Thunderbolts: Doomstrike's Role in Marvel's One World Under Doom Crossover

If there's one word to encapsulate the state of the Marvel Universe in 2025, it's "Doom." Marvel's February event, "One World Under Doom," marks a pivotal shift as Doctor Doom emerges from the shadows as the new Sorcerer Supreme, proclaiming himself the world's emperor. This epic tale unfolds across Ryan North and R.B. Silva's miniseries, "One World Under Doom," and extends into numerous tie-ins and spinoffs. A standout among these is "Thunderbolts: Doomstrike," crafted by writers Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing, with Tommaso Bianchi bringing the visuals to life.

IGN is thrilled to offer an exclusive preview of "Thunderbolts: Doomstrike #3," set to hit shelves in April. The official Marvel synopsis hints at high stakes: "Bucky, Songbird, Sharon Carter, and the Midnight Angels launch a daring plan to target Doctor Doom’s supply of vibranium. But standing in their way are – THE THUNDERBOLTS?! It’s THUNDERBOLTS VS. THUNDERBOLTS – ’NUFF SAID!" Dive into the preview gallery below, and continue reading to uncover more about the series from Kelly and Lanzing, including how this narrative serves as the culmination of a multi-year Bucky Barnes saga.

Thunderbolts: Doomstrike #3 Exclusive Preview Gallery

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Is Bucky Barnes to Blame for Emperor Doom?

"Thunderbolts: Doomstrike" picks up the thread from Kelly and Lanzing's 2023 "Thunderbolts" relaunch, which introduced a new team under Bucky Barnes' leadership, tasked with confronting the Marvel Universe's most formidable villains. While their victories over Hydra and the Kingpin were significant, they inadvertently set the stage for Doom's rise to power.

"In a single sweep, Bucky cleared the board of the Red Skull, the Kingpin’s finances, and the American Kaiju," Lanzing shares with IGN via email. "That leaves Hydra without a leader, the criminal underworld without financing, and the US Government without its most effective deterrence - all of which was supposed to help Bucky make the world a safer, better place and inspire other heroes to make big changes in the world around them. Unfortunately, he also inspired someone else: Victor Von Doom - who he used as a pawn to kill the re-emergent Red Skull. And no one makes a weapon out of Victor Von Doom without living to regret it."

Kelly elaborates that their initial "Thunderbolts" storyline, "Worldstrike," was always meant to segue into a Doom-focused narrative. The serendipity of North's universe-wide crossover event centered around Doom provided a perfect narrative bridge.

"When we started planning what the follow-up series would be, we were introduced to the upcoming new status quo for the Marvel Universe: One World Under Doom," Kelly explains. "Spearheaded by the incredible Ryan North, we eagerly dove into the outlines…and to our shock, discovered that he was using Bucky’s manipulation of Doom as one of the key inciting incidents for Victor’s rise to world power. Which meant that this new Thunderbolts mission wasn’t just a crusade against evil - it was a referendum on Bucky’s choices. Doomstrike is Bucky’s chance to redeem his choices… but it’s going to push him harder than ever before."

"This new Thunderbolts mission wasn’t just a crusade against evil - it was a referendum on Bucky’s choices." Bucky's guilt over his role in Doom's ascendancy will be a central theme in "Doomstrike," echoing the guilt he's carried since his resurrection as the Winter Soldier.

"Bucky’s guilt - whether from his actions as The Winter Soldier, or his missions for the Outer Circle - have been weighing him down all his life," Kelly says. "And just when he thought he could put some of it down and turn the corner…he gets burdened with the responsibility of causing Doom’s rise to power. Worst of all, Doom understands that…and will use that guilt as his greatest weapon. After our first issue, that weight will be increased by a factor of 20,000…and even with his metal arm, Bucky might not be able to save himself from being crushed."

"The rest of the Thunderbolts are going to have varied motivations - as they often do, as a team of outsiders and mercenaries," Lanzing adds. "Songbird is joining the team out of loyalty to Bucky and her own sense of heroism - long gone are her days as Screaming Mimi, so when she sees a chance to be a hero in this world gone mad, Songbird takes it. But she’s also still hurting from the loss of her last love, Abner Jenkins (aka MACH-X), so there’s a certain amount of devil-may-care attitude to how far she’s willing to go."

