What Happens To Doctor Impossible In 'Soon I Will Be Invincible'?

Doctor Impossible’s arc in 'Soon I Will Be Invincible' is a rollercoaster of ego and existential dread. He loses, obviously—it’s in the title—but the fun is in how he rationalizes it. Even behind bars, he’s spinning his defeat as a temporary setback. The book nails the vibe of golden-age comics where villains never stay down, but adds this layer of self-awareness. You’re left wondering if he’s a mastermind or just addicted to the game. Either way, it’s a blast to read.

I couldn’t help but laugh at Doctor Impossible’s ending—it’s so him. After all the elaborate schemes and comic-book-worthy battles, he winds up back in a cage, yet the narration leaves this tantalizing thread: he’s already calculating his comeback. The genius of the book is how it humanizes him without softening his edges. Like, yeah, he rants about ruling the world, but he also fixates on petty grudges with heroes who don’t even remember his middle name. It’s that mix of grandeur and pettiness that makes him feel real. The ending isn’t closure; it’s a pause button, and I love that.

Reading 'Soon I Will Be Invincible' felt like diving into a twisted love letter to comic book tropes, and Doctor Impossible’s arc is the beating heart of it. He’s this brilliant, egomaniacal supervillain who’s perpetually trapped in his own genius—always outsmarting himself just as much as the heroes. By the end, he’s defeated (again), but there’s this lingering sense that he’ll never truly lose because his ego won’t let him. The book plays with the idea of inevitability; his name isn’t just for show. He’s obsessed with proving his superiority, even when it costs him everything. The final scenes hint at another escape, another scheme—because what’s a villain without his next grand plan? It’s deliciously cyclical.

What stuck with me, though, was how weirdly sympathetic he becomes. Under all the monologuing and world-ending plots, there’s this loneliness, this desperation to be seen as more than a caricature. The novel does this neat trick where you catch yourself rooting for him, just a little, even as he’s doing something monstrous. That duality is what makes him unforgettable.