Iron Man Just Took Down Santa

Marvel's King in Black crossover event is well underway and it's pitting many of the universe's [...]

By Nicole Drum

Marvel's King in Black crossover event is well underway and it's pitting many of the universe's characters into a situation unlike anything they've dealt with before -- including some unexpected pairings. That's the case in this week's King in Black: Iron Man/Doctor Doom #1 which sees the two team up in the wake of Eddie Brock's apparent death in last week's King in Black #2. But while Tony and Doctor Doom's team up itself may seem a little unlikely for some readers, it's who the end up taking down that really surprises and not in a feel-good for the Christmas season sort of way. That's right, Iron Man takes out Santa Claus.

Spoilers for King in Black: Iron Man/Doctor Doom #1.

The issue opens with a young Tony Stark being gifted a building by his father, Howard. While Howard insists that "Santa" got the impressive gift for him, Tony makes it pretty clear he doesn't believe in the traditional gift-giver, leading Howard to tell his son that if he lets go of all the magic in the world, everything just turns cold and gray. A cold and gray world is exactly where we find Tony in the present, beating himself up over the death of Eddie Brock. Doctor Doom shows up to give him an unexpected pep talk of sorts when Tony notices Santa flying through the sky in his sleigh.

Doctor Doom, of course, isn't exactly a believer -- "the spirits of yule are petty Germanic folklore" he even says at one point -- but sure enough Santa and his sleigh literally are flying through the sky, complete with the reindeer. Tony is excited at first as it's confirmation of some sort of "magic" in the world, but quickly discovers that this Santa isn't a jolly one. This Santa has been tainted by Knull, prompting Iron Man to decide that he has to take out Santa lest he spread the living darkness to children and others.

king in black santa
(Photo: Marvel)

As you can guess, Tony doesn't feel great about killing Santa, but it's soon revealed that he's not dead. Iron Man's efforts have freed him from Knull, leaving the man a bit rattled but recognizes Tony (whom he declares as good) and Doctor Doom (who he declares as naught) before going off on his way. An ID left at the scene reveals that "Santa" is actually a local holiday supply store owner, but while Tony is able to sort of move on from the whole incident -- it has clued him into the idea that there could be something about his armor that allowed him to reverse the Knullification -- but Doctor Doom is another matter. The issue ends with Doctor Doom questioning Santa, wondering to himself if Santa Claus might just be a Sorcerer Supreme.

What's kind of fun about this whole issue is that Santa Claus actually does appear as a character in Marvel Comics. The jolliest of men has appeared a few times over the years, including an X-Men story in which he's revealed to be the most powerful of mutants. Even without that little bit of comics knowledge, the issue does a great job of leaving whether Santa is real or not just a little ambiguous, something that teases a restoration of magic, at least for Tony Stark.

King in Black: Iron Man/Doctor Doom #1 is available now.

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