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The original plans for the MCU were seemingly significantly altered when Doctor Doom replaced Kang the Conqueror as the Multiverse Saga’s archvillain in Avengers: Doomsday, but I think this might have always been the plan. Avengers: Doomsday was previously known as Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, which was officially revealed at San Diego Comic-Con in 2022. The announcement followed Kang’s debut as the variant He Who Remains in Loki season 1, where his purview over time and the threat of a multiversal war between Kangs was firmly established.
Kang would ostensibly remain the Multiverse Saga’s archvillain until San Diego Comic-Con 2024, where Avengers: The Kang Dynasty was officially supplanted by Avengers: Doomsday, and Robert Downey Jr. was revealed to be returning to the MCU as Doctor Doom. Now, the MCU appears to be gearing up for Doom’s debut, be that in Avengers: Doomsday or as part of a post-credits tease (my money is on The Fantastic Four: First Steps). The switch-up was not entirely unexpected, and I’m sure the MCU was gearing up for this replacement anyway.
Avengers 5 Going From A Kang-Focused To Doctor Doom-Focused Story Was Controversial
Kang Was Unceremoniously Sidelined
Kang the Conqueror appeared in Loki and Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, with the latter being his first big-screen appearance. This was supposedly setting Kang up as a multiversal threat worthy of rubbing shoulders with Thanos, but he was controversially killed off at the end of the movie. Instead, the Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania post-credits scene teased the real threat – the Council of Kangs, who were rallying together to face off against Earth’s mightiest heroes. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania would then perform worse than hoped and become one of the worst-rated MCU installments.
After two years of hyping ourselves up for a Council of Kangs showdown, Marvel Studios opted out of re-casting Kang the Conqueror and instead put an entirely different character in his place.
Following this, Marvel Studios parted ways with Jonathan Majors following an assault conviction. It was around this time in mid-2023 that rumors suggested Marvel was considering a pivot away from Kang the Conqueror entirely, though the fandom would be kept in the dark about the studio’s decision for almost a year. Eventually, Avengers: Doomsday was confirmed, while Avengers: Secret Wars – the final Avengers movie of the Multiverse Saga – remained.
This was met with mixed reactions. After two years of hyping ourselves up for a Council of Kangs showdown, Marvel Studios opted out of re-casting Kang the Conqueror and instead put an entirely different character in his place. This helped to diminish Kang’s threatening appearances in Loki, while it’s hard to discern what Marvel now intends to do with the Council of Kangs. Nevertheless, I can’t help but think that this swift suppression of Kang mirrors exactly what happened between him and Doctor Doom in a particularly relevant comic.
Marvel’s Original Secret Wars Comic Features A Notable Kang Vs Doctor Doom Story
Doom Makes Short Work Of Kang
While all signs point towards Avengers: Secret Wars adapting the 2015 run of comics after which it’s named, I think the evidence is mounting for the possibility that it will additionally adapt beats from the original 1980s comic. Galactus’s arrival in The Fantastic Four: First Steps, the symbiote teased in Spider-Man: No Way Home, and the fact that both Kang and Doctor Doom now populate the same narrative space are some big hints. In fact, Kang and Doom share a pretty memorable moment.
Doctor Doom also makes short of another archvillain, Thanos, in 2015’s “Secret Wars,” where he rips the Mad Titan’s head and spine from his body.
The original “Secret Wars” does not include incursions of multiversal cataclysms but instead sees the godlike Beyonder pit a litany of Marvel’s foremost heroes and villains against one another on Battleworld. After forming a ragtag team of villains, Doom quickly establishes control over the others. He then swiftly has Kang killed, ordering Ultron to disintegrate the time traveler in the space of a few panels. Doom further establishes his dominance and the extent of his powers by later reviving Kang, who returns disoriented and diminished.
Doctor Doom Is Too Big A Secret Wars Comic Character To Not Have Featured In The Original Avengers 5 & 6 Plans
Doom Needs To Be Established Before Appearing In Avengers: Secret Wars
Doom is a central figure in both “Secret Wars” runs, essentially wresting control and power from the Beyonders and establishing himself as the archvillain of both narratives. The 2015 run of comics sees Doom rule over a Battleworld of his making as its god emperor, exhibiting near-omnipotence as he subjugated swathes of Marvel heroes and villains. He obtains similar powers in the original run, deploying a series of strategies to absorb the Beyonder’s power and rule Battleworld, at one point eviscerating Marvel’s heroes with a single blast.
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It’s hard to see how the MCU could have adapted “Secret Wars” without first spotlighting Doom, and Kang was initially in the way with Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. Furthermore, introducing the Fantastic Four in The Fantastic Four: First Steps and omitting Doom entirely in both that and subsequent movies featuring the Fantastic Four would have been a bold move from Marvel. Adapting “Secret Wars” without Doom is tantamount to adapting “The Infinity Gauntlet” without Thanos, and I think we can all agree that Marvel Studios made the right call spotlighting Thanos across two movies.
I’m Convinced Doctor Doom Was Set To Succeed Kang In The Multiverse Saga Before The MCU’s Big Changes
I Think Doctor Doom Was Going To Kill Kang Anyway
With all that in mind, I’m convinced that Avengers: The Kang Dynasty would have seen Doctor Doom, not the Avengers, besting the titular villain. Thanks to the standard set by Avengers: Infinity War, there’s a lingering expectation that the Avengers may fail in the penultimate Avengers movie of this saga, as whatever archvillain they face is shown to be exceptionally powerful. I can therefore imagine that Avengers: The Kang Dynasty would have seen Doom make short work of Kang the Conqueror, similar to “Secret Wars,” taking his place as the main villain instead.
Spotlighting Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, therefore, at least gives Doom more space to establish himself as a threat worthy of an Avengers duology.
Nevertheless, for what it’s worth, I think the current state of affairs is preferable. A commonly held belief is that the Multiverse Saga has suffered from the absence of any Avengers movie, and a knock-on effect of this is the fact that it hasn’t established the saga’s archvillain like the Infinity Saga did with Thanos. As much as I’m hyped to see Doom’s debut in the MCU, I must admit that Marvel Studios has given me little reason to care about him outside prior knowledge of the villain.
Spotlighting Doom in Avengers: Doomsday, therefore, at least gives Doom more space to establish himself as a threat worthy of an Avengers duology. At the same time, Marvel still needs to address the Council of Kangs. I therefore think that they will feature in Avengers: Doomsday, most likely in a much smaller capacity to the original plan, where Doom’s power levels will be demonstrated as he kills them off and takes his place as Kang’s successor in the MCU.
Avengers: Doomsday
Upcoming MCU Movies
“}]] Doctor Doom is officially replacing Kang as the Multiverse Saga’s archvillain, but I’m starting to think this was always part of Marvel’s plan. Read More