Doctor Doom by Christopher Cantwell & Salvador Larroca

Doctor Doom (2019) #1-2

by Christopher Cantwell, Salvador Larroca

When Marvel's greatest villain Doctor Doom loses everything, can he even clear his name?

Victor Von Doom is at a crossroads. Wrestling with visions of an entirely different life—a better future—the lord of Latveria offers mankind a stark warning about the folly of a trillion-dollar global effort to create the first artificial black hole. But when a catastrophic act of terrorism kills thousands, the prime suspect is Doom. Framed for a crime he didn't commit, Victor finds himself stripped of everything: no homeland, no armies, no allies. Now the world's most wanted fugitive must go to extraordinary lengths to survive, including a literal journey through Hell, where his old foe Mephisto awaits.

WHEN EVEN DOOM IS HUNTED, WHO WILL STAND WITH THE FALLEN KING?

This is the propulsive chase through the Marvel Universe where Doom battles Taskmaster, M.O.D.O.K., and the Blue Marvel while seeking unlikely aid from Kang the Conqueror. To clear his accursed name, Victor must confront not only his enemies but his own demons—including visions of a parallel world where Doctor Doom became humanity's savior instead of its greatest threat. Perfect for fans ready to see Marvel's most complex villain in a rare heroic role, readers who love political intrigue mixed with super hero action, and MCU fans.

COLLECTING DOCTOR DOOM (2019) #1-10, WAR OF THE REALMS: WAR SCROLLS (2019) #3 (B story), and KING IN BLACK: IRON MAN/DOCTOR DOOM (2020) #1.

"...character-defining story of one of most notorious and complex villains in comic book canon" —Monkeys Fighting Robots

"Larger than life. Egocentric. Arrogant. Extremely compelling." —Multiversity Comics

Want the complete Doom experience? Discover Doctor Doom: Books of Doom by Ed Brubaker and Pablo Raimondi—the definitive origin story that reveals how Victor Von Doom became the world's most formidable villain, from his Roma childhood to claiming the throne of Latveria.

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels

272 pages, Paperback

Published November 26, 2024

Reviews

[Arda Uğur Demir]

The best part of this book is easily the conversation between Reed Richards and Dr Doom 😀

Reed: Victor, Doom. What do you want? I’m busy fixing your mistakes.

Doom: The black hole became unstable because of a missile attack. A coincidence that conveniently hides your fatal miscalculations.

Reed: Believe whatever you need to believe. I just wanted to wish you good luck. Everything seems fine on our side.

Doom: I don’t need you to worry about me.

Reed: I’m not worried.

Doom: Then why did you contact me?

Reed: I told you. I wanted to wish you good luck.

Doom: Why would I need luck when nothing has been left to chance?

Reed: All I’m saying is that I think this is going to work.

Doom: I’m certain it’s going to work.

Reed: Good.

Doom: You’re not certain?

Reed: Of course I am. I know you’ve done excellent work.

Doom: I know I’ve created a perfect solution.

Reed: Yes.

Doom: Yes, what?

Reed: Yes, I know you’re aware of that.

Doom: Say it, Reed. What am I aware of?

Reed: That your work is perfect.

Doom: But you don’t think it’s perfect.

Reed: I said that you believe it is.

Doom: When did I say that? You never said that. And believing something and knowing something are two different things.

Reed: Look, with the fate of the world at stake, I’m not going to have a pointless argument with you over an interstellar communication network.

Doom: Of course not. Because it’s an argument you would lose.

Reed: This conversation is over.

Doom: As if you’re the one who gets to decide that.

Reed: Good luck, Victor.

And then Doom has an absolute fucking crash out after Reed leaves😭

I love how this scene shows their relationship without needing some huge action sequence. We didn't get much of their relationship in the book but when the author gave us that, he literally gave the peakest scene in the comic

I can say this is lowkey must-read before seeing Avengers Doomsday in the theaters in this December!!!

[Tyler Jenkins]

Great and insane read. This goes to so many places. From Latveria to America, from hell to the other side of a wormhole. And through all of it Doctor Doom is a stubborn iron fisted tyrant. I doubt they knew about One World Under Doom at the time but this really sets the stage for it by giving Doom the ideas of a united and prosperous world under his reign. This also just shocks me to see how much he has come to care for his herald Victorious, to then see how he locks her out of the country after Blood Hunt when he becomes Sorcerer Supreme. Doom is an infinitely fascinating character to me. This also includes his small involvement in “War of the Realms” and “King in Black” which both happened around the time this run was being published, fun little stories that are right to be slapped onto the end.

