Issue - 1

Writer - John Layman

Art - Scot Eaton

 

Summary:

The time is now. The place, the MARVEL universe, but it is not how it should be. After the events of House of M #1, the MARVEL universe as we know it has been changed. Doctor Doom leads his Fearsome Four on a mission to settle a dispute with the rouge Mole Man. Leading the Inhuman Torch, the Invincible Woman, and the It, Doom is victorious against the Mole King. The team returns to Latveria after accomplishing their mission and is greeted with a parade in their honor. Later, Doom handles affairs of state and visits his mother. She subtly reminds him that he is a pawn of the House of M. Doom is also reminded of the Mole Man's taunting last words. A message from Quicksilver summons Doom to Genosha for a meeting with Magneto. The summons is not a request. Doom promptly arrives but is delayed by a slight altercation with the palace guards. Magneto finally greets Doom and the two speak in private. There Magneto reminds Doom that while he is certainly honored among men, he is still not a mutant. Outside, Doom releases his outrage on the It and proclaims that he can no longer suffer being underneath the foot of a mutant regime. He declares that the House of M will fall and in its place a House of Doom will rise.

 

 

 

 

Comments:

FF:HoM is a limited series spinning off the main House of M title. It's purpose, to show how the Scarlet Witch's reality altering powers have affected key players of the MARVEL universe. In that respect, the title succeeds. We know from a one page prologue that the FF are dead, their flight having failed. Outside of that, we know nothing of the original FF. However it is intimated that the It is a reminder of "enemies vanquished." Thus there is a chance that Doom did meet the Thing. It has been suggested that the It is one of the FF, however there are no clues to suggest this.

 

It has been pointed out on the FF message board that there is a certain lost opportunity here. The general idea behind House of M is that our characters are getting what they always wanted. Cap gets to fight to the end of the WW2 and not get frozen. Magneto gets to be head honcho of a world where mutants are not a minority. Wolverine gets to remember his past [just not the one he was expecting]. What does Doom get? His mom is alive. Fine. Valeria is at his side. Great! Kristoff is his son/ward. Cool. Latveria is at peace and under his rule. Fine and dandy. Problem. Why is he still a jerk? Why is he still villainous? We have been led to believe, up until now, that Doom is who he is because of the angst of having murdered parents and ethnic persecution. Yet here he is, minus all the baggage, and still same old Doom. I suppose the supposition is that no matter what, Doom is Doom. I'm not sure I like that idea, however I'm willing to roll with it. The second issue is supposed to hits stand tomorrow. So check back soon for my review of part 2 of this 3 issue limited series. So far as the 1st issue is concerned, Bottom Line: Buy It!

 

Issue - 2

Writer - John Layman

Art - Scot Eaton

 

Summary:

Doom recalls the origin of the Fearsome Four. A capsule from a failed space-flight crashes into Latverian waters. Doom observes the deceased passengers, Reed Richards, Sue Storm, and John Jameson. The only survivor, Ben Grimm, sparks an idea. Using magic he gives powers to his two closest loved ones, Valeria and Kristoff. Together with Grimm, now named the It, they make up the Fearsome Four. Their goal, to retake the planet from Magnus' rule. Doom receives a call from Magnus who asks him to investigate finding a extra-dimensional plane where he can send convicts. Doom agrees and formulates a plan to bring Magnus to a far off dimension where his mutant powers will be weak compared to Doom's mastery of sorcery. The team quickly decimate an appropriate dimension and then lure Magnus into journeying to inspect the place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments:

Well, issue two builds upon some threads from issue 1 but stumbles on a few things. We are finally given more on the origin of the team. The It turns out to be Ben Grimm. This I confess to be disappointing. I was quite excited to find out who the It might be. Perhaps I over hyped myself for no reason. It just seemed to me anti-climatic for It to be Thing. I guess in my mind if you are going to hold back that information in the first issue you better have a good reason. I'm a little fuzzy on how a land-locked country can have an ocean. Then again I suppose Latveria is much larger in the House of M universe and could conceivably have access to water via some arrangement with Magnus. This issue states that Doom created the Four in order to depose the House of M. This makes sense here but seems to be at odds with the first issue where it appears that Doom realizes things are wrong based on the string of events that occur then. Once again, Layman's weak link in the story is the It. In the origin scene Grimm seems conscious of his condition and asks Doom to kill him. Yet in the present he seems to have a substantial reduction in intelligence. In other words, why is he dumb? I do give props to Layman for his explanation of why Doom chooses that particular dimension. Pretty neat idea and I look forward to seeing it put to use. I really don't like the idea that Doom is a total jerk. I realize the scene where the It offers his hand in allegiance to the team is meant to be heart wrenching and it is. I just don't like that Doom mistreats him the way he does. I also disagree with Layman's portrayal of Cynthia von Doom. This is where the issue falls apart for me. In the first, she comes off as a bigot. Second, she says that Doom is of royal blood. I don't know how much has been changed in the House of M universe but in the Marvel Universe proper Doom is a gypsy. He doesn't have royal blood. He took the throne, he didn't inherit it. This brings up yet another question, where is Doom's father? Overall the series continues to be enjoyable however flawed in my view. But it's still Doom with Valeria and Kristoff with their own team so Bottom Line: Buy It!

