Doom Rules All In ‘One World Under Doom’ First Look From Marvel Comics

by Tony Thornley

Doctor Doom is one of Marvel’s greatest villains. Now, in February, he’s going to save the world.

Marvel’s One World Under Doom is both a major event story and an overarching story initiative. Created by superstars Ryan North and RB Silva, the story will see Doom using his new powers as Earth’s Sorcerer Supreme to expand his power across the globe. Doom is the universe’s greatest villain- or hero depending on your perspective- and this is the story of his ultimate success.

Following the end of Blood Hunt, Doctor Doom is Sorcerer Supreme. He has seal Latveria into an impenetrable dome. The world sees it as a relief. Earth’s mightiest, uncanny, and fantastic know that it’s just delaying the inevitable.

For the first time since 2008’s Dark Reign, the Marvel Universe will be united through this singular story initiative. We’ve already started to see the beginnings of it with with recent Avengers #19 and Amazing Spider-Man #61, with Doom challenging both series’ titular heroes. Marvel has released a preview of the debut issue, in which Earth’s heroes confer about what action to take next. Additionally Marvel has released multiple variant covers from the issue from art superstars such as Ben Harvey, Mike Mignola, Rose Besch, Nick Bradshaw, John Tyler Christopher, Rod Reis, Will Sliney and Silva.

Six months ago, Doctor Victor Von Doom became Sorcerer Supreme – then disappeared behind Latveria’s closed borders. For most, there’s enough going on in the world that Doom’s absence is not a priority, and some time without him feels like a blessing. Only a few recognize it for what it truly was… the calm before the storm. It is a storm that has now arrived. The world has woken up to a new reality: Doctor Doom, Earth’s Sorcerer Supreme, has magically taken over every broadcast medium on the planet and declared himself Emperor of the World – the ruler of a new United Latveria! And shockingly, impossibly, all of Earth’s leaders seem to be going along with this. Luckily, whether it’s mind control or Doombots, whatever’s affecting them hasn’t affected Earth’s heroes – and so they quickly form a strike team to stop Doom’s machinations. But will they succeed? And what happens when some begin to welcome their new Emperor with open arms, clamoring for One World Under Doom?

“One World Under Doom is a story I’ve been working on since 2023,” North shared. “This huge head start is such a gift when telling a story like this: I can make sure it all hangs together properly, and for other artists working on tie-ins with their books, I can share completed scripts instead of just an idea of what happens. Because of that I’m very excited for where this story has gone, and can go. It’s been really exciting to hear what other teams have planned with their books to take advantage of this new status quo—we’re all pulling in the same direction.”

“Doom, to me, is the ultimate villain, because even when he loses he wins,” North continued. “He’s not some guy you can punch a bunch until he stops doing crimes: he’s a man who has thought deeply about how to achieve precisely what he wants, and how to ensure others are manipulated into supporting him. One World Under Doom opens after Doom has taken over the world overnight, and there is a mystery in how he did it, how he got everyone to acquiesce to his rule – but there’s also a bigger and more terrifying question: now that he’s taken over the world, what is he going to do with it? And what will the Fantastic Four and the Avengers do to stop him?”

“Doom is one of my favorite characters in the Marvel Universe, so getting to work on this arc is a real pleasure,” Silva said. “I’m loving that we’re bringing magic into the mix, and all the possibilities to make him as awesome as he’s always been. I’m trying to give fans something a little different from what we’ve seen before, and I think the magic element can really make a difference. I hope fans enjoy it as much as I do.”

“Also, this story has the tyrannosaurus rex version of Doctor Doom in it too, so you know there’s this baseline level of rad we’re trying to hit,” North added.