(Finally) Re-Reading ... Doctor Doom: Books of Doom

I've been reading comics for almost 23 years as I write this and in all that time (like everyone, I suppose) I've bought a lot of comics that I've regretted picking up.

However, in all that time there has only ever been one which I've bought, gotten rid of and then regretted losing from the moment it was gone from my collection.

It's been 18 years since Books of Doom was first released and, having picked it up not long after its release, I have regretted getting rid of it (although the specifics of its loss are foggy in my head. Did I sell it? Throw it away? Give it away? I just don't remember) ever since and have longed to find a new copy of either the trade or the singles in all that time.

Thankfully though, the introduction of the world's greatest supervillain into the Marvel Cinematic Universe has finally given me that second chance.

Doctor Doom: Books of Doom (as it has now been rechristened) is a six issue series by Ed Brubaker and Pablo Raimondi that tells the life story of Victor Von Doom from the perspective of the man himself. Interweaved between the character's already established life events, Books of Doom fleshes out Von Doom's life from childhood to his becoming ruler of Latveria to show us how this most iconic of men built himself (sometimes literally) into the character we all know.

I recall Books of Doom being an interesting read when I first read it, giving perspective and depth to Doctor Doom's persona. However, I also recall it not leaving all that much of an impression on me (probably hence its subsequent departure from life).

However, time, age and experience can be great tools when looking at it again all these years later, looking backing and see its previously missed quality.

And it certainly isn't a case of rose tinted glasses as I read it in 2025. Ed Brubaker, now such a mainstay in the crime comic scene with Criminal, Kill or Be Killed and many titles beyond, provides a new intro for this trade describing his love of Doctor Doom and, damn, does that love show in the story. Brubaker tells a fantastic story here, creating a brutal, harrowing and intriguing tale, giving feelings of sympathy without converting the character to a sympathetic character. From the beginning to end, Doom remains Doom, coming across as superior and condescending like readers know him, also confident in his greatness next to other 'mortal men.' However, Brubaker allows moments of vulnerability to creep through, offering us moments between those which are already established in canon to hint that this man's life may take a altogether different road.

What I can't believe is how I forgot how amazing Pablo Raimondi's artwork is on this series. Raimondo very much honours the house style of the time and does so with a great consistency. However, his pencils, coupled with the inks from Mark Farmer, Andrew Hennessy and Robin Riggs as well as Brian Reber's colours, give the entire story not just a European look (and when I say this I mean that there is just some 'feeling' that the story is based in a different place. I can't explain it in truth, but the story movement from Latveria to the States has a ... 'Vibe' to it where the art subtly changes, despite not actually changing. It is truly the weirdest thing!) but Raimondi also seems to wash the entire book with this tone that gives credence that this story is a re-telling, that it all happened so many years ago (again, I just can't explain it, except to say its how my eyes take the panels in. It truly is the strangest thing).

I think what really hit me on this read-through is that the story is told from Doom's perspective but, occasionally, has brief entries from people who were present for these events, giving the book a very 'life and times documentary' feel. As a result, it (along with those previously mentioned time, age and experience) brings me to ask the question, is this really the 'true story' or simply history twisted and re-made to to suit the man telling it and make him look the hero. Certainly, certain events in the world today more than confirm that some people aren't above embellishing events to make themselves better (and I'd say the 'person' telling this story wouldn't be considered reliable).

There was this fear prior to re-reading this that my memory had become a little distorted, that nostalgia and those 'rose-tinted glasses' may have affected my memory. I surely wouldn't have gotten rid of the original edition if it had been a good read, was it really something I should be pining over for nearly 20 years and will it really live up to that feeling?

Thankfully, picking up this new addition was a worthwhile purchase for me as Books of Doom lived up to expectations and then some. I just hope that this time I'm not silly enough to dispose of this copy, I can't rely on Marvel to put it in print a third time.

Although, I like to think I've gotten a little bit smarter than last time.

Re-Reading ... Batman: City of Madness

One of the things I want to do during 2025 is re-read a lot more of my comic collection, mainly to see what truly needs to stay in this space limited world of mine.

As I find myself with a few days between one read and the next, I figured it gave me just enough time to go back over a mini-series I've been mostly avoiding, despite its relative ease of access.

