In the aftermath of One World Under Doom, with Doom’s castle empty and masterless, the superpowers of the world race to claim and control the untold power and technology that await inside. But when an explosion sends them all plummeting into a dungeon labyrinth that none of them knew was there, what began as an arms race becomes a terrifying game of survival. Who, if any, will survive? And what horrors lie within the Dungeons of Doom? Dungeons of Doom #1 is the follow up to the recent event “One World Under Doom” and seems to be leading in to whatever comes next.
Doom is gone and Latveria is now a battlefield where different groups are all vying not just for its future, but the hoard of treasure Doom has hidden away over the years. There’s the obvious things like money but he also had for advanced technology and mystic items. These are all up for groups.
Dungeons of Doom #1 does an excellent job of really showing off the chaotic reality that the absence of Doom has left. Latveria is a mess with local groups competing with American interests as well as Hydra, all for the prize(s). And the action depicting it all is just fun and crazy like an off the rails G.I. JOE story.
And “off the rails” is key. Phillip Kennedy Johnson and Benjamin Percy really use that all to set up what is at its core, a dungeon crawl. Three groups are all dumped in mysterious spaces and must navigate to riches. There’s traps, there’s threats, not all of them will make it. Hell, there’s even magical items! It’s hard to read Dungeons of Doom #1 and not immediately see the Dungeons & Dragons root of it all. And with that, it feels like it has the potential to be a hell of a lot of fun.
There’s a massive amount of artists involved including Justin Mason, Robert Gill, Carlos Magno, George Jeanty, and Karl Story with color by Guru-eFX and lettering by Travis Lanham. The art is solid overall and with so many artists, I still didn’t see much variation in the art. It didn’t become a distraction and really with the chaos and the story itself, it wasn’t noticeable for me. The characters look great, the action is over the top, and each dungeon location is interesting packed with detail that’ll get you to linger on pages and try to figure everything out.
Dungeons of Doom #1 feels like a bridge from the previous event to what’s coming next and it does it in a package that feels a bit new and fresh for superhero comics. Even if you’re not interested in the meta story, it’s a fun comic you can pick up and just enjoy the chaotic nature of it all. Hopefully it keeps it up and becomes the nice surprise that comes out of “One World Under Doom.”
Story: Phillip Kennedy Johnson, Benjamin Percy
Art: Justin Mason, Robert Gill, Carlos Magno, George Jeanty, Karl Story
Color: Guru-eFX Letterer: Travis Lanham
Story: 8.25 Art: 8.25 Overall: 8.25 Recommendation: Buy
Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle
