Spider-Man’s Most Memorable Encounters with Doctor Doom

While Spider-Man may be a friendly neighborhood super hero, he frequently finds himself tangled up with the most powerful super villains across the Marvel Universe, including Doctor Doom.

Though Spider-Man may seem outmatched against Doom, he always rises against impossible odds to save the day, withstanding Doom’s most advanced weapons and magical enchantments. And whenever Spider-Man and Doctor Doom cross paths, it’s sure to be an especially momentous occasion for the fast-talking webslinger—he has to ensure his every step against the iron-masked villain isn’t his last.

Here are all the major encounters between Spider-Man and Doctor Doom, from their most memorable battles to the times they joined forces against common enemies in the unlikeliest of team-ups.

SPIDER-MAN AND DOCTOR DOOM’S FIRST MEETING

The first time Spider-Man met Doctor Doom, the super villain sought the wallcrawler out not as an enemy, but rather as an ally, courtesy of J. Jonah Jameson.

After reading a Daily Bugle hit piece on the friendly neighborhood hero, Doom felt Spider-Man could be the perfect ally to help him finally defeat the Fantastic Four. Spider-Man refused Doom’s offer in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) #5, leading to brief scuffle between them.

Outraged that Spider-Man would dare decline his generous offer of an alliance, Doom kidnapped Flash Thompson, mistaking him for the masked hero. Spider-Man swooped in to rescue his high school frenemy, holding his own against the villain until the Fantastic Four arrived on the scene. Outnumbered, Doctor Doom fled and vowed revenge against Spider-Man the next time they crossed paths.

SPIDER-MAN RECOVERS DOOM’S FAMILY HEIRLOOM

Spider-Man once found himself caught in between Doctor Doom and his latest target, the Black Fox, in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1963) #350. After the master thief stole the Dragon’s Egg, a priceless gem that once belonged to Doom’s late mother, he incurred the wrath of the Latverian ruler.

Spidey tried to intervene, but Doom completely outmatched him. The ensuing brawl allowed the Black Fox to escape with the rare emerald. Doom gave Spider-Man an ultimatum: return the Dragon’s Egg to him within 24 hours or suffer the consequences.

Racing against the clock, Spider-Man recovered the Egg and delivered it to Doctor Doom. The wallcrawler used this leverage to convince the vengeful dictator to spare the Black Fox’s life.

SPIDER-MAN INFILTRATES LATVERIA 

Spider-Man took a dangerous field trip to Latveria in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1999) #15 and reunited with Doctor Doom on the tyrant’s home turf. When Mary Jane Watson went missing, Spider-Man believed her to be hidden away in Latveria and infiltrated Doom’s kingdom.

During this excursion, Spider-Man went as far as breaking into Castle Doom itself. Spider-Man’s presence did not go unnoticed, with Doom swearing vengeance on the hero for trespassing in his domain and eluding his military.

Complicating matters, Spider-Man found Latveria gripped in its own internal war, with Doom ruthlessly doing whatever he could to maintain power. Spider-Man’s Latverian getaway ended with him confronting someone he believed to be Doom, only to find himself faced with an advanced Doombot. 
 
With the Latverian military still on his heels and MJ nowhere to be found, Spidey barely escaped from the European nation, leaving Castle Doom as a trespasser that lived to tell the tale.

SPIDER-MAN SAVES DOOM’S LIFE

While Doom has long proven himself to be an enemy of Spider-Man, the hero stepped in to save the super villain’s life when a mob attacked him during his visit to New York. Both Spider-Man and Captain America teamed up to stop this explosive assassination attempt on Doom at a New York airport in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (1999) #50. As Captain America rescued bystanders caught in the crossfire, Spider-Man personally ensured Doom’s safety.

Doom recognized Spider-Man’s efforts and told the wallcrawler he owed him a favor, but Spider-Man angrily dismissed the offer. Spider-Man reminded Doom that his very presence in a civilian airport put innocents around him in danger. The incident underscored that Spider-Man will do whatever it takes to save those in harm, even someone as nefarious as Doctor Doom.

DOCTOR DOOM’S TIME-BENDING REVENGE

After a failed assassination attempt destroyed an imposter Doombot during a Latverian diplomatic presentation in New York City, the real Doctor Doom unleashed his full wrath in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (2018) #34.

Spider-Man’s old foe the Chameleon orchestrated the attack, working with the Symkarian Countess Karkov in a twisted bid to kickstart a war between Latveria and Symkaria.

As Doom menaced New York with his demands for justice, Spider-Man surveilled several possible timelines on how to deescalate the situation with the help of his time-traveling friend, Clairvoyant.

In all the scenarios Spider-Man saw, no matter how valiantly he tried to defeat Doom and his army of Doombots, he would be unsuccessful in saving New York. Instead, Spider-Man allowed Doom to knock him around before divulging the truth of what occurred to spare himself and the city Doom’s fiery vengeance.  
 
Though Doom petulantly razed parts of New York, he deliberately avoided harming civilians in what ended up as the best possible outcome to his showdown with Spidey. How thoughtful. 

DOCTOR DOOM AND SPIDER-MAN’S MAGICAL MISSION

Doctor Doom long envied the role of Sorcerer Supreme and finally tricked Doctor Strange into giving him the mantle in BLOOD HUNT (2024). Burdened with new magical responsibilities to keep reality safe, Doom deemed some of these duties to be below his pay-grade.

Now, AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (2022) #61 by Joe Kelly and Ed McGuinness kicks off “The 8 Deaths of Spider-Man” as Doom offloads some of his duties to Peter Parker.  
 
Granting Spider-Man a new arcane costume equipped with magical abilities, the friendly neighborhood hero must defeat the Scions of Cyttorak in a desperate bid to protect the Earth from total subjugation.

Will Spider-Man make it out of Doctor Doom’s quest alive? Probably not, but you can find out for yourself in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #61, available now!

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