Doctor Strange & Doctor Doom: Triumph and Torment

Writer: Roger Stern

Artist: Michael Mignola

Colors: Mark Badger

Publisher: Marvel

Published: 1989

Been a while...watching a lot of Glee...yeah I admit it. I am so conflicted by this show. There are so many things I dislike, yet I can't stop watching it. I've watched 18 episodes in 4 days! I can't stand the lip synching, the non-teen cast, the ridiculous plot lines and manipulative storytelling...and I'm really tormented by the sterilization of songs I like...yet I can't turn away...after this post, I'm gonna watch more. However the show really is a triumph...no matter how twisted it gets and no matter how manipulated I feel, I root for these characters. This feeling reminds me of todays comic: Doctor Strange and Doctor Doom: Triumph and Torment.

The story follows two of Marvel's biggest and most powerful characters. One dedicated to life, the other to the subjugation of life: Doctor Strange and Doctor Doom. They each compete in a ritualistic magical competition and it's bizarre prize forces Dr. Strange to aid Dr. Doom on an insane quest into Hades itself to battle Mephisto (which is the Marvel equivalent of Satan).

On the surface this comes across as just another adventure in the Marvel U. But, inside this seemingly everyday tale beats a story of redemption, sympathy, and the need to win-no-matter-the-price for one of Marvels darkest and most evil characters.

Dr. Doom makes for a great bad guy; but he's still a bad guy. He's evil, narcissistic, manipulative, destructive, murderous, but in this tale, I root for him, all the way.

*Note: This is my first graphic novel review on Comix-365. Up until now I've avoided graphic novels, mainly because I've been adamant to focus on single issues. There are a number of reasons for this, but as of today, I'll try to post some graphic novels or collected works, especially ones that were intended to be graphic novels or are hard to find as singles.

Here's a link to some reviews I did for Chapters on a bunch of graphic novels and other stuff if you're interested.