In the 2019 “Doctor Doom” series, a group called The Antlion Project has opened up a “controlled” black hole on the Moon to siphon off carbon emissions. Doom predicts this will fail because they didn’t ask him for help. When the Antlion project is attacked with Latverian missiles, Doom is suspect no. 1. When other nations come knocking on Latveria, Doom surrenders — because he was framed.
Unlike the previous comics mentioned, “Doctor Doom” was an ongoing series. A day in life of Latveria could be a fine single issue (and it was, in John Byrne’s “Interlude,” aka “Fantastic Four” #258). For a sustained series, though, Doom needs more of a sustained drive, hence Cantwell stripping him of everything, from his resources to his control of Latveria, and giving him the concrete goal of proving his innocence. Larroca’s art, which employs tracing for maximum realism, is not always flattering but he conjures up some unforgettable images, like Doom riding a bear horseback style.
Since Doom is the protagonist, you’d assume this series would be him at his most noble. Nope; it’s Doom at his pettiest and he regularly inflicts suffering for minor slights. Cantwell’s Doom reminds me of Ronan Farrow’s 2023 New Yorker profile of Elon Musk, featuring this quote from Musk’s fellow tech bro, OpenAI’s Sam Altman: “Elon desperately wants the world to be saved. But only if he can be the one to save it.”
Unlike Musk, Doom actually is a skilled inventor but the rest of the assessment applies, which is central to the comic’s wild ending. It’s too good for me not to talk about, but I also don’t want to spoil this series. So, if you haven’t read “Doctor Doom,” stop reading here because there are spoilers ahead.