Is Marvel trying to get us to sympathize with Doctor Doom before we officially meet Victor (Robert Downey Jr.) in the MCU when Avengers: Doomsdayhits theaters? A tragic love story is certainly one way to do it. We’ve had our share of complicated villains, but very few of them have had actual romantic interests. This may have nothing to do with the elusive Latverian witches, but then again… maybe it does. Months before Doom hits the public, Marvel is showing us the man behind the mask and the one who got away. Two idioms for the price of one!
Doomquest, the 2026 Marvel Comics miniseries arc written by Ryan Noth and illustrated by Francesco Mobili, has sent the infamous character on various isolated time-traveling adventures. After the villain visited the RMS Titanic and the American Revolution in issues two and three, Victor von Doom’s latest adventure is much closer to home.
“This is a love story,” Doom’s omniscient narration begins, a la the iconic second season of Fleabag. Much like the Phoebe Waller-Bridge series, it does not have a happy ending. The fourth issue of lets Doctor Doom see what would have happened if he’d stayed with his childhood sweetheart in Latveria and grown old with her together instead of going to America and meeting the future Fantastic Four.
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Inhabiting the body of his childhood self (the time travel in this arc is more akin to Quantum Leap than Back to the Future), Doom is able to correct some of his past mistakes. It is Valeria von Frazen, the woman he fell in love with as a young man, who encourages him. She’s his intellectual equal and can immediately tell that she’s speaking to a future version of him when he arrives. They have an entire life together–albeit, a fairly run-of-the-mill suburban life with a dog and two children. One could imagine that two people of such great intellect and power would eventually get bored and desire more. But only Doom does, and leaves Valeria on her deathbed for the next adventure. Will he be changed by having spent one human existence with the love of his life? Readers will have to wait and see.
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Collider Exclusive · Marvel Personality Quiz Which MCU Hero Are You? Spider-Man · Daredevil · Iron Man · Punisher · Thor · Cap
Six heroes. One destiny. Answer 10 questions to discover which Marvel Cinematic Universe hero shares your personality, values, and fighting spirit. Will you swing, fly, or thunder your way to glory?
🕷️Spider-Man
😈Daredevil
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🤖Iron Man
💀Punisher
⚡Thor
🛡️Cap
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01
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What drives you to do what’s right? Choose the answer that feels most like you.
02
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It’s 2 AM. Where are you? Your answer says more about you than you’d think.
03
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How do you handle a villain who keeps escaping justice? Every hero has a method. What’s yours?
04
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How do you feel about keeping a secret identity? The mask — or the lack of one — says everything.
05
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You’ve lost someone important because of your heroism. How do you carry that? Every hero pays a price. The question is how they pay it.
06
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What’s your role when working with a team? Who you are under pressure is who you actually are.
07
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Where do you draw the line between justice and revenge? The answer defines what kind of hero you really are.
08
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When you’re not saving the world, what does life look like? The person behind the mask is always the more interesting story.
09
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What keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you’re honest about what you’re actually afraid of.
10
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The battle is lost. You’re outnumbered, outgunned, and exhausted. What do you do? This is your tiebreaker — choose carefully.
Your Hero Has Been Identified Your MCU Hero Is…
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Based on your answers, the Marvel hero who matches your spirit, values, and instincts has been revealed.
Queens, New York
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🕷️ Spider-Man
You carry the weight of the world on shoulders that are younger than they should have to be — funny, loyal, and endlessly self-sacrificing.
You do the right thing not because it’s easy, but because no one else will.
You understand that responsibility isn’t a burden you choose — it’s one that finds you.
Whether it’s a neighbourhood mugging or a multiverse crisis, you show up.
Peter Parker’s lesson — that great power demands great responsibility — isn’t a slogan to you. It’s the code you live by, even when it costs you everything.
Hell’s Kitchen, New York
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😈 Daredevil
You fight in the shadows between law and chaos, guided by a fierce moral compass that refuses to let the guilty walk free.
You use every tool available — your mind, your body, your faith — to protect those the system overlooks.
You’ve looked into the darkness and chosen not to become it, though the line has never been easy.
Matt Murdock’s duality — champion in the courtroom, devil in the alley — mirrors your own.
Relentless, conflicted, and unwilling to stop. That is exactly you.
Stark Industries, Malibu
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🤖 Iron Man
Brilliant, driven, and occasionally insufferable — but always the person who solves the unsolvable problem.
You lead with your mind and back it up with resources, innovation, and a stubbornness that borders on heroic.
You started out looking out for yourself, but somewhere along the way the world became your responsibility.
Tony Stark’s arc — from ego to sacrifice — is your arc too.
You build, you plan, and when the moment comes, you’re willing to give everything. Because in the end, you’re Iron Man.
New York City
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💀 The Punisher
You’ve been through fire that would break most people — and it did change you, completely. What’s left is unyielding, relentless, and operating by a code forged in grief.
You don’t ask for forgiveness, and you don’t expect gratitude.
You see a corrupt, broken world and you’ve decided to do something about it, consequences be damned.
Frank Castle’s war is born from love twisted by loss — and so is yours.
Uncompromising and unflinching — the world may not agree with your methods, but your conviction is absolute.
Asgard · Protector of the Nine Realms
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⚡ Thor
Powerful, proud, and on a lifelong journey to become worthy of the legend you carry.
You lead with strength but have learned — sometimes painfully — that true greatness comes from humility and growth.
You’re larger than life, yet more vulnerable than you let on.
Thor’s story is one of transformation: from arrogant prince to worthy king, from isolated warrior to beloved protector.
You bring the storm when it’s needed — and the warmth when it matters just as much.
Brooklyn, New York · The Avengers
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🛡️ Captain America
You believe in something bigger than yourself — and you fight for it even when the world has moved on and nobody else will.
You don’t bully the small guy, and you never stop when it gets hard.
Steve Rogers didn’t become a hero when he got the serum — he was always one. So were you.
Your strength isn’t in your fists; it’s in your refusal to compromise what’s right, no matter the cost.
In a world full of people taking the easy road, you’re the one who picks up the shield and stands up — every single time.
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Doom’s One True Love Shares a Name With a ‘Fantastic Four’ Character
Marvel Comics
In the Doomquest comic, the fact that Doctor Doom named Sue Storm and Reed Richard’s daughter after Valeria is not the elephant in the room. He brings this up almost immediately. But when it comes to corporate synergy, their connection is worth thinking about for a moment. The MCU has only just introduced The Fantastic Four to the mix, officially. In The Fantastic Four: First Steps, Reed and Sue only have one child. At the end of the movie, Doom shows great interest in Franklin Richards. That’s all well and good, so to speak, but canonically Valeria Richards is older than Franklin. So where is she? Sure, most Marvel Comics readers know she exists, but why are the powers that be reminding casual readers of her namesake’s existence now? Something is (potentially) up. Are we going to see the original Valeria in the MCU first? Is she one of the witches flanking him, instead of a gaggle of familiar faces? Food for thought!
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It’s also probably not a coincidence that, in Doomquest, the next body that Doom quantum leaps into is his former love interest and Valeria Richard’s mother herself: Sue Storm. Movies aside, this miniseries is only getting started, and issue #5 is going to be a doozy! Who knows, maybe Valeria von Frazen will return before the story is over. It’d be nice to see his equal actually, like, be his equal.
Doomquest #4 is available everywhere you read comic books now. Sign up for a free trial of Audible to explore more books and comics.
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