Batman: City of Madness is a Black Label title written and drawn by Christian Ward which follows the Dark Knight as he's drawn into a supernatural mystery revolving around the Court of Owls and a bizarro-esque, horror inspired copy of Gotham.

I remember, when I first saw this series, it was the name Christian Ward, whose work on the Black Bolt series I absolutely adored for both its main character depiction (although that's mostly a Saladin Ahmed contribution) as well as its art, which drew me to it. However, as I read issues one, two and three, I recall finding the tale decidedly lacking from my point of view.

Probably the reason I've been avoiding it for so long.

Therefore, it was quite a pleasant surprise when reading these three issues in shot order came across as much improved read.

Ward writes a seriously compelling detective story while also finding Batman's voice (as always, heard in my head as the late, great Kevin Conroy). Despite the more supernatural backdrop, Ward never seems to shy away from what makes Batman ... well, 'Batman', giving the story a feel that it was originally written as a crime drama before an abrupt change of direction. There is a subtle line of though surrounding fathers and sons as well as loss, which connects many of the main players, which gives this book some real heart that continues to elevate the feeling of helplessness the book gives off in its pages.

The art, however, is a truly different beast. Ward's art style is absolutely, horrifyingly stunning and gives the whole series a truly unsettling and disturbing vibe which is perfect for the plot.

If there is one downside to this series, it is the third issue. The finale feels half an issue too long with a lot of scenes coming across as filler, causing the issue to lose interest to me. Fortunately, it's saved by a heartfelt finale which also hints towards an answer to an ever unanswered question which I don't remember and totally blew my mind after reading.

If ever I need proof that you should re-read everything just to make sure of its quality, this comic collection is it. While I'm not sure if it'll ever get another read, Batman: City of Madness certainly did a better job of impressing me the second time round.

I just hope my next read doesn't do the opposite.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1-6

The last six months has been quite the transition for me. Before that time, I don't think I'd ever read a teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic, despite having watched two cartoon series, three feature length films, had the toys and played (some of) the video games.

Now though, not only have I acquired and read a trade but I've also collected the first six issues of IDW's new series.

Jason Aaron's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles provides us with a brand new issue 1 as we see the heroes in a half shell return with a new dynamic following on (presumably) from the book's previous run.

Now, however, the four brothers have gone their separate ways in the aftermath of (slowly revealed) prior events. But now, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael and Michelangelo must come back together and return to their city and home when an old enemy attacks each of them, an enemy with an unlikely new master.

I don't know what I fully expected with this series. Jason Aaron, an exceptional as well as veteran comic writer, being on this title, along with the cover and Joelle Jones on the art were all massive drawers.

Indeed, as the series got underway, I liked Aaron's idea to separate his protagonists, giving them (as well as the villain) an issue each to show their current place and state of mind before bringing them all back together for the finale issue of the arc.

However, while the first couple of issues really roped me into this story, the last four on the first read failed to match their intrigue. I do say 'first read', however, because upon reading them as a collection, the final four cam across as so much stronger.

Unfortunately, what a re-read couldn't help me with is dealing with the extreme changes that were not expected for a new reader. The predominant issues were Splinter's absence, which felt like a key missing component (though I am recognising it's necessity in the final issue) as well as Donnie's rather broken appearance.

While these most likely make sense to an ongoing reader, they are certainly jarring changes for me.

Fortunately, the artwork (for the most part) really helps sell to me this series. The first arc presents a selection of top talent in Joelle Jones, Cliff Chang and Rafael Albuquerque opening things in the first three issues with some excellent visuals.

Chris Burnham and Darick Robertson followed up with issues four and five and, while they are also fantastic talents, I certainly struggled to attach myself to their work on this series. Of course, like anthologies, this is the downside to multiple artists. You can't like everything.

Finally, Juan Ferrera took on art duties for the final issue on the arc and, once again, I was absolutely in love with what he gave us. Thankfully, he's now on the book for the foreseeable, so that's a point in the win column for the future.

By the end, I feel that it might have done me better to have picked up the original collected editions instead, so that I'd have a start which made more sense. However, despite the up is down nature of this series, Aaron and his gang have certainly made things enticing by issue 6 to keep on going.

I just hope the gaps in my knowledge will be filled with this next arc and (maybe more optimistically) something resembling the characters ì grew up with start to show themselves.

