Lockjaw's mental powers
As Reed Richards deduced, Lockjaw can create "a mental dimensional displacer force." Note the word "mental." And note the size of Lockjaw's head. Lockjaw's power comes from his enormous brain.
When he visited the FF's headquarters, he recognized that one of the many electronic devices was used for communication, he deduced that there was an incoming message, and he alerted the others. The others had not noticed - suggesting they are less intelligent than Lockjaw. Critics might say that Lockjaw was just reacting to a 'ka-thak' noise, but that is highly unlikely: the 'just a dog' theory requires Lockjaw to be highly trained for times of war, so he would not react to minor distractions any more than would a highly trained war horse.
Lockjaw is able to identify and locate one person from among billions of others, even if they are a stranger from worlds away. And all he takes is (for example) a single scrap of cloth. Can you imagine what mental processing power this must require?
An ordinary dog can track the scent of people who are present Lockjaw can track people who are not present. An ordinary dog has to choose between hundreds of scents Lockjaw has to distinguish between billions of people, multiplied by countless worlds, multiplied by countless alternate realities, plus endless other dimensions. Lockjaw's brain power must be simply vast, unimaginable.
A critic might argue that maybe the universe is arranged so as to make this task easy. Well easy it ain't. If Lockjaw isn't careful he can easily go to the wrong place, or even materialize in midair. Crystal once noted that, if he is distracted when teleporting, he can end up in the wrong place. Clearly, teleportation is a very difficult skill. That is the simplest explanation of why nobody has been able to duplicate his power.
His ability goes beyond raw processing. Lockjaw's understanding of psychology goes beyond anything an animal could have, and shows himself to have greater insight than most humans.
For example, in the second story in FF 118, he rescues Ben, then takes him to an alternate dimension. Are we to assume that he chose this dimension by accident? Of all the infinite worlds, Lockjaw chooses the one that has a message for Ben. It seems that Lockjaw understands Ben's tragedy, and understands Ben's feelings towards Reed, and wants to show him the other side of the coin.
Lockjaw is smarter than most humans
Some comic book humans seem very unintelligent. Some villains have henchmen who's only job is to be quickly defeated. Heroes with secret identities are surrounded by people too stupid to work it out. "Gee, Peter Parker, how come you are the only person who can get photos of Spiderman? And he's about your height and build too. And why do you make an excuse to run away when there is trouble, just before Spiderman appears? I just can't figure it out." And that's just in Marvel. In DC we have Superman who's disguise is... he takes off his glasses! Comic books are full of really dumb people.
A lot of the villains are especially dumb. How many times do they have to be beaten before they realize they're in the wrong job? Even super intelligent villains (The Wizard) or heavyweight powerhouses (the Super Skrull) may talk smart but they act dumb.
Here's an exercise to prove that the average superhero is dumber than Lockjaw. Read a team book like the Fantastic Four, Avengers, X-Men, etc. But this time just look at what happens - don't read any of the worlds. You will see that the average hero just stands around doing nothing most of the time. Occasionally he might hit someone, but (especially in the early Avengers books) mostly they just look self-important or stupid.
Compare this with Lockjaw: When you see Lockjaw he's either the physical center of the team (they all rely on him to get yo places) or else he's sleeping, sniffing, playing games, just having a great time! And yet still he saves the world. When you turn off the sound who looks smarter? It's like Douglas Adams said about the dolphins. Humans think dolphins are stupid because all they do is have fun, eat, go where they want, and play in the water all day. Whereas humans worry and fret and live often miserable lives. So who is really more intelligent?
The key to understanding Lockjaw's mind
I think we can understand Lockjaw better if we look at the work of Temple Grandin. Temple Grandin is a scientist who studies how animals think, has written many books on the topic, and has improved the lives of millions of animals by designing better ways of treating them. She has a special advantage in this field that other scientists lack: Temple Grandin is autistic. I strongly encourage anyone who wants to know how animals think to read Grandin's books.
Why does Lockjaw usually stay quiet? He told Ben Grimm that he "never had anything to say." Yet there were plenty of times when, to a human observer, he could have said something. Instead, he often goes his own way, making decisions that infuriate his human companions. This makes sense in terms of Grandin's work. Animals do not think with language - their brains work in a different way. Autism is like half way to that kind of brain. Autistic people have more direct access to lower level brain functions, which allows them to solve some kinds of problems much faster than regular people. In particular they can focus on one topic without noticing other things, or they can notice little details that others miss. Autistic people often don't realize that other people want something from them.
Autistic people can talk. Grandin writes books and she lectures. But language is not something that comes easily - it isn't how her mind naturally works. Lockjaw is the same. His mind does not work that way.
Lockjaw the philosopher
Students of Greek Philosophy may recognize Lockjaw: he has much in common with the Cynic philosophers. "Cynic" is the Greek word for dog. In later centuries, a cynic came to mean anyone who criticized others' motives, but the original cynics were only interested in virtue. They had simple needs and found joy in the simple things in life. Some cynics went to extremes, and rejected every part of sophisticated life (property, money, marriage, etc.) and lived just like their namesakes, dogs.
