared to the instant World War 3 threat he represents if he ever feels like being a proper asshole.
Something else which this comic establishes to hype up Doom is that he has direct access to not just the Avengers' servers (which, to be fair, has already been shown at least twice before) but also to basically every other network on the planet, including places like the Pentagon - 'the strategic datanets of all the great powers' leaves little in the wake of ambiguity. It's no surprise that Doom is always up to date on what's going on - and given that Reed intends to warn Tony Stark about it, the spying is sufficiently covert that it's flown under the radar of some of the smartest tech-oriented people on the planet. As Reed puts it: 'Doom always wins.' It's kind of funny how Doom isn't even present in these issues, and yet the last three have been showering him with praise anyway…
I'm a little confused why Ben Grimm in a mechanic outfit is the one to lay out an elaborate explanation of the problem that the team faces with their 'Mexican standoff' - he might have a pilot background, but this sort of strategic discussion seems more up Reed's alley. He also goes on about this 'snake in the grass' situation which isn't, as far as I can tell from some googling, actually a thing. The expression referring to a 'snake in the grass' exists, but I'm not sure that it refers to people being on a hair-trigger like this - I thought that was more about untrustworthy people? At any rate, the hair-trigger thing doesn't explain why Reed refrains from flying the ship to a more remote location than New York - if his reach is global anyway, surely pissing off everyone by hovering over a major city isn't helping matters? Why did he decide to park the ship in New York anyway? This is kind of a problem of Reed's own making…
As mentioned in previous issues, the four generals remain pretty much exactly as we've ever seen them - they don't have much depth. Dorma is still a crazed blood knight, Divinity is still a murdery goop blob, Technarx keeps mentioning prudence, and Shakti… still exists. That's all they're about, really. In this issue the situation finally boils over, at least. Reed's been trying to keep the generals pacified while he figures out how to deal with them, but Dorma is Dorma and can't not overstep once again. This is like the third time she's done this shit, but I guess it's still a surprise? Dorma orders her Atlan troops around and circumvents 'Doom', while excusing her treacherous actions by pretending she'll be praised for it when she wins, and then talks the other generals into it because they're really easy to convince. Given that Dorma is the only one with an actual army here, though, I'm not sure what the point of that was. She has enough troops to take over an entire planet but she really needs the help of this one sorceress or they'll surely lose? Sure, Technarx. Sure.
It figures that the Fantastic Four (minus Reed) show up to fight the generals and almost immediately fuck up by allowing Technarx access to the ship's systems, which is something Reed would have probably recognized as a threat. I'm not terribly impressed by this conflict, by the way - given that Reed single-handedly defeated the generals in a previous issue, why would we assume that the three other members of the team couldn't handle them as well? You kind of defanged your antagonists, writers. This issue seems to realize this, as it leaves large chunks of the fight off-panel, and returns to it later only to see the heroes easily flatten the generals with several combo-moves they custom-designed for these villains. I presume they did that after, you know, watching them fight in simulations a bunch? Maybe they shouldn't have practiced their fighting moves inside the starship, the geniuses… I'm not sure why these four villains were even introduced if it wasn't to build up to some climactic fight scene or whatever. Just filler content?
The more interesting story is the one featuring Reed and Lancer, who react to Technarx's hacking with a dramatic manual override - in that they go down and literally rip the cannons off the starship to prevent them from annihilating the city. Incidentally, Lancer tanks a nuclear plasma explosion with her face and walks it off, so she's still a total badass. Reed seems convinced this treachery by his generals will be interpreted as a sneak attack… Reed, those shots missed. The Avengers should realize that their base is not currently a crater and go 'it was a warning shot', no? It's dramatic to do that sort of thing with basically a naval cannon, but this is still Doctor Doom we're talking about. Seems like the kind of thing he'd do! Cap even comments on the salvo missing, but decides it was an attempt to blindside them anyway and charges into battle. I don't think the Avengers have much in the way of a plan beyond 'attack!'
Firestar lampshades the Avengers' tactics in this issue, actually - which really is basically to just fly over and wreck shit, hoping they can somehow resolve this whole thing with violence (but not too much violence.) I kind of love how fatalistic Thor is, just kind of going 'if you die, don't worry, there's mead in the afterlife!' One thing I'm a bit unclear on is who exactly is firing the weapons at the Avengers when they approach. I guess it could be the Atlanteans just manning the guns on Dorma's behalf? But then how does that explain the bizarre moment when there's balls of sneezing powder flying around, because that doesn't seem like something Doom would put on his starship? Is it a reference to the first time Doom met the Avengers, perhaps, given that Scarlet Witch is the target? It just seems such a 'lolrandom' inclusion. The inclusion of Firestar and Justice for a second issue in a row probably just means they were the flavor of the month, since I'm not too familiar with them.
I appreciate that Doom thought about how to deal with Mjolnir, and decided to ricochet all its damage back at the source - Doom's been pretty consistently able to tank some hits from the hammer, but Thor he gets properly yeeted in this one. He, like the rest of the Avengers, are very 'punch first, ask questions later' even when they realize Doom isn't fighting back and is turning off his starship's defensive systems. Cap still goes in for a tackle which Lancer intercepts, once again proving she's the best. She can't quite match the Captain in sheer strength or speed - but that's without using her powers. Given that Reed drags Lancer back the moment she brings out her claws, and Cap later says that he saved his life, I presume that this is an implicit confirmation Lancer would have cut a bitch. Falling off the ship so they could do a thinly veiled echo of the first meeting between Doom and Lancer was kind of trite, though.
One thing that keeps coming to mind throughout this issue is how much is relegated off-screen. The simulation is more establishing shots than anything, most of the generals' fight is left to the imagination, and even Reed explaining what happened to the Avengers is handled in a one-line summary. Reed has to act convincingly like Doom in order to convince the Avengers that he's not being a supervillain - it's like the one chance you have to write a good fake Doom and Avengers moment, and you skip it? That's what I'm here for! There's no real explanation for why Dorma's army just suddenly stops being a problem either, given that they were shooting at the Avengers earlier. Maybe those were just automated systems instead, ones which Reed didn't shut down for some reason until after they shot down a bunch of people? The simulation at the start saw huge fleets of attack craft launching from the starship, but that was evidently a red herring. Instead of any interesting stuff, we once again get a lame scene where Reed doesn't explain what's going on but still asks for trust. Which, actually, makes absolutely no sense anymore.
The original reason why Reed decided to carry on with his Doom-charade was specifically so he could control Doom's generals and Dorma's army, and thereby prevent a global war. But he's done that now. The generals are in custody and get handed off to the Avengers, and Lancer takes the starship away from Earth a few pages later. So why is Reed still keeping up pretenses, exactly? The excuse was paper-thin before, but now it's just entirely missing - there's absolutely no reason he couldn't admit the truth of his real identity to the Avengers right here and now. They might not necessarily believe him - though Iron Man evidently figured it out anyway - but explaining couldn't really hurt. What, the Avengers are going to be more suspicious of him than when they thought he was actually Victor von Doom? These heroes seem convinced you'll spark off a war at any moment, Reed, I think you're already at maximum suspicion!
To cut in randomly, I should mention the random cut-in scene where Reed and Lancer take a break mid-conversation to hover up on a platform generated by Sue and discuss where she's going next. This whole concept of Lancer taking off to hunt down the real Doom just kind of comes out of nowhere. There's no indication Reed has even looked for the real Doom on regular Earth - he hasn't even been to Latveria to check if he's at home, for crying out loud - and the conclusion that he's on Counter-Earth seems like it's pulled out of thin air. Maybe it's just an excuse to get the starship off-planet?. At any rate, we'll be following up on this 'Regent Lancer' thing soon enough - this is the moment I mentioned in a previous post-script, the event which needed to happen before I could delve into the creatively-named 'Doom' mini-series that was coming out concurrently with this storyline. Lancer isn't quite finished yet!
After dropping the quartet of shitty generals off with the Avengers, there's a thinly veiled hint that there's going to be a follow-up to that plotline. Which is true - there is actually a rematch between the Fantastic Four and Doom's generals in one of the Annuals released during this same publication year, but that takes place after Reed's out of the armor, and I'm not sure the real Doom shows up in that story. I might cover it anyway, since begrudgingly or not, these four idiots are still part of his retinue. Speaking of foreshadowing - Lancer gets another nice scene in which she compares Reed to Doom, and then implies there's something going on with Reed that she can sense through the connection with Doom's armor. That's a somewhat creepy callback to that plotpoint, and we'll get into what she means when we return to the pages of Fantastic Four - which will take a bit, since we're skipping backwards in time a little to see what's been happening in Latveria lately, and what the real Doom has been up to…
On the whole, this issue is… thoroughly meh. The actual conflict is low key for what's supposed to be a final confrontation, and resolves a looming war with what amounts to a minor scuffle in which alleged great threats are mostly beaten off-screen by half of a super-team, and the Avengers fail valiantly to really do much against a foe who isn't even fighting back, plus nearly get Cap sliced in half for his trouble. There's a bunch of Doom-glorifying which doesn't amount to anything much, and then everything magically resolves itself because off-screen Reed is apparently great at excuses. This is a weak entry after last issue, and it pads too much time with simulations and reintroduction the generals for the fourth or fifth time in a row, but at least Lancer is still cool and we can get into the chapters I actually want to reread now - I recall the second half of Reed's armor period being quite a bit stronger. Doom is there, so that helps. Two stars for this one…
Best Panel(s) of the Issues
I just like that we get a nice straight-on portrait here of Doom - or Reed, at any rate. I'm still perplexed, by the way, that the armor allegedly changes the retinal patterns and whatnot to Doom's to cover up who's actually using it... but his eyes are blue, when Doom's are pretty consistently shown as brown. Does nobody notice this, or is it a stylistic flourish? You'd figure the only visible feature of Doom's face might stick in people's mind, heh.
Most Gloriously Villainous Reed Quotes
"In the name of Doom… let us begin!"
"Doom always wins."
"If [Doom] is as essential to the well-being of your world as you maintain, we need to find him, and restore the proper status quo between him and me. I suspect we both want our rightful lives back. To that end, I name you Regent over my forces. They will obey you as they do me.This world is my home, Lancer. My place is here, and with my family."
Reed's Bad Hair Day
There's some dubious art in this issue in general, but the low-quality renderings of characters in these panels are pretty egregious - they're vague blobs more than anything, and it's difficult to make out exactly who some of them are even supposed to be. I guess at the end there they're Atlan soldiers maybe, the ones with swords? Not that this makes much sense... Also I need to mention this weird sneezing powder scene again, especially since it also has a bunch of those low-poly unidentifiable characters in frame.
Doom-Tech of the Week
Hammers of God are evidently Doom's choice of weapon of mass destruction, anti-matter explosives capable of traveling at lightspeed to cleanly nuke whatever they're aimed at, and probably a cheeky reference to Mjolnir. Doom also has a Cybernet Pipeline which infiltrates every network on the planet, and a Force Shield and Transmission Array on his ship which can absorb and rebound energy to eject people at speed.
The Snake in the Grass is referring to the Battle of Camlann, where King Arthur and Mordred are trying to negotiate peace, until one of their knights spots a snake in the grass, etc.
The Snake in the Grass is referring to the Battle of Camlann, where King Arthur and Mordred are trying to negotiate peace, until one of their knights spots a snake in the grass, etc.
Yeah, the comics have been jerking him around a lot recently, between getting dropped into Heroes Reborn, then onto that planet with Thor, then back into Heroes Reborn, then back to the real Earth, and now back to Heroes Reborn again. Sheesh. Can you just go home and do your job, Doom?
Speaking of Doom's return, I've just finished up the summary portion of the next issue which actually has Doom in it - and it's telling that it's less than half the length in terms of words compared to these last few Fantastic Four issues. The writers of these issues are incredibly wordy. Doom's issue, meanwhile, is much more economical with words, and more focused on the (admittedly pretty badass) visuals... I might drop this in next, but I've also got a couple of Doombot/Latveria issues to cover before the next chunk of Fantastic Four comics.
And then there's those MC2 variants... and animated episodes... Why do I do this.
Okay. Time for a bit of a diversion before getting back into Doom stuff. To round out my ongoing coverage of the cavalcade of successive succession crises in Latveria, I'll have to play catch-up here through some Gambit and Spider-Man comics - the former slipped under my radar because they're only barely related to the subject of my thread. But there's Doombots here, and Castle Doom, and attempts to take over Latveria, so I guess I should spend a bit of time on them before the timeline catches up and Doom gets home at last! For like three issues I'm sure before getting dumped back into another dimension, but the thought counts!
The first cover is pretty neat, in that it shows a veritable army of Doombots trying to grab Gambit as he uses what's pretty unambiguously Doctor Doom's time platform, while a whole bunch of angry cops attack from the other side. My assumption here is that the bottom half is actually representing a different time period (in which those hats were commonplace.) Also this is advertised as a 'Giant-Sized Special', but it contains some stories which don't all have any significant Doom connection, so I'll only be covering one of those. The other cover… Well, it's an issue to fill some space while Gambit is away, and possibly it was meant to float the idea of a Rogue solo title at some point. Amusing corner-Gambit, though.
Timeline-wise, the first issue takes place during the events of the Heroes Reborn revival - back when Doom's was off conquering the other world with Lancer and pals. The second issue is technically set a few weeks later, since there's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it reference to Doom's alleged return in recent times - which would be Reed in his armor. That suggests it's placed sometime after Fantastic Four v3 #25. It doesn't end up mattering much since the action is well away from New York City (or even Doomstadt.)
Story Overview
Gambit #12 - The Time Trap
This issue begins as Gambit, Remy LeBeau, sneaks into the Monaco bedroom of Sekmeht Conoway in the middle of the night - but he's not there to fool around. He needs her help.
Sekmeht is something like Indiana Jones meets Reed Richards, an archeological engineer - and while she's both brilliant and adventurous, she's also sheltered and inexperienced. She also thinks she's in love with Remy. She quickly reminds Remy that she just did him a big favor with the 'Tomorrow Stone' in one of the cyber-comics, and he acknowledges that (meaning they're definitely established as canon.) Sekmeht makes some coffee while Remy starts to explain why he's here, and he admits that they'll probably need something a lot stronger than caffeine before this is done.
Remy explains that the day before he was called down to New Orleans - or in his own accent, 'Nawlins.' Technically he's not part of the Thieves Guild anymore, since he got kicked out years ago, but that doesn't stop them from always asking him for help, from using him. They were having another one of their religious ceremonies - this one's called the Revelation of Deadlife, in which the past is used to show the way to the future. His adoptive father, Jean Luc, the clan patriarch, led the ceremony. Their healer Tantie Mattie was also there - that's when you know it's important, since she's a practicing Catholic, so she only does the guild ceremonial gig when it's absolutely necessary.
In a flashback, Jean Luc thanks Remy for answering their call, and explains that they must perform the Deadlife because of their failure to obtain the 'Momentary Princess', a time-hopping jewel from a previous story seen in Gambit #10. Remy narrates that the Princess was a closed window to other times - Jean Luc touched it fifty years ago, and Remy himself touched it last month. Both of them looked through the window and saw the past and future - but they couldn't actually use the gem to travel there. Jean Luc acknowledges this, but says they're hoping that the Deadlife ritual would help explain what's in a particular suitcase - what's been in there for a hundred years. There are questions with no answers here, but the questions alone will help explain why the guild had an interest in Remy since he was a baby. Why Le Diable Blanc born with red eyes means so much to guild lore… and why he's always been both apart and a part of this family!
