Stephen Strange: Doctor Strange Appreciation 2021

[Clea]

I can see it clearly. Looks great. Kinda looks like Ghost Rider is spitting Stephen out. Thanks for posting. On a related note, do you think it is at all possible that Doctor Strange's personality changed in the first decade of the 2000s not just because of Iron Man's popularity, but because of Gregory House's popularity? Although I wasn't a huge fan of the show, I know House was EXTREMELY popular when it was on the air. I mean, it's gotta be one of the most famous medical dramas of all-time. I've seen it mentioned elsewhere that Marvel took note of Gregory House's notoriety and made Strange behave and talk like him to a CERTAIN EXTENT. I mean, House liked hookers, and Strange obviously doesn't partake in that kind of thing, but Strange's more recent womanizing could have taken a cue from House. Strange is probably less "curmudgeonly and cynical" as House, but I can see why people might compare the two. Misanthropic and unconventional geniuses dedicated to their work.

No, I don't think that the tv character House was a specific influence on Strange's characterization in the comics. The writers who work for Marvel have their own ideas and vision, plus a familiarity with Marvel editorial style, and hopefully a decent knowledge of the characters' personalities and stories. They don't need to crib from a tv show to decide how to portray a character like Doctor Strange.

[Albert1981]

No, I don't think that the tv character House was a specific influence on Strange's characterization in the comics. The writers who work for Marvel have their own ideas and vision, plus a familiarity with Marvel editorial style, and hopefully a decent knowledge of the characters' personalities and stories. They don't need to crib from a tv show to decide how to portray a character like Doctor Strange.

Oh I see. Thanks for the clarification. Even though I like Strange as this magical character, I think it's wonderful that he is a medical doctor as well. As I mentioned previously, I always have had a soft spot for physicians, surgeons and psychologists/psychiatrists as well. Also been a longtime fan of Doc Sampson and Jane Foster. I only recently found out that Jane Foster became a superhero as well! But to me, Strange is the most famous doctor in the Marvel Universe and I always hoped that the comic books would take some time to focus on that aspect of his life. It's such a noble profession and since I don't know too much about Stephen I would like to know more about his reasons why for joining it. This wasn't really covered in the first Strange movie. My favorite characters in the Star Trek franchise were the doctors. That's why I mentioned House. If there is a superpower that I would wish to have, it would be the power to heal.

I'm surprised that more people aren't posting and viewing this thread. I mean, Strange's second movie is easily the most anticipated MCU project for next year. But Thor, Hulk, Spider-Man, Black Panther and the Scarlet Witch are much more popular! I love those characters as well, but Stephen definitely needs some more love. I just hope they handle the magic in the Multiverse of Madness in a consistent manner. They don't need explicit rules, just consistency. I don't think DC did a good job with Catwoman and the Wonder Woman sequel when it came to the use of magic in them. I admit to being somewhat surprised by Marvel putting so many eggs in the magic/fantasy basket. I think Moon Knight is being revamped into somewhat of a supernatural character. I think it's possible Blade will be given the same treatment. I wouldn't be surprised if Ghost Rider shows up relatively soon in the MCU either. And that's on top of WandaVision, Loki and the Multiverse of Madness. I don't think the Marvel comic books ever devoted so much energy to the mystical parts of its universe!

[Clea]

Oh I see. Thanks for the clarification. Even though I like Strange as this magical character, I think it's wonderful that he is a medical doctor as well. As I mentioned previously, I always have had a soft spot for physicians, surgeons and psychologists/psychiatrists as well. Also been a longtime fan of Doc Sampson and Jane Foster. I only recently found out that Jane Foster became a superhero as well! But to me, Strange is the most famous doctor in the Marvel Universe and I always hoped that the comic books would take some time to focus on that aspect of his life. It's such a noble profession and since I don't know too much about Stephen I would like to know more about his reasons why for joining it. This wasn't really covered in the first Strange movie. My favorite characters in the Star Trek franchise were the doctors. That's why I mentioned House. If there is a superpower that I would wish to have, it would be the power to heal.

