TheMCUdoesn’t need saving, as it’s the most successful franchise. But even if the movie producers are sitting comfortably, their heroes have to work nonstop to keep their imaginary world safe from imaginary threats. We know very little about the future of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Aside from the titles announced at San Diego Comic-Con, there are many things that we can only guess at. Fans are still wondering how the X-Men will join thelong list of MCU shows. Also, will the Young Avengers ever assemble? And which big bad guys are going to appear in the coming movies?
Since Thanos won his Infinity War, fans have been itching to see new villains in the MCU. While Kang is clearly going to be the big bad for the coming new phases, many have been wondering ifDoctor Doom will appearin the upcomingFantastic Fourmovie. He is, after all, one of Marvel’s oldest and most iconic villains. And in the comics, he plays a huge role in Secret Wars, the big finishing title the MCU has planned for Phase 5. Many things orbiting Doctor Doom seem to be in the works, but it’s tough to say if we’ve even gotten a whiff of him yet. If the universe is going in this direction, it seems Doctor Doom could turn out to be the MCU’s greatest villain and its greatest hero.
Who Is Doctor Doom?
Victor Von Doom is Marvel’s most interesting, if not itsmost powerful villain. He is a master of both science and magic, making him a formidable foe on the battlefield. But more than that, he walks an interesting line between good and evil. His backstory is a sad one, filled with struggle and loss that he had to fight to overcome. His mother was taken by the devil, Mephisto, while his father was killed by a corrupt monarch. And his journey to becoming a learned scientist and master mystic was plagued with difficult setbacks, the most famous of which being the terrible disfigurement of his face.
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Some of Doctor Doom’s character is motivated by insecurity, but for the most part, his ego is secure enough to admit defeat. Unless that defeat comes to one of his goals for which he feels particularly determined. Then, Doom will not be defeated. He will find a different way to win, even if it pays a heavy price.
Though many of his actions were motivated by revenge and a need to compete against Reed Richards, Doom ultimately believed he was justified in his actions. And most of the time, he was. He bettered his skills to defeat Mephisto and save his mother. He conquered hishome nation of Latveriato overthrow the evil king and rule the country peacefully. And, due to a vision of the future, he continues to try to conquer the world because he thinks it is the only way to help humanity live in harmony. With this type of motivation, it’s hard to say that Doctor Doom is truly evil to his core.
However, his actions to achieve his goals require sacrifices that most are unwilling to pay. Doom’s villainous archetype is largely one that is based on the saying “the ends justify the means,” and while his results might prove him right in the end, his methods are what lead the Avengers and Fantastic Four to attempt to stop him.
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How Will Doom Save the World?
Despite his role as a villain in the Marvel Universe, Doom still wants that universe to exist. He isn’t a fool. He doesn’t want to mindlessly destroy for the sake of vengeance. Nor does he want to conquer simply to own. What Doom wants is to get better. He wants to improve himself to strike down the evil he sees in the world. The unfortunate consequence of that motivation is that his definition of evil might include people like Reed Richards or the Avengers. But fortunately, the fact that Doctor Doom views the world like this will occasionally put him on the side of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
For example, in Secret Wars, an extremely powerful entitycalled The Beyonderteleported all of Earth’s heroes and villains to another world and forced them to fight each other. The Beyonder had the powers of a god and was completely invincible due to his ability to manipulate the universe’s very existence. While Reed Richards and Professor X were planning on putting everyone in the fight to sleep to plot a way to teleport back to Earth, Doctor Doom made a machine capable of absorbing The Beyonder’s power so that he could control it. Reed Richards’ plan would have only stopped the fighting. Doom’s plan solved the whole situation and eventually became the key to defeating what was Marvel’s most powerful villain. Because of Doom’s intelligence and ability to see past the “minor” conflict in front of him, he was able to save all of Marvel’s heroes…and also their villains.
