20: The Power and the Pride! (with Charles Hatfield)

Charles Hatfield, Professor of English at California State University and the author of Hand of Fire: The Comics Art of Jack Kirby, joins Douglas Wolk to discuss Kirby’s final contribution to the Doctor Doom story, Fantastic Four #84-87. Topics include the influence on this story…

19: This Man… This Demon! (with Laura Hudson)

Comics critic, cultural commentator and screenwriter Laura Hudson joins Douglas to discuss Marvel Super Heroes #20–Doctor Doom’s first cover feature, and the first appearance of Valeria! Topics include the nature of the capsules that Diablo keeps in his costume, Doom’s problematic modes of thinking about…

18: Don’t Look Now, But It’s–Dr. Doom! (with Christine Hanefalk)

Christine Hanefalk of The Other Murdock Papers and the #savedaredevil campaign joins Douglas Wolk to discuss Doctor Doom’s battle with Daredevil in Daredevil #37-38 and Fantastic Four #73. Topics include the quasi-science of Daredevil’s radar sense, the question of whether it’s a good idea for…

17: Behold the Savage Sky! (with James Romberger)

James Romberger – artist (Post York, 7 Miles a Second, The Late Child and Other Animals), teacher, and author of “Steranko: The Self-Created Man” – joins Douglas Wolk to discuss Jim Steranko’s Nick Fury serial in Strange Tales #160-167… in which Doctor Doom only appears…

16: The Peril and the Power! (with Rhett Thomas)

Comics historian Rhett Thomas joins Douglas Wolk to talk about Fantastic Four #57-60, Silver Surfer: Loftier than Mortals #1-2 and “The Silver Burper” from Not Brand Echh #1! Topics include the unwieldiness of the device with which Doctor Doom steals the Silver Surfer’s power, the…

15: Enter… Dr. Doom! (with Dugan Trodglen)

Dugan Trodglen–musician, comics retailer, journalist, and technically a character within the Marvel Universe–joins Douglas Wolk to discuss Avengers #25 (and the final panel of #24), in which we learn that Doctor Doom has a transparent dome that can cover the entirety of Latveria, and that…

14: Bedlam at the Baxter Building! (with Chelsea Gaia)

Chelsea Gaia–co-host of “Experience: A Career Stories Podcast,” and a former wedding photographer–joins Douglas Wolk to discuss Fantastic Four Annual #3, Marvel Heroes & Legends ’96, and Fantastic Four 40th Wedding Anniversary Special. Topics include Roz Kirby’s possible influence on Susan Storm’s wedding outfit, Stan…

13: Crisis on Campus! (with Robb Milne)

Robb Milne of the excellent “Marvel by the Month” podcast joins Douglas Wolk to discuss two stories that take place shortly after Fantastic Four #40 but were published much later: Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness’s backup story from 2006’s Stan Lee Meets Doctor Doom #1,…

12: The Battle of the Baxter Building (with Jeet Heer)

Jeet Heer–national affairs correspondent for “The Nation,” master of intellectually omnivorous Twitter threads, and Jack Kirby scholar–joins Douglas to discuss Fantastic Four #39 and 40. Topics include Doctor Doom as Hobbes’ Leviathan, Kirby’s personal background and how it informed Fantastic Four‘s characters, the proto-Doom in…

11: Picture Perfect (with Kian Ross)

Kian Ross of the 616 Society joins Douglas Wolk to discuss 2005’s Spider-Man/Human Torch #1. Topics include the evolving relationship between Peter Parker and Johnny Storm, which mutant is best prepared to do the bookkeeping for X-Corp, Doom’s surprising credulousness when it comes to Spider-Man…