Remy doesn't want to open the box, doesn't want to know - he stopped asking himself these questions a long time ago, burying his desire for the answers deep in his wounded soul. When he finally, reluctantly opens the box, though, he finds that there's only one thing inside - a photograph. As he looks at it, though, his heartbeat picks up and the buried whispers in his soul grow louder, demanding that he scream out in anger and confusion. The picture is of him wearing an old-fashioned bowler hat, standing among a crowd - but it's at least a hundred years old.
Jean Luc says that the picture was taken in 1891, when he was just a boy, and his memories of that time are incomplete and fragmented, as are many of his remembrances - perhaps due to his repeated contact with the Momentary Princess. Remy asks about him saying 'repeated', and Jean Luc admits he used the jewel again in the seventies, when Nick Fury and he attempted to retrieve it together at the same time Strucker did, by employing an Egyptian archeologist named Anwar Anubar.
Remy recognizes that name - he runs a company called Elysian Enterprises now, and it explains how his daughter Sekmeht knew about the Princess too. He wonders if Jean Luc thought Remy would use the Princess to travel back in time somehow, and Tantie Mattie admits they weren't sure - all they know, all that was written, is that Remy saved the guild from Candra's wrath, and restored their pact with their external benefactors, the lesser of available evils. They also know that he helped to point the way for Jean Luc LeBeau to become a better clan patriarch than his father had been. And if her memories serve her right, he did more than that for her as well… Remy is kind of gobsmacked by this whole weird chicken-and-egg time travel nonsense, but Jean Luc tells him that all the other clan members involved are dead by now - so it's a leap of faith from here. Besides, Remy is a member of the X-Men who traveled to the stars and alternate realities, is this any crazier? Remy just has a headache.
When he asks for an explanation for what he's supposed to actually do in the past, Jean Luc stammers out a confused reply about a mysterious stranger rescuing him as a little boy in London, and about a trip to New York on a boat and a struggle under the streets of Manhattan, and all the while Remy is staring at the picture, looking at a mirror image - knowing this was the age he time-traveled. Not younger, not older, right now. He notices one more thing about the picture, but before he can place it he's distracted by the arrival of a monochrome individual surrounded by billowing clouds - someone whose memories of the time are clearer than Jean Luc's own - the Tithe Collector!
Outside the flashback, Sekmeht asks Remy who that weird guy is, and he explains that he's sort of the Guild's bill collector for the last century - he worked for Candra, but not anymore, since she's dead. The Title Collector said he knew what was going to happen because someone came to him in a dream and warned him. Sekhmeht guesses it must have been an old lady named Fontanelle, since she came into her dreams as well a few months ago, just after the two of them met. Remy grumbles that if he survives this mess, he and that lady are going to have a talk! Sekmeht concludes that Remy is at her doorstep because he needs help to figure out a way to travel through time, and he confirms that with all of her search into time physics while trying to find a way to revive her mother with the Tomorrow Stone, she seemed a good pick. (This is all some deep lore stuff, I'm guessing - can I call VaatiVidya to summarize it?)
Sekmeht tells him that the energies of the stone might have been applicable for physical temporal displacement - but they already used its chronal particles to save the life of Remy's friend… Spat. Water under the bridge, there's still other possibilities, like finding a warp gate or technology left behind by the Kree or the Shi'ar. Also, Doctor Doom is rumored to have a Time Platform in his castle in Latveria… Remy's eyes light up at that last suggestion, and he mentions that he just so happens to know a couple guys from Latveria, and another guy who happens to be a walking guidebook to help them find those guys~
Jacob Gavin Jr. is an international messenger and a face-changing mutant known as Courier living in Washington D.C., and he's connected all over the world, too. 'You want me to go where with you and do what?!' One cab to a plane, and then one horse-drawn cart later, Gambit, Sekmeht and a less than enthusiastic Courier make their way into an Eastern-European country that didn't even appear on a map until three months ago. We see the group surrounded by a veritable army of people with guns, mercenaries all. Gambit is here to meet with the Mengo brothers - Grigori and Stanislaus Mengochauzeraus - since they're mercenaries for hire. Gambit's gone a few rounds with them before, and he charges one of his cards with his mutant powers to threaten the people holding him in their scopes and to demand to speak with the people he's looking for.
The brothers in question at first pretend to be drunk and asleep, but almost immediately lunge forward and reveal they fooled him - they're not as drunk as they smell! Brilliant, these guys seem real smart. Remy lays it out for them - if they help him sneak into Doom's castle, he'll owe them a favor. They respond that they owe Remy a bullet for leaving them behind on a previous occasion - they were stuck on a raft for three days without toilet paper! Remy drawls that as far as they know, he's willing to forgive and forget the fact that they led a slaughter against his family and tortured him. Plus, again, he'll owe them. One of the brothers reasons that Remy is sneaky - he might be able to help them find their father. Sure - okey-dokey, they're friends now…
Thirty hours later, the group makes its way into Latveria. Until recently the country was ruled by the dictatorial fist and benevolent hand of Victor von Doom, we're reminded, but ever since his disappearance it has been taken over by several people, including most recently the mutant madman and temporal mystery known as Stryfe. Remy would prefer to have nothing to do with either Doom or Stryfe tonight. As the group approach across a high mountain pass, one of the men comments that Castle Doom is always rebuilt by hard-working citizens after the accursed Fantastic Four wantonly ravage it - even now, only a short time after Stryfe's attack, it's already standing again and mostly repaired! Remy mentions that this time around it was ravaged by the new Hitler in town, but Stanislaus gets offended and argues that Doom shouldn't be described as 'Old Hitler' - he's a great man, a great leader! Pretty Boy Gambit doesn't know anything! Anyway, we need to go this way to sneak into his castle…
Jacob helpfully points out that they're walking away from the castle, and Grigori responds that this just shows what he knows… You can't just walk into the front lobby of the castle and announce that you're there to use the time machine! Stanislaus leads them to a ventilation shaft, and Remy wonders why it's a mile away from the castle itself. Grigori argues you would want to vent radioactive gasses and such into the middle of beautiful Doomstadt square. Good point, Remy says awkwardly, now warily looking at the vent which might spew toxins at any moment. He'll go after the two of them, then! As they all head down, Jacob complains about the smell. Those weren't radioactive gasses, however - that was just Stanislaus letting one loose! The big man apologizes - he had mutton for dinner. Sorry. Far humor, joy. Remy wonders if being the leader of the geek patrol makes him a king geek. The only smart thing he's done all day is letting Sekmeht crawl through the pipe in front of him! (In the artwork, she's actually behind him.)
One hour and several fantasies later, Remy and his team manage to find a deep, automated area of the castle where chronal emissions are high. Grigori comments it's probably just Stanislaus again, and the big man protests that it was not! Remy tells them both to shut up - Sekmeht is tracking the energy signature of the Time Platform - did she find it yet? She confirms that the ambient atmosphere is suffused with temporal particles - weak, but everywhere. It might be a natural byproduct of the machine's previous use. Remy points out that X-Force filed a mission report claiming the machine was destroyed, and Sekmeht agrees that could also account for the wild readings. Now, they should follow her - the concentration gets heavier this way! She suddenly stops as Doctor Doom looms in front of her.
Since talking is evidently a free action, she asks if it is okay to scream now? Jacob suggests that she should quickly beg in Latverian, so he knows she's one of his citizens! The Mengo brothers just take off in a panic - and here Jacob thought he was the coward! Remy lights up a card and tells the others that Doom's been missing ever since Onslaught - this isn't him! He lobs his projectile and destroys the Doombot without much fanfare, while Sekmeht wonders if the fact that five other Dooms just showed up wasn't enough of a clue. Remy complains that Spock isn't supposed to make fun of Kirk in front of the aliens! As a fight breaks out with the remaining Doombots, mostly off-panel, Jacob wonders why Sryfe would even keep Doombots around. Sekmeht guesses it's just because of his ego - wouldn't Jacob like to be surrounded by servants in the image of the ruler he deposed? 'Only if you were the ruler,' he responds, and she compliments him on how smooth that was.
Remy smashes a few more Doombots, but warns the others they'll have fire on their tails in a minute! Sekmeht leads them towards the main temporal laboratory, but Remy quickly darts ahead to scout it out, and tells everyone to get ready to move. Or maybe not - the next room is crawling with Doombots, and what appears to be an assembly station for churning out more of them!
They swiftly turn around and decide to take the long way around - it might be risky, but is it riskier than walking through a room entirely filled with robot guards? Sekmeht confirms that she's still tracking chronal particles, and by planning a more circuitous route they eventually find themselves in front of a chamber which appears to be flooding with them.
Remy mentions that he's been trusting Sek the entire way - but this might have been a giant waste of time if those X-Force reports were right and the machine is in shambles. Sekmeht irritably responds to this by pointing out that she's already told him, after he first showed her that X-Force report, that you can't really destroy the Time Platform. It's just a hole in the fabric of space-time - the machinery controlling it can be damaged or the anomaly dispatched, but even with no controls in place, and short of wholesale gravimetric transport and encasement… It's like a rubber band. Eventually it snaps right back to where it was before! Which, in this case, is right here! They descend down a final staircase to find a green Time Platform glowing in the middle of the room. Sekmeht brags that it's a burden always being right! The machine did take some heavy damage, but whoever's been busy fixing it was very gentle. Maybe that's why Stryfe wanted to take over Latveria, to control this time machine? Wasn't he from the future or something?
Sekmeht quickly starts setting the coordinates for Remy's target date, and this sends out an immediate intruder alert, though it doesn't seem like she notices since it's on a screen behind her. She blithely comments she can babble and work at the same time. Okay, she's done - she's got the temporal window programmed right, and she's pretty sure he's set to land in London - more or less. Remy asks what the error bars are on that, and she notes that it'll be… within an ocean or two? Stanislaus spots something in the dark and warns his brother - they've got trouble! A whole legion of Doombots soon show up and declare that unauthorized use of the temporal transportation facility is in progress - the program to sanction the offenders is approved! They then open fire. Jacob tries to run off in a panic, but Remy grabs him by the coat and drags him over into the rising square of the Time Platform, and both of them get engulfed. Turns out that there was one other thing Remy noticed in the photograph - yeah, turns out that Jacob was there too!
As the time platform reaches up to his head, Remy yells out that the Mergo brothers should protect Sekmeht - if she's hurt, the both of them are walking dead men! He knows that they can't bring her along into the past - who else is going to bring them back? He apologizes with his eyes. He sees the Mengo brothers in action, all cold steel, and he knows they'll protect her no matter what. And then everything is washed into white nothing…
Rogue #15 - Folding City
While Remy's elaborate time-travel plot in 1891 takes several more issues to complete, it doesn't have anything to do with Doom after hijacking the time machine. Four issues later we pick back up with Rogue, who's visiting scenic Latveria - she just has to try to avoid the dueling dictators! Rogue's looking for something in this country, but at least her search led her far away from the mess in the capital city of Doomstadt. Stryfe took the place over months ago, she recalls, but word has it that Doctor Doom is back now. That means trouble's on the way. Worrying about that - or if this Stryfe is even the real one - is better left for a rainy day, though. She's got a hard enough job to do as it is! Needle in a haystack. Where are you, Remy LeBeau? And how did he get her into this mess?
We flash back to Rogue making her regular trip to the Pique Boutique in Salem Center, where she's trying out some new clothes (and giving the artists an excuse to draw her in lingerie.) What she didn't expect was a visit from Remy's adopted father, Jean Luc LeBeau. She fears something has happened to Remy, but immediately defaults to sarcasm - by making fun of his accent, which is a bit rich. Jean Luc admits he tends to exaggerate it above the Mason-Dixon line. Now, she asks, why is he here then, and is Remy okay? Jean Luc explains to her that Remy's off on family business, but he never came back. The family - Clan LeBeau - is the New Orleans branch of an ancient and international guild of thieves, obviously. The business Remy was dealing with involves traveling back in time to save his daddy when he was just a boy - because Jean Luc remembered him doing it! Rogue checks in with Anwar Anubar to learn that his daughter Sekmeht went along too, and after she told him what she knew from Jean Luc, he sets her up with a whole slew of scanning equipment in order to locate Sekmeht's genetic tag. Apparently he's got a Lojak on his daughter!
When Rogue asks him about that, Anwar says it's a bit more complicated than that, but in light of her reckless nature it has come in handy from time to time! Rogue is weirded out that the man wants to keep his little girl on a leash, but whatever. She thinks that finding Sekmeht should help her find Remy. She already tracked some chronal dispersion emissions to Doomstadt, which means someone has used Doom's old time machine. But then, to confuse things, she also picked up Sek's genetic tag a few miles away - maybe they'd gotten separated? Easiest duck to shoot is the one sitting still, which means she chooses to go after Sekmeht.
That's what brought Rogue out here - to the Viscayin mountains which separate Latveria from Symkaria. Obstacle number one hundred in a series… The signal strength is strongest from straight ahead, but there's nothing there! Rogue activates her scanning equipment and gives the home team a wide spectrum of what's there, and asks for analysis. Anwar tells Rogue that Sekhmet must have discovered Zer Zumtenklabppar Grodstadat! That's apparently Latverian for the Folding City, an urban legend among modern-day explorers of Quantum Physics. She should look at the striations in the mountainside - the even hewn cuts to the gouges - something was built there! The story is that years ago Doctor Doom built a facility devoted to the study of spatial anomalies here, to investigate the creation of holes in space. Rogue guesses they were a bit too successful. Her contact confirms that rumor has it the entire facility vanished one day, and Doom never allowed for corroboration or asked for help. Rogue changes a bunch of the frequency wavelengths on the scanning equipment, since clearly whatever exists here is beyond the visible spectrum. Her contact wonders if she's versed in engineering, the way she talks about such scientific concepts, but Rogue admits she's just picked up a few bits and pieces from other people. Voila!
The lost facility suddenly wobbles into existence in front of Rogue's mechanically enhanced vision, all blurry like looking down at a highway on a hot summer day - and it's big enough to be called a small city! (The actual art doesn't have any fancy effects and just looks like a boring building, which is a letdown.) Rogue immediately hears voices coming from inside the lab, like echoes or whispers. She even hears her own voice in there! 'I am the warp and the warp is me!' one says. 'Poppa?' another asks. 'Ah can't let you go… even if it means bein' stuck inside this asylum with you' - that's her! Anwar says that's impossible - unless the entire facility exists within the folds of time as well as space! Rogue figures there's no door to knock on, so… He asks what she's doing, and Rogue explains she's vacuuming up the anomaly's particles and spraying them on herself - that should align her physicality with the anomaly! Anwar warns her that if she does that, she'll disappear into the Folding City like everyone who vanished with it. 'A-duh!' Rogue says as she flies inside and the building disappears again…
For a moment there's nothing - and then far too much! Like an Escher painting, up is down, left is right, in is out - Elmer and Bugs would have a field day in here! Rogue finds herself in a topsy-turvy mess of walkways and doors at right angles, and hears voices in the distance again - calls for help, warnings, comments that people were lost to a fissure, mentions of 'my liege.' Rogue doesn't think that sounds particularly good. She also hears Stanislaus banter with Grigori about KFC and Wendy's, and she figures they are morons, whoever those two are. Everyone knows Burger King is the one that lets you have it your way! Okay, time to have a look around. Rogue tries to fly around but quickly hits her head as she tries to navigate the bizarre physics of this place, once spotting herself looking back at her through a doorway - now she's thinking with portals!
