Marvel fans are still trying to figure out what happened at the Marvel panel at last Saturday’s San Diego Comic-Con, where it was revealed that Robert Downey Jr. will be donning the mask of Victor Von Doom. Reactions to Downey’s return have oscillated between enthusiasm, disappointment, and confusion, and I have my own take on it. But no matter how we feel about this decision Avengers: Doomsday That’s what’s happening with Robert Downey Jr. So, using the comic books as a map, how will Downey’s version of Doctor Doom play out in the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
Most Marvel Comics fans will agree that Doctor Doom reigns supreme when it comes to villains. Yes, Thanos’ comic book popularity has grown significantly thanks to the MCU’s support infinite saga But before that, after his first appearance on ” Invincible Iron Man Ranked at No. 55 in 1973, he is most commonly used as the Silver Surfer and Adam Warlock villain, with major moments appearing in films by Jim Starlin, George Perez, and Ron Lim. Infinity Gauntlet (1991). But Doom predates Thanos by more than a decade; Fantastic Four No. 5 in 1962, there’s no doubt that Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s OG supervillains are unique.
Born a Romani healer and a Romani sorceress, Victor von Doom grew up in poverty in the fictional Eastern European country of Latvia. When his mother was taken to hell by the demon Mephisto for witchcraft, young Doom tried to better himself and bring her back. After receiving a scholarship to an American university, where he met future Fantastic Four members Reed Richards and Ben Grimm, he built an interdimensional machine that would theoretically allow him to communicate with his dead mother. But despite warnings from Richards that he would miscalculate, Doom kept going and his machine exploded in his face, leaving a scar.
Doom left college and traveled to the mountains of Tibet, where he studied witchcraft and black magic. Doom decided to hide his face from the world, having the monks build him a suit of armor that caused him near-constant pain, and a metal mask that remained blazing when he put it on, destroying All he had left. From there, he took the name Doctor Doom and conquered Latvia, where he ruled as a generous dictator while he attempted to bring the world under his control and save his mother from hell come out.
because The Avengers Directors The Russo Brothers introduced Downey as Victor Von Doom at Comic-Con, saying he was the only one who could play the character, so it’s reasonable to assume Dr. Doom won’t be a variant of Stark. Downey would probably portray a fairly accurate version of the character, wearing a mask that’s rarely taken off and a scarred face underneath. In this case, it would be better if he didn’t look like Downey at all and his face had healed, as seen in the work of Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribich secret wars (2015), using prosthetics to alter an actor’s appearance. But it begs the question: “Why hire Robert Downey Jr. and pay him a reported $80 million advance? Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars What if his face was to be hidden?
Logically, Downey’s Doctor Doom comes from the same world as the upcoming Doctor Doom. Fantastic Four: The First Step, the story takes place in another version of Earth in the vast multiverse. It’s possible that Victor Von Doom could look like Tony Stark from another Earth, although that feels a bit unbelievable. Yes, Deadpool and Wolverine Chris Evans reprises his role as the Human Torch (aka Johnny Storm) and makes for a fun joke, while Deadpool (and audiences) look forward to him playing Captain America.
As a result, characters from different realities may seem completely unrelated. But the reason it works is Deadpool and Wolverine Because Ivins played Johnny Storm before and for a shorter time than Captain America, and the movie was a comedy. But there isn’t a good answer in the universe or multiverse as to why Victor Von Doom looks like Tony Stark. And it won’t have quite the same effect as Evans because Downey is so easily identifiable and synonymous with Iron Man. Plus, given its recognizability, it goes against the grain of Doom being a terrifying, impressive character, and I haven’t seen him bring this kind of gravitas to the table in any of Downey’s work .