Superman Lost

It feels like it's been a bit of a Superman year so far (which seems fitting, given that the new movie is due out this year). After reading Steelworks recently, it was time to move back to the trades I'd received as Christmas gifts.

And next up was (coincidently) Superman Lost.

Superman Lost, by Christopher Priest, Carlo Pagulayan, Jason Paz and Jeromy Cox, tells the story of Superman facing his toughest challenge to date: reintegration. When responding to routine (well, routine for them I guess) Justice League mission, Superman returns to his home and wife Lois Lane a few hours later. Only, for the Man of Steel, it hasn't been a few hours but has been twenty years. The tale that follows shows Superman, accidentally flung to a far corner of the universe during that fateful mission, attempting to find his way home with no map, inconsistent powers and a second adopted home which seems ignorantly intent on wandering towards destruction. However, when Clark Kent's alter ego finally returns to Earth and the life he left behind, is he still the hero we all knew, or is that man still missing amongst the stars?

From the moment of its announcement, I've been eagerly awaiting getting my hands on this series. Written by the great Christopher Priest and focusing on a scenario that Superman has never yet (to my knowledge) face, I expected great things in this trade (and I say trade because, despite the additional wait, I really wanted this tale collected).

Luckily, for the most part anyway, I was not disappointed. Superman Lost is a brutally emotional tale, one which feels like it imbues both Castaway and 12 Years a Slave in equal measure (for their shared experiences of being trapped and far from home rather than any more heavy tones I should point out). Priest writes a fantastic Clark Kent in this story, one who it really feels on every page is struggling with everything he's lost (hence the dual meaning of the title), both when being away as well as having returned. With every scene, with every interaction, you can absolutely feel the pain which Clark is going through.

Then there is the supporting cast, which of course means Lois Lane. Priest's depiction of Lane is equally as great as his depiction of Clark: a person who struggles with the weight trying to help her partner while at the same time cannot begin to understand what he's been through. I think that Priest's idea of the time dilation angle is truly brilliant, separately the couple even more and giving them an even bigger road to reconcile along. Then there is Lex Luthor who is very much a footnote in this story, having no real skin in the game beyond his standard objectives. However, his limited participation in this story is so blood-curdlingly evil that you can't help but be both sickened and impressed in equal measure, as well as worry for Priest's own mental health.

Of course, the story is only half the ... Well, story in a comic book and Carlo Pagulayan, along with Jason Paz and Jeremy Cox, provide a stellar second half. With a style which looks a lot like, and remind me of, Rags Morales' pages (particularly from Identity Crisis), Pagulayan's panel really help Priest sell the anguish these characters are going through. The subtle, underpinned pain in Clark's face almost constantly during this series is so painful to look at that it just seems to heighten the feeling of 'crisis' (a fitting word for a DC series) being experienced. Then there is the fantastical locales Supes finds himself in during his exile which is equally rendered with gorgeous, vibrant colours that it is a fitting entry to that long list of exotic planets already in the Superman mythos.

But I said that this story worked for me for the 'most part' and its the locale which is one of its undoings. A part of me had expected a travelling story similar to Silver Surfer: Requiem, with Clark finding himself in many places over the decades. However, his (for the most part) imprisonment on one particular planet felt like it undercut the lost part just a little bit, especially one which ended up having a number of similarities to Earth. Of course, this is a minor quibble compared to the ending which felt like it almost 'swept the problems under the rug' in order to end on something of a fresh start. It makes me wonder if Priest had planned for a 12 issue series which got cut down and forced him to truncate his story, but I did feel that the end invalidated a lot of what happened in the lead up to it.

(Also, spoiler: The Justice League went off to save Clark's 2nd adopted home, but it ended up being a 10 year mission. I'm curious how the other, more mortal members avoided aging during that?)

Superman Lost is a really wonderful and heartfelt story of ... loss, really. Loss of the life you knew, loss of everything you loved, loss of identity and, yes, just generally being lost. Despite my feelings on how it wrapped (which is maybe a big sticking point for me, I don't know. I'm still mulling it over), Priest, Pagulayan and co have offered a story seldom seen in superhero comics, a story about growth, consequences and the philosophical idea that, sometimes, when something big and life-changing happens, you can't just pick up where you left off.

Or, more fittingly, you can't go home again.