Doctor Doom has become used to getting the short end of the stick on the big screen. Tim Story’s Fantastic Four duology explored Victor von Doom’s relationship with Marvel’s First Family extensively. However, he didn’t show up in the power department, losing pretty easily in the first movie and not leaving much of a mark in the second. 2015’s Fantastic Four painted a similar picture; while Doom was ruthless, he didn’t accomplish much. Avengers: Doomsday plans to rewrite the narrative, and it starts with new footage.
To encourage people to return to theaters to see Avengers: Endgame again, Marvel Studios added exclusive Doomsday-related scenes to the re-release, dubbing it Avengers Endgame: Encore. Most of the new content was expected, such as Loki paying Steve Rogers a visit and all hell breaking loose at the Time Variance Authority. The surprise was a scene focused on Bruce Banner following the events of Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Feeling awful about what transpired at the Department of Damage Control headquarters, the former Avenger got to work trying to fix his Hulk problem again. The experiments seemed to be going well as Bruce documented everything on camera. But his last recording ended in chaos as a green light appeared in his cell and Doctor Doom’s voice took over the airwaves.
Bruce did the only thing he could think of and hulked out. While Encore didn’t show a battle between the two Marvel heavyweights, the implication was clear as the cell emptied: Doctor Doom got the better of the Jade Giant and, using his magical prowess, teleported him to parts unknown.
Doom teaching Thor a lesson in the Doomsday trailer certainly teased the villain’s stregnth. But wiping the floor with Hulk, seemingly without lifting a finger, is an incredibly impressive feat. Doomsday‘s other powerhouses, including Sentry and Magneto, better keep their heads on a swivel, because they’re next in line for a beatdown if they get in the way of the Latverian monarch and his goals.
They might be better off throwing in the towel and living out the rest of their days (which may not be all that many) in peace, because Doom isn’t coming at them with brawn alone, but brains, too. The MCU’s last big bad, Thanos, knew a thing or two about that. And now Doom is stealing his entire flow.
Marvel Studios Just Gave Doctor Doom His First Thanos Moment
The Mad Titan spent his early days in the MCU plotting behind the scenes. He sent Loki to retrieve the Mind Stone in The Avengers and had Ronan do his dirty work in Guardians of the Galaxy. Eventually, Thanos grew tired of failure and decided to take matters into his own hands. His first significant on-screen moment came when he attacked the Asgardian ship at the start of Avengers: Infinity War.
Half the refugees died, forcing Loki to try to bargain with his former boss. However, as he handed over the Tesseract, the God of Mischief pulled a fast one and unleashed Hulk on Thanos. The hero got the better of his opponent for a moment, but the good times didn’t last; Thanos locked in and beat Hulk to a pulp.
Nearly a decade later, Marvel Studios is taking a page out of its own book by having Doom’s first on-screen villainous act come at Bruce Banner’s expense. Robert Downey Jr.’s new character will look to continue his win streak as he heads into Doomsday, where he’ll face off against a whole host of heroes. But that’s probably where he hopes the Thanos comparisons stop, as he doesn’t want to end up as a pile of dust at the end of Avengers: Secret Wars.
