Master of the Mystic Arts: Doctor Strange Appreciation

[Reviresco]

http://www.laughingplace.com/w/artic...crate-mystics/

Get a Loot Crate Mystics box. Cool stuff inside.

That's a pretty cool box. I like it much better than the Funko / Marvel Collector Corp box. I may have to pick that up. Love the Scarlet Witch glasses and the Doc Strange Coasters. Thank you for the link.

LOL that robe is hilarious. If it were strictly Stephen in that crate, I'd consider it. Otherwise I'll politely pass.

That robe is ... something. I'm trying to think where I would / when I wear it.... and not coming up with much of anything.

[ImprobableQuestion]

Wong was often relegated to serving tea and guarding over Strange's physical form while Strange was out fighting on the astral plane. As a character, he could have and should have played a more prominent role as a fighter and magic user. He comes from an ancient family of magic users who dedicated their lives to serving and protecting the Sorcerer Supreme. IMO, Wong (like Clea) was written poorly more often than not in Strange's comics. I think that the core idea that Wong was there to protect Strange got lost very quickly in the comics. I hope the movie series will give the character more dignity (and more to do).

Wong's character in the film also takes some of the edge off of Tilda Swinton's casting choice. Wong is a much more visible (and ultimately more important) character than the ancient one in Strange stories.

[belar]

Just saw the movie last night and really loved it. I've never read any Doctor Strange comics. Can anyone recommend a trade with a good version of Strange's origin story?

Thanks.

[matt levin]

Witchfan! Thank you so much for the look at and inside the 'Mystics box'! I've wondered about these Loot Crate packages and it's really helpful to've seen at least one. If ever you get more--or if anyone else does--please do share! It was great to see what's offered!

[Reviresco]

Just saw the movie last night and really loved it. I've never read any Doctor Strange comics. Can anyone recommend a trade with a good version of Strange's origin story?

Thanks.

Well, there's the original, Steve Ditko version, which I find good, but I like old comics. I think it was posted on CBR at one time ... This isn't the article I was thinking of, but I think most of it is there. Enough to get a feel for it and decide if you want to buy the Marvel Mastework or the new Omnibus.

http://www.cbr.com/remember-to-forge...om-the-matrix/

[MindofShadow]

Why did sales shoot up for Strange #12? Any ideas? jumped back over 70k?

[Indian Ink]

Just seen the film and thought it was great but don't think it was quite the best it could have been. It lacked a little in the spooky department. Now I didn't want a full on horror film, but I would have liked a bit of hair raising of the hackles. A sense of danger and occult inky blackness. I liked the spells being cast as though red/yellow hot wires making sigils in the air, but the visual effects of the spell when they weren't creating Inception on steroid effects were lacking in comparison to the better comic book artists. Dr Strange's and Mordo's spells often have a full fluid liquid look to them, and this effect was absent from the film. I can't help but wonder if they held back on these things to get into the Chinese market.

[Indian Ink]

I forgot to mention. Despite choosing some great actors who could carry it off. Not only didn't they have no rhyming spells, but they had no spoken spells at all!

[Lady Warp Spasm]

I missed the spoken spells myself and wished they had done something like NightWatch where the subtitles were actually animated into the scene; the words could become the symbols and in conjunction with the hand moves create the energy sigils that ultimately appeared on screen; if you're using Stan Lee's spells not sure why that would have been an issue for the Chinese market. Like so many other markets, they love fantasy. The cloak was quite Disney-like as it was (and I liked that), I think they could have made it a bit more playful and fun using Stan's dialog, while honoring the fact that not just anyone can master this craft.

Still, that is my only quibble, beyond the overuse of the ever warping environments.

[Reviresco]

Just seen the film and thought it was great but don't think it was quite the best it could have been. It lacked a little in the spooky department. Now I didn't want a full on horror film, but I would have liked a bit of hair raising of the hackles. A sense of danger and occult inky blackness. I liked the spells being cast as though red/yellow hot wires making sigils in the air, but the visual effects of the spell when they weren't creating Inception on steroid effects were lacking in comparison to the better comic book artists. Dr Strange's and Mordo's spells often have a full fluid liquid look to them, and this effect was absent from the film. I can't help but wonder if they held back on these things to get into the Chinese market.

I'm not following about the spells and Chinese market?

