Polite Dissent

With most doctors in comic books, it is unclear what they are actually doctors of. Some seem to be an uber-doctor, such as Reed Richards or Henry McCoy, who are capable of doing anything vaguely medically- or scientifically-related. On the other hand, there are several who call themselves doctor who never seemed to have earned the title.

Of those doctors with declared specialties, the most common seems to be a “doctor of the mind.” In this situation, I’m using the term to refer to both psychiatrists and psychologists. A psychologist is an individual with a degree in psychology (a doctoral degree if they claim the title doctor), while a psychiatrist is a medical doctor who specializes in the diseases and conditions of the mind. Unfortunately, many comic books have used the terms interchangeably, making for unclear origins of some characters.

Why the fascination with psychiatrists and pyschologists? First, they fit well into the super-hero mythos. With most villains — and many heroes — neurotic if not psychotic, there’s a good fit for these doctors. Dr. Samson, Dr. (Hugo) Strange, and Dr. Quinzel all started out as professionals and then became heroes/villains later. Second, there remains a negative stigma to “shrinks” that gives an instant (albeit superficial) depth to their characters. This is a real-life stigma in that no one likes to admit that they are seeing a “counselor” lest others think poorly of them. More importantly, it is a stigma left over from too many B-grade movies, soap opera plots, bad books and pulp magazines where the nefarious psychiatrist always has an agenda of their own. By having a character be a psychiatrist or psychologist, the writer warns the reader that “this character is up to something.”

The following is a list of prominent comic book psychiatrist and psychologists:
Psychiatrists:
Dr. Leonard Samson Gamma-endowed green-tressed adventurer and doctor.
Dr. Psycho Wonder Woman villain and all around…umm…psycho.
Dr. Wolper Deluded psychiatrist from the Dark Knight Returns.

Psychologists:
Dr. Blink Shrink to the Super-Heroes, featured in Dork Stork Press’s FCBD book.
Scarecrow Jonathan Crane, former Gotham University professor turned super-villain (and soon to be a movie star in Batman Begins)

Unclear:
Brother Voodoo Generally understood to be a psychologist (his entry in the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe reads that way), but he has been referred to as a psychiatrist as well. Brother Voodoo is the only one on this list (with the possible exception of Dr. Blink) who doesn’t have some underlying psychiatric disorder.
Dr. Harleen Quinzel Better known as Harley Quinn. She has been referred to as a psychiatrist, graduate student, psychologist, psychoanalyst, and intern. Part of this confusion is due to the multiple versions of Harley including Batman: The Animated Series, the regular DC Batman family of books, and the Birds of Prey television show.
Dr. Hugo Strange A Batman villain described variously as a psychiatrist, psychologist, or psychoanalyst. Whatever, he’s nuts.

*Nope, Dr. Wolper and Dr. Samson both have decidedly Narcisstic personalities, and Samson has some significant Histrionic traits as well.