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Doctor Doom may spend his days fighting the Avengers or Fantastic Four, but the Marvel villain’s rivalry with Mephisto tops them all.
Doctor Doom — introduced in Fantastic Four #4 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby — is one of the most enduring villains in the Marvel Universe. He’s been a fan-favorite for decades, and has come up against almost every hero in the universe. But he’s also faced off with some incredibly powerful other forces of evil.
Doctor Doom’s greatest rival might be Mister Fantastic, but one of his most hated foes has always actually been Mephisto, whose actions have targeted Doom just as much as any hero. Doom has fostered a hatred for Mephisto that can be traced back to his origins both as a young boy AND as one of Marvel’s most foundational villains and sets him apart as one of Mephisto’s most dangerous foes.
Victor Von Doom was the child of Werner Von Doom and his wife, Cynthia. Part of a local Romani group known as the Zefiro in Latveria, Cynthia secretly practiced sorcery. To contend with the warriors of the hateful king, Cynthia made a bargain with the demonic Mephisto for power. Although it increased her mystical might, it cost the lives of children from the nearby village. She was overwhelmed by grief, giving the soldiers the opening to fatally wound her. Due to her deal with the devilish Mephisto, Cynthia was trapped in his hellish realm upon her demise. But despite making Werner promise to keep their son away from the allure of magic, Victor followed in her footsteps and became a learned sorcerer in his own right.
Upon reaching young adulthood, Victor — who’d survived the death of his father and had also developed a keen mind for science as well — determined the location of his mother’s soul and began construction of a device that could take him to that realm. This was the machine that Reed Richards attempted to assist Victor on only to earn his ire — setting up the feud that has gone to define the two men for decades. Although that machine briefly worked and allowed Doom to briefly confront Mephisto, the demonic force openly taunted Victor before sending him back to Earth. The machine then malfunctioned and scarred Victor, setting him on the path to become Doctor Doom.
In what became a yearly tradition, Doom would use his expertise to venture back into Mephisto’s realm and confront the villain again — each time trying and failing to rescue his mother from that prison. However, as part of his own deal with Mephisto for that right, each failed attempt to defeat the devilish figure would endear more spite and hatred in the citizens of Latveria for their king. Doom finally got the chance to rescue his mother once and for all in Doctor Strange and Doctor Doom: Triumph and Torment by Roger Stern and Mike Mignola. After winning a personal favor from Doctor Strange due to a contest held by mystical powerhouses of the universe, Doom recruited Strange’s assistance in the battle.
During the ensuing fight against Mephisto, Doom performed a feint to trick the devilish figure into believing he’d betrayed and condemned Strange to suffer in his mother’s stead. Cynthia’s soul was disgusted with her son for this apparent act — and in turn became too pure of heart to remain trapped in the hellish realm, allowing her to ascend to peace albeit at the cost of any love she felt for her son. It was a major step for Doom to make, and has helped cement Mephisto as one of Doom’s ultimate foes. Both villains are considered to be among the top tier of threats in the Marvel Universe, each capable of wiping out entire worlds if so inclined. If they do make their Marvel Cinematic Universe debuts soon, then it would be interesting to see if this antagonism continued and helped confirm just how powerful Doom really is.
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