Several gunshots suddenly impact into the wall beside her, and there's an ozone burn to the air - plasma tracers? Someone was behind her, but she has no idea where - or even when - they came from! 'Puzzling, isn't it?' a voice asks. She spots a bunch of people running down below along a walkway, and yells that she could use some directions down here - or up here? The people are wearing lab-tech jumpsuits, and they're scurrying around like mice. They're running from something, and Rogue figures she might as well follow them through the doorway they're heading for… only to find herself unbalanced again and somewhere she didn't want to end up. Argh! 'Puzzling, isn't it?' someone asks again from right next to her. It's Sekmeht, flanked by the Mengo brothers, and she says she's seen Rogue's picture in Remy's wallet, and figures she must have come here looking for her boyfriend.
Rogue dismisses the 'boyfriend' part - he's a boy, and a friend, but not the combo. She recognizes the Mengo brothers as Latverians, so she guesses that Remy used them as insiders to get into the country. Sekmeht explains that after Remy used the time machine, they fled from Doombots and Stryfe's guards (who are apparently still around even though their leader's gone), and then stole a transport. They then crashed near here when a sensor scan found an anomaly, and with goose-steppers on their tail, they didn't have much choice but to hide inside. They've been trying to find their way out ever since! Rogue explains they've been inside for about six weeks, and that Remy hasn't resurfaced. Sekmeht is worried that he's not back yet - then again, she never did have the time to program an auto-retrieval into the time machine…! Rogue asks why the three of them seem coherent, since everyone else seems to be running around half-mad, and Sekhmet explains that she whipped up some audio-visual bafflers once she got here to help keep them from barfing up a lung. She offers to make Rogue one too, but she says she's kind of used to dealing with fractured perceptions - she'll be fine.
Several people rush into the room, and Rogue asks where they all suddenly came from - Sekmeht just tells her you get used to it. Rogue then asks who they're running from, and goes to chase them, only to find herself right back in the same room she just left. Grigori chuckles at seeing the newbie screw up. Sekmeht explains that only one man has this place properly figured out, and he's got all the spatial rifts, intersections and connections mapped out. That makes him the sanest - or the insanest - patient in the asylum, depending on your point of view. Rogue guesses it's probably the person people were calling 'Liege.' Suddenly a new rift begins to open in a wall, and Grigori warns Sek that 'he's found us again!' She pulls out a scanner and concludes this mystery person is warping another section over here. A door suddenly appears, and that apparently means 'he finished making the pretzel!'
Rogue demands information on what she's dealing with - quickly now! Sekmeht says that they're dealing with the former Head of Security at this facility, back when it was consumed by the spatial anomaly. Rogue asks for his name, his powers - never mind, she'll figure it out. She punches the door off its hinges to get a look at the guy inside with her own eyes - he's wearing golden quasi-classical armor, covered in spikes and tubes, as well as a fancy feathered mask. The guy apparently calls himself Der Verherrglichenn - a rough English translation from Latverian would be 'the Exalted One.' A rather appropriate name, if he might be so modest. It's always a pleasant surprise to receive new guests into the Kingdom of Foranywhen! Or, as the American might call it - Home, Sweet Home! By the way, as it happens… he doesn't like pleasant surprises!
Rogue observes that while this guy's English is good, there's a clear accent - he's Latverian. (No shit.) The man flexes his fingers, and it's as if all of reality ripples with the movement - Rogue and her companions all end up in different places, even on the ceiling, and her stomach wants to call it a night. A pinky moves, and they're all back where they were again! And is it just her, or does the Exalted One's armor keep changing as he looks at it, shifting in shape over time? The Exalted One announces that he controls this realm, as someone had to impose order to this maddening chaos. It's ironic, you see - for this to be his calling, to provide a measure of control, and thus be acquitted for the mistakes he's made in the past. He was a good man, a loyal soldier, until a grievous error of judgment took away his sense of place, honor, and order… This is God's way of providing him a chance for redemption! The man removes his helmet, and Grigori and Stanislaus are struck dumb, asking: 'Poppa?!'
The Exalted One calls the two by name, and says that it can't be - they're adults now! Has he been here… that long? He was informed by his walkers that two newcomers had DNA scans similar to his own, but he didn't think… could never have conceived that Doom would have allowed the both of them to survive his disgrace! Stanislaus explains that their mother took the both of them out of Doomstadt before the troops came to find them. They were raised in the mountains, in hiding, dependent on the kindness of strangers. Rogue mutters that they both turned out so charitable, too! Sekmeht adds that she'd be dead ten times over if it weren't for them. The Exalted One apologizes that his sons' lives were shattered by his indiscretion - sorrier still that they have sacrificed their own freedom in order to come rescue him! The two brothers glance at each other, and immediately pretend that yeah, they definitely searched for him to free him - yup, for a very long time! Sure did!
Rogue tells the two to shut up, and explains to 'Poppa' that his sons aren't here to look for him - they ended up here to save their butts from Latveria's current dictator-of-the-month. The Exalted One is stunned that Doom is not in control, and Rogue grouches that there's been a lot of political upheaval. The Exalted One concludes that this means it's time for him to return. Rogue asks if that means he could have gone back any time he wanted, and the Exalted One confirms that - he is the warp, and the warp is him! It was his machinations that caused the original experiment to go awry, since he created this anomaly to give himself a second chance at life! But now, he sees a better way to reclaim his sense of self. He can bring the same kind of order and stability to Latveria that he brought in here. And he can redeem himself in the eyes of his sons! Rogue and the others just stare at the crazy person, and wonder if it's time to ready the padded room…
Rogue tells the Exalted One that him taking over Latveria is not going to happen - even if it means being stuck here forever, she's not going to let another psycho-puppy headcase with incredible powers, and even more overblown delusions of grandeur, run loose across the country! The Exalted One concludes she means to oppose him, and tells her she'd better make it entertaining, then! Sekmeht snarls at both of them to cut it out, snapping that they can't go back even if they wanted to - none of the original workers can! They can't survive the quantum shift, and even if they did… they might infect all of reality with sub-spatial particles, becoming walking Typhoid Mary anomalies! The Exalted One figures that's so much the better, though - to bring this new world order to the old! He opens a portal in the walls leading outside, but the moment a crowd of workers rush through to try and reach freedom, they reappear behind them again, still locked inside. Not fair!
Rogue angrily yells at the Exalted One that it's him that's causing all this - he's playing with the people trapped here, with everybody inside, just to keep control over them! She grabs onto his gauntlets and begins to crush them, and the villain panics, warning that if she damages them…! Rogue realizes that the gauntlets of the Exalted One's armor flexed along with his fingers, and its configuration is constantly changing - and it's a matter of time before he's back on his feet. She quickly grabs the Mengo brothers and Sekmeht and tells them to hold on. Now, while his armor is on the fritz, she'd gotta try and outrun his control of the fissures! But it's not an instant pop out of thin air - it folds and bends, flows like a river. She's got to time it right… Rogue takes off and tries to find the way out of the convoluted maze, but reality's draining down a hundred whirlpools, and not one funnel leads back home! She asks for suggestions, but Sekmeht can only tell her that there has to be a nexus point for the fluctuations - an original fold, as it were, from which all the others twist and turn.
'I am the warp, and the warp is me,' Rogue recalls. That's what's been bugging her about all this. Daddy Mengo wasn't talking about his control of the spatial fissure! He was being literal! She tells everyone to hang on again - Grigori mentions that he'd be complaining if his view wasn't so enjoyable, given that his face is an inch from her ass. Classy. Stanislaus says he can only see her knees - they're cute knees, though! Rogue flies downwards and directly towards the Exalted One, this time flying into him. His armor was the original spatial rift, which is why it kept transforming the way it did! Everyone reappears on to the ground in the Latverian mountains, but the Exalted One isn't quite finished yet, reaching through the portal himself to try and drag Rogue back inside. Sekmeht grabs Rogue, then calls for the Mengo brothers to help. Their father is confident they will not fight against him, though, since their lives have been nothing but chaos and disorder so far. They know what he will give them! The Mengos agree - they sure do! Grigori then takes his plasma blade to his father's arm and cuts it off, and the limb drops to the floor below the closing portal, locking his father inside.
Sekmeht is grossed out, while Rogue realizes that with only one gauntlet, the Exalted One will never have the means to get out - none of the people still locked inside will! She goes to thank the brothers for what they did, but the two don't seem upset, stating that their mom always told them that Poppa was loony. Momma knows best! Speaking of thanks, Sekmeht owes Rogue one for saving their butts - but it does raise a question that's still unanswered. Where the heck is Remy?
Rating & Comments
I don't read a lot of Gambit comics, suffice to say - I'm pretty sure these are the first ones I've ever picked up. And I'll be honest, that first one… is not particularly great at drawing in a new prospective reader. Mired in several layers of continuity from previous adventures that are vaguely referenced but not explained, with a cast that consists of a bunch of previously established characters that are probably entirely limited to Gambit's solo outings, this feels like a soap opera that you jump into mid-season or something. I guess I got too used to Fantastic Four comics compulsively recapping every relevant element every issue - in this one I'm pretty lost for the majority of the opening segment, and just nodding along with the plot slowly meandering towards Latveria. I'm sure there's important stuff there for Gambit nerds, but… my eyes glazed over.
The story picks up again with the Mengo brothers. While it's left ambiguous exactly which recently founded country the brothers were hiding out in, it turns out these numbskulls with two brain cells to rub together and a bunch of bad fart jokes… are somehow important? To both of these issues? Crazy. Physically they were modeled after the (then) Wachowski brothers (or possibly Steven Seagal) and these are their final appearances after a handful of previous roles earlier in Gambit's third solo-series. I like the continuity here where the entrance into Doom's castle is once again this obscure drainage pipe or exhaust - pretty sure both Nathaniel and Cable used this method before, though they had to deactivate some defense systems to get through. I'm guessing the recent destruction and rebuilding of Castle Doom hasn't included all the security systems just yet… Incidentally, those Latverian construction crews are industrious, aren't they? It's only been a few weeks!
After an embarrassing bunch of jokes which are either fart-based or sexist, we end up with the next story beat which is really idiotic. A Doombot shows up, threatening to fire… and everyone just stands around discussing the status quo of where Doom is - still missing after Onslaught - the Mengo brothers run away, and only then, belatedly, does Gambit pull out some cards to blow up the robots in front of him. There's no shot depicting more than one Doombot before we're informed there's five of them and two are blown up - that's just off-panel. Why exactly did these things just stand there, menacingly?
I guess the implication is that Stryfe defanged the Doombots to keep them around as targets of ridicule. Not that Stryfe is actually still here, though - he got his ass kicked pretty instantly after arriving, so there wasn't really any period where he was in charge. His rule ended like the same day it started, no? It's kind of interesting how Stryfe's micro-reign keeps getting brought up, since this comic references an X-Force report several times, presumably related to the adventures of X-Man and Cable during that whole debacle. You'd think they would have a better grasp on what actually happened in those issues?
It's after this discussion that we get something interesting again - time travel lore! We get an explanation for how Doom's time machine works, and it turns out it's less TARDIS and more Untempered Schism. The time machine can't be destroyed, as such, because the device is just a controlling shell around a hole in the fabric of spacetime, a pinpoint anomaly in physics. Even without controls in place the anomaly will eventually find its way back to where it was originally created, snapping back to its original state. The time machine is actually in pretty good condition, so the implication is that Stryfe repaired the damage done to it, or perhaps some Doombots performed maintenance - in any case, it made it through having a pyramid dropped on it just fine! It's weird how this machine has been here for like forty years and nobody's really explained it… but I guess this explains why even stolen time machines always seem to pop back up in Doom's castle, either here or in NY.
The second issue I covered here sort of bookends the other one? Gambit doesn't make it back, but we get an explanation for what happened to the Mengo brothers and Sekmeht (who has the most unwieldy name, by the way. I keep wanting to call her Sekhmet, like the goddess.) Despite taking place in Latveria, this adventure has almost nothing to do with anything that happened in the previous issue - it's just that the three allies of Gambit somehow got out of Castle Doom and got themselves trapped in an entirely separate lost facility that's somewhere outside the city by sheer bad luck. Okay, sure, let's go with it…
This issue features Rogue, but it has some elements in common with the last Gambit comic, and that includes an overly long and continuity-heavy introduction sequence to lead into the story proper, most of which is just there to establish that Rogue was sent out to follow up on some people going missing. Could have covered that in like a few panels, not roughly five or six entire pages of establishing shots, flashback conversations, Rogue getting the lowdown on backstory that's going to get elaborated upon later anyway, and some less than fantastic visuals. But I guess they had to squeeze some ass-shots and other fanservice in there, that's important!
The foreshadowing isn't subtle, what with hearing quotes from later in the story appearing just to demonstrate that time is convoluted. It's unfortunate that for all that this location concept of the Folding City is really neat, the depiction is rough - the warping of time doesn't really come up very much, and the space-warping is more implied than shown outside one or two panels that don't look that great. The apparent trippy visuals (at least according to narration) also don't really come across very well, unfortunately, and the alleged moving armor of the bad guy is only barely noticeable because, you know, it's not like the artists tend to be exacting enough with such details to begin with.
One curious detail of this issue is that we get some Latverian, alongside translation: Zer Zumtenklabppar Grodstadat for the Folding City, and Der Verherrglichenn for the Exalted One. These are… German. Sort of. Zumtenklabpar is likely a misspelling or variation on zusammenklappbar, while Grodstadat is probably based on Großstadt. Verherrglichenn, finally, is based on Verherrlichen, aka to glorify. Previous depictions of Latverian have shown it as either straight-up Esperanto or just depicted it with brackets to indicate that it's being spoken in a foreign language. A german root to the language could make some sense, given the implication that a lot of nazis made their way here after WW2 (before Doom was in power), and presumably they brought their tongue with them. I believe the details on this change again in the future, so it might be something to keep an eye on.