 

Issue -3
Title - King for a Day
Writer - John Layman
Art - Scot Eaton

 

Summary:

After luring Magnus and his son Pietro into a dimension where there mutant powers are useless, Doom springs his trap. He has the It pound them into unconsciousness and leaves them for dead in the barren dimension. Returning to Earth, Doom prepares to announce to the world of the fatal "accident" that caused Magnus’ death. He orders Kristoff to dismantle the portal to the other dimension and wants Valeria to find a suitable cage for the It. Tired of being treated like an animal, the It demands of Doom some respect. Doom reluctantly concedes. Leaving them to their tasks Kristoff begs his mother to aid her in the search and killing of Polaris, the remaining member of the House of M. She accepts and tells the It to then handle the destroying of the portal. Later, Valeria and Kristoff report that Polaris is nowhere to be found. Suddenly the It appears and reveals that she is with him, and she brought back her family through the portal. Valeria blasts the treacherous It out of the building and joins her husband and son in a battle for their lives. Hordes of mutants begin to overwhelm them. For a brief moment Magnus seems to fall and Doom leaves his family’s side to deliver a killing blow, however Magnus awakens in time and stops Doom. Doom suddenly finds himself alone beside the dead bodies of his wife and son. Magnus ponders Doom’s fate. For a moment he considers banishing his mother into a nether dimension using the same portal Doom created against him. However Cynthia condemns Doom’s actions and disowns him. Magnus asks Doom what his punishment should be, to which Doom asks for death. Magnus however forgives him instead and sends him back to Latveria secure in the knowledge that he is now a broken man. The It meanwhile finds himself among members of the Underground and is taken in by a woman named Alicia.

 

Comments:
I will give props to Layman for weaving an ambitious story about Doom trying to depose Magnus. The downside is we always knew that there was never a chance that he would succeed. It was always a question of how he would lose. Boy did he lose badly. I found the end heart wrenching. Doom loses Valeria and Kristoff. I mean that is just sad. Perhaps it just hits me harder because I am big Doom fan. All in all it has been a enjoyable miniseries. It’s not an instant classic but it is definitely worth it to see Doom lead his own twisted FF composed of his own limited supporting cast. My biggest problems with this series have more to do with what is not expressed rather than what is. I have questions regarding how much of Doom’s past has been changed. I disagree with the assertion that Doom still has a inferiority complex despite all that he has. I think the question of what happened to his father should have been addressed. His mother’s character, one of the biggest highlights of the series is also one of the biggest disappointments. I can’t believe that Cynthia von Doom is such a low woman. Finally I don’t like the implication that Doom lost because he chose vengeance over his own family. I would have much rather preferred to see Doom become driven because Magnus kills his family. Perhaps then he can join the underground against the House of M. Well perhaps there is some small chance of that since Doom will be putting in a appearance in the main House of M title. I look forward to seeing what Bendis has in mind for him. Despite my personal issues, the Bottom Line: Buy It!

 

Notes:

 

House of M

Issue - 6
Writer - Brian Michael Bendis
Art - Olivier Coipel

Summary:
A small ragtag team of heroes that have been awakened to the truth about the world around them prepare to assault Magnus at his stronghold in Genosha. There Magnus is holding a grand meeting of all the remaining world leaders. Attending are Namor, Genis-Vell, Ororo [Storm], and of course Victor von Doom.

 

Comments:
A nice little moment between Doom and Magneto. The cold exchange between them is an obvious allusion to the events of the FF:HoM mini however it's nice that even if you haven't read it you get the sense that the two just don't like one another. It is a little comical the bit where one moment they are very serious and the next their smiling for pictures. I'm hoping that in the upcoming issues Doom will side with the heroes, seeing how his family is dead in this reality. Of course he is dead in the regular reality so maybe he won't be in such a hurry after all. In an unrelated matter, I'm a little confused as to Namor's standing on the issue of Magnus' ruling the surface world. Rogue goes at him as if he were a villain. Maybe it's just that time of the year again when Namor is a villain instead of a hero. Doom is featured on the cover for the next issue wherein he seems to be siding with Magneto. I hope this won't be the case but it seems likely they will keep him as a bad guy. I just hope they can come up with a logical reason for it. Bottom Line: Skip It!

 

 

Notes:

Issue - 7

Writer - Brian Michael Bendis

Art - Olivier Coipel

 

Summary:

The team of reawakened heroes attack the gathering of the world's royalty in a bid to locate Professor X. Among the royals is Doom who is being attacked by Ms. Marvel. Oh yeah and "No more mutants!"

 

Comments:

House of M has been over for like a year and I hadn't reviewed this issue. I really need to stop reviewing big events as they progress because I'm always just let down by how little Doom does in the end. Just a small one page appearance among the all mayhem. In the end no one really sides with anyone and Doom doesn't appear for the rest of the issue/series. I'm changing my previous to the issue above. It used to be a "Read It!" but given the lack of importance to Doom's character it really doesn't deserve even that. Bottom Line: Skip It!

 

 

 

 

 

Notes:

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