BOOKS OF DOOM #4 - Review & Spoilers

[Expletive Deleted]

BOOKS OF DOOM #4 (of 6) . . . out today . . . Brubaker & Raimondi . . .

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This issue covers his Himalayan years, first wandering the mountains and then with the monks who help him build his armor.

Good 'ol paranoid, delusional Victor. This is the Doom I like. He's brilliant, he's arrogant, and he's pretty clearly (in spite of some most likely unreliable narration to the contrary) bat-[expletive] crazy.

Best issue yet.

[Doom Hammer]

You pretty much nailed it with that short review there.

Doom is the perfectly insane combination of paranoia and arrogance.

[Core]

This whole mini-series is shaping up to be great and is further establishing Brubaker's place among my favorite writers working in comics.

I do have a question, though. Didn't Doom originally put on his mask when it was still too hot from the forge, thus burning him more? And if that is the case, do you guys think this is a retcon or just something Doom chose to edit out of his personal narrative? Either way, it doesn't really bother me--just curious.

One more thing--gads...my memory these days--has it been revealed yet to whom Doom is telling his life story? If it has, I've totally spaced it, but my instincts tell me we haven't been told yet. The person speaks from off panel this issue, so any guess as to who Doom's audience is?

[Dennis K]

Like the Deadshot limited series from last year, I sure will be sad when this one is over.

[Iron Maiden]

This whole mini-series is shaping up to be great and is further establishing Brubaker's place among my favorite writers working in comics.

I do have a question, though. Didn't Doom originally put on his mask when it was still too hot from the forge, thus burning him more? And if that is the case, do you guys think this is a retcon or just something Doom chose to edit out of his personal narrative? Either way, it doesn't really bother me--just curious.

In the Kirby version, no. If you look at the story in Annual #2, there is no reaction from him. It wasn't until John Byrne retold the origin in "True Lies" did you see him running from the monastery and plunging himself face down into the snow. Byrne did this to reconcile Kirby's own conflicting versions. Kirby had said at several fan conventions that Doom only had a small scar from the original accident. Yet in FF#10, in which Jack drew himself and Stan in a cameo appearance, they are both seen recoiling in horror when Doom takes off his mask. So in Byrne's version, he was not scarred in college but later on when he puts on the mask. I think Brubaker had said in an interview that he was going to leave it up to the reader to decide which is the truth.


One more thing--gads...my memory these days--has it been revealed yet to whom Doom is telling his life story? If it has, I've totally spaced it, but my instincts tell me we haven't been told yet. The person speaks from off panel this issue, so any guess as to who Doom's audience is?

No, the person questioning Doom throughout the story has not been shown. I don't think we will find out until the last issue. It is starting to look like everyone who has been shown in the present day scenes are in a prison. There are bars on the window in the one scene with Doom in this month's issue, for example. That Doom is being candid about his life makes me wonder if the person will live past the end of the story. One guess might be Kristoff, Doom's long missing heir - - but then he would know a lot about Doom's past already since he was subjected to the memory implant device when the Doombots thought their master was dead after FF#260.

This has been a well executed project thus far, worthy of the stature of the character of Doom in the Marvel Universe. Makes me wish for an ongoing series, retelling some of the great storylines of the past from Doom's POV. Brubaker has been true to his goal of telling the tale with a new slant but at the same time pretty much staying true to the origin in FF#2. I have to wonder about Victor killing the Abominable Snowman. Maybe it was a wink to Chuck Dixon's story back on Planet Doom aka Franklin's Heroes Reborn planet where Doom killed a lion with his bare hands.

I also liked how Brubaker provided some insight into why Doom so obsessively stays encased inside his armor for most of the time that we have seen him, tying it into his feelings of isolation and superiority. He also ties it into the fact that Victor's father died from exposure and Doom himself nearly froze to death twice. It is almost like he fears the cold since he also uses it to describe the touch of the demon that haunts his nightmares.

[Norrin Radd]

To make a long story short:

This series is worthy of DOOM. :evilsmile

[Nefarius]

To make a long story short:

This series is worthy of DOOM. :evilsmile


Nuff said :cool:

[Core]

In the Kirby version, no. If you look at the story in Annual #2, there is no reaction from him. It wasn't until John Byrne retold the origin in "True Lies" did you see him running from the monastery and plunging himself face down into the snow. Byrne did this to reconcile Kirby's own conflicting versions. Kirby had said at several fan conventions that Doom only had a small scar from the original accident. Yet in FF#10, in which Jack drew himself and Stan in a cameo appearance, they are both seen recoiling in horror when Doom takes off his mask. So in Byrne's version, he was not scarred in college but later on when he puts on the mask. I think Brubaker had said in an interview that he was going to leave it up to the reader to decide which is the truth.


Thanks for satisfying my curiosity, IM. I don't think I've read Byrne's "True Lies," but I did remember reading elsewhere about Doom's face being seared by the mask. I perhaps read about it in one of the MU Handbooks (Incidentally, one of my main gripes about the current handbook format is that they don't tell you in which issues the events described occured).

But yeah...thanks again for the recap. :)

[4DGlasses]

I love this series. I would buy a Dr. Doom ongoing written by Brubaker.

I always wondered if any of the characters named Dr. (whatever) were really doctors. I loved how it was Victor's jealousy was the root of his moniker.

If you're not buying this book, you're missing out. WAY more accessable to the casual fan than anything that's mainstream DC right now **cough** InfiniteCrisis **cough**...

[DoctorDoom]

A work of art, truly worthy of Doom....

[Will.S]

Awesome chapter and it's the one I was looking the most forward too regarding Doom finally helming the armor.

It was odd to not see that whole hot mask melting his face scene though but from what I understand it, Ed is going with the Kirby version which is fine since he and Stan created the character although Byrne redefined the FF stuff. I suppose we can take Books of Doom as official canon with regards to both the experiment that went wrong and the hot mask of Doom?

Anyway, it's amazing use of the character and I applaud Ed for giving Doom so much depth during his upbringing. Can't wait for the next few issues and Pablo Raimondi rules!

[G. Wayne]

Good stuff all around. And I love the explanation for Doom adopting the doctor title. Reminds me of an ooold joke in which Doom is interviewed, "Why did I leave the medical field? Who would go to a Doctor named Doom?"