I think the implication of the various groups of people in lab coats running by while Rogue is exploring is that they're the original crew of this research facility, trapped in both space and time by the not-so-accident caused by Mengo Senior. That's… a nightmarish concept, but at least it seems the repeating events might mean they're not really aware of the time passing. Poppa doesn't seem to really know it's been decades either, given that his sons grew up without his knowledge, so this entire god-king thing might only be a recent development from his perspective - in as much as such a description applies in a physics-defying place. That said, for all that we get a bunch of setup about this bizarre place, it doesn't really matter. It just makes the conflict more confusing for everyone involved, of course, but it's clear that their enemy is not exactly in the state of mind to make good use of his crazy powers…
Mengo Senior is… bugnuts. Has been for a while. He intentionally caused the accident at this facility, judging by his words, to give himself a second chance at life. He laments that his wife and kids were probably killed by Doom for his transgressions, but given that he still willfully went the crazy cult leader route and abandoned them quite intentionally in his quest for a new beginning, I'm not feeling that compassionate for the dude. This happened some decades ago, so I can see the family murder happening, by the way - it would be something 70's full-on surveillance state Doom might do more easily than his more contemporary depictions, which like to play into the honorable villain side of his personality. Anyway, this 'Exalted One' seems fully delusional, to the point that he can't see through his sons' paperthin excuses, and that blindness also proves to be his undoing. Cut off from ever escaping his own slice of heaven or hell by his own son…
This issue has a bunch of cutaways too, by the way - I didn't include them because without context they're even harder to follow than a full issue of Gambit's escapades. There's one featuring Gambit himself getting impaled with a staff a bunch of times in different realities, and one regarding Remy's ex-wife getting her body painted by a bunch of people for some reason? And finally a one-panel teaser about Mister Sinister getting interested in Gambit too. They're all barely comprehensible and entirely irrelevant to this readthrough (more so than these issues already were.)
What I learned from these two issues is that I don't really care that much for Gambit comics from this era, heh. Conceptually they're more interesting than actually reading them - having impenetrable continuity interrupted by fart jokes and sexism is hardly engaging, and neither of these ever really get me that interested in what's going on. The Mengo brothers are entirely too present for such D-list randos, and this latest would-be conqueror of Latveria is the lamest one yet… and honestly he deserves his eternal imprisonment in an Escher painting. That said, Rogue seems quite peppy at the end despite consigning a lot of scientists to the same twisted time-loop, or whatever's going on in there… I'm giving these two stars, collectively, but that's mostly because I just can't get into the headspace to care.
Doombot Count:59 (+2)
Although there are a couple of Doombots in this issue, only two of them actually speak and attack on panel, so I'll add those to the tally and none of the background fodder.
200: Amazing Spider-Man v2 #15 & Peter Parker: Spider-Man v1 #15 - We're All Doomed... Again! / Bring Me the Head of Spider-Man!
Two Doomful covers today - but this takes place during a period when Doom is actually Reed Richards! Except, you know, neither Doctor Doom nor Reed actually show up in these comics, so go figure. The covers are not half-bad - the first involves a classic Giant Cover Doom looming over Spidey who's swinging along with some mysterious girl, while the second features Spider-Man punching what is most definitely a Doombot straight in the gob. Like, its hood is off and you can see the electronics sticking out in various places, it's a robot. The two issues are from different comic series, by the way, because at various points Spider-Man had a whole bunch of concurrent books which crossed over regularly - he's kind of a big deal.
Story Overview
Amazing Spider-Man v2 #15: We're All Doomed… Again!
We open with exposition - Peter is hurriedly packing his bags when Aunt May enters and wonders what he means when he says he's going to Latveria of all places? Isn't that where that awful Doctor Doom is a dictator? Peter says it is, but that this is what he has to do - he has to know for sure about Mary Jane. She's believed dead, but… come on, how could Aunt May of all people believe that? Peter was once told May was dead too, and was convinced of it. And look at her now, here she is! Aunt May warns Peter that this whole situation of weird people making mysterious calls in the middle of the night to tell him that his wife's alive - that seems like a scam. There are people who prey on the grieving! Peter just tells her to trust him on this. He's not as weak as she believes, and he has to know for sure!
May then offhandedly asks about the bank - they called again, what does she need to do about that? Peter tells her he can't think about that right now, and he's sure it's nothing. She should just call MJ's manager about it, and he'll help her out. If she handles this for him, he'll be back as soon as he can! May asks how he's even going to get over there, to Latveria - he can't have gotten a plane reservation so quickly! Peter just tells her he's got a plan and rushes off…
Soon we see a commercial airplane on final approach to Latverian International Airport, with the captain telling everyone to check their seatbelts and place their seats in an upright position. Zooming in on the plane's landing gear, there's a large cocoon of webbing attached to the side, and inside sits Spider-Man, who stuck himself to the underside of the plane for the duration of the flight. What was he thinking? He muses that it's really cold stowing away in the belly of a jet, and the only reason he didn't freeze to death is that he was able to use his webbing as insulation. Next time he'll just go online, he's sure he could've found a flight he could have actually afforded! Ripping himself free from his webs, Spidey waits until the plane flies low enough that he can fling a webline out to a church spire in the city beneath him and swing into the city of Doomstadt without going through customs…
Landing on the side of one of the buildings, Spider-Man thinks to himself that he'd never thought Mary Jane would be heading for a photoshoot in a place like Latveria. Then again, he guesses it is a beautiful and picturesque country, exactly the kind of place you'd expect a magazine to send a supermodel. Besides, he wouldn't put it beyond a world-class supervillain like Doctor Victor von Doom to fake the death of hundreds in order to get his hands on a babe like MJ! Still, Spidey still can't believe he misheard MJ when she told him she had a modeling gig here - he really thought she said Latvia! He asked her to bring back some cheese! That's the story of their relationship, he supposes - he never really paid enough attention to her, too wrapped up in his superheroism, and now she's gone. He swears that'll change when he gets her back! Sure, everyone believes Mary Jane is dead, but they don't know how things work in his life - nothing is ever as it seems. And, like he told Aunt May before, nobody ever stays dead forever in the continuing soap opera of his existence! (Oh no, he's becoming self-aware…)
Spider-Man swings onto a roof that's closer to Doom's castle, and recalls that the voice he spoke to on the telephone in the middle of the night claimed that MJ was being held captive inside, so he's got to play this cool - he doesn't want to endanger her any more than he already has. There's no overt signs of security or alarms, but it's still time to play super stealthy guy! He needs to use all the proportionate strength and spider-powers to sneak in, grab his wife, and take off , since he's not in the mood for a supervillain confrontation today. Okay, here goes…
The moment he aims his web shooters towards the walls, though, dozens of alarms suddenly start wailing - oops! Legions of robots come charging out of the castle gates, including some flying ones and others on hover-scooters. Spidey quickly jumps into a tree to hide and complains that he only thought of breaking in! He knew Doom was a genius but he can't be that good, can he? And he's sending the whole army out, too? Oh, he'll take them all on if necessary - he'll even fight Doctor Doom himself to get Mary Jane… back? The robots don't seem interested in Spider-Man at all and pass him by, and the hero realizes belatedly he's not the target. If they're not coming for him, then who are they after? He decides he really should take this opportunity to quietly sneak into the castle to do what he came for - he really should…
Some of the robots flying overhead start firing their weapons at a couple of people down near the walls, warning them that they are in violation of the Doom Sovereign Security Act #1000-243A, and the guard forces are authorized to exercise extreme action in suppressing this rebellion against their lord and majesty Doctor Victor von Doom! One of the rebels tells his daughter Anna that they've been betrayed - he was a fool to believe that one of Doom's inner circle would allow them access to the true security codes! They have lost! He tells Anna to run and live, to lead the rebellion another day! He then uses his gun, an EMP rifle, to keep the robots at bay, but warns that they'll only work for a short time. She should go, and do as she's told! As more robots arrive and take out the gun and knock out its wielder, Anna yells out 'Papa!' in horror.
Spider-Man sees this happening and decides that he could sneak in through the back door right now, and no one would ever be the wiser - in, out, gone. These rebels with their limited weapons knew that they would be facing a superior fighting force with state of the art weaponry. They knew what they were getting into, they knew… Yeah right! Of course he's getting involved! He's still Spider-Man! He swings down and knocks a couple robots over, wondering if their android moms never told them it's impolite to point their rifles at strangers? When they point the guns at him in turn, he wonders if they weren't listening - you can't get much stranger than him! Spidey then quickly swings over to Anna and yanks her into the air with him, telling her that if he was here, he'd take his rebellion to another despotic dictator's country - these guys don't fight fair!
Anna is amazed that Spider-Man came to her rescue - is it really him? Has he come to join the fight to throw off the chains of oppression? Spider-Man tells her he'd love to hear the rest of her impassioned speech later, but right now he's got to swing back and rescue her father! He also thanks her for telling him the enemy's a bunch of robots, since it gives him more options. (Not sure why you called them androids before she said anything, if you didn't know…) The robots have already captured Anna's father in the meantime, but Spidey figures he's faced worse odds - if he can get to them before they get him inside the castle wall… As he swings closer, though, he's suddenly shocked by some sort of psycho-neural net that feels like he just hit a brick wall. After dropping to the floor in a heap he's quickly surrounded by robots, and the hero feebly wonders if they were the ones who just took him down. If they give him a few hours, he'll show them a thing or two in return…
A voice from off-panel declares that he's sorry to inform Spider-Man… but his time has run out! Stepping out from behind the row of robots is none other than Doctor Doom himself. ' Hey doc, what's up?'
Doom isn't chatty and just starts blasting. Spidey manages to duck aside due to his enhanced senses, and decides he'll just take off - leave this lovely country and never come back again! You won't catch him lurking around the castle at all hours of the night! No sire, he doesn't care at all who he's got hidden in there! He's out of here! As he flees, Spidey figures that sounded pretty convincing. Hm… maybe that neural scrambling messed with his head more than he thought? This was not at all the subtle entrance into Latverian society he was planning. Doom knows he's here now, so he's going to have his stormtroopers patrolling and on the lookout…
Spider-Man nearly gets hit by a stray laser blast and realizes robots are still firing at him - they sure are persistent! Ducking in between some houses in Doomstadt proper he asks himself how the hell he knew that he was hit by a psycho-neural net, anyway? He doesn't like anything about this country - it gives him the creeps. All he wants to do is battle a few dozen stormtroopers, collect his wife, and go home. The first part of his wish is on the way. Spidey is suddenly yanked into a door by someone behind him - it's Anna, and she tells him he must hide as Doom's forces will arrive soon. The cellar of this building is known to few living souls - her papa constructed a room below it to be invisible to even the most sophisticated of Doom's machinery, but they must still be quiet. Spidey agrees and gets into a sub-basement that's entirely dark, and promises he can be quiet despite evidence to the contrary - he once didn't say a word for an entire… The door slams closed atop him, and he sits in the dark.
Some time later Anna returns and lets Spider-Man out of the hole - it's safe, for now. Spidey only now realizes who rescued him, and she thanks Spidey for saving her life. Spider-Man asks her how she found him, and she explains that she ran back here, but she had a radio from one of the assault teams which allowed her to keep track of which direction he was going. The rebellion has eyes all over the country, see. He can relax for now - Doom's troops are giving up the search. Spider-Man admits that doesn't sound like the Doctor Doom he knows - he thought he heard Doom had mellowed out, at least with his own people. Anna says that they too had developed a false sense of security - for so long Doom seemed to turn his megalomania out towards the rest of the world, but some months back it changed. He became even harsher than usual, people began to disappear from the streets again, it was a return to the bad times.
Spidey concludes that Anna's father is a leader of some sort in the resistance against Doom's tyrannical rule. Anna says that he has been captured now, but at least Spider-Man is here now! He can rescue her dad, spin webs and leap tall buildings in a single bound! Spidey says she's getting a little ahead of herself, and asks how she knows so much about him. How does she even recognize him? He heard Latveria didn't exactly have freedom of the press. Anna explains that there are always ways to get information to people - even in a closed society. She knows all about great American uber-heroes! She pulls out a book full of foreign news clippings, a collection of heroic exploits. She explains that she's studied them, knowing that one day Spider-Man and the other heroes would free Latveria from the yoke of Doom's oppression. And now he's here! What's his plan? Spidey pretends he has one, and he would tell her, but…
A short time later, as he climbs up the side of one of the castle's walls, Spider-Man admits he doesn't have a plan at all - who has time for that? He's a spur-of-the-moment kind of guy. He reacts to what life throws his way, bobs and weaves… and sheesh, he really wishes he had a plan. Now he's got to break into Doom's castle, find his wife, find Anna's father, escape with all of them intact, launch a rebellion, become the hero of a nation and… live happily ever after! Yeah, right. All this because of one lousy phone call, and he still has no idea who it was from, nor whether it was meant for Spider-Man or Peter Parker! It could be some sick and twisted prank, or… no, MJ is alive, he can feel it! He's the hero, he can't afford to have any self-doubts!
Sneaking into the halls of the castle through a high window, Spider-Man is almost immediately confronted by Doom, who starts blasting him. Spidey says he was just thinking about the man! Okay, he wasn't actually thinking about him, but he was getting around to it. Doom asks if Spider-Man thought he would not be alerted to his arrival the very moment he crossed his borders? He is Doom, and he knows all - and soon, he will rule all! Spidey points out that technically he was here for a few hours before Doom ever noticed and - eh, never mind. Let's just fight. With an acrobatic flip he manages to dodge Doom, then tosses a ball of webs into the man's face and swings off. He figures it's time for some good old mindless superhero versus world-dominating villain kind of thing - punches, puns, blasts of web… Then Spidey rips Doom's head off.
Spider-Man pauses for a moment - hold on, time out. He was just planning to yank him off his feet, what's going on here? The disembodied webbed-up head snarls: 'I am Doom!' Naturally, it was just a Doombot. As the head keeps snarling more threats, the body starts blasting again, and Spidey quickly dodges out of the way and can't suppress the urge to pun - he thinks Doom is letting the power thing get to his head! The Doombot is insulted that the hero dares to taunt him! The body then picks up the detached head and aims it so that its eye lasers can blast Spider-Man straight out the nearest window and into the night beyond.
Spidey lands painfully in the forest beyond the walls, though the branches break his fall so he's not too badly hurt. That could have gone a lot worse! Anna shows up almost immediately, somehow knowing where he'd end up, and Spidey admits that finding her father didn't really work out… but he's finally figured out a plan!
Peter Parker: Spider-Man v1 #15 - Bring Me the Head of Spider-Man!
Under the best of circumstances, the castle of Victor von Doom, iron-fisted dictator of this small European monarchy, is a dark and gloomy place… more so now, due to extensive rebuilding. Today, the raging storm outside is nothing compared to the one that brews within. We see a pair of human generals approach their majesty, Doctor Doom, with blindfolds on and their fancy hats in their hands. They are trying to assure Doom that they're doing all they can, but the monarch tells them that their assurances mean nothing. He wants to know how Spider-Man got into his country without anyone detecting him, and why he's here, and what's being done to find this self-proclaimed hero! The resistance movement against his reign has become quite brazen since Stryfe landed here - the trouble he caused was mistakenly taken as a sign of weakness, which is a fallacy he will soon remedy!
