| “ | I will not die a monster.
— Doctor Octopus
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” |
Doctor Octopus, (also known as "Doc Ock") formerly Doctor Otto Octavius, was a brilliant scientist who worked in the atomic field. He created a chest harness that controlled four mechanical, tentacle-like arms (earning him the nickname "Doctor Octopus"), initially meant to handle radioactive objects from a safe distance. After a freak accident, Doctor Octopus was left with mental control over the tentacles, but he also suffered brain damage that transformed him into a sociopathic criminal. He has become one of Spider-Man's most fearsome foes, fighting the hero through the streets of New York, keeping Spider-Man on his toes with his masterful skill in using his tentacles for combat.
Battle vs. Boris the Animal (by El Alamein and Dr. Las Moore)
The cool night air blew a quiet breeze across the pier, disturbing the water just enough to generate quiet ripples that shimmered under the moonlight. Doctor Otto Octavius sat at the water's edge, still wearing his sunglasses, gazing through blackness into the dark water that seemed to absorb the night in its stillness. His tentacles hung limp on the dock, complacent in their somnolent state. A few blocks away, a police siren blared as it raced through the streets, disturbing the silence and rousing the doctor from his thoughts. As he looked over his shoulder, he noticed a figure, hunched forward, approaching with heavy, crunching steps. Lowering his glasses from the bridge of his nose, Doc Ock made out the man - if indeed it was a man - a twisted scowl playing across his face.
"Cape Canaveral," the stranger demanded in a rasping voice. "Where is it?"
"Florida," Doc Ock replied warily. He began to rise to his feet when the man bounded forward in a few angry steps and grabbed him by the front of his shirt with one arm - the only one he had. Even at this close of a distance, Doc Ock was surprised to discover he could not clearly see the man's face.
"Do not jest with me, fool," he sneered, letting fly specks of saliva into Doc Ock's face, inches from his own. "In what direction? North? East?"
The sudden assault, combined with the bizarre inquiry, had woken Doc Ock's anger. One of his tentacles shot forward and slammed into his assailant's chest, knocking him back a few steps and forcing him to release the doctor. Doc Ock landed hard on his feet and rose himself higher on two tentacles, above his attacker's head. "You're a bit too late for that, my friend," he chuckled. "Forty years too late - Boris the Animal."
"It's just Boris!"
Boris raised his left arm and pointed his hand, palm open, and fired a barrage of spikes at the mad Doctor, several landing in the wooden planks of the pier, inches from Doc Ock's body.
“It will take a lot more than a few spikes to defeat me, Boris.”
Two tentacles rose up above Ock’s head and quickly struck the Animal, pulling Boris off of his feet and sending him flying backwards into a tent on the pier. Otto was anticipating Boris’ next move. A minute went by and the only sound heard was the cool, quiet windy breeze. Doc Ock squinted, unable to see much in the darkness.
“Come on, Boris! Make your next move.”
A single spike shot out from the tent, which Ock grabbed with one of his mechanical tentacles, examining it. He had to bring the spike very close to his face to see it. Maniacal laughter erupted from inside the tent, breaking not only the silence, but Otto’s concentration. Ock dropped the spike and readied himself for what was about to come.
Boris leaped high in the air through the top of the tent and landed behind Doc Ock, swinging a tent pole down at his foe. A metal tentacle slammed into the pole and in a shower of sparks and a clash of steel, the pole was thrown from Boris' grip, splashing into the dark water below. Boris bared his teeth and leapt forward, rolling past the metal tentacles and grabbing Doctor Octopus' body by the shoulders with his powerful hand. Doc Ock cried out in pain and brought a knee up into Boris' groin as his tentacles flailed wildly. The Boglodite did not so much as flinch to the blow between his legs, and instead grabbed the doctor's neck, squeezing his fingers tight like a vice. Spluttering, Doc Ock's face turned purple and he dribbled saliva in panic as he struggled to breathe.
"Not so strong now, are we, Doctor Octavius?"
One of the tentacles mindlessly swung around and cracked into the side of Boris' head, stunning him and throwing him a few feet to the side as he stumbled onto the edge of the dock. Slipping, his one hand shot up and grabbed the top of the boardwalk as his feet splashed into the water. He looked up to see Doc Ock walking on two of his tentacles, towering over him as he pulled himself back up to his feet, struggling with his one good limb - but it was too late. One of the tentacles grabbed him by the back of his neck and held him high in the air. Boris raised his arm to fire a spike, but the last tentacle clamped over his open palm and squeezed hard, crushing the bones and killing the parasite that lived within. Boris let out an inhuman roar of agony and threw his head back in pain.
"I can squeeze too, Boris. And it would appear I've won."
The tentacle holding Boris plunges down into the water and shakes violently, thrashing up and down as it throttles the Boglodite and drowns him in the murky waters of the pier. Minutes pass, and when he's certain he's finished his foe, Doc Ock releases Boris, allowing him to sink, and turns his back on the pier. Everything is still very dark and cloudy, and just as the doctor begins to worry, his sunglasses fall off of his face and everything comes into focus.
"Why the hell was I wearing sunglasses at night?"
WINNER: DOCTOR OCTOPUS
Expert's Opinion
Doc Ock's tentacles played to his advantage, giving him an abundance of limbs that allowed for ambidextrous combat, in sharp contrast to Boris' one limb. That, combined with his scholar's mind and strong concentration, prevented his weakness from playing too strong a role in the fight, while Boris' crippled his, costing him this match.