Marvel Comics has delivered some of the most iconic villains in pop culture history, but few cast a shadow as long as Victor Von Doom. With the upcoming eight-issue series One World Under Doom (due out out on February 12), writer Ryan North (alongside artist R.B. Silva and colorist David Curiel) is poised to explore the complex psyche and towering ambitions of Doctor Doom in ways we’ve never seen before. Earlier this week, I was able to chat with North to talk Doom, his grandiose plans, and how a story of world domination intersects with power, politics, and culture.
We began with a central question: in the past, North described Doom as the ultimate villain who always seems to find a way to win. How, then, did the team intend to balance his intellectual, manipulative side with his more overt, imposing display of powers in this series? North’s response readily encapsulated Doom’s duality.
“They’re kind of two sides of the same coin, right?,” said North. “He’s using his brains, his manipulation in concert with his power to achieve the goals of what he wants. And what he wants is to go over the world and to show, to prove, that he’s the best guy for it, that only Doom can do this.”
North also doesn’t shy away from Doom’s self-serving nature.
“While he might be saying, ‘I’m doing this for all these wonderful reasons,’ he’s doing it for himself,” said North. “He’s doing it to prove that he is the best of us and will always be the best of us, and he’ll use any tool at his disposal.”
In One World Under Doom, those tools are more formidable than ever, with Doom’s status as Sorcerer Supreme granting him even greater abilities.
Courtesy of Marvel Comics.
A Story of Power and Politics
One World Under Doom has been in development for years, but its themes feel particularly resonant today. As I noted on our chat, the series is about world leaders in a way, and so one’s mind immediately goes to politics. North agreed but clarified that this isn’t a direct commentary on contemporary figures.
“It is a story about someone taking over the world,” said North. “It’s obviously political, but it’s not based on American politics or even Canadian politics. There’s always politics, which is just the art and science of people trying to interact with each other and gain advantages over people. And that’s a domain that Doom works in very, very well.”
North’s approach also involves historical parallels.
“It’s a story about geopolitical maneuvering,” said North. “When you’re at this level of countries represented by people, what do those people do? You go back a 100, 200, 300 years, you have a lot of situations being decided by individuals and how they react to each other. And it’s not a good way to run the world, but it’s a great way to tell a story.”
The Humanity of Doom
One of the most compelling aspects of Doctor Doom is the sliver of humanity that sets him apart from being purely villainous.
“What’s so tragic about him is that he could be a great guy,” said North. “If he went in a slightly different direction, he could be a good guy. That’s why he and Reed [Richards] have such a Capital R relationship. They see themselves as these sort of very similar but very different men.”
This duality also shapes the narrative’s tension.
“The fun and challenge of writing a Doom story is that he is so good at what he does, and what he does is not great,” said North. “Even when he loses, he extracts something. He takes something from you in that loss that you maybe didn’t want to give him.”
Familiar Faces, New Dynamics
Fans of North’s work on The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl will be thrilled to know that the beloved hero and her friends, Nancy and Brain Drain, make an appearance in One World Under Doom.
“The bottom line is there’s no way I was ever gonna do a Marvel event and not include Squirrel Girl in it,” said North. “If she wasn’t there, people would be like, ‘Well, the only reason why I didn’t put her there is ‘cause she would solve this problem in 10 minutes.’”
North’s enthusiasm extended to the broader Marvel Universe.
“When I was writing the story, I wasn’t thinking, ‘How many toys can I cram into here?’ It was more about how many personalities we could drop in and see how Doom reacts to that,” said North. “It’s a story about Doom and him trying to achieve something that he’s never really achieved before, without cheating.”
Doom’s Ultimate Pitch
At the heart of the One World Under Doom story is Doom’s attempt to convince the world that his leadership is not only inevitable but beneficial.
“Doom has shown up, he’s taken over the world, and if he wants to hold onto that, he has to convince people that their lives are better with Dr. Doom being the ultimate authority in them,” said North. “The first issue is him basically making that pitch. And it ends with a woman repeating a slogan back to him. It’s working, at least initially.”
What’s Next?
With the first arc completed, North reflected on the collaboration involved in a Marvel event.
“The advantage of writing the story so early was that I could give the completed issues to people doing tie-ins,” said North. “The stuff that other writers are doing to build off of this is really exciting. It’s a fun situation to play in—one man taking over the world lets you tell stories you couldn’t otherwise tell.”
And, of course, North teased a few standout moments.
“There’s a big fight in issue #5 that’s just… chef’s kiss,” said North.
As for the lighter side of Doom? North joked about a potential reality TV show in Doom’s new world order.
“I think it’s called Everyone Loves Doom,” he said with a laugh. “There’s nothing more dystopian than a show called Everyone Loves Doom projected onto the clouds. You can’t avoid it. It’s not descriptive, it’s a direction. Now everyone must love Doom.”
With One World Under Doom, the creators promise a story that’s as much about power as it is about the people subjected to it. Packed with political intrigue, cultural shifts, and Marvel’s trademark blend of action and heart, it’s shaping up to be a can’t-miss event.
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