History Characters / MarvelComicsOttoOctavius

* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: His whole attitude towards Peter and his legacy screams of this: He constantly wants to prove he's better than Peter in every aspect of his life, constantly calling himself the "''Superior''" Spider-Man. It's pretty clear he wants to confess himself he's better than the hero who constantly beat him. In the end, he recognizes [[spoiler:that Peter's humbleness and self-lessness is what really makes him the Superior Spider-Man, giving him his body back to defeat Norman Osborn]].

* WouldntHurtAChild: Little kids are off limits, teenagers on the other hand are fair game. Otto tries to stab Spider-Girl [[spoiler:when she tries to stop him from destroying the Web of Life.]]

* AmbiguouslyEvil: In almost all of his appearances in other comics especially in Alpha: Big Time and Avenging Spider-man, where he is using Alpha to upgrade himself and seems to be rebuilding the Sinister Six respectively. Not that this is surprising given that he's a somewhat reformed villain.

** To this day, he has a genuine soft spot for Peter's Aunt May. During the Literature/SinisterSixTrilogy, when she was believed dead, he interrupted a villainous speech at the Daily Bugle to offer his sincere condolences to Peter about her passing.

* InsistentTerminology: ''Superior''. He puts that at the head of everything he does now. It started when he became the''Superior Spider-Man'''. But then he captured and brainwashed his Sinister Six comrades and called his team ‘’ The Superior Six''. When taking on the Venom Symbiote from Flash Thompson he became ''Superior Venom''. After dying and taking a clone body he uses the moniker ''Superior Octopus'' before going by the ''Superior Spider-Man'' again. Even after fully becoming Doctor Octopus again, body and all, he recruits three alternate versions of himself to become the ''Superior Four''. He also will just say the word over and over again. He loves saying it.

* {{Pride}}: Octavius' most prominent recurring failure is his arrogance; even when he's trying to be a good guy, he's still hugely ego-driven. For example, in ''Superior Octopus #1'', he rescues a bus full of people from being robbed by the Night Shift, boasting about how they cannot hope to compete with the advantages his intelligence gives them even as he dishes out a CurbStompBattle. When he returns to his lair, he is shown dismissing the city's original protectors, such as ComicBook/DareDevil and the original ComicBook/SpiderWoman, as "weaklings" incapable of doing the job, and arrogantly proclaiming that even the local high-level supervillains like [[GravityMaster Graviton]] and [[EvilSorcerer Count Nefaria]], despite being "possessed of near-godlike power" (in his words), are no threat to him.

** It becomes even more subverted when a time-displaced Otto-as-Peter winds up in the Spider-Verse crossover. After disputing on who should lead the Spider-Army, Otto and Peter get into a fight with Peter ''[[CurbStompBattle effortlessly]]'' winning. What makes this even better? Peter ends the fight by puts outsmarting Otto, realizing that his ego never made him imagine a scenario where Peter gets his body back. When Peter realizes this, he uses it to get Otto's guard down and knock him out. Peter ''is'' the Superior Spider-Man.

A highly intelligent MadScientist, Doctor Octopus is one of the greatest foes Franchise/SpiderMan has ever faced.[[note]]He's almost universally considered Spidey's all-time #2 foe after [[Characters/MarvelComicsNormanOsborn the Green Goblin]].[[/note]] He is typically portrayed as a stocky, myopic man who utilizes four powerful, mechanical appendages and is obsessed with proving his own genius and destroying Spider-Man (and not necessarily in that order). The character has appeared in numerous ''Spider-Man'' cartoons and video games and is portrayed by Creator/AlfredMolina in the 2004 film ''Film/SpiderMan2'' as the film's main antagonist; Molina would later return to the role in 2021's ''Film/SpiderManNoWayHome'' as part of the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse. An AlternateUniverse version of the character appears in ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManIntoTheSpiderVerse'', but to say anything else would be a spoiler. In 2009, Doctor Octopus was ranked as IGN's 28th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.

The accident also seemed to have damaged his brain and the scientist turned to a life of crime. His very first criminal act was taking the hospital hostage and proclaiming himself Doctor Octopus, the derogatory nickname that his co-workers had originally given him. In their first encounter, Octopus defeated Spider-Man by tossing him out of a window. Following this defeat Spider-Man considered giving up his heroic career, but was inspired to continue by the Human Torch and ultimately defeated Doctor Octopus. Since then the Good (or Bad) Doctor has gone on to become one of the most identifiable members of Spider-Man's rogues gallery. He was actually Spider-Man's first recurring ArchEnemy before [[ComicBook/NormanOsborn the Green Goblin]] and his mystery overshadowed him. Goblin's death did nothing to raise Dr. Octopus' profile, since other contenders for the Goblin and ''ComicBook/{{Venom}}'' overshadowed him. He formed the first [[VillainTeamUp Sinister Six]] to fight Spider-Man. He was the villain for one of Spidey's most iconic early arcs as "the Master Planner". He was also indirectly responsible for the death of Gwen Stacy's father George, who died when debris from a building where he and Spider-Man were fighting fell below, and Captain Stacy sacrificed his life to save a child from becoming collateral damage.

As of ''ComicBook/AllNewAllDifferentMarvel'', it is revealed that a copy of Dr. Octopus' mind now resides within the Living Brain, stalkingly watching over Anna Maria. After teaming up with the Jackal during ''The Clone Conspiracy'' and temporarily inhabiting a clone version of his old body, he eventually betrayed the Jackal for insulting his love interest. Afterwards, he hijacked a new, powerful experimental clone body. He was then recruited by Armin Zola and ComicBook/{{HYDRA}} to aid in destroying Parker Industries, reinventing himself as the "Superior Octopus". After the downfall of the Hydra Empire and the restoration of the true ComicBook/CaptainAmerica, and a truce with Peter after ''ComicBook/GoDownSwinging'' and ''ComicBook/SpiderGeddon'', Ock once again decides to try and abandon his supervillain ways, seeking to set himself up as the heroic protector of San Francisco in ''Superior Octopus #1'' and the second volume of Superior Spider-Man. Unfortunately it wouldn't last, as Ock made a deal with Mephisto to defeat Spider-Norman. The deal would restore Ock to his old body but with it back to full health. The price being the empathy gained from sharing Peter's memories.