I'm surprised that more people aren't posting and viewing this thread. I mean, Strange's second movie is easily the most anticipated MCU project for next year. But Thor, Hulk, Spider-Man, Black Panther and the Scarlet Witch are much more popular! I love those characters as well, but Stephen definitely needs some more love. I just hope they handle the magic in the Multiverse of Madness in a consistent manner. They don't need explicit rules, just consistency. I don't think DC did a good job with Catwoman and the Wonder Woman sequel when it came to the use of magic in them. I admit to being somewhat surprised by Marvel putting so many eggs in the magic/fantasy basket. I think Moon Knight is being revamped into somewhat of a supernatural character. I think it's possible Blade will be given the same treatment. I wouldn't be surprised if Ghost Rider shows up relatively soon in the MCU either. And that's on top of WandaVision, Loki and the Multiverse of Madness. I don't think the Marvel comic books ever devoted so much energy to the mystical parts of its universe!

I recommend that you read the recent Surgeon Supreme series.

[Clea]

Someone on a Reddit forum posted a series of Doctor Strange covers in honor of the April 9th, 1963 anniversary of his debut in Strange Tales. I hadn't seen this variant cover by Frazer Irving before. Isn't it beautiful?

[Daedra]

Someone on a Reddit forum posted a series of Doctor Strange covers in honor of the April 9th, 1963 anniversary of his debut in Strange Tales. I hadn't seen this variant cover by Frazer Irving before. Isn't it beautiful?

I love it, imagine that in a black light poster or t-shirt

[DigiCom]

I think Moon Knight is being revamped into somewhat of a supernatural character. I think it's possible Blade will be given the same treatment. I wouldn't be surprised if Ghost Rider shows up relatively soon in the MCU either. And that's on top of WandaVision, Loki and the Multiverse of Madness. I don't think the Marvel comic books ever devoted so much energy to the mystical parts of its universe!

Moon Knight, Blade, and Ghost Rider have ALWAYS been supernatural characters, growing out of the restrictions regarding horror in the CCA loosening in the 1970s. MK, for example, first appeared as an antagonist in Werewolf by Night. It's unclear as of yet if the MCU is trending into more of a horror direction or just extra-dimensional threats, however.

I will give you a piece of advice, gratis: Don't use the comics to understand the movies or vice versa. They are only tangentially similar... otherwise, Black Panther would be a top 10 comic. :|

[IonRyner]

I am a pretty big fan of Stephen Strange he is my favorite, I've read all of the series except for surgeon supreme. I didn't know about surgeon supreme at all till I seen it was mentioned here. I hope he gets a full fledged series again and as a fan of Clea as well I hope Strange and Clea get back together, I thought they were good together. Though after what he did to Clea by removing her memories of him in issue #17 in the 2018 Doctor Strange series, I doubt she will want to get back with him. He asked her at the end of issue #17 if their was a chance of them getting back together and she said yes that she still loves him. Then he removes her memories of him and I want to see what happens between the 2 after she recovers from what he did to her. I may be a fan of Doctor Strange but some of the things he does is questionable at the very least.

[Albert1981]

I recommend that you read the recent Surgeon Supreme series.

Oh, thank you so much! You are my go to guy/gal when it comes to Strange-related matters.

[Albert1981]

Moon Knight, Blade, and Ghost Rider have ALWAYS been supernatural characters, growing out of the restrictions regarding horror in the CCA loosening in the 1970s. MK, for example, first appeared as an antagonist in Werewolf by Night. It's unclear as of yet if the MCU is trending into more of a horror direction or just extra-dimensional threats, however.

I will give you a piece of advice, gratis: Don't use the comics to understand the movies or vice versa. They are only tangentially similar... otherwise, Black Panther would be a top 10 comic. :|

Oh, yeah, I don't really connect the movies and comic books in my mind that much anyway. I consider them to be totally separate entities in many respects. And thank you for clarifying for me the supernatural characