Writer: Derek Landy
Cover Artist: Greg Land
Inker: Jay Leisten
Colorist: Frank D’Armata
Letterer: VC’s Cory Petit
Reviewer: Carl Bryan

“Avengers Assemble” – Victor Von Doom

Synopsis:
The Avengers battled and defeated an alien queen and her possessed fleet. Another hard-fought victory for the heroes, but all may not be as it seems. Blade, unable to recall how the battle began, was left with a distinct feeling something is not right. Given the graphic on the cover, he may be right. It is introducing a new Doctor Doom wielding Captain America’s Shield! It’s Victor Von Doom versus Dark-Doom…courtesy of the Soul Splitter Stone!

Positives:
Derek Landy plops us down in the center of another battle. No one on the Avengers remembers how they got in the middle of these events. Memories are murky and as a reader, I want to know the facts. But Landy is not about to give us the entire story yet. Call it Quentin Tarintino storytelling or viewing of Bad Times at the El Royale…. But this is intriguing. You’re reading an Avengers crossword puzzle missing some major vowels! But it’s fun!

Positives 2.0
How do you make Victor Von Doom a darker presence in the Marvel Universe? Split him apart. Instead of going down a road DC made relevant with The Batman Who Laughs (Batman + Joker), why don’t we go Project Gemini with Von Doom and give you a “frosty side and a wheat side”? Dark Doom looks similar to a Venom/Carnage/Spawn-like character. Fade to black and red…it works. Seeing Captain Marvel, Thor, and Captain America chained in an environment akin to the Stranger Things “Upside Down” is pretty captivating! Dark Doom is tough… no spoilers but take Victor’s intelligence and put that up against Tony Starks. It’s not looking good! Is that “Light Doom” crushing on She-Hulk? I mean, aren’t we all by this time? Of course, the artist versions are much better than the CGI, but I digress.

Negatives
Duality in comics is a driving force. That half-Spidey/half-Peter look has been going strong since the creation of Spiderman, and we now have it with Doom. It was only a matter of time, and it’s a typical writing strategy that has been around since watching soap operas as a kid or that episode of Star Trek…the one with the goatee on Evil Spock versus the clean-shaven Mr. Spock. No spoilers, but Derek Landy gave us a great villain. I wish he would stick around!

Final Thoughts:
The heroes are getting fast-forwarded to the action parts fast. Too fast for Tony’s taste now. Who is pulling the puppet strings (besides author Derek Landy)? This book has started pretty solid with clean art and a definitive story style! Get in on the ground floor while Issue #1 is also floating around!

8/10