[Jeff]

An uneven journey with moments of brilliance.

[Chris Lemmerman]

The ten issue Doctor Doom series by Christopher Cantwell and Salvador Larocca was criminally out of print when I went to read it last time, so as soon as I saw it was being recollected together, I jumped on it.

This book has everything - Black holes on the moon, political drama, Doom on a rampage, and a 3 page conversation with Reed Richards that sums up their entire relationship perfectly. Cantwell's very good at pulling characters apart and stretching them to the breaking point, and it's interesting to see exactly what Doom does when he reaches it. I especially enjoyed whenever Kang would pop in for a few sarcastic comments and then disappear again, and the ultimate conclusion of the book is just quintessential Doom.

Also included are the King In Black one-shot which pits Doom and Iron Man against a symbiote-infused Santa, which is great, but tonally very different to the rest of the book, and a short story about Latveria from War of the Realms: War Scrolls which is fine. If anything I feel like these two additions detract from the other ten issues, which is a bit of a shame.

I'm very glad I managed to get hold of this before it went out of print again.

[Reece]

I love Doctor Doom as much as I can love any comic villain. This run sells the concept of Doom as well as any writer over the years. He's driven by ego and a relentless desire to one up the Fantastic Four. But that same hubris is what brings him down again and again. Special mention must be made for the writer's ability to capture all aspects of Doom; the brains, the magic, and the lunacy.

More than ever, the ego of Doom is on full display as he meets an alternative reality version of himself who is a genuine force for good. But he's not our Doom. He is as he always has been since the days of Stan Lee; a super villain of the highest order. There's no tragic tale of rebranding into ah anti-hero. He has delusions of saving the world, but only to stand smugly over those he had saved.

Not really fussed by the tie-in inclusions in this edition. More than anything, it highlights how little representation Doom has had over the last decade.

[Gabriel]

Like many, I've always liked Dr. Doom and wanted to read more about him.

Honestly, at first, I was really confused what was happening. But then it all started to click and this became an interesting character study. You see Doom at his lowest, questioning himself, and finding himself again. It's not a comedy, but I enjoyed some of the small lines of banter between Doom and Kang. I also really liked learning more about Victorious and seeing the relationship between her and Doom slowly change. I can't say much for if this added or changed or maybe even ruined Doom character progression, but it did make me more of a fan and I hope to read more of him.
Despite the chaos that happens throughout space and Doom's mind, this was kind of powerful. I know some had issues with the ending, but I really enjoyed it.

The last little issues they had in the end added nothing to the collection, but they were fun and short.

4.25/5

[AviChaim Snyder]

I went into this book a little apprehensive, I haven't read a lot of Cantwell but my usual experience with his work is not good; however, I was pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed this volume. The art by Larroca was superb. Every page was beautifully drawn. The cosmic pieces especially just drew me in and are masterpieces within themselves. The writing and the plot, while taking a second to get into was a ride within itself and felt very attuned to the overall character motivations of someone like Doom. There were times were I felt some of the descriptions were a little too lengthy, there should be a focus on "Show, don't say". However, I did enjoy the book. I loved the focus on Blue Marvel and H.E.R.B.I.E, and Doctor Doom and Kang were really fun to read. I do recommend it. Grade: B+

[Ryan Oliver]

Tries to do a lot and maybe isn’t successful at everything, but builds to a bleak ending fitting for Doom’s hubris. Admittedly, if the section that was briefly a buddy road trip comedy with Doom and Kang was the whole book, I wouldn’t have been mad about it.

[Eric]

The two stories at the end are slight and silly. But the main 10 issue saga is an incredible tome of one broken man's grasp for power, destiny, and love. Surprisingly beautiful.

[Kieran]

iron man and doom killing/discoursing about santa wasn't on my bingo card

[Reba 🤠]

3.5
You gotta admire this man’s dislike for Reed Richards

[Jonathan]

Interesting story with a bland ending.

[Hattie]

“Oh! This is the Bad Place!”