What makes a good super hero? I would say an equally fascinating super villain, so lets start out with one of Marvels best. With his debut appearance in Fantastic Four #5, the evil genius Victor Von Doom was the first major new villain of the Marvel Age as well as a truly new kind of enemy. As villainous as he was brilliant, Doctor Doom was
as strategic as he was maniacal. Being a former classmate of the Fantastic Four leader, Reed Richards, the bad doctor could
match his wits with their team-leader in scientific skill and his connection to the
team's past gave Victor great insight in his many battles with the super team.
Psychologically and physically twisted by a lab accident in college, Doom's villainy was
unquestionable, but there was always something sympathetic about his plight, as shown below in this Jack Kirby page from the Fantastic Four Annual #2.
This dichotomy made him different from most comic book villains that
came before as Doom served as a template for many that came after. It should come as no
surprise that writer Stan Lee has said on many occasions that Doom is his favorite
villain. Lee once stated that "[Doom] could come to the United States and he could do
almost anything, and we could not arrest him because he has diplomatic immunity.
Also, he wants to rule the world and if you think about it, wanting to rule the
world is not a crime."
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