Yes, I think they went with the EPIC and psychedelic as far as the magic went. Though, the Dark Dimension did raise my hackles when I first saw it. Somehow it captured the alien and coldness when I first saw it. Then that went away when they started doing spoilers:

the Groundhog Day.

end of spoilers LOL!

I liked most of the magical things and how they did the combat magic, except I think they could have stopped with the circular motions once they got the portals open. Though ... OTOH, that IS a nice restriction, that plays off the idea that hand motions are necessary for magic users.

I forgot to mention. Despite choosing some great actors who could carry it off. Not only didn't they have no rhyming spells, but they had no spoken spells at all!

I missed the spoken spells myself and wished they had done something like NightWatch where the subtitles were actually animated into the scene; the words could become the symbols and in conjunction with the hand moves create the energy sigils that ultimately appeared on screen; if you're using Stan Lee's spells not sure why that would have been an issue for the Chinese market. Like so many other markets, they love fantasy. The cloak was quite Disney-like as it was (and I liked that), I think they could have made it a bit more playful and fun using Stan's dialog, while honoring the fact that not just anyone can master this craft.

Still, that is my only quibble, beyond the overuse of the ever warping environments.

Yes, that was a quibble of mine too -- but a minor one. They could have definitely incorporated words into magic in any number of ways. I like your suggestion Lady Warp Spasm. One could literally be squashed under a wall of text! LOL!

We did get the Wand of Watoomb, though!

[Reviresco]

Why did sales shoot up for Strange #12? Any ideas? jumped back over 70k?

With Marvel's endless sales gimmicks, variant covers, loot crate boxes, arcane ordering percentages, etc., who knows? Did it have Civil War Tie-In banner?

[Indian Ink]

I'm not following about the spells and Chinese market?

China has a history of banning films than promote the supernatural and ghosts. Ghostbusters was refused a release there recently, so movies now will often have magic explained in story as a kind of super science and then the producers cross their fingers . Didn't work for ghostbusters though, as it still had ghosts in it. Note that anyone in Dr Strange that died while in astral form disappeared so there was no promotion of the afterlife.

[belar]

Well, there's the original, Steve Ditko version, which I find good, but I like old comics. I think it was posted on CBR at one time ... This isn't the article I was thinking of, but I think most of it is there. Enough to get a feel for it and decide if you want to buy the Marvel Mastework or the new Omnibus.

http://www.cbr.com/remember-to-forge...om-the-matrix/

Thanks very much!

[Lady Warp Spasm]

I'm not following about the spells and Chinese market?

Yes, I think they went with the EPIC and psychedelic as far as the magic went. Though, the Dark Dimension did raise my hackles when I first saw it. Somehow it captured the alien and coldness when I first saw it. Then that went away when they started doing spoilers:

the Groundhog Day.

end of spoilers LOL!

I liked most of the magical things and how they did the combat magic, except I think they could have stopped with the circular motions once they got the portals open. Though ... OTOH, that IS a nice restriction, that plays off the idea that hand motions are necessary for magic users.

Yes, that was a quibble of mine too -- but a minor one. They could have definitely incorporated words into magic in any number of ways. I like your suggestion Lady Warp Spasm. One could literally be squashed under a wall of text! LOL!

We did get the Wand of Watoomb, though!

LOL... yes, text could have been as binding as the medieval looking contraption we see in the movie at one point. You make a great point about the hands and how important they can be to the MCU magician (but I think as Hamir proves, it's just a movement you can focus on to manifest the specific spell).

and we did get the Wand of Watoomb (although it escapes me if Wong even got to use it. I'll have to pay attention again the next time I see the film). Though I have to say, my eyebrows arched the mention of the Staff of the Living Tribunal.

China has a history of banning films than promote the supernatural and ghosts. Ghostbusters was refused a release there recently, so movies now will often have magic explained in story as a kind of super science and then the producers cross their fingers . Didn't work for ghostbusters though, as it still had ghosts in it. Note that anyone in Dr Strange that died while in astral form disappeared so there was no promotion of the afterlife.

Which is kind of ironic given China's long cinematic history with supernatural themes and ghosts. <Shrugs>

[DigiCom]

Well, I seriously doubt fans of the movie will care for this week's issue. Wacky dialogue and throwing up isn't exactly corporate synergy.