WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Fantastic Four #33 by Dan Slott, R.B. Silva, Luca Maresca, Jesus Aburtov, VC's Joe Caramagna, as well as recent issues of Guardians of the Galaxy and Maestro: War and Pax, all on sale now.
Doctor Doom is easily one of the most intimidating villains in the Marvel Universe, so much so that his name is feared even beyond the confines of Earth. That being said, although Doom is powerful, he is not expected to always achieve his true goals. He's still a villain after all, so he's expected to lose at least some of the time.
However, the king of Latveria has suffered more humiliation lately than anyone could have expected. In many ways, it is the embarrassment of his most recent defeats that have stopped him more so than the threat of any hero.
The first example of this was in Guardians of the Galaxy #14 by Al Ewing, Juan Frigero, and VC's Cory Petit. Doom made an attempt to usurp control over the Kree/Skrull Alliance, currently being lead by Emperor Hulkling. This was merely an attempt to get his hands on Hulkling's sword, but the mystical blade would only heed the call of the emperor. Doom tried to circumvent this by swapping bodies with Hulkling, only to be redirected into the body of Rocket Raccoon. He was still Doom and was undoubtedly capable of claiming the sword and escaping, he would just be doing so in the body of a talking rodent that one of the Guardians referred to as "adorable."
In Maestro: War & Pax #5 by Peter David, Javier Pina, and VC's Travis Lanham, Doom attempted to wrest control over the remains of the Earth from Maestro. Their final battle would have been between two titans of intellect and raw power, but Doom was outmaneuvered by Maestro into an electromagnetic chamber that then tore his metal suit apart and left him severely injured. To be defeated by such a simple trick is humiliating enough, but making matters worse is the fact that Doom had contingencies but didn't think he would need them in a post-apocalyptic world.
The most recent embarrassment may have been the single most humiliating experience of Doom's life. In Fantastic Four #33, Doom was told by his bride, Victorious, that she had been intimate with the Human Torch moments before Doom proposed to her. And she admitted this right in the middle of their wedding ceremony, on the altar, in front of a crowd of international guests and foreign dignitaries. Doom handled this as well as could be expected, immediately ordering that all of the guests be killed.
For someone as prideful as Doom to have to deal with such humiliation and still maintain his dignity is impressive, but it as to be weighing on him. There's only so much a man can take and there really isn't another man like Doctor Doom. The ruining of his wedding might just be the straw that breaks the camel's back as he lashes out at a world that seems determined to undermine him in the most embarrassing ways possible.