One of the generals asks if he might remove the blindfold - if this is about some injury inflicted upon Doom's person by Spider-Man, then he assures Doom that he's witnessed much as a soldier. Doom snarls that he should remove his blindfold only if he wishes this morning's surprise to have been his last! His injuries are none of the man's concern, and he does not deserve to view his person! The only thing that should preoccupy his mind is bringing him the head of Spider-Man! (Hah!) And see that it is soon! We finally get a view of Doom ourselves, and it turns out that the Doombot from last issue has crudely reattached its head onto its shoulders and is strapped into various repair machinery. It doesn't want to be seen so nobody realizes it's not the real deal…
At the Doombot's command, a campaign of terror begins - robots rush through the streets, firing at all and sundry and breaking into houses to search them. Citizens of Latveria have not experienced such a violation of their human rights since the bad old days of Doom's initial conquest of their country! Only two men are capable of ending the destruction which is yet to come… Doctor Doom and Spider-Man. One will not, while the other is sitting in the dark, in a rebel stronghold's cellar, while 'Doom' levels his own country looking for him. Spider-Man complains that he should be out searching for Mary Jane, and figures that while he's still sure MJ is alive, Latveria may have been a set-up. He's got to get out of this country - he should let the good citizens return to what passes for normal life under the boot heel of a dictator like Doom, so he can return to his search. What the heck is Doom doing back here, anyway? Spidey thought he was honeymooning with Sue Richards by now, since their marriage made all the papers! Well, he supposes he fought against a Doombot this time, not the real Doom, so that'd still make sense…
Said Doombot, meanwhile, is yelling 'Where is he?!' from the battlements of his castle. How do these insignificant ants dare stand against the will of Doom? Well then… It's time! Spidey has a real bad feeling down in his cellar, as his danger sense starts to creep up on him - something big's about to happen. The Doombot tells one of his blindfolded generals to teach Latveria a lesson it will not soon forget!
The general commands all Strike Force units to go, and robots start firing en masse. It's more than just destructive - dozens of buildings are leveled, people are killed in droves, whole neighborhoods are lit on fire by the robots. Spider-Man, aghast at what he can sense, declares that he can't believe Doom, or his robot or whatever, would do such a thing! Those blasts leveled a small part of the town just now! Well, hiding in the cellar is officially over!
Spidey climbs up to the window and looks over the burning city outside, and declares that the Doombot is insane. He's got to go out there and stop these robots, he can't let another child lose their father, or a husband lose his wife… The moment he grabs the windowsill, though, a voice yells 'No!' from behind him. Anna, tears in her eyes, tells him that there's nothing he can do - not now, not against an army. There's too many of them for even him! She tells him that they've survived this kind of thing before, and they'll survive again tonight. She reminds Spider-Man that he said he'd help free her father, and that he had a plan. If he goes out there now he'll lose, and then she'll lose her father forever. Does he know what it's like to lose somebody he loves? Spider-Man definitely does.
Anna tells him that she's sorry they must both know such pain, but… they'll survive. Now, he should come with her - they have to get away from this place. Spider-Man obviously can't go out wearing his costume, since that would give Doom exactly what he wants, so she hands him some regular clothes to change into. Spidey hesitates to show his face, and Anna wonders if he's afraid to let her see who he is. They live thousands of miles from each other - they'll never see each other again! She turns away from him and promises she won't peek as he changes. Soon enough Peter has pulled on street clothes, though Anna admits she prefers his costume. Now he should be quiet and let her do the talking. He should follow her lead - if they don't act suspiciously, they should be allowed passage without issue.
The two are immediately confronted by a robot who asks for papers, and Peter turns awkwardly to Anna, who can't really do anything about this - so much for being inconspicuous! He kicks the robot aside, then grabs onto Anna and climbs up a nearby wall as the thing keeps firing after them. He tells her to let her body go limp - it's tough to do, but it'll allow them to go a lot faster without fighting to hang on to her. And trust him - they want to be fast right now! Hopping from building to building, Anna admits that this is pretty fun! Leaving the burning city behind them, Peter wryly agrees that it's a whole lot of fun…
Some time later Peter drops Anna off in a grassy field outside the city, and she tells him that Doom's patrols rarely come out this far into the countryside, so he can let her off. It's the only respite they ever get, she says - it's the Latveria they all prefer to think about, the one which existed before Doom came. The Latveria that her father and the other rebels would like to return to the people. It's all they live for, and it's why they do what they do. Anna asks Peter why he became a hero, what motivates him? Peter admits that he used to think he knew. It all seemed simple and clear, then: he had powers and felt a responsibility to use them to help people. It was a hard lesson he learned at way too young an age. But so much has happened to him since then - his wife is gone, but he knows she's still out there somewhere, and… he just doesn't know anymore.
Several jets suddenly screech by overhead, but Anna tells Peter it'll be fine - it's just another of Doom's demonstrations of power which he does periodically to remind people that he's still in control. He never actually… She's horrified when the planes then start bombing the city, destroying huge chunks with every salvo. Peter snarls that sometimes it's not about power and responsibility - sometimes it's just because someone has got to stand up to people like Doom! He promises Anna he'll get her father for her and after that he's going to go and find his wife! He rips open the shirt he just borrowed to reveal he's still got the Spider-Man costume underneath. Time to get back in the saddle…
Inside the city, the Doombot has gone completely stark raving mad - it's managed to repair itself, but it's now laying waste to parts of its own castle, massacring many of its own robots, and dragging his generals around while demanding how they dare to question him?! One of them tells his Lord that he must question the brutality of his actions against his own people, but the Doombot snaps that these repercussions are exactly what those people deserve for giving sanctuary to an enemy of the state! It then tosses the man straight through a computerbank, stating it's disappointed, then blasts him through the wall behind it and out of the castle entirely. The Doombot does not like being disappointed! It then commands some robots to bring the rebel leader in here - an example must be made to those who oppose Doom!
The rebel leader, Anna's father, is dragged into the room and held up in front of Doom, who raises his fist, which crackles with fusion-sparks. The Doombot declares that the rebellion will fail, and their leader will not live long enough to see the dawn! Unless, of course, he comes over to the other side, joins him and leads Doom's forces to victory! Do this - or die! That's when Spider-Man swings into frame, stating that he was actually counting on having a big celebration after they blew up the Death Star! Also, Doom had better not tell him he's his father…
The Doombot is glad to see that Spidey has come - it's the weakness of his kind! A willingness to sacrifice themselves for others, even those they do not know! Spidey agrees - but he bets he gets better Christmas cards than Doom does.
The second general, the one who's still alive, declares that he'll grant a promotion to whoever brings down Spider-Man - the outsider is theirs! Spidey figures that's what they all want, a promotion! Because there is great job security in working for a megalomaniac dictator - how many beds are there in the Latverian generals retirement home, he wonders? Dodging several shots with a quick series of acrobatic jumps, Spider-Man gets to Anna's father, and explains that he's here to rescue the man. Now, give him a minute or two, and he'll get into the rescuing portion of the evening! He swings back into the fight, and tells Doom that it's funny how he keeps thinking he's dealing with the real thing - the Doombot is pretty good. Good enough to fool him, and everyone else, into believing he's the real one… Except, and he's not pretending that Doom is even close to being a good guy, but he knows Victor von Doom… and the Doombot is not him! And it's about time everyone else knows it too. Dodging a few more shots, Spidey baits some of the robots and then vaults over the Doombot so one accidentally blasts the Doombot in the chest.
The general is astounded at what's visible in the hole left behind - machinery! Doom, he's a… Spider-Man comments that the word he's searching for is android, robot… Doombot! They've all been allowing an automaton, a heartless unfeeling machine, to lead the nation and inflict horrors upon its people! Spidey smashes the Doombot into the same computerbank he threw the other general into, then dodges a hand-blast and keeps punching it in the face. He snarls that the locals have been blindly doing this thing's bidding! How do they all feel about being the puppets of a walking piece of machinery? With the last blow Spider-Man dislodges Doom's mask, revealing nothing but circuitry behind it. The general and Anna's father are both wide-eyed at the revelation, but after a few moments the former commands the robots to fire! While the Doombot glitches out and declares 'I am Doom!' one last time, dozens of shots impact the thing and shatter it to tiny pieces.
Spider-Man grabs Anna's father in the confusion and swings out of there, telling him that it seems his rebelling days are over. Anna's father comments that he's not foolish enough to believe that Doom will never return to reclaim Latveria. Later, back at Anna's house, Spider-Man wonders why she and her father don't just leave Latveria, go somewhere else? She says that this is their home, and this is what they do. Spider-Man figures she's right - they all have to do what they have to. He wishes her good luck in taking her country back, then swings off to a nearby roof and muses that he may have helped these poor people out, but he's no closer to getting a clue about Mary Jane's whereabouts. Someone's playing him, using his grief - and his hope - to push all the right buttons. They got him to travel halfway around the world with a simple phone call. Well, they can play with his head all they want, but Spider-Man doesn't give up easily, and when he finds who this mystery man is… he's gonna wish he'd minded his own business, big time!
Rating & Comments
So, the follow-up to that conversation between Peter and Johnny in Fantastic Four v3 #27 leads directly into this - a two-part tale in which Peter Parker is a screwup who accidentally gets a lot of people killed because plans are for other people and Doombots can get a bit crazy sometimes. Joy! The set-up of this story is convoluted, with MJ going missing after a plane crash and some mysterious weirdo calling Peter in the middle of the night to tell him that she's being held captive in Castle Doom in Latveria. Which she isn't - it'll eventually turn out she wasn't even on that plane but was kidnapped by a stalker or some such nonsense. Stricken with grief and denial, though, Peter takes the first lead he gets and runs with it, running headlong into danger without really thinking twice on the off chance the caller was right. Aunt May has a point here, he's letting people take advantage of him for their own ambiguous ends…
I am sort of amused that Peter has developed a Deadpool-style superpower of pattern recognition, so one of the reasons he doesn't believe that MJ is dead is because nobody stays dead forever in his screwed-up soap opera existence. No kidding - everyone but Uncle Ben, right? And even that's negotiable. That said, other parts of Peter's actions in these issues are a bit off, presumably due to his emotional state. He's pretty reckless in parts, foregoing thought in favor of just acting in the moment - which is fine, but Peter's still a genius, planning things out isn't anathema to him. He also plays things pretty passively until pretty late in the game, which I guess can be attributed to Anna cautioning him against getting involved, but I feel like he probably would have jumped in much earlier in other storylines. Here, it seems like he allows the baddies entirely too much time to get their crazy going.
These two comics are a bit confusing with their continuity, as the first issue goes out of its way not to set any sort of context for when the story takes place on the Doom-side… and then the second one explicitly places it post-Stryfe. Presumably one of the many Doombots we saw roaming the place during the Gambit issues took over and installed itself as the 'returned Doom' at some point? Not sure how these generals would believe this, though, if the news is reporting on the marriage of Doom and Sue in New York. I guess they just don't get that sort of coverage in Latveria. Incidentally, the castle has been completely repaired here (and apparently is more menacing than ever) so that also places it after the Gambit chapters, so now you know why I ordered them this way.
A returning element from numerous previous issues is the Latverian rebellion - it's always simmering under the surface, it seems, just with a variety of different figureheads in charge of this vague group of freedom fighters. I guess they're currently in an anti-Doom phase, given that they're convinced the Doombot in charge is the real deal, but I presume they've also been annoyed with all the other assholes who took over while the Master was away. Honestly Doom has been absent so much over the span of his comics career that I'm surprised he gets any time to oppress people! We can safely categorize these two issues as a depiction of Latveria as a dystopian regime where people are abused - at least from the perspective of Anna and her father. Given that the Doombot goes nuts and starts blasting the civilians of Doomstadt, they've got good reason to be angry!
This is the interesting duality, though, of Latveria's status in these comics. Yes, obviously the Doombot is a monster who kills people en masse and sets weapons on its own people… but it's also explicitly compared disfavorably to the entire reign of Doctor Doom so far. Note that the rebels have to reach back to Doom originally conquering Latveria to get a scenario of similar destruction, and Doom's generals explicitly come out against this violent reprisal against Latverians because they think it's out of character, it goes too far. During the Gambit issues some attention is drawn to Stryfe using the Doombots for his own purposes because he felt it amusing to use one of his enemies' doubles as slaves… Stryfe terrorized Latveria as part of his plan, so what if the Doombot who took over here is one of the ones he messed with? Something, at least, warped its personality enough to make it act in an atypical way (to the point that even Spidey recognizes it's not living up to the real deal.)
The conversations with Anna actually emphasize this point - when Peter points out that he'd heard Doom had mellowed out, at least with his own people, Anna confirms that the people of Latveria had also developed a false sense of security. For so long, she notes, it seemed Doom had chosen to turn his megalomania outwards to the rest of the world. She claims that changed some months ago, but we know that's when the Doombot took over - he became harsher and began disappearing people from the streets, but that wasn't really Doom. So was it a false sense of security, or did Doom really mellow out compared to his early days? I'm betting on the latter, since 60/70's Doom is quite a bit more volatile and nasty to his own people than he's been in more recent depictions. He hasn't been home in actual years at this point, so I don't think he can be blamed for a defective Doombot after a succession of like half a dozen dictators repeatedly ran roughshod over his stuff.
Speaking of the Doombot, it's curious that this one seems to be aware of its own artificial nature even when it's by itself, since it pretty readily started using its detached head as a weapon, and later knew to hide its nature from the generals to avoid getting found out. This does imply that the people of Latveria aren't really aware of the existence of Doombots. For all that the Doombot in this issue tends to speak in cliché soundbites, there's at least some intelligence there - even if it pretends to know more than it really does, like when it claims to have known the moment Spider-Man entered the country, while that apparently completely passed the Doombot by. Honestly, I'm not even sure if the Doombot that showed up at the gate is the same one as in the castle - the second encounter plays out as if the Doombot is entirely surprised by Spider-Man's presence, which might mean the Doombots aren't sharing notes. Since we only ever see one 'Doom' show up at a time in these issues, I'll assume they're the same (forgetful) one, though.
The second issue of the two-parter starts with an atrocity, and doesn't get much nicer from there. Anna comes off as pretty selfish at times - she tearfully coerces Peter into not going out there to take out the attacking forces, but she does so by couching it in terms of needing to get her father free. I get that it's her priority, but the city is literally getting burned down by robots, I think there's bigger problems than a captive old guy! Peter then risks his own safety and reveals his identity to go undercover… only for that to be immediately invalidated when the first robot they come across demands their papers and they can't give it any. D'oh. The following sequence in which Peter uses his superpowers to cross the entirety of the city seems, uh, kind of risky? Like at least put your mask back on so you don't get filmed or something? It's not like they're going to think you're just some other random roof-jumping guy…
The final fight against the Doombot is excellent - quips, lots of split-second dodging, hand blasts, and an epic final blow to dislodge the mask, after which the Latverians take over in wasting the robot. I think it's pretty interesting that the general doesn't hesitate to blast apart the Doombot the moment it's revealed, which means it was clearly justified in hiding its nature. It's clearly not commonly known that Doom might replace himself with a double on occasion, then, even though this is obvious for us readers. With the Doombot destroyed, the nation of Latveria is once more without a ruler - but not for long, since even Anna and her father (who didn't really contribute much to the plot) acknowledge that it's a matter of time before Doom takes over again. Given the cavalcade of shitty replacements, though, I'd argue they might be better off. I mean, come on, would you rather live under Nathaniel Richards, or the Dreadknight, or Stryfe, or a crazy Doombot? Thought so. I guess Reed will get a swing at it first, though...
The first issue's plot, MJ's disappearance, never gets resolved here. Peter figures out that getting lured to Latveria was a trick partway through the second issue, and that the entire Latveria adventure was just someone manipulating him to go over here, and writes it all off as a waste of time (with a high body count he probably won't acknowledge.) Perhaps the one who called him intended for Spidey to destroy the Doombot, given that sneaking into Castle Doom was the original intent? Some ambiguous member of Doom's inner circle - whoever they are - also gave the rebellion some faulty codes at the same time that Peter arrived in the city, so that might all tie together - maybe a general or other high-ranking person realized the truth about the Doombot and sought to have an outsider get rid of them? I'd almost suspect Anna did it to try and get Spidey involved, given how much she follows international news and heroes, but she would probably not know Spider-Man's civilian ID, and the voice was male regardless… The last possibility is that the stalker who took MJ just wants her husband out of the way, and nothing says suicide mission like sneaking into Castle Doom...
In the grand scheme of things, these two issues don't really do that much in the way of importance, but I don't hate them. Spidey is a dumbass throughout, sure, but there's some good action in these issues, the Doombot is a proper monster who actually gets to do some horrific damage (which will, unfortunately, likely get ignored in future stories) and the finale involving the Latverian troops taking out their false leader is pretty sweet. Anna is sort of a default guest character who's only there for a single plot beat before vanishing forever, but at least we get a little context for what the Latverian rebellion is like these days - they haven't been a huge focus outside variant books for a while. I'll give these a collective three stars - it's serviceable but nothing too exciting. Poor Latveria, though...
Best Panel(s) of the Issues
I am amused at the fact that this is basically a shot of Doctor Doom recreating the cover of the game Doom.
Most Gloriously Villainous Doombot Quotes
"I am Doom! I know all! And soon... I WILL RULE ALL!"
"How do these insignificant ants dare to stand against the will of Doom? Well then... it is time. General... teach Latveria a lesson it will not soon forget."
Doombot: "YOU DARE TO QUESTION ME?!"
General: "B-b-but, my Lord, the brutality of the actions... against your own people..."
Doombot: "Is exactly what they deserve for giving sanctuary to an enemy of the state! You disappoint me, general. I do not like being disappointed!"
"You have come to me. It is the weakness of your kind. A willingness to sacrifice yourselves for others. Even those you do not know."
"No... I am... Doooom... I..."
Doom-Tech of the Week
Well, there was that Psycho-Neural Net which briefly stunned Spider-Man there, which presumably is Doomtech, and I'm guessing all those robots and planes and whatnot are too.
Doombot Count: 60 (+1)
There's only one Doombot in these issues, but it's an impactful one - and it's another data point in the ongoing observation that these things tend to wander away from the core personality after some time, or possibly that's just a limitation of their nature. In this case, this one went all-in on the tyrant, but lost decades of mellowing and care for his countrymen in favor of indiscriminate violence.
Yanno, there's two funny moments that come to mind with this comic:
1. The idea of Doom actually knowing Spidey was coming, being right where Spider-Man was going to sling his web, being in position to catch the web line and slam the web-head right into a nearby surface.
2. The Doombot picking up its own head and aiming it at Spidey moment is quite funny. Maybe it's just that there's an element of comedy inherent in non-lethal decapitations, since the head can now get bounced and kicked around like a soccer ball.
And this Spidey…He makes me think of the Beta-Peter Parker from the first Spiderverse movie-haven't seen the second- with how he seems like he's having to hold his psyche together with whatever mental webbing he can conjure to keep himself from flying apart!
Ripping himself free from his webs, Spidey waits until the plane flies low enough that he can fling a webline out to a church spire in the city beneath him and swing into the city of Doomstadt without going through customs…
This entrance into Latveria seems surprisingly easy, considering how much trouble the Fantastic Four and Luke Cage once had crossing the border. Of course, in those days, no trains even ran to Latveria, something Doom had corrected by the time the Avengers visited. It may be that he has been opening his borders more since becoming more involved in international politics
but this takes place during a period when Doom is actually Reed Richards! Except, you know, neither Doctor Doom nor Reed actually show up in these comics, so go figure
the Latverian underground has grown more tech-savvy since the days of Rudolfo. I also note in passing that they are no longer led by royal pretenders. I guess the experience with Zorba soured them.
Doom has clearly upgraded the design of his Doombots since the end of the civil war between Kristroff and the rogue Doombot when he scrapped them all. In the old days, knocking the head off would have put the Doombot down for the count.
He wants to know how Spider-Man got into his country without anyone detecting him, and why he's here, and what's being done to find this self-proclaimed hero!
A clear sign this is a Doombot, the real Doom would never be so dependent on his human lackeys. He wouldn't ask what was being done, he would be doing it himself. And never ask questions that imply that he does not know everything that his happening in his kingdom
We know that Doombots are programmed to remember they are robots when around other Doombots, or the real Doom. It must cause quite an existential crisis for them to have the fact they are a robot shoved in their face while they still believe they are Doom. Maybe this is why the robot essentially has a nervous breakdown?
This goes along with the comment made by Zorba's general, that Doom's fearsome reputation meant he rarely had to resort to mass punishments. After the intital conquest the Latverian people were "tamed." One taste of Doom's wrath was enough, the threat of it kept them in line afterwards
This seems so odd from a control-freak like Doom, and yet it is supported by continuity. Rudolfo's resistance fled into the hills when they were defeated the first time. I wonder why Doom concentrates his power so much more in the cities?
By now, even if they somehow do not know about Doombots, they are probably very used to hearing that the Master is in many places at once. They've learned it pays better to concentrate on the Doom in-front of you.
BTW, I don't think that the Latverian people could possibly be unaware of the existence of Doombots by this point. I have two theories to explain the guards' surprise
1) They believed that Doom had permanently done away with his Doombots, as he appeared to intend, after the Latverian Civil War.
2) They know Doom uses Doombots, but as a survival instinct they always treat every Doom they meet as the real one until proven otherwise. They may have suspected that this crazy, over-reacting Doom was not the real one, but to suggest that could get them killed in case the Master is simply having a bad day. OTOH, once Spider-Man exposed the Doombot, that changed everything. This mad Doombot is clearly a threat to the Latverian people, so if they shoot it, the real Doom will probably reward them.
Okay, that cover is metal as hell. For today's outing of Doctor Doom, we're apparently visiting the world of Mad Max - or a particular segment of Doom 2099. The eyes of classic masked Doom look out over a version of himself wearing a much smaller, makeshift mask, and a more Fremen set of gear - no metal armor here, just cloth and leather. Doom is also packing several knives instead of hand blasters, while the rest of the cover is packed with Conan and Mad Max extras - some sort of fancily-dressed middle-eastern guy to his right, a raging bunch of post-apocalyptic bikers to his left, and at the bottom there's several Atlantean soldiers alongside a diving Lancer. Admittedly her pose seems a bit gratuitous to make sure that all her assets are on display, so to speak.
One thing to note here is that I was wrong when I mentioned that this was released concurrently with the ongoing Fantastic Four storyline - it actually came out months later, around October 2000 (whereas the story it leads up to was released in June.) I suspect that these three issues were actually written concurrently with that storyline to fit in the gap, but for whatever reason its release was delayed a few months. Or they decided to fill it in months later instead of immediately… It's a bit hard to tell. Incidentally, it's weird how the 'Doom' name hadn't been used for a comic yet - it would be reused again for the sequel trilogy (and that one videogame comic I already covered for April Fools.)
Story Overview
Doom Without Armor
Counter-Earth, Doom states, is a world not of his making - yet a world of his design. So strange and familiar all at once. But no matter how far-flung in time or space, there remains this constant: he is Doom. Over a series of impressive panels we zoom in on a rugged, scorched landscape, to see a man kneeling next to a shallow stream, his face and body cast in shadow but clearly void of any clothing or hair. This whole comic, it seems, will be narrated by Doom in first person… and he finds himself in a precarious situation. He's in Africa, the Serengeti… but not the one of his homeworld. It's a duplicate continent, on a duplicate Earth - and he's been banished here, to this copycat world.
A gazelle rushes by Doom's position, and moments later he's attacked - a full-grown lion launches itself out of the stream, presumably diverted from chasing smaller prey. Doom recognizes it as a rogue male like himself, and that he's inadvertently invaded the beast's territory with his arrival. He can respect the lion's motives - he kills to eat, to punish, to protect. With his personal weapons systems, Doom could have killed the beast in an instant… but he's without any of that, now. He dodges the beast's attack with an athletic flip out of range, then jumps at the lion with his fist raised high. This will require more risk, he reasons - strength is not paramount, here. It's speed, it's precision - a single blow where the brainstem meets the spine. Doom lashes out and with a single vicious jab the Lion crumbles, its spinal cord severed.
After the animal dies, Doom kneels at its side and acknowledges this death as a gift from one monarch to another - instantaneous and painless, a noble death. But now, he is only meat and skin. Meat to feed Doom, sinew for his weapons, skin to clothe him - and to grant him a new mask. Using a chunk of rock, in the vein of paleolithic hunters, he begins cutting and carving, forming a rough lion-skin mask for himself and binding it across his face in lieu of his usual metal one. As he does so, he reflects on what brought him here - a cosmic joke on him and his arch-rival Reed Richards by the being known as the Dreaming Celestial. Together they defeated that godling, but the being would have the last laugh. Doom was sent here, to be a prisoner on Planet Doom… As he straps on the mask, we see flashes of the people at that last fight, including Lancer, the Fantastic Four, and some of the generals of Doom…
Soon enough Doom finishes his new costume - he looks like Conan, with a thick lion-skin cloak around his shoulders, kept in place with a necklace of teeth. Crude belts and bracers made from its pelt, a length of rope, boots, and a spear with stone point complete the ensemble. He takes the first steps towards reconquering the world, but the sun itself mocks him - its' the same sun that his own Earth sees from the opposite side. He must find his way back there, somehow - he cannot remain on this Earth! That, however, is a goal for another day. For now, survival is his first priority - it will prove a challenge worthy of Doom.
Night falls, and we see a trail of footsteps as Doom makes his way along the endless plains. He stops to chart the stars - they are in the positions of winter, the opposite of their positions on Earth. He finds his true location using them, and realizes he's many thousands of miles from civilization. He lives out here as a primordial man… while his greatest enemy rules the kingdom that he built. He must return to Doomcenter, he tells himself. He must return to the Baxter Building!
In the New York City of Counter-Earth we catch up with Lancer - she's informed by Breegan, a bald, goggle-wearing subordinate, that there's a request for access from a subsurface level. Lancer tells him that they're in total lockdown, so nobody is allowed in. Breegan argues they're using familiar codes, though - older and outdated ones, granted. Lancer concludes that this means that the people using them are looters and wreckers. The wolves are all around them… Breegan points out these are personal encryptions, though, and the system recognizes them as Doom! Lancer is surprised, and repeats the name to herself. We then see a figure step into frame, a metal-clad figure in armor and wearing a green cloak, every bit the Doctor Doom we know, who demands that the door be opened - or the men guarding it shall suffer the wrath of Doom! Lancer yells that he won't get access, after which Doom opens fire and kills two guards with palm blasts, asking if they really dared challenge Doom's authority? Morons!
Lancer comments that the wannabe is wearing a pretty convincing outfit, and the voice is a close simulation too… but clothes don't make the man! Lancer unleashes her power and guts the man instantly, revealing electronics inside - it's a robot! Lancer demands to know who sent it - the Atlans? Dezerkers? Thraxis? The robot responds that it is but the first of legions, so its death profits her little! Lancer answers that taunt by destroying what remains of the thing utterly.
Breegan dryly comments that they could have questioned the robot to learn more about who sent it. Lancer doesn't see the point, though - they already know who their enemies are, who cares which specific faction is responsible? They'll let the remains float down Broadway - the creeps who sent it will get the message. The Baxter Building will hold! For how long, though, Breegan wonders? How long until these foes finally break down the defenses? Lancer is determined to hold the fort until Victor von Doom returns, and declares that she will not let all that he's built fall to ruins! Breegan questions what happens if he never returns. 'Then we die in his name,' Lancer responds grimly.
Back in Africa, Doom concludes that he must somehow cross the world to return to New York City - that's where his journey home can begin. He'll need weapons and transport to make that happen, though. As he sits there, contemplating his next move, he spots a light off in the distance - manmade lights where no city on Earth exists. But this is not really Earth, is it? He must be ready for any eventuality, just as he must be prepared to seize any opportunity! He treks his way towards the horizon, eventually discovering the source of the strange illumination - it's a mining complex of some kind, distributed across several levels of the rocky hills, and the place is still inhabited. There are things here that are of use to Doom, he decides… and he will have them! Eventually.
No sooner has he arrived, however, that someone yells at Doom to stay where he is. Several people come charging in on motorcycles, with the leading man wielding an axe as his main weapon. He declares that Doom is now in the domain of Al-Khalad - that's the same individual mentioned at the start of Heroes Reborn: Doom as the person responsible for the slaughter of the Wakandan royal family. The biker adds that Al-Khalad's mercy is tempered with justice, so Doom must accept slavery - or die! Doom doesn't take this well - him, enslaved?! Furious, he snarls that this will never happen, and immediately launches his primitive spear straight into the chest of the leading man, killing him.
The other two open fire with guns installed into their motorcycles, so Doom swiftly jumps into a crevice to avoid the gunfire, and decides to himself that everything he needs is here - he'll have them all! He grabs the rope he fashioned earlier and latches it onto one of the bikes as the two remaining riders make to jump across the crevice, forcing them to crash into the rock wall in a rather spectacular explosion.
'Any who deny me will die!' Doom decides. 'Though the savanna be carpeted with corpses, my will must triumph!' He grabs one of the pistols the bikers dropped, and immediately dismisses it as an inferior product - the components can be altered to craft a more powerful weapon from its parts. Still, it must serve as it is, for now. More of Al-Khalad's people rush in, so Doom opens fire and guns down half a dozen raiders in quick succession before looting their remains for more suitable clothing than the ones he crafted from the lion. He keeps his improvised mask, and even finds himself a green cloak and a large golden clasp among the pillaged resources - Doom is nothing if not committed to an aesthetic.
Dressed up in somewhat more civilized Mad Max gear, Doom intends to leave to fulfill the next step in his plan when he's suddenly blindsided - an electrified whip lashes him from behind and sends him screaming to the ground. A small group of raiders surround him alongside their fancily-dressed leader. This is his magnificence Al-Khalad himself, and he immediately dismisses Doom as a hideous man. His second-in-command Tuvo argues that he is nevertheless strong - he had to be, in order to arrive here on foot without being eaten! Al-Khalad agrees with that observation, and declares that Doom has met his fate. He belongs to Al-Khalad now - he should be taken to the slave pens at once! Doom falls unconscious…
He reawakens in darkness, and the pain tells him that he lived. Al-Khalad's men call him an ugly, filthy beast - they've removed his clothing and mask again, reduced him to nudity once more. He's been brought into the mining compound, however - which means Doom is where he wishes to be. He's soon hosed off by some of the raiders, before Tuvo shows up again to tell him that he's been conscripted into the service of Al-Khalad… and here he shall labor until he dies. Tuvo didn't want to let Doom live at all, he admits, but the ones Doom killed were fools, and he looks as though his back is as strong as his face is repulsive. He gets assigned a shared cell, and Doom muses to himself that the mercy that these fools grant him will be their undoing…
The men who run this mine bark and growl orders at Doom, but it's like the mewling of animals to him - he only does as they say because it pleases him to do so. As he's led to his cell, Doom takes stock of the mine's layout - there's a satellite-linked communications center, storage for explosive chemicals, and even a long-range mag-lev airplane. Everything is in place.
