If there's one word to describe the state of the Marvel Universe in 2025, it's "Doom." In February, Marvel kicks off a new crossover event called One World Under Doom, which sees Doom emerge from hiding as the new Sorcerer Supreme and declare himself emperor of the world. It's a story that will be told in the pages of Ryan North and R.B. Silva's One World Under Doom miniseries as well as numerous other tie-ins and spinoffs. Easily one of the most important of those tie-ins is Thunderbolts: Doomstrike, by writers Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing and artist Tommaso Bianchi.
IGN can exclusively debut a new preview of April's Thunderbolts: Doomstrike #3. Marvel's solicitation teases, "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!"
Check out the preview in the slideshow gallery below, and then read on to learn more about the new series from Kelly and Lanzing themselves, including why this series serves as the grand culmination of a yearslong Bucky Barnes storyline:
Is Bucky Barnes to Blame for Emperor Doom?
Thunderbolts: Doomstrike continues the story Kelly and Lanzing began in 2023's Thunderbolts relaunch. That series established a new incarnation of the team led by Bucky Barnes and with the mandate to take on some of the biggest villains in the Marvel Universe by any means necessary. Bucky's team succeeded in taking on foes like Hydra and the Kingpin, though their victory brought with it some major unintended consequences. The Thunderbolts wound up directly paving the way for Doom's rise to power. Oops.
"In a single sweep, Bucky cleared the board of the Red Skull, the Kingpin’s finances, and the American Kaiju," Lanzing tells 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 reveals that their initial Thunderbolts storyline, Worldstrike, was always intended to lead to a Doom-centric follow-up. The fact that North was planning an entire compnay-wide crossover event revolving around Doom was just a convenient development.
"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 says. "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."
Naturally, Bucky's guilt over his role in establishing Emperor Doom will be a major focus in Doomstrike. Though as Kelly reminds us, guilt has been part and parcel of Bucky's story 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 tases, "As for Val… that’s a more complicated question that readers will have to read issue #1 to uncover."
Thunderbolts vs. Thunderbolts
One of the big selling points of Doomstrike is that it features the return of the original 1997 Thunderbolts lineup. While Songbird has thrown her lot in with Bucky, most of her former comrades are instead siding with Emperor Doom. And as the cover to issue #3 makes plain, the two teams are destined to come into conflict with each other as Doomstrike unfolds.
"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?"
Naturally, Songbird will be a pivotal figure in Doomstrike. The series will see her caught in the middle of the conflict and torn between her loyalty to her old teammates and her new commitment to Bucky's cause.
"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 working with Bucky for several years at this point, even beyond the scope of their Thunderbolts run. Bucky was a major component of their Captain America: Sentinel of Liberty series and the Captain America: Cold War crossover. Doomstrike is specifically billed as the culmination of their overarching Bucky storyline, meaning Sentinel of Liberty fans will definitely want to pick this one up.
"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 remembering that Thunderbolts: Doomstrike will be unfolding even as the Thunderbolts* movie his theaters in May. We were curious if Kelly and Lanzing hoped to draw in MCU viewers with their latest project, particularly given the similarities in the 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 released on February 19, 2025.
For more on the future of the Marvel Universe, see what to expect from Marvel in 2025 and read up on our most anticipated comics of 2025.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on BlueSky.
