Originally Posted by
Revolutionary_Jack
In 1984, DC still had the multiverse (it wasn't Post-Crisis yet) so if you mean Bronze Age DC Universe, then that version of Luthor lacked the oomph for a role that big. I know a lot of people like to see Luthor as DC's Doom but the two characters at the end of the day are completely different and occupy different niches in their universes. Certainly they did back then and I'd argue now. Luthor is certainly Superman's arch-enemy but it's not a case that by himself he's acknowledged as DC's biggest villain. Mostly because DC's biggest villain is The Joker. In DC, the villains are so tied to a single character and configured in that role, that neither Luthor nor Joker have ever really expanded to get in the face of multiple heroes and teams the way Doctor Doom was able to from the get-go. DC's biggest, most popular, and most frequently appearing villains are tied individually to characters and teams and don't have the versatility to keep that role and take on a bigger role; they don't have the versatility that Doctor Doom does.
DC never really had a universally acknowledged top villain for their universe. That's why for Crisis on Infinite Earths, they had to introduce the Anti-Monitor (a really dull character). Nowadays, Darkseid has that role (thanks to the cartoons) but for Darkseid it's about getting the Anti-Life Equation and becoming reality and not about becoming a god (which he already is). It would be cool to imagine a Doctor Doom/Darkseid face-off. Victor will be "Hmm' how do I jack this guy's powers" and then solve the Anti-Life Equation (because of course he does), hijacks Darkseid's powers and takes over Apokolips, and actually rules Apokolips better than Darkseid ever did.