Comic Book Review: Doomwar

The image above belongs to its respective owner, not me

Hello Enthusiasts,

Yes, I'm doing two comic book reviews in a row, and yes, they are both Marvel titles. It's no snub at DC, I promise, just looking to get some great titles out there for you to read. Today, I will be reviewing Doomwar, and there will be some Spoilers Below. 

Backstory to this graphic novel first. T'Challa and Story have been overthrown from their seats of power in Wakanda by a revolution (which was started and supported by Dr. Doom). Black Panther was able to escape the country, but Storm faces trial by the new government for various crimes. This graphic novel starts as Storm is convicted and held in a prison, while T'Challa heads over to the X-Men to seek aid. While all of this is happening, Doom is below the palace, working through the various mystical locks that have been placed on a vault containing all of Wakanda's remaining refined vibranium. Dr. Doom is not looking for this simply because of the benefit it hold in its negation of vibrations, making it nearly indestructible, but because vibranium can be used as a perfect conduit for mystical energies. This could allow someone like Dr. Doom, who is already well practiced in the mystical arts, to become the most powerful sorcerer in the world. Doom obtains the vibranium, and now it becomes a battle to stop him.There is a bit more to the story that I won't give away, but that is the bare bones of it.

This story works on a few different levels, not the least of which is the artwork. The whole comic looks great, from the settings to the character designs, They panels that show Doom performing spells are particularly enjoyable, really bringing to life the mystical effects. Story wise, there are aspects that I didn't include in my description, because there are great little twists that I wouldn't want to give away, but believe me when I say they can be worthwhile. The dialogue all feels natural, none of the exposition seems forced or anything. The story really puts a great light on Black Panther, as well as Dr. Doom (Doom's light is great in showing how awesome he can be, not making him look like a protagonist or anything). Dr. Doom is relentless and does not hesitate for a second in trying to achieve his goals, which is exactly what I want to see out of Doom. The story really focuses on the feud that the two of them have developed over the years, and it is enjoyable to see applied here. Also, without giving anything away, I can easily say that I really liked the ending of the story, it showed a great sacrifice and was a satisfying conclusion to the story.

As great as the various aspects of this comic are, not everything in the comic is flawless. I mentioned earlier that Black Panther enlists the help of the X-Men, who do help him, but then drop off the radar at the end of one of the issues. All of a sudden, T'Challa is getting help from Reed Richards instead, and I feel like it could have use a little more explanation. It was distracting in its sudden change of events with out giving any real insight, Also, Doom goes through all of this trouble to get his hands on the vibranium, but I didn't feel like I saw him do enough with it. Don't get me wrong, he does definitely use some magic with it, but it seemed a little underwhelming for Victor Von Doom.

So it's a somewhat short review in an effort to keep from spoiling too much, but I can say that, overall, this is a solid graphic novel. It may not be for every single comic book reader, but it should be a read for most, especially if you're a fan of Doom. In a world that could use more Dr. Doom-centric stories, this one does everything it can to deliver, and it certainly didn't disappoint me.

I give Doomwar an 8.5 out of 10.

Sincerely,

The Bored Enthusiast