One of the stories fans have mentioned over the past week is a single issue from 2010, what if? Iron Man: Armored Demon Authors: David Michelini, Bob Leighton and Graham Nolan. In that story, it was Tony Stark who met Victor Von Doom in college, not Reed Richards. Seeing the Stark wealth and family legacy, Doom built a device to exchange minds with Tony Stark. So Tony Stark is trapped in Doom’s body with no memory of his past, while Doom’s mind resides in Stark’s body. Stark is still a great scientist in Victor’s body, but he uses his work and armor to heal people and provide rescue services. Meanwhile, Doom, in Stark’s body, became a ruthless inventor and businessman, although he was still unable to defeat the success of his rival in building the arc reactor. When given the opportunity to return their minds to their original bodies, the Stark in Doom’s body refused, saying that he had given the name Doom a beautiful meaning and that the name Stark had been tainted. it is essentially a The Prince and the Beggar meet Blame Friday This scene seems too complex and confusing for a movie.
But since the announcement last Saturday, people have become increasingly obsessed with the relationship between Doctor Doom and Iron Man. While Doom is most often used as an adversary to Reed Richards, he has also become an enemy and ally of Iron Man. But this relationship was not established until the early 1980s in the work of David Michelinie, Bob Layton and John Romita Jr. doomsday mission,happened at iron Man Nos. 149 and 150 (1981). Tony Stark was tasked with preventing Stark technology from reaching Latvia, only for both Iron Man and Doom to land on his time pad and travel back to the time of Camelot and King Arthur. To return to their time, Stark and Doom must reluctantly work together to build a time machine. Although at this point in history, Doom doesn’t know that Iron Man is Tony Stark, only that Iron Man is his bodyguard. The two returned home and left as enemies but with respect for each other’s technical knowledge.
The parallel between the two during this time and the following decades is that Tony Stark predates iron Man (2008) was a more serious role that lacked the sarcasm, sales pitch, ego and manic energy that Downey brought to the role. Simply put, Stark isn’t good enough to replace Reed Richards as Doom’s true foil. While the two have crossed paths many times over the years, heroes and villains like Doctor Strange, Black Panther, and Kang have all felt like more compelling adversaries.
But naturally, the success of the Marvel Universe led to major changes in Tony’s characterization. While it could never quite match the tone of Downey’s Stark, the comic book Stark did take on a more flamboyant personality. This pits him against Doctor Doom, a straight man who seeks the shadows rather than the spotlight, as Brian Michael Bendis explores in Doctor Doom. Invincible iron Man (2015), as a prelude to Bendis and Alex Maleev infamous iron man (2016). In the show, Victor Von Doom attempts redemption as Iron Man for a year after Tony Stark’s temporary death. Some fans have suggested that the MCU might try to reverse this and have the real Doom Slayer die and a variant of Tony Stark take up his mantle and name. It’s possible, but given that this is Doctor Doom’s first appearance in the Marvel Universe, it would be akin to having Victor Von Doom play Iron Man in the 2008 film. Both instances of Iron Man and Doctor Doom character mixing constitute a blip in comic book history, and aside from those rare accounts of swapping nicknames, the two characters have proven to be more interesting.
Maybe when we finally see the movie in 2026, we’ll find out that the Russo family misled us, and that an evil variant of Stark will appear first as Doctor Doom, and then as the real Doom played by another actor The Doctor shows up and makes a deal with his impostor. This scene could be interesting, even though it echoes the Mandarin reveal Iron Man III (2013). But comic books are known to repeat storylines. Why should comic book movies be any different?
However in the end end and secret wars Despite managing to explain Robert Downey Jr.’s appearance as Doctor Doom, the comics have shown that Doctor Doom is a complex character in his own right and doesn’t need additional explanation as to why he looks like Tony Stark. So, yes, some fans may miss the moment in fan fiction when a beaten-up Peter Parker looked up at an unmasked Doomsday and whimpered “Mr. Destruction.” Stark? Or did Thor say “Tony”? Doom responded: “Who the hell is Tony?” This exchange sounds absolutely horrific, by the way. But considering how complex the multiverse saga is already for viewers, with the addition of newly introduced characters, variants, anchors, beacons, and invasions, the easiest route to take is one that looks nothing like Tony Stark of Doom, will be the most efficient and effective way.
