Thunderbolts is billed as the most unexpected Marvel movie of them all, and it’s easy to see why. Combining characters from across the MCU – Bucky, John Walker, Yelena Bolova’s Black Widow, Red Guardian, Ghost, and Taskmasker – Thunderbolts feels perfect for the MCU’s humor-centric style. Marvel loves movie/comic synergy, so a new team of Thunderbolts debuted that mirrored the upcoming MCU version in a short-lived series. This group is getting another book in 2025, as the heroic Thunderbolts face a villainous team brought together by Doctor Doom and containing some members familiar to longtime Thunderbolts fans but not to MCU fans.
The Thunderbolt’s legacy in the comics stretches back to the mid-90s when the Avengers and Fantastic Four were pulled out of the Marvel Universe by the defeat of Onslaught. A new team of heroes appeared, promising to protect the people in the place of the old heroes, but it was revealed that this team was actually a plot from Baron Zemo and the Masters of Evil to take over the world. However, most of the team would prefer being heroes and the Thunderbolts would become a team that took in villains who wanted a shot at legitimacy. Later, they would become Marvel’s version of the Suicide Squad, villains working for SHIELD. The latest Thunderbolts team went in a different direction, becoming Bucky’s personal strike force with some members who were heroes and others who were less than the heroic ideal.
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The newest Thunderbolts series takes place under Marvel’s “One World Under Doom” publishing initiative. The actions of Bucky’s Thunderbolts made Doom’s power grab possible and Thunderbolts: Doomstrike, from writers Collin Kelley and Jackson Lanzing and artist Tommasso Bianchi, sees Doom assemble a new team of Thunderbolts to deal with Bucky’s group. However, calling this a new team is a bit of a misnomer – Doom has assembled members of the original roster of the Thunderbolts – Moonstone, Fixer, Atlas, and more – to strike against the heroic group that has taken their name. This series is coming in time for the new movie, allowing movie fans to get a glimpse of the present and past of the Thunderbolts at once.
Thunderbolts: Doomstrike is a unique story in the history of the Thunderbolts, as two different versions go to war over the future of the Marvel Universe. Bringing back members of the original team under Doom’s command is a stroke of genius and pitting them against the newest version of the team serves as a way to link the various generations of Thunderbolts. The original Thunderbolts comic remains one of the most well-regarded comics of the ’90s and getting to see its members come back is a treat for fans new and old alike. Will the original team hold fast under Doom or will they prove to be just as strong-willed as they were in their original incarnation? This team has already bucked master manipulator leaders before, so it will be interesting to see how it all shakes out.
Thunderbolts: Doomstrike #1 drops on February 19th, 2025.