Soon Doom is tossed in with some other slaves, and is told that this is his new home. After the door is locked behind him, he looks around at the poor sods who live there, and shares his own view of slaves - he believes that men who have accepted slavery are no longer men. They are without hope, without shame, willing to do anything for the slightest boon from their masters. But even among slaves there's a hierarchy. The slaveholders dropped Doom into the cell with his recently looted clothes as well as his mask, and he quickly straps the latter back onto his face, just as the strongest, most well-equipped slave among the lot approaches him. The man snarls that the 'swine' must know that even a dog pack has a leader… and he's the one in charge around here! Doom is now his! He tells Doom that he should fetch water when he's told, and hand over half his food, and do half his work! The belligerent fool begins threatening dire consequences if he fails to do any of that, but Doom just lashes out with his hand and crushes the man's throat with a single vicious blow, upon which the guy immediately collapses onto the floor, choking and wheezing.
As Doom watches the dying man, he thinks to himself that this man does not get to die the death of a lion - he doesn't deserve to. For he is Doom - his world is law, now! With the former head honcho letting out his death rattle at his feet, Doom turns to the other slaves and tells them that to defy him means they'll die as this one does… but to follow him is to know freedom. Doom is leaving this place, he will escape, and he will take many of the other slaves with him - but if they betray him, they will die! That is not a threat, that's a certainty. They may think they have known fear, they may think they've known oppression… but they have not yet known Doom. Doom pulls the green cloak he looted over his head, and his eyes glow a menacing yellow from beneath his makeshift cowl…
Rating & Comments
This return to Counter-Earth is… bizarre, baffling… and badass. When we last saw this place it had just gotten transported out of Franklin's pocket dimension into the 'real' Marvel universe, and the only people we really saw were the passengers on board Doom's starship. Here, we see a little more than that - but what we see is incongruous in some respects. Counter-Earth used to be a near-replica of the conventional Marvel Earth, complete with reinterpretations of various famous heroes… It was more or less a contemporary 1990's setting. Several natural disasters towards the tail end of that era definitely messed with global affairs, but there's no indication that this somehow massively changed the status quo of this world… and yet it's now a post-apocalyptic Mad Max setting complete with techno-barbarians and slave empires. It's… quite a sudden shift in genre!
That said, one thing I have to say here is that Al-Khalad, the villain of the story, did actually get some set-up during the last visit to this planet. In Heroes Reborn: Doom we saw Doom and Lancer take on a horde of Al-Khalad's men after they kill most of the Wakandan royal family, and Doom swore that he would wreak vengeance on the man for this act. Ashera figured that was too little, too late, and Doom left before coming through on that vow. It seems he'll be getting another chance here to kick in the teeth of this warlord, who evidently imagines himself as hailing from a different era… It's really odd how this story seems to have this retro-futuristic angle where Al-Khalad seems like he stepped right out of Conan while most of his minions are straight-up cyberpunk thugs. Of course, Doom himself is also a warlord who dresses up in medieval armor and sometimes uses magic, so he doesn't have much to comment on.
Though… that's not entirely true, is it? This comic is, quite explicitly, about a Doom without armor. Indeed, it goes out of its way to show that he's without anything here. No clothing, no technology, no contacts - he doesn't even speak until the final few panels, except in internal monologues. Once again, much like he was at the end of Doom 2099, he's stripped of all his paraphernalia and has to make use of nothing but his body, mind, and soul. Which, for a man like Doom, is more than enough to get started. Vulnerable though he might be, it's pretty symbolic that the very first conflict Doom gets into is explicitly likened to a conflict between kings, in which Doom takes on a lion in physical combat, fighting for his life like a caveman from prehistory. Instead of his usual tactics which involve brute strength, here he relies on things that could not be stripped from him - his physical prowess and intelligence. A single well-aimed strike is enough to lay low a king - an instant, painless demise.
Now, not only is this a rather badass feat for a 'baseline' human, but it also established something of a theme for the issue - Doom improves his condition by taking from his foe, crafting himself a mask from the lion's skin as well a smattering of other survival gear to live on the steppes. Doom is a technologist, so without tools he's neutered. So he picks up a rock and starts working. And it's no coincidence that he starts with a mask before anything else, and then fashions himself a cloak akin to the one he usually wears - both practical and, I have no doubt, as a signifier of his status. He might be a king in exile, but he's still a king - that's clearly on his mind, given his intent to reclaim Counter-Earth and his internal commentary on his actions. Doom also uses his intelligence to manually figure out his position through the positions of the stars, and plans out his long, long journey home (and through the techtree.)
Lancer gets her own story in this trilogy - we don't get any real detail on what happened to everyone else on the starship she sailed back here, or what happened to that vessel, but presumably the Atlantean armies went home and she parked it somewhere else? It seems Lancer decided that instead of trying to find Doom, as Reed suggested, she instead bunkered down at the Baxter Building, which looks a fair bit more menacing in this depiction. We also meet Breegan there, who is something like Lancer's second-in-command here, presumably mostly so Lancer has someone to narrate to in the absence of Doom. (He reminds me of the Hauptmanns.) There's a clear Star Wars reference, when someone tries to get in with some dodgy entry codes, personal encryptions from Doom! (It's an older code, but it checks out.) Lancer doesn't buy it from the jump, and I can guess precisely why - she's still tied into Doom's armor by virtue of her powers, and clearly this guy's gear isn't pinging her radar.
Exactly who sent over this Doombot is unclear - and it might not have been an actual Doom-authored Doombot anyway, given that it was clearly meant to infiltrate on behalf of some enemy faction. Maybe the Atlanteans reprogrammed one? Lancer seems to notice at least some difference in its voice (by stating it's a 'close' simulation, not a perfect one) and it goes down to a blast from her powers , which I would assume is something Doom would have protected it from given that he authored said abilities. He did insulate Lancer against all his other minions' power, so I can't imagine he left her the ability to seriously hurt him or his stand-ins for many of the same reasons he implemented that particular failsafe. Lancer, incidentally, once again shows how much of a badass she is - she easily slays the robot that laid low several of her normal buddies, then puts her foot down and declares that she'll defend this base until Doom returns - or dies trying! She might not always be fully in agreement with the man, but clearly she still has a lot of respect for what Doom accomplished.
Speaking of Doom, though - I think we have to consider the possibility that Doom planned out all the events of this issue from the moment he spotted that distant, lit-up mine. He almost immediately says he needs supplies from there, and that he'll get them… eventually. This implies he already knows it will take him some time. This could mean he either planned to get 'enslaved' so he could lead a slave revolt, which is what happened, or he planned some other similar feat of infiltration. He may have allowed himself to be seen, however, in order to set up an encounter with the three biker thugs - this allows him to not only show off his physical prowess and intelligence, but also to tech up - he gets himself some more conventional clothing instead of actual caveman chic.
After a pretty great fight scene between prehistoric Doom and this band of assholes, we get into what amounts to dress-up time with Doom. Some funny elements of that sequence include the fact that Doom loots himself a length of green fabric and a big golden button from the guy he shanked with his spear in order to recreate a part of his iconic look - as ever, Doom must escape in style! It's also hilarious that mid-fight, while several thugs are running at him with guns, Doom starts complaining about the pistol he just looted from a guy he killed. He could totally make a better gun with the same parts, but it'll have to do. Never mind that he murders like half a dozen people with the unaltered pistol anyway… it's the principle of the thing!
Al-Khalad has a distinctive design, but it's clear that he's very hands-off - he's one of those bosses who never personally get involved at all. He's got fancy clothes on, long fingernails that make practical work impossible, and he sneers at the 'hideous' Doom and dumps him on his subordinates. Tuvo, by comparison, is a much more straight-up thuggish villain, but one that thinks Doom can be useful and refrains from killing him. Even Doom thinks that would have been a wise choice, heh. Doom himself seems pretty content with his slavery situation - he's been brought into the mining compound, exactly where he wanted to be, and the idiots here decided to grant him mercy. Hah! The reason I suspect Doom might have planned this is because he immediately begins cataloging what he can use to get out - he notes where to find communications, explosives, and a transport vehicle before he's even tossed into his cell, and is ready to roll the instant the door closes behind him. He's fully in control from the start, and his captors don't even realize it.
We get some insight into Doom's view of the other slaves - and it's not exactly complimentary. He determines at a glance that it seems the people here have accepted their enslavement, and this makes them something less than human in his eyes. They'd be willing to do anything for a boon from their masters, he reckons. Doom takes advantage of this fact quite fast - when one of the burliest slaves tries to threaten him, the guy quickly gets killed for his trouble - and not in a quick way, like that lion, but in slow and agonizing suffocation. He uses the man's agonizing death as an object lesson to the other slaves - he's the new head honcho around here, and he's going to escape this place! I'm not sure if I buy that he's going to let the others go, though - not after the way he just commented on the slaves' condition. To Doom, I imagine they're just another part of his plan to leave, mere meat for the meat-grinder. They'll do whatever he tells them, now that he's placed himself as their master…
One detail to note throughout this issue is Doom's eyes. Traditionally they're brown, but depending on the page you're looking at here, that's quite different - shortly after he's enslaved there's an excellent panel of Doom with very bright blue eyes, but there's also panels in which they seem to gleam white from the shadows, and the final page includes a set of glowing golden eyes among a sea of dark shadows. I assume there's some magical shenanigans going on to explain at least some of this, which makes it slightly odd that Doom doesn't actually use any of that throughout this story. Physical powers, sure - but it seems he left his magic at home. It would probably solve a few issues if he could just astral project to the tower or something… It's a nitpick, though - Doom does skew more technological in general. Besides the eyes, it's also notable that Doom's face probably gets seen by a bunch of people in this issue - a lot of those slavers. I don't expect they'll have a long and healthy life. The actual scarring on Doom's face is mostly kept off-panel, but the few bits we do see imply that this artist went with 'serious facial scars' instead of the interpretation where it's only a minor deformity.
On the whole, this issue was… actually great? The art is remarkably good, too - it's got a fair amount of that 90's grit in there, but it's very detailed and full of awesome compositions and shading, and that's before you get to some of the sweet design choices for such brief concepts like a stone age Doctor Doom. The concept of showing Doom without any of his usual advantages is neat too - it's all physical prowess and sheer willpower that's carrying him thus far, not technology, which is unique (and the willpower, at least, has come up before.) I think one negative of the issue is that while we hear a lot of Doom's thoughts, most of those are more practical, and don't tell us much about the character's emotional experience of his situation. Some things are implied but not confirmed, at least in this issue, so we might get back to those - but for the majority of the time here he's just in a very practical survival mode. Still, the snippets of insight we do get are neat - Doom is clearly a tech nerd, for example, but given some more recent comics that's no big surprise. (He's a Trekkie.)
I'm giving this issue a solid four stars - it's a bit too decompressed for my liking, in that it breezes by with a lot of establishing shots and not a ton of progress on actual plot beats. It's more mood-setting and set-up than actual events, though, and the odd absence of magic is also a sticking point… at least give an explanation for why he's not using it? Does he need some new eyes of newt? At least hijack your captor's body or something…? Eh, I'm sure we'll get to it next issue.
Best Panel(s) of the Issues
I quite like this panel of Doom's piercing stare at Tuvo - that dude's super-dead and just doesn't know it yet. Also this is a very clear look at how Dune-level blue Doom's eyes are in this issue...
I also appreciated this looming shot of Neolithic Doom wandering out of the wastes...
Most Gloriously Villainous Doom Quotes
"His death is a gift from one monarch to another. Instantaneous and painless. A noble death. But now he is only meat and skin. Meat to feed Doom. Sinews for Doom's weapons. Skin to clothe Doom. A mask for Doom."
"Doom… enslaved? Never."
"Everything I need is here. I will have them all. Though the savanna be carpeted with corpses… my will must triumph."
"The pain tells me that I live."
"Their mercy will be their undoing."
"They bark and growl orders at me. The mewlings of animals to me. Doom does as they say because it pleases Doom to do so."
"Men who have accepted slavery are no longer men."
"Defy me and die as this one does. Follow me and know freedom. I am leaving this place. I will escape. I will take many of you with me. Betray me and you will die. That is not a threat. It is a certainty. You think you have known fear. You think you have known oppression. You have not yet known DOOM."
Doom's Bad Hair Day
While the detail is fine, the coloring on the mask here is off, and the insets are either off-model (like the Celestial) or they involve Doom's generals that I kind of want to forget are a thing.
Doom-Tech of the Week
We see the grandest of Doomtech yet - a handcrafted Primitive Spear! And a rope! Neolithic Fashion! Yea technically I guess all his stuff in this issue is made by Doom's hand, but it's not exactly high technology, so I'm not sure this is a justified use of this subsection.
Doombot Count: 61 (+1)
I'm not sure if it's the genuine article, but the Doombot that attacks Lancer at the Baxter Building probably counts.
It appears that the cover artist was told to make this series' first impression hardcore, and that's pretty much what we're getting here. Doom is back with his improvised mask still on his face, but he's now decked out in heavy duty improvised armor and wielding what appears to be some sort of juiced-up lightning-jackhammer for a weapon. Several post-apocalyptic raiders are piled at his feet, and more charging in from behind him, though they are sketched with less detail. It's also noticeable that the Doom in the corner is wearing a different, metal version of the improvised mask - or at least it's colored that way. Either way, Doom is still Mad Maxing it up for the moment, ready to carve his way through a whole new locale. Turn up the metal soundtrack!
Story Overview
Slaves
We open with Doom in almost the exact same pose as on the cover, while he's using that huge energy-jackhammer and wearing the same set of armor - it's supposed to be protective gear, I presume. He's working as a slave in the mines - he's been there for three days now. The slave masters trust him with an impact hammer, and Doom considers them all fools for allowing that… The artists like this particular pose so much that they then use it a third time in a row - that's a bit much, no?
Al-Khalad and his subordinate Tuvo are watching on from afar, and the former asks about the new masked slave - isn't he the one that walked here across the barrens? What's his name anyway, his history? Tuvo explains that they don't actually know - evidently, Doom doesn't speak to the slavers at all. Maybe he's an idiot? Al-Khalad is suspicious about Doom and says he's worth watching. When Tuvo asks what he's afraid of, Al-Khalad snaps that it's not fear that he feels - but the masked one is somehow different. Tuvo swears he shall keep a tight rein, but Al-Khalad warns his underling that he should never again imply that his master experiences fear - because it would be worth his life! Tuvo quickly apologizes for that slight to his merciful master…
Three days he's worked in the pit, Doom muses to himself - the work is dangerous, and the days are long. The stars shining above him are the same ones that shine down on the world of his birth, on the real Earth that circles the same sun as this planet, on the opposite side. This place is but a cruel parody of it created by the mind of a child, Franklin Richards - and while it's not his home, it is still a prize worth having. Doom stops using his impact hammer and leans on it as if exhausted, deciding that this is his last day in the mines. Doom will be free, and all perdition will be released with him!
Soon enough one of the slave masters, Yuri, comes to prod Doom back to work. A second, Yosef, urges Yuri to use his electrified baton, and Doom soon gets smacked along the back with the thing - that drill is not for leaning on. Clearly, Doom is begging for a turn at the wheel of pain! Yuri recognizes that Doom looks ill - but he'll cure that condition, haha! Doom, a furious grimace of rage on his face and brilliant yellow glints in his eyes, violently lashes out with the impact hammer, slicing through both Yuri and Yosef with a single arcing blow and bisecting them where they stand - they go out with a look of shock frozen on their faces.
