Kristoff Vernard
Kristoff Vernard | |
---|---|
Publication information | |
Publisher | Marvel Comics |
First appearance | As Kristoff: Fantastic Four #247 (October 1982) As Dr. Doom: Fantastic Four #278 (May 1985) |
Created by | John Byrne |
In-story information | |
Alter ego | Kristoff Vernard |
Team affiliations | Fantastic Four |
Notable aliases | Dr. Doom, Victor Von Doom, Kristoff Von Doom |
Abilities | Skilled scientist and magician Powered armor grants: Minimal superhuman strength and durability Flight Energy projection |
Kristoff Vernard (formerly known as Kristoff von Doom and Dr. Doom) is a fictional character appearing in
Publication history
Kristoff first appeared in John Byrne's "back to the basics" Fantastic Four run in issue #247 in October 1982.[1] Kristoff served as heir to Doctor Doom, occasional ruler of Latveria, a probationary member of the Fantastic Four, and temporal adventurer alongside Nathaniel Richards.
The character next appears in Fantastic Four #258-259 (September–October 1983) and first appears as the second Doctor Doom in Fantastic Four #278-279 (May–June 1985). After a few scattered appearances, Kristoff Vernard becomes a semi-regular cast member in Fantastic Four #400 (May 1995). He recently reappeared in FF #2, ruling Latveria in Doom's absence.
An
#5 (1998), followed by scattered appearances, but was only featured regularly in Fantastic Five #1-5 (September–November 2007).Doctor Doom received an entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89 #2, and the All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A-Z #12 (2007).
Fictional character biography
Heir
After being ousted as leader of
Second Coming of Doom
Following the apparent murder of Dr. Doom by Terrax, Doom's robots took Kristoff and brainwashed and implanted within him Doom's mental patterns and detailed memories. However, he stopped the process before all of Doom's memories could be implanted (after his intellect had been duplicated).
Now believing that he was the real Doom, Kristoff's first action was attempting to destroy the Fantastic Four by blowing up the
Kristoff would be imprisoned in
Kristoff would free himself with the aid of a Doombot sent to kidnap
The FF, who had followed Kristoff to rescue Franklin, intervened and Mister Fantastic used a device of his own to enable his son to fight back against Mephisto. As the two Dooms battled, the Doombots stood by, unsure which to aid since they both claimed to be Doom and the brainscans seemed to confirm this.
The battle soon ended but Doom's mother was still not free. Her imprisonment in the nether realms was one of the few failures that Doom would admit to and he said as much to those present. The robots perceived this as doubt and a lack of confidence meaning Kristoff could only be the real ever-confident Dr. Doom. The Doombots turned on their creator and Dr. Doom was forced to flee.
Kristoff ruled Latveria as Doom [6] once again, where he would encounter the West Coast Avengers. To their surprise, he let them leave Latveria.[8] He stayed the regent until the original infiltrated the Castle and uttered a codeword that reverted Kristoff to his original personality.[9] Doom reclaimed his throne while Kristoff was sent as a decoy to battle Mr. Fantastic. He was killed[10] and placed in stasis in a Tibetan Monastery.
Life After Doom
Following the Onslaught saga, Kristoff and Nathaniel tried to collect the now-missing FF's equipment located in the Negative Zone. They then returned to Latveria, Kristoff with hopes of assuming the throne once again, but they were met with resistance by the Dreadknight and found Doombots in charge. The duo were then tricked by S.H.I.E.L.D. into defeating them.[14]
Kristoff and Nathaniel were later displaced by Stryfe after his ship crashed into Castle Doom.
Nathaniel Richards has hinted that he is Kristoff's father, which gives something of an irony that Doctor Doom chose, as his heir, the half-brother of his most hated rival.
At the start of Fantastic Four: Three, Doom was making plans to abdicate his throne and give it to Kristoff, who is referred to as living in "exile".
