There’s A New Headmaster In Town — Reviewing ‘Doom Academy’ #1

A new world order has debuted. Doctor Doom is now the Sorcerer Supreme, invoking his will upon all living beings. While he now rules the world, the good Doctor is not without his generosity and benevolence.

Gone is the Strange Academy, cast aside like the former Sorcerer Supreme it was named after. School is still in session, though, as in its place arises the majesty that is Doom Academy. A whole new semester begins as MacKenzie Cadenhead, Pasqual Ferry, Edgar Delgado, and Clayton Cowles bring fan-favorite magical youngsters on a new journey.

The original run and follow-up conclusion of Strange Academy were some of my favorite stories of the past few years. Delivering a really magical feeling book with fun and endearing characters. While some of the follow-up minis left a bit to be desired, this new start is already scratching some of that previous itch.

It helps that familiar faces extend beyond the characters on the pages. Delgado and Cowles were part of the magic that made the original book so great in the first place. Back for another go with these characters they had a hand in shaping for quite a few years.

Ferry is a great choice to draw a series like this. Just like his presence on the recently ended Doctor Strange series was welcomed. There is a sharp, angular, whimsical feeling to the art which befits a story that is light and magical, but also heavy and dense. The work really leans into the fantastical that should be front and center for a book of this nature, letting the realistic and the magical tumble together to create a very nuanced and easy to follow world.

It also gives characters that emotional push they need and just really hitting all the strides.

Pairing that with Delgado’s colors is inspired. There are plenty of lighter vibrant tones mixed into the whole issue to play with those elements. At the same time, darker tones are used to add depth and play with the more ominous atmosphere that anything Doom-related brings. All of the colors have a very muted or toned-down sort of appearance with the more vibrant ones still standing out just a bit. Giving everything a sort of richer and realer feeling along the way.

I love how the captions from Zoe — from her written piece about Doom Academy — are displayed. The ripped paper aspect and the font choice from Cowles are chef kiss. It has that really newspaper-y vibe and I’m loving it. All of the lettering follows this sort of mindset with the right energy and delivery playing a huge role. Keeping voices firm, familiar, and resonating at all times.

Also, it taps into the emotional side to let that seep into the words alongside flashes of personality. Keeping up the choices for visually distinct voices such as Doyles bumpy bubbles and supernatural font style.

I’m not familiar with Cadenhead’s work, but this is a great entry point. She captured all of the characters so well that this very much feels like a true successor to Strange Academy. As it should. Centering on Zoe was a really great choice as well. She had some of the least to do at times in the original series, so there is still plenty of room to mine with the character. Not to mention she’s a young Black woman who also happens to be a magically empowered zombie in hiding.

That’s the stuff right there. Chock full of comic book wackiness like we love.

This is a comic that introduces a whole ton of information, characters, and concepts. Yet, it never feels too dense or hard to follow. Cadenhead has such a smooth pacing style that allows it all to breathe and feel intriguing from start to finish. I was already invested because of the familiar students, but I’m even more invested now. It helps that I’m a degree-holding journalist who was quite happy to have a whole series of pages about a magic school’s student newspaper.

Hell, there is even a bit about misinformation and journalistic integrity within this issue. Speaking right to my brain.

Doom Academy #1 is now available from Marvel Comics.