Issue 127 - DOCTOR DOOM - Capes on the Couch

Intro
Background (1:55)

Doctor Doom created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby in Fantastic Four #5 (July 1962)
Victor Von Doom was born to Romani parents – his mother was killed by Mephisto when he was young, and he grew up learning about mysticism and technology in an effort to bring her back
He went to Empire State University, where he encountered Reed Richards – while building a machine to communicate with the dead (specifically his mother), Reed corrected his math, but Victor’s ego refused to let him make the necessary corrections, and the machine exploded, scarring him permanently – he fled and created a suit of armor, including a mask – he put it on his face before it had sufficiently cooled, which burned him further and fused it to his face
He spent the next several years seeking vengeance on the FF in various ways, but always defeated by Reed’s genius and/or the combined effort of the team
Began battling other Marvel heroes, and during the original Secret Wars event managed to obtain the power of the Beyonder, although he wasn’t able to maintain it
Does assist the FF when Sue is pregnant with her second child – Johnny goes to him for help, knowing he won’t pass up the chance to one-up Reed – his help succeeds, and all he asks is that the child be named Valeria, after a former love of his
Occasionally works alongside Namor, including as part of the Cabal
After another battle with Reed, begins losing mental capacity – Valeria helps restore his mind in exchange for his assistance, and he joins the Future Foundation to help defeat the Council of Reeds
During the second Secret Wars event, he usurps the power of the Beyonder again and becomes God Emperor Doom – his ability, coupled with that of the Molecule Man, creates a brand new universe, where the members of the Fantastic Four are serving him in various capacities (Sue is his wife, Johnny is the sun, Ben is the wall surrounding the capital) – Reed and a collection of surviving heroes defeat Doom, and using the restorative power of the Beyonder, heal Doom’s face
Takes over as the new Iron Man after Tony’s defeat in Civil War II, and serves heroically for a time until he’s attacked by the Hood, where he gets burned yet again

Issues
- Matt’s description: “The two traits that have defined his character for 60 years. The narcissistic personality disorder to end all narcissistic personality disorders, and the mother fixation to end all mother fixations. Both just amped up to eleven and beyond. But, he certainly makes it work, doesn’t he? You honestly can’t tell me if you dropped the comic book version of Doom into the real world, not only would he not be out of place among the pack of sideshow clowns who have been running the world since the fall of communism, but he’d be among the most revered leaders in the world for his effectiveness in providing for his citizens. And I wonder if it’s the rare instance of an NPD being used for good. Latervians canonically have a first world standard of living. Universal education, free healthcare, little to no pollution, no crime to speak of, and an economy that’s as thriving as a country subject to constant embargoes from the United States can be. Moreover, every single one of his citizen matters to him, the same as if they were extensions of himself, which — let’s face it — is probably how he views them. If you’re a farmer with a crop blight problem, Doom will personally come to your farm, figure out what’s causing it, eradicate it, and supply you with a new proprietary super-effective soil nutrient solution he devised in the shower that morning. If you leave the country, there’s literally nowhere you can’t go to and come back from safely. The Latverian passport is just a card that says “Admit this person into your country or suffer the wrath of DOOM.” It’s never once been questioned. If you harm even a single hair on a Laterivan citizen’s head, Doom will personally track you across the entire universe, through time, or across dimensions and force you to make restitution. Now, obviously, he does this because it’s an affront to his unquenchable ego for everything in his country to not be the greatest in all of creation. But — and this might be delving into the PoliSci angle a bit — in 2021, would anyone really care why he did it? His country is fed, clothed, housed, educated, productive, and healthy. Yes, he wants to conquer the world (and really, everything beyond it, but we’ll start with the world), but it’s because he genuinely believes that humanity is being deprived of the benefits they would have under his magnanimous rule, and I’m sure it legitimately breaks his heart.As a psychologist, how would you even start getting through to him? What kind of circumstances would you need? He’s got to be one of the toughest nuts to crack in any comic book universe.
- Ego/Vanity (10:41)
- Mama’s boy writ large (18:33)
- Rivalry with Reed Richards (26:16)
Break (37:00)
- Plugs for BetterHelp, Not If I Reboot You First, and Phillip Kennedy Johnson
Treatment (39:02)
- In-universe – Set up a mental health service in Latveria to purposely fail so Doom has to get his hands dirty and realize what’s important
- Out of universe – Unlikely therapy would happen voluntarily, but if it did, requiring “terraforming of the soul”
Skit (43:50)
- Hello Dr. Doom, I’m Dr. Issues. – GOOD AFTERNOON FELLOW DOCTOR. DO YOU COMPARE YOUR DEGREE WITH THE MIGHT OF DOOM?
- What? No! Of course not! – A WISE MOVE. NONE CAN MATCH THE WISDOM AND BRILLIANCE OF DOOM. NOT EVEN RICHARDS, ALTHOUGH HE WOULD NEVER ADMIT IT.
- I think that’s record time for someone to bring up a personal nemesis without prompting- NEMESIS? NO. RICHARDS IS NOT WORTHY OF SUCH A TITLE, NOR THE BRAINPOWER IT WOULD REQUIRE TO DEEM HIM SO. I MERELY MENTION HIM TO STAVE OFF ANY SUCH IDEAS YOU MIGHT HAVE OF COMPARING US. DOOM’S NEMESES ARE IGNORANCE AND MYOPIA.
- And you do this by mentioning yourself in the third person, barely registering someone that has…led to some setbacks, and registering a speech pattern that I can only describe as “eleven” – DOOM DOES NOT SUFFER SETBACKS. DOOM WINS OR LEARNS.
- *under breath* That would explain the oodles of wisdom -WHAT WAS THAT?
- Nothing. I wanted to learn from your wisdom, then. How have encounters with someone like Richards educated you from an emotional intelligence standpoint? – DOOM’S EMOTIONS PLAY LITTLE ROLE IN THE DECISIONS THAT NEED TO BE MADE. LATVERIANS REQUIRE A RULER TO FOCUS ON THEIR WELL-BEING, NOT IMMATURE CONTESTS. WHICH DOOM WOULD WIN ANYWAY.
- In that case, heavy is the head that wears the crown…er, mask. How do you manage the stress of being the sole decision maker for a whole country? – THERE IS NO STRESS. MY CITIZENS DESERVE THE BEST. THAT IS WHAT THEY SHALL HAVE. DOOM CARES NOT FOR WHAT OTHER NATIONS PROVIDE FOR THEIR PEOPLE.
- But do you always know what’s best? What if -YES.
- I didn’t even get to my -QUESTION DOOM AT YOUR OWN PERIL
- *deep breaths* Ok, I shall learn from this, as you say. *tries feebly to match DOOM’s bravado* THERE IS NO REPLACEMENT FOR IGNORANCE OF OTHER’S EMOTIONS, NO MATTER HOW WELL INTENTIONED YOU ARE. THE CITIZENS OF YOUR COUNTRY WILL ALWAYS KNOW THAT YOU WANT WHAT IS BEST FOR THEM. WHEN WILL YOU KNOW BEFORE THEIR REVOLUTION THAT THEY HAVE CHANGED, AS ALL HUMANS DO? – DOOM’S STANDARDS EVOLVE WITH TIME. DO NOT CONFUSE DISREGARD FOR POLITICAL NICETIES WITH LACK OF CONCERN FOR THE CITIZENRY. EVERY LATVERIAN IS IMPORTANT TO DOOM. THE OPINIONS OF THE REST OF THE WORLD ARE IRRELEVANT, HOWEVER.
- So people aren’t important. Got it. – UNTIL HUMANITY RECOGNIZES THEIR BEST HOPE OF SURVIVAL AND ADVANCEMENT IS THROUGH DOOM, THE FOCUS SHALL BE ON THE BEST LIFE FOR LATVERIANS. DOOM CANNOT FORCE MANKIND TO SEE THIS, ONLY PROVIDE A LIVING EXAMPLE FOR THEM TO STRIVE AND ULTIMATELY FAIL TO ACHIEVE.
- Cool. The rest of humanity survives it’s own way and sees this nice, shiny, relatively small fancy object that it can’t have, and whistles on by. History’s most elaborate footnote. If only everyone else had listened, then the ultimate martyr would have had a brighter day in the sun. – DOOM HAS FORESEEN ALL THE TIMELINES. THE ONLY ONE IN WHICH HUMANITY SURVIVES AND THRIVES IS THAT WHICH DOOM CONTROLS. THE WORLD IGNORES THIS AT ITS OWN PERIL.
- The world ignores a lot of things, all of the time. Each person has their own idea of what is most important to them at each moment. What you are asking for is the world to recognize you as the most important thing at some moment. You tell me…based on one in a…whatever number of scenarios, with a population of billions, each with their own free will, most with no knowledge of the things you speak, and the odds of winning a genetic lottery to be born in the country you rule…for someone with the largest aspirations known on the planet, you really sell yourself short in the marketing department! – DOOM DOES NOT SELL ANYTHING SHORT. DOOM IS NO MERE CARNIVAL BARKER. THERE IS NO OVERSTATEMENT OR EXAGGERATION INVOLVED. DOOM MERELY SPEAKS FACTS. THE WORLD IS IN GRAVE DANGER UNLESS FEALTY IS SWORN. YOU SPEAK OF DOOM’S DISREGARD FOR HUMANITY AND FREE WILL. IT IS BORNE OF AN OVERWHELMING LOVE FOR HUMANITY ABOVE ALL ELSE THAT DRIVES DOOM. YOUR CONTINUED BLINDNESS TOWARDS THIS MAKES DOOM QUESTION YOUR CREDENTIALS. YOU ARE EVEN LESS DESERVING OF YOUR DOCTORATE THAN RICHARDS.
- I’m not stupid enough to say that you are wrong in your convictions. I’m providing the perspective of someone who hears these sorts of comments from multiple people with regards to their importance in the world. I know you are wise enough to look at someone else’s perspective, so take mine: if multiple people claim they are number one at the same thing, and with the same conviction, then how do I discern what is fact versus narcissistic conjecture? I legitimately want your guidance on this. – DOOM IS NUMBER ONE BECAUSE DOOM WILLS IT TO BE SO. IN ADDITION, LATVERIA’S STANDARD OF LIVING IS PROOF OF DOOM’S MAGNANIMOUS NATURE. IF ALL MANKIND ENJOYED THE SAME BENEFITS, THERE IS NO END TO WHAT COULD BE ACHIEVED. SO IT IS NOT MERE CONJECTURE OR BOASTING. IT IS FACTUAL. DOOM’S LEADERSHIP EXCEEDS ALL OTHERS.
- Magnanimous? By that logic you would be willing to give me some credit for taking the time as an outsider to try and learn of your motivations, your culture, your experience -SO IT SHALL BE
- *text notification sound* What’s this? *surprised* Why would I get a notification from my bank? I don’t even have it linked! WHAT DID YOU DO? -YOU DARE QUESTION DOOM’S SINCERITY IN HIS LOVE OF MANKIND? IF YOU TRULY ARE AN AMBASSADOR TO LATVERIA, EVEN IF DOOM DOES NOT REQUIRE SUCH NEED OF A DOCTOR, I DO NOT WASTE RESOURCES ON SUCH AN ENCOUNTER.
- Are you…are you overpaying to make it seem like this session was more important than it appears even though you disagree with me? -THIS IS THE EXPERIENCE OF ALL WHO SERVE THE HEALTH OF LATVERIA.
- So you’re saying this is my money, at this point, to do with as I please? -DO NOT CHALLENGE THE BENEVOLENCE OF DOOM
- Alrighty…just let me get my transfer going…there. I’m glad you are such a fantastic soul. -DOOM IS QUITE AWARE OF YOUR PUNS. WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?
- I just donated the excess money, net of my standard fee of course, to the Future Foundation. -THIS INSULT WILL NOT STAND!
- What insult? You’ve collaborated before with the foundation to save existence itself, and this is my choice, not yours. I think they may be perplexed by the “FOR THE GOOD OF LATVERIA” comment. -IF THERE IS A MEETING OF THE MINDS WITH RICHARDS BECAUSE OF THIS, THEN I WILL HOLD YOU PERSONALLY RESPONSIBLE.
- And I will be obligated, based on your oft-mentioned wisdom, to acknowledge my role as I can’t lie. Would you rather me be an anonymous cog, or a part of your team to make ongoing improvements? -DOOM HAS NO NEED OF A TEAM…BUT A SUBSERVIENT ADVISOR MAY PROVE OF USE FROM TIME TO TIME. CONSIDER IT DONE, NON-CITIZEN MINION OF MENTAL HEALTH.
- Minion? Well, better than prisoner or casualty, I guess. – YOUR GRATITUDE IS APPRECIATED. DOOM HAS SPOKEN.
Ending (51:36)
- Recommended reading: old Fantastic Four books, original Secret Wars
- Review read: A Unique Concept with a Super Delivery! A unique take on your favorite superheroes, diving into a side of them you might not often think of right away.. should they be in therapy? Find out by listening to Capes on The Couch! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️- The Good Game Guys
- Next episodes: Jocasta, Amanda Waller, 5 from Umbrella Academy
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