The MCU has launched films that will live on as some of the biggest blockbusters of the 21st century. From comic strips to the big screen, Tony Stark, Luke Cage, Wade Wilson, and many more have become household names. They have drawn fans from around the globe to witness everything from low-level street fights that stand up against villainy to cosmic battles that threaten half of all life in the universe at the hands of a mad Titan. Blood has been spilled, lives have been lost, and heroes have been forgotten. However, the biggest threat has yet to come, because December 17 will be our “Doomsday.”
It’s been 18 years since Robert Downey Jr. debuted as Iron Man, setting off what we know as the MCU. But before the Box Office success, and before he was locked away in that cave as an injured captive and emerged as a man in armor, Marvel’s first pre-MCU success was “Blade” (1998). It starred Wesley Snipes as the Daywalker protecting the city from its underground network of vampires. Full of blood and violence despite its R ratings, the smash hit went on to spawn two sequels. It also paved the way for future superhero films such as “X-Men,” starring Hugh Jackman and Patrick Stewart, and “Spider-Man” with Tobey Maguire. Regardless of which company owned which title, fans have been taken on an adventurous ride for nearly 30 years. They became attached to the hero(s) they identify with most or the one whose powers they think are the coolest. But that ends now, because all roads lead to Doom.
Moving On from ‘Endgame’
After the events of “Endgame” (2019), the MCU’s destiny seemed a bit uncertain. More than a handful of movies — and several TV shows — have been released since the infamous snap back to reality. They have either pleased fans young and old or completely divided audiences altogether. Series like “WandaVision,” “Moon Knight,” and “Echo” are enjoyable, but where is our Big Bad? What mysterious figure lurking in the universe — or multiverse — will arrive and bring all these marvels to assemble?
In 2021, Marvel released the TV series “Loki.” It starred Tom Hiddleston and followed Thor’s brother after he is caught with the Tesseract in 2012. He is recruited by the Time Variance Authority (TVA) to help capture a dangerous variant of himself. This mission leads to a series of dominoes falling. It exposed that things are not what they seem and that there is a puppet master pulling the strings across the timeline.
However, those plans would not move forward as intended. Jonathan Majors was cast to portray Kang the Conqueror, a time-traveling warlord whose hunger for complete domination knows no end. Due to controversy surrounding the actor, Marvel ultimately dropped him from the role. This forced the studio to pivot in a different direction from the planned “Avengers: The Kang Dynasty,” which had been set up in both seasons of “Loki” and the film “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania.”
The Russo Brothers Returning
The studio continued to push out more projects, some of which came across as half-baked and others as fan-service cash grabs. However, nothing seemed to match the energy of the ten-year build-up of the ‘Infinity Saga’ that the world stopped and tuned in for. So where do we go from here?
The multiverse has been exposed, heroes are spread across the galaxy — or, in some cases, across the timeline — and incursions are inevitable. We need a big brain behind it all. While rumors continue to circulate online and there is a legion of fan theories to pull from, the true motivations remain unclear. All we know is that Doom is finally here.
The Russo Brothers are returning to direct. And with them comes the man who started it all: Robert Downey Jr., set to portray the ruler of Latveria. It is believed that his arrival is tied to the time jumps and changes to the Sacred Timeline, making him a reckoning — a force meant to undo what has been unjustly done. And who better to fix these multiversal issues?
Also Read: ‘Captain America: Brave New World’ Review: Struggles to Give the MCU Necessary Imperative
With 60+ cast members returning from decades of Marvel films, “Doomsday’s” set to be the studio’s biggest movie yet. The countdown has already started, and now all we can do is wait. Everything will be addressed.
Victor Von Doom
Though I’m not sure how I’m going to feel if I see Professor Xavier die again for the fifth time, I guess that comes with the territory. No one is safe from judgment, and everyone must answer to him, because only Doom will save us.
Victor Von Doom was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby as the archenemy of the Fantastic Four. After the deaths of his parents in Latveria, the child prodigy fled to America in search of higher learning, hoping to master both magic and science. There, he met Reed Richards and immediately began to develop a deep hatred for him.
In an attempt to free his mother’s soul from Mephisto — who appears in “Ironheart,” portrayed by Sacha Baron Cohen — an experiment goes horribly wrong, leaving Victor scarred, with Richards taking the blame. This event sends Victor on a journey to Tibet. There he studies under mystic monks and, in a short amount of time, rises from student to master.
His armor is eventually forged and sealed with magic, and thus Doctor Doom is born.
It remains unclear whether the MCU will follow this same origin story. But for all the geeks and nerds who, like me, drop into their local comic shop every Wednesday for a new issue, this has been a long time coming.