The Ancient Greek Cynics believed that virtue was the greatest truth, and they didn't care about anything else. They didn't seek wealth or position, they didn't care what people thought of them, and they didn't feel the need to say anything if they didn't want to. Much like Lockjaw. Most people find this hard to understand. How can you not care what others think? How can you be so at peace with yourself? How can you find real joy in the simple act of being alive, rolling, sniffing, running and playing? When you understand that you will have true inner peace, and you will understand Lockjaw.
Surely philosophers have to say things? Surely they must write books? Not always. Many of the greatest philosophers are only known because of what their disciples said. The cynics are the same, and rejected theory in favor of practice. You can tell what Lockjaw thinks by what he does, not by what he says.
At first people treated the cynics like fools. But as people started to pay attention they began to realize that these people had really got it together. These people were centuries ahead of their time. But that was their undoing. People wanted to copy the fun parts (criticizing others and doing their own thing) and ignore the hard parts (living a virtuous life). So the word cynic lost its original high meaning.
To understand Lockjaw the philosophers, it might help to compare other great Cynic philosophers, Diogenes, Crates (pronounced cra- tees) and Antisthenes.
Lockjaw and Diogenes
The most famous cynic was Diogenes. Does any of this sound familiar?
He would introduce himself by saying, "I am Diogenes the dog. I nuzzle the kind, bark at the greedy and bite scoundrels." He'd use a lantern by daylight, explaining that he was searching for an honest man. Even Alexander the Great didn't escape unscathed. When the young conqueror found Diogenes sitting in the marketplace and asked how he could help him, the old philosopher replied that "you can step out of my sunlight." - (source)
Diogenes believed that, to provide a truly alternative way of thinking and living, you must purposefully open yourself up to ridicule from society. Diogenes, like Lockjaw, did not just tolerate being called a dog. He encouraged it!
Lockjaw and Crates, "the door opener"
Lockjaw reminds me of another of these dog-philosophers, Crates (pronounced cra- tees). Crates was often called "the door opener" because he would come and go as he pleased. Like Lockjaw. These words of Crates that could have been spoken by the dimension-hopping Lockjaw himself:
'Tis not one town, nor one poor single house,
That is my country; but in every land
Each city and each dwelling seems to me,
A place for my reception ready made.
(source)
Crates was a very ugly man (source) - Lockjaw would win no prizes in a beauty contest. Yet he is respected and admired. Much like Crates.
As a result of his generally easygoing attitude, he was greatly respected in Athens as a kind and supremely virtuous man. The character of Crates closely resembled the character of an Indian philosopher, Siddhartha Gautama (a.k.a. Buddha). (source)
Come to think of it, Lockjaw with his massive bulk and peaceful expression looks a bit like the Buddha.
Lockjaw and Antisthenes
Antisthenes founded the school of the Cynics. He is best known for having no possessions, except his tatty cloak. Many stories are told about the holes in his cloak. For example, Socrates once met him and said that Antisthenes was not really humble because he ran a school. Socrates said that Antisthenes' vanity shone through the holes in his cloak. Antisthenes did not argue. He closed down his school, became a follower of Socrates (even though he did not agree with all that Socrates taught), and encouraged his former followers to do the same.
The parallels with Lockjaw should be obvious. Lockjaw's tatty cloak is his baggy, ill-fitting skin. Lockjaw clearly has his own views, yet chooses to be seen as just a follower of Black Bolt or Crystal. Above all, Lockjaw does not lecture or preach to anyone. He lets his actions do the talking. He clearly knows a great deal, yet he chooses to follow others.
Exactly how smart is Lockjaw?
Lockjaw is smart enough to save the world more often than any other character who doesn't have his own book.
He's smart enough to be loved by everyone and have no enemies.
He's smart enough to have the power to do whatever he wants, whererer he wants.
Most superheroes have the curse of Spiderman - "with great power comes great responsibility." Even the most powerful beings, like Galactus, are cursed with a fate they never chose, and they must act the role that fate has given them. They are truly slaves. Only Lockjaw is truly free. Lockjaw has great power, and great responsibility - he often saves the world - but he does it on his own terms. If he wants to take a break and go and just enjoy life at any time, he can!
I think that every person on earth would love to have what Lockjaw has. Unrivaled freedom, yet a safe and structured life when he wants it. Friends and admirers everywhere, yet he can be a complete loner. The ability to influence events of galactic importance, yet also the freedom to sniff and roll on the floor and generally do whatever he wants!
Lockjaw has greater respect for others than anyone else in the universe. He helps people, but never, never, never tells them what to think.
Lockjaw is the smartest, most loved, most successful, and happiest of all superheroes. What a guy!
Everyone would love to have that power. The Marvel Universe contains some extremely intelligent people and ancient, highly advanced races. Yet these advanced intelligences, with the most sophisticated technology, are unable to duplicate Lockjaw's mental ability.
Clearly his brain is far beyond the most complex computer.
Lockjaw's intelligence is hinted at from the very start.
In his first appearance, the Inhumans' hideout had been reduced to rubble, but Lockjaw probes for the door and open it telekinetically. Think about how complex this process must be. A lock is basically a puzzle, and the key is the solution. Without a key, Lockjaw's brain reaches out, understands the complex process, and solves the puzzle. This is typical of his ability to manipulate his environment.