Their wits were dulled by years spent in this place, Doom decides - fooling a child would have been more challenging. With this, he takes his first step towards freedom! A first step towards the reconquest of this world - one which rightfully belongs to Doom! With the two slave masters dead, he turns to the other slaves and tells them to take up their weapons, and to remember the plan. They should strike for the surface, kill the guards along the way, and free their slave brothers! Doom himself will disable their communications to prevent reinforcements!
There's no turning back now, Doom muses - the slaves know that to win is to leave this brutal life of forced labor, and to lose is certain death. Both are a form of escape. As the slaves rush out and begin their desperate murder spree, Doom calls them all idiots. But they're useful idiots. They cannot suspect they are only a diversion, and it's only Doom's own freedom that he is concerned with! Doom quickly slips off while the fighting is going on. We next see one of the slave masters calling in the revolt, telling Al-Khalad and his men that the slaves are armed and moving up to level thirty! The voice on the other side asks if he can hold their position, but the slave master at the radio never gets to answer because Doom slips a hand over the man's mouth and then quickly snaps his neck from behind. He then immediately tunes the radio to send a message to a different frequency entirely - and he calls home.
The sounds of desperate battle soon reach Doom from up above, and he knows that each life lost buys him another second of time that he needs. 'Doom to Doom Central, are you receiving me?' Doom finally manages to get through to Breegan at the Baxter Building, who asks him to identify himself - this is a restricted band. Doom conveys his identity and says that he needs a transport sent to a specific set of coordinates in sub-saharan Africa. Breegan asks for proof of Doom's ID, and the monarch sends over authorization and confirmation codes - a varying hundred character cypher determined by the change in the phases of the moon. Uncrackable! Breegan agrees that his authorization is confirmed - but does he have further validation?
Doom, now angry at being given the runaround by a mere underling, declares that it's impossible for a pretender to replicate that code! He is Doom! He demands access, now, or when he returns to New York City, Doom's face will be the last thing Breegan will see in his life! In response, Breegan just reaches out and closes the connection on his end. Moments later Lancer enters the communications room and mentions that she heard there was a transmission - what was it about? Breegan lies about what happened and says it was nothing: just some crosstalk and noise. Lancer asks if he's certain, and he confirms that - absolutely! She narrows her eyes at him and says it sounded like… She shakes her head and walks off.
Back in Africa, Doom furiously rips the radio control center apart while snarling threats at Breegan - he will know Doom's wrath! It seems that he will have no outside support, so it comes down to Doom and Doom alone. It was ever so. He will leave this place on his own power, then - he will leave this place a scorched wasteland, a smoldering hole in the ground, a landmark for those who would cross him!
While Tuvo is busy fighting some escaped slaves, he suddenly spots something exploding in the distance - and from the billowing fire emerges the Mag-Lev airplane from last issue, with Doom sitting at its controls. Doom intentionally steers the vehicle into Tuvo to kill him, snarling that nothing may remain alive here - nothing! Al-Khalad and his servants see the mine explode in the distance - Doom knew where all the volatile chemicals were kept, after all. The whole mine erupts into a huge inferno, and a shocked Al-Khalad has only long enough to call for an update from Tuvo, and to realize that someone's coming for him, before the plane is already upon him and uses its fiery exhaust to incinerate the entire building he's in, as well as everyone inside. They sought to enslave Doom - to chain him, to humiliate him. For that alone they die! Everyone. Not even the slaves make it out.
Flying off after leaving the mine a destroyed, charred husk, Doom decides he'll take this commandeered vehicle as far as it will travel along his long journey back to New York. It will be a journey with great peril… for those who dare to pursue him! They ride in the name of vengeance, but they only speed towards their deaths, while Doom speeds towards freedom! We see Doom look over his readouts at the same time that several survivors of Al-Khalad's group who weren't at the time are coming after him on weaponized flying bikes, intent on avenging their master…
Meanwhile, back in New York, Lancer looks out over the flooded streets of the city and says that while it may look calm on the surface, she's sure that the Atlans are plotting another attack even as they speak, as they try again and again to breach the defenses. She only wishes Doom would return, as she can't hold this place forever. Treachery boils under those still waters! Diving beneath the waves, a pair of Atlanteans are in conversation - an enchantress and Lord Byrrah, an armored Atlan sitting upon a winged throne decorated with serpents. Byrrah proclaims that the enchantress promised him a weapon which could defeat the Baxter Building's defenses - she won't disappoint him, will she? 'Pray that I do not!' she answers. Byrrah scoffs and says that prayer won't save her if this scheme fails! Despite all their allies and weapons and threats, they have failed again and again to gain entrance to Doom's fortress. Doom's loyal thralls guard it in his absence, foolishly waiting for his return!
The woman explains that they will be dead long before Doom's return, and reveals a shell with a shining blue gem inside. Byrrah is astounded at what she summons with that reagent - she brings forth her pet, as she puts it - a Kraken from myth! This beast will do more than merely impress when he brings the Baxter Building crashing into the sea! An enormous cyclopean crab-octopus-monstrosity looms over everything, ready to smash…
Doom, still getting chased by the vengeful raiders, complains that his vehicle's positioning system is primitive, so he can only roughly estimate his precise location. Still, he knows he still has thousands of kilometers to travel. First, he must lose his pursuers! A lucky hit on one of the wings sends Doom careening towards the ground, and he admits begrudgingly that his foes have speed and are impressively armed, so he'll have to use the terrain against them. Using his proximity to the ground Doom to his advantage, he steers towards some nearby grassy hills and the centuries-old termite mounts beyond them - the clouds of debris kicked up are chaff before his heavy transport, but they wreak havoc on the smaller vehicles chasing him. Kicking up enormous clouds of dust, the pursuers can't see where they're going and are too late in slowing down, smashing themselves to death against canyon walls while Doom makes his escape. They raced with death, and death claimed victory… In the end, death always wins!
At the Baxter Building, Lancer is awakened by a loud creaking noise, and the din of battle - the Baxter Building is under assault again! A group of heavily armed people rushes by to go take on the latest wave of attackers, but when Lancer asks who it is they're fighting, nobody's quite sure. Atlans, Lancer concludes immediately - it always comes down to them. That noise, though? It turns out that the Kraken has wrapped itself around the bottom of the Baxter Building with its enormous tentacles and is squeezing and smashing the building from every direction.
Doom flies his damaged vehicle for many thousands of kilometers more, sputtering along on its sole remaining engine - but eventually its power levels fall too low to maintain flight, and the plane fails a few hundred kilometers short of his goal. Landing amidst a desolate and cold landscape somewhere in Canada, Doom does the only thing he can do - he walks. Two days of forced marching might prove pointless in the end, he thinks to himself, because this world might not be an exact recreation of his own Earth, in which case the journey of his life will end here. Doom reaches the nondescript point he was aiming for, out in the middle of nowhere, and digs down into the ground to reveal a hidden panel beneath the topsoil. Machinery far below the ground responds to his touch on the control pad - it's here! In another world, in another time, Doom directed this sanctuary to be constructed, one of many such holdouts located around the world for the convenience of Doom…
An imposing tower soon rises from the ground, a miniature Castle Doom out in the abandoned steppes, decorated with lavish art that has never actually been seen above ground level until now. So, Doom's theorem proves correct - Franklin Richards recreated the Earth in every physical detail, with the exception of its occupants… and then left the planet's fate to the pestilence of man and the vagaries of fate. Doom created this base for just such a contingency, but little did he dream of a possibility like this one! Descending down through the imposing monolith, past advanced laboratories and more, Doom reaches a vehicle of his own design stored down in the depths. It's a rocketship that seats one person, but sadly not one capable of interplanetary travel, or he would have taken off from Earth right then and there. Instead it will serve to speedily transport him to the faux New York, back to his stronghold at the Baxter Building… to the dismay of any who dreamt him dead!
To be concluded…
Rating & Comments
After last issue spent a bunch of time setting the stage, this one feels like it passes by almost too quickly - there are moments where it feels like entire scenes are missing and the plot moves along off-panel. Some plot points which were only introduced at the end of the last issue are handled swiftly here - dealing with the recently established villains is perfunctory, a side-show at most. That said, it works if you consider the overall goal of Doom here - he isn't really interested in the slaves, or the slavers, or basically anything except getting back home. All other things are of secondary importance, and he elects to head for the radio in the middle of the slave-riot instead of escaping topside just to expedite his return to New York. That said, Doom's escape method still includes him intentionally killing Tuvo, Al-Khalad, and presumably anyone else who might have seen his unmasked face, so he clearly multi-tasks...
It's funny how, just by staying entirely silent, Doom has effectively managed to slip under Al-Khalad's radar and gotten himself within striking distance of his entire operation. Oh, that pretentious fob is clearly subconsciously aware that something is wrong, given that he keeps asking after Doom, but he hasn't connected the dots on the true identity of his new slave. He never does. This unfortunate oversight leads to some truly stupid decision-making on his part, or on Tuvo's - I'm not sure who decided to give the brand-new inmate a lethal sci-fi jackhammer, after all. I imagine even a mere stick would have been bad enough. Doom's escape is a foregone conclusion, and the subsequent slave riots he sets off were also inevitable after the ending of last issue - what follows less so. Doom slips away to do something he considers more important than getting out - and that's getting help! Well, kind of.
After using the slaves as disposable meat shields and a distraction, as I sort of suspected he might, Doom kills a dispatcher and takes his gear for the express purpose of calling the Baxter Building and requesting transportation. Breegan answers, and for a few panels it seems like he's being reasonable - we've seen that people have been trying to get into the system in New York City using Doom's access codes, so being very paranoid about further claimants makes sense. But then Breegan hangs up on Doom and lies to Lancer's face about the call he just received, and his treachery becomes clear. If he'd just dismissed it as a fake Doombot trying to get in again, maybe I'd have cut him some slack, but Breegan's clearly working for the enemy, and it's likely that the Doombot assault from last issue was facilitated by him too - he did say it had the right codes, after all, and argued it was the real deal!
This particular betrayal puts a crimp in Doom's style, but he's nothing if not resourceful, so he's got a backup plan or three. Unfortunately, the actual escape scene is a bit abrupt - the story moves directly from Doom shouting at the phone to a few shots of Tuvo fighting random slaves, to Doom already on board the stolen plane bowling straight into Tuvo and detonating the mine. I guess we can fill in what must have happened there, but Tuvo doesn't even really get a proper death scene so much as a single panel where he gets smacked with some debris, and neither he nor Al-Khalad ever actually know that Doom is the one killing them, they just gets annihilated by the plane's exhaust. As I mentioned, the fact that Doom dispatches them on the way out of Dodge works with his priorities, but I feel like it's a bit of a let-down to have them both get killed without ever having a moment to shit their pants over who they tried to enslave. Why spend time setting up these characters if they never matter?
Speaking of villains, this issue wastes no time in propping up a pair of new ones to replace the late Al-Khalad and Tuvo, namely Lord Byrrah and his servant's monstrous pet, the Kraken. The design of that monster is great, by the way, though I do think it's a bit transparent what they're doing here, by just dropping in a new bad guy so Doom has something to beat up when he gets home in the next issue. That said, the villains do keep getting stronger with every new addition - it went from a wild animal to some gun-wielding motorcycle thugs to flying motorcycle thugs to… well, a freaking Kraken! Doom is still missing the lion's share (hah) of his tech, so I'm not sure he'd got anything in his arsenal that can actually tackle a monster of this scope - I guess that's the point, though. I'm sure we'll see more of Lord Byrrah and his shenanigans next time. I'm not sure the timing works terribly well on the Kraken attack, by the way. Doom spends some time flying and two days marching through the wastes, but somehow that creature still hasn't taken the tower down by the time the next issue rolls around? I'm gonna guess that the Kraken attack and the final launch of Doom's rocketplane are supposed to be happening concurrently just to make it a little cleaner.
By the way, I like how this comic keeps emphasizing Doom's foresight and intelligence in these issues - he plans out everything in advance or is very good at thinking on his feet, and while he constantly complains about the inadequacies of all the stuff he pilfers, he still uses them with remarkable skill. He nearly gets shot down, but even that proves to be something Doom's ready to use to his advantage, by combining the smoke of his burning engine and the fact that his vessel is heavy enough to just smash through weaker obstructions to leave a hellish trail to follow for his pursuers. Seems a bit unlikely he'd just happen to find a bunch of termite mounds of all things, but there you go! Perhaps he chose a route that had such features along the path just in case he needed them? He did expect those pursuers, after all…
To further underline Doom's sheer level of Batman-style preparedness, Doom's trek to the middle of nowhere to find one of his old boltholes is great. I guess there's backup batcaves all over the place! It's previously been established he has bases all around the globe, but this is the first time we've seen one with quite this level of covertness. Such hideouts are presumably how Doom kept himself supplied after Kristoff or Rudolfo booted him out of Latveria. Naturally, this being Doom, the secret bases are incredibly extra - telescoping subterranean towers filled with badass technology and backup rockets to get to places in a hurry. If this is what his nigh-forgotten backups are like, it's no wonder he sometimes skips going home to Latveria for ages! Curiously, it seems he doesn't store any spare armors or whatnot in that backup base, since he leaves with minimal upgrades to his gear…
This is the second issue in a row which is very much focused on the practical, incidentally - Doom has a goal in mind and is single-minded in his focus on that goal, and doesn't spend much time on anything else. Unfortunately the unceremonious end of the villains and the lack of any meaningful character interaction here does make it a bit less engaging than the previous entry in this trilogy, though at least the art is still pretty neat. As far as characterization goes, this is definitely on the more callous side of Doom's usual depictions - he massacres a whole lot of relatively innocent people during his escape, even if he also includes villains. There's still no sign of magic, aside from random glowing eyes on a few panels. I'm giving three stars for this one - it's a fun enough trip, but I found myself a little less intrigued than last time, and the whole adventure passes by in the blink of an eye…
Best Panel(s) of the Issues
The page depicting the various levels of the hidden lair are pretty epic - gives it some sense of scale, plus you got to love the sci-fi gizmos.
Most Gloriously Villainous Doom Quotes
"Doom will be free. And all perdition will be released with me."
"I am Doom. Allow me access now. Or know that when I return to New York City my face is the last sight you shall see in this life."
"I will have no outside support. So, it comes down to Doom and Doom alone. It was ever so. I will leave this place on my own power. I will leave this place a scorched wasteland. A smoldering hole in the ground. A landmark for those who would cross me. Nothing may remain alive here. They sought to enslave Doom. They sought to chain Doom. They sought to humiliate Doom. And for that alone they die. Every one."
"It will be a journey of great peril - for those who dare to pursue me. They ride in the name of vengeance. They only speed towards their deaths, while I speed towards freedom."
"They raced with death. Death claims victory. In the end, death always wins."
Doom's Bad Hair Day
Reusing three near-identical drawings of basically the same pose in a row across the first few pages was a bit much, I have to say...
Doom-Tech of the Week
Have to mention the Telescoping Underground Tower and the Rocketship that he stores within it! The rest of the technology he uses here is just stuff he pilfered from Al-Khalad and his minions.
