Does Nero deserve his reputation?

Nero certainly had a dysfunctional relationship with his mother Agrippina, even by modern standards.  Agrippina’s controlling relationship over her son reportedly bordered on incest and resulted in Nero becoming a paranoid, insecure and violent emperor.  The unhealthy relationship Nero had with Agrippina reminded me of the unnatural mother-son relationship in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho, especially due to the early death of Nero’s father.  However, kicking to death a pregnant woman and many other crimes, such as his violent persecution of Christians, cannot be excused by a sympathetic childhood or a devotion to the Roman arts. Ultimately, Nero earns his infamous reputation.