Kristoff was then revealed to be the villain in the Spider-Man/Fantastic Four miniseries, setting up an elaborate plan to depose Doom and take his place- such as setting up a riot at the Latverian embassy in the past so that he could read some books of magic that Doom had lost in the present,
At one point, Doom loses part of his intelligence during "Fall of the Hulks". In turn, he calls in Vernard from exile to rule Latveria for him while he advises in the shadows. With the help of the Fantastic Four, Doom regains his full intelligence by transporting a part of Doom's backup memories that are contained in Vernard's head.[20]
He is subsequently living in Latveria with Doctor Doom, who continues to groom him to be his heir.[21]
For a point, Vernard and Valeria seem to both be living in Latveria at the same time.[22]
Kristoff Vernard assists his father in preparing for the events of Secret Wars, including having dinner with Reed[23] (in an attempt to gather information), fighting off an incursion, having dinner with Namor, and observing Doom's preparations.[24]
Kristoff Vernard then hired She-Hulk as his lawyer to apply for political asylum in the United States, but end up facing a small army of Doombots. After defeating the Doombots, She-Hulk succeeds in granting him political asylum only for Doctor Doom to break into the courthouse and kidnap him. She-Hulk then goes to Latveria to rescue Kristoff only for him and Doctor Doom to have a pep-talk, where he expresses his desire to follow his own path in life. After the talk, Doom allows Kristoff and She-Hulk to leave Latveria.[25]
Later on, after Doom is momentarily deposed from his throne, Kristoff is summoned back among others to test his loyalty to Doom. He passed immediately, but was then told to "never call [him] father again".[26]
Vernard may have been present during the confrontation against Ionela Novothy, the Symkarian "ringleader" of the coup against Doom. When the war concluded and Symkaria was annexed into Latveria, Doom installed Kristoff as governor of what is now the southern region of Latveria.[27]
Powers and abilities
Kristoff Vernard has no superpowers but he's a skilled scientist and magician. He has also worn a suit of armor that grants him some degree of superhuman strength and durability, flight and energy projection.
Other versions
Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius
In the non-canonical humor comic Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius, Kristoff is depicted as a foreign exchange classmate of Franklin's from Latveria making him roughly the same age as him. He shows total admiration for Doctor Doom and much like his idol shows some disdain for the son of his archenemy. Franklin appears to be oblivious to Kristoff's antagonism and believes that he is his genuine friend.
House of M
Kristoff was a member of Doom's Fearsome Four, as the Inhuman Torch. In the crafted world, Kristoff was the adopted son of Valeria and Doom, and thanks to the cosmic experimentation of his adoptive father, had the abilities of Johnny Storm.[28]
MC2
In the MC2 universe, Kristoff appears as an ally of the A-Next and the Fantastic Five. He uses the name "Doom" and has requested membership in the Fantastic Five. He is later shown to have indeed gained membership. His costume is a combination of his old mask and a green version of the F5 uniform.
In other media
Kristoff Vernard appears as an alternate costume for Doctor Doom in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance.
See also
Notes
John Byrne revealed his original plans for Kristoff, stating "I intended Doom to return to Latvaria and absolutely FREAK OUT when he discovered what his robots had done to Kristoff. Basically -- he'd need a whole lot of new robots by the time he calmed down. And then he would devote a whole lot of time and energy to restoring Kristoff. (I had not decided if he would be successful. Part of my brain wanted him to realize he needed the help of the other smartest guy on the planet -- and there was no way he could ever go there!")[29]
References
- ISBN 978-1-4654-7890-0.
- ^ Fantastic Four #247
- ^ Fantastic Four #258
- ^ Fantastic Four #278
- ^ Fantastic Four #279
- ^ a b Fantastic Four Annual #20
- ^ Fantastic Four #227
- ^ West Coast Avengers #35
- ^ Fantastic Four #350
- ^ Fantastic Four #352
- ^ Fantastic Four #397
- ^ Fantastic Four #406
- ^ Fantastic Four #409
- ^ Tales of the Marvel Universe #1
- ^ Spider-Man/Fantastic Four #1
- ^ Spider-Man/Fantastic Four #2
- ^ The Mighty Avengers #7
- ^ The Mighty Avengers #10
- ^ Spider-Man/Fantastic Four #4
- ^ FF #2
- ^ The New Avengers vol. 3 #6
- ^ New Avengers vol. 3 #23
- ^ New Avengers vol. 3 #6
- ^ New Avengers vol. 3 #24
- ^ She-Hulk vol. 3 #2-4
- ^ Doctor Doom #7
- ^ Doctor Doom #8
- ^ House of M: Fantastic Four #1
- ^ "Question for JB about Kristoff". Byrne Robotics. Retrieved 2011-04-14.