Lanzing continues, "Black Widow is entirely concerned for Bucky’s safety - they only recently reignited their romance and it’s clear that his guilt is driving him to dangerous places. She’d rather play the long game against Doom, but Revolution waits for no man. Destroyer is already on-mission when we meet her; Sharon Carter destroys fascism and it’s basically everywhere these days. U.S. Agent is deep in his cups when Bucky arrives - disgusted by his country’s subservience to a foreign dictator. And our newest member, Ghost Rider ‘44, is an old friend of Bucky whose war just reignited in hellfire. We’re leaving some more members as surprises… but suffice to say, every one of them has a reason to stand against Doom… or worry for Bucky’s life."

But what about the enigmatic Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine? Kelly teases, "As for Val… that’s a more complicated question that readers will have to read issue #1 to uncover."

Thunderbolts vs. Thunderbolts

A major draw of "Doomstrike" is the return of the original 1997 Thunderbolts lineup. While Songbird has allied herself with Bucky, her former teammates have sided with Emperor Doom, setting the stage for a thrilling confrontation.

"We’re thrilled to invite the original Thunderbolts back into the mix and cross them over with Bucky’s new reimagined operation," Kelly says. "From the heartbreaking conclusion to Songbird and Abner’s relationship, beautifully brought to life (and death) by Jim Zub, to the disastrous return of Citizen V, it’s a real honor to return to these characters, and - more importantly - return them to their original core dilemma: is redemption even possible for a villainous life?"

Lanzing adds, "But it’s not Bucky who’s co-opting the name for his own ends - it’s Doom. See, the Thunderbolts aren’t self-organizing here; in a world under Doom, few heroes are as under his thumb as those he calls his “Fulgar Victoris.” But why are they organizing? And why is Bucky target number one?"

Songbird's role in "Doomstrike" is crucial. Caught between her old teammates and her new allegiance to Bucky, her internal conflict will be a driving force in the series.

"When Melissa returns, she does so with a style, excited and ready to aid Bucky on his mission," Kelly says. "But he’s not the only Thunderbolt she has a history with, and the return of her friends - serving someone as nefarious as Doom - will absolutely twist her heart. Unlike Bucky, the Thunderbolts are her entire world…so how she deals with this fallout is going to shake her to her core."

Kelly and Lanzing have been weaving Bucky's narrative for years, beyond their "Thunderbolts" run. Bucky played a significant role in their "Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty" series and the "Captain America: Cold War" crossover. "Doomstrike" is billed as the culmination of their overarching Bucky storyline, making it a must-read for fans of "Sentinel of Liberty."

"It’s the grand finale for our work on Bucky and we’re leaving it all on the field." "Here’s what we can say with confidence: this is our final Bucky Barnes tale for a while," Lanzing teases. "We’ve been telling a single story with Bucky Barnes ever since we started at Marvel - we call it the 'Revolution Saga.' It began in Devil’s Reign: Winter Soldier, really exploded in Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty, motivated Captain America: Cold War, and then became fully centered on Bucky in Thunderbolts: Worldstrike. Bucky has discovered the secrets of his origin, he’s clashed with his best friend, he’s allowed love back into his heart, and he’s taken on a new identity as the Revolution - but it will all come down to this. I really cannot stress enough that fans of any of our work on those titles shouldn’t miss this - while the story is great for new readers, it’s also imbued with tons of meaning for those who’ve been on this ride with us. It’s the grand finale for our work on Bucky and we’re leaving it all on the field."

On the flip side, it's worth noting that "Thunderbolts: Doomstrike" will be running concurrently with the "Thunderbolts" movie hitting theaters in May. We were curious if Kelly and Lanzing aimed to attract MCU viewers with their latest project, especially given the similar team roster.

"Absolutely," Kelly says. "Fans of MCU Bucky - slightly more quippy, slightly less damaged - will find our Bucky very familiar…least, at the start. Though the details are different, this story will teach MCU fans exactly why The Contessa Valentina Allegra de la Fontaine is such a machiavellian threat. And for fans of Bucky and Natasha, their romance sits at the very core themes of the book. Finally, as we know Doom himself will soon be taking the spotlight in the MCU, this story - and the entire One World Under Doom era - is a terrifying introduction to one of the greatest villains in Marvel’s history. Our sincere hope is that, when fans of the movie come rushing into their local comic shop asking for more, the one-two punch of Thunderbolts: Worldstrike and Doomstrike are waiting for them to hook them into the incredible, wild world of Marvel comics."

"Thunderbolts: Doomstrike #1" will be available on February 19, 2025.

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