The infamous Legion of Doom headquarters has resurfaced in an unusual spot in the DC Universe -- the hollow earth kingdom of Skartaris.
Wally West and Wallace West discover the iconic structure in the pages of The Flash #781, as the two Flashes enjoy some one-on-one time together, swapping tales about speedster heroics in far-flung locations ranging from Argentina to Nanda Parbat. Their patrol route eventually takes them to the center of the Earth, where they find a partially built Legion of Doom headquarters nestled in the confines of a forest. Wally chuckles at the sight and reveals to Wallace that he's run into Halls of Doom on more than one occasion and never misses the opportunity to sabotage them.
"Every once in a while, while I'm making my loop, I run into this thing in different locations," Wally points out. "They call it the Hall of Doom...or someone trying to build a Hall of Doom... I figure that whoever keeps building these things isn't doing it for altruistic purposes, so whenever I run across one, I fiddle with it. Take out a bunch of small components they'll never notice are missing until they start it up. And when they do...kaboom! It all falls apart."
Skartaris, a hidden world located within the core of the Earth, debuted in the pages of 1975's 1st Issue Special #8. It was quickly established as the home of writer Mike Grell's character Warlord, a Vietnam War veteran-turned-sword and sorcery hero who battled dinosaurs and fought to defend the people of Skartaris in pulp adventures reminiscent of the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs and Jules Verne. Warlord recently appeared in Issues #17-22 of the 2016 Trinity series, which saw Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman visiting Skartaris.
The Hall of Doom first appeared a few years later, in the 1978 cartoon Challenge of the Superfriends as the hideout of Lex Luthor's Legion of Doom. Serving as the polar opposite of the Justice League's shining Hall of Justice, the Hall of Doom was hidden in a swamp and arose from the murky waters at the start of most episodes, showcasing the villains during their official Legion meetings. Curiously, the Hall of Doom bore an unusual resemblance to Darth Vader's helmet and eventually made its way into comics, first appearing in the mainstream DC universe in 2007's Justice League of America Wedding Special #1.
The Flash #781, written by Jeremy Adams, penciled by Fernando Pasarin, inked by Matty Ryan, colored by Jeromy Cox and Peter Pantazis and lettered by Rob Leigh, is on sale now from DC.
Source: DC
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