** During ''Mighty Avengers'', he yells at "Spider Hero" ([[RunningGag no hypen]]) for stealing his identity, and demands he remove his costume immediately. This'd be the same guy running around in someone else's body.

** It becomes even more subverted when a time-displaced Otto-as-Peter wounds up in the Spider-Verse crossover. After disputing on who should lead the Spider-Army, Otto and Peter get into a fight with Peter ''[[CurbStompBattle effortlessly]]'' winning. What makes this even better? Peter ends the fight by puts outsmarting Otto, realizing that his ego never made him imagine a scenario where Peter gets his body back. When Peter realizes this, he uses it to get Otto's guard down and knock him out. Peter ''is'' the Superior Spider-Man.

* HeroicSacrifice: When Norman Osborn of Earth-44145 is holding a boy hostage, Otto makes a deal with Mephisto to transform him back into Doctor Octopus, losing his memories as Peter Parker, his young and powerful body, and the people who love and care for him. All so he could regain the "ruthlessness" needed to save the boy.

* HijackingCthulhu: He seizes control of the Venom symbiote and forces it to remain bonded to him when it tries to leave him for Flash. The symbiote quickly undermines his control and turns the tables on him fairly quickly, though.

* ItsNotYouItsMyEnemies: Why he splits up with Mary Jane. He also does this [[PetTheDog out of respect for Peter]].

* AdaptationalAttractiveness: Doctor Octopus is rather ugly in the Marvel comics, in contrast to his [[BigBeautifulMan much more striking]] depiction by Creator/AlfredMolina in the ''Spider-Man 2'' film.

* BadassBaritone: In ''Superior Spider-Man'', when he hears a recording of his voice, he remarks that he sounds like a walrus under water, suggesting that his voice is deep.

* AdaptationalAttractiveness:
** Doctor Octopus is rather ugly in the Marvel comics, in contrast to his [[BigBeautifulMan much more striking]] depiction by Creator/AlfredMolina in the ''Spider-Man 2'' film.
** Some Marvel artists depict Doctor Octopus as overweight and fleshy, while others depict him as muscular.

* BigBad: Of "If This Be My Destiny" and "Ends of the Earth". He is also this in a Five Bad Band sense seeing as he founded the Sinister Six and was the leader of almost every incarnation in stories that involved them. In a way he is this for ''Superior Spider-Man'' as the titular protagonist.
** He also plays this role in ''Film/SpiderMan2'' and [[spoiler:''VideoGame/SpiderManPS4''.]]

* KnightOfCerebus: He's got little to no comedic quirks and he is the first villain to actually beat Spider-Man. Whenever he shows up you know things are about to get nasty.

* ADateWithRosiePalms: In the ''Superior'' Issue #2. Ghost-Peter is pretty grossed out by this.

As of ''ComicBook/AllNewAllDifferentMarvel'', it is revealed that Dr. Octopus' mind now resides within the Living Brain, stalkingly watching over Anna Maria. After teaming up with the Jackal during ''The Clone Conspiracy'' and temporarily inhabiting a clone version of his old body, he eventually betrayed the Jackal for insulting his love interest. Afterwards, he hijacked a new, powerful experimental clone body. He was then recruited by Armin Zola and ComicBook/{{HYDRA}} to aid in destroying Parker Industries, reinventing himself as the "Superior Octopus". After the downfall of the Hydra Empire and the restoration of the true ComicBook/CaptainAmerica, and a truce with Peter after ''ComicBook/GoDownSwinging'' and ''ComicBook/SpiderGeddon'', Ock once again decides to try and abandon his supervillain ways, seeking to set himself up as the heroic protector of San Francisco in ''Superior Octopus #1'' and the second volume of Superior Spider-Man. Unfortunately it wouldn't last, as Ock made a deal with Mephisto to defeat Spider-Norman. The deal would restore Ock to his old body but with it back to full health. The price being the empathy gained from sharing Peter's memories.

* TookALevelInBadass:

* DidYouJustPunchOutCthulhu: With some assistance from the Superior Four, Otto, during the events of ''ComicBook/DevilsReign'', fused with a ''ComicBook/ManThing'' variant of himself and killed an alternate universe version of himself who was also a CompositeCharacter with traits of Dr. Strange and Dr. Doom (particularly the armor). Prior to Otto's victory, the Sorcerer Supreme/Dr. Doom version of Octavius was manhandling the entire Superior Four and casually informed them of [[OffScreenMomentOfAwesome how he'd defeated Dormammu and Shuma-Gorath]].

* ILoveNuclearPower: Doc Ock originally gained his powers from a radiation experiment gone wrong. ''Doctor Octopus: Year One'' (set in the original Marvel timeline of the early 60's) embraces this trope, showing that Octavius became obsessed with the power of the atom long before the accident, fantasizing about it to the point of fetishism, and identified with the cleansing atomic fire as a counterpart to his own rage against the world.
** [[SubvertedTrope Subverted heavily]], as the original blast of radiation that gave him his powers was revealed to have had a long-term side effect: [[PhlebotinumOverdose the radiation prevented his body from properly healing from injury.]] Coupled with his frequent beatings from foes far more powerful than himself, Otto's body eventually began to shut down and leave his brilliant mind [[EvilCripple in a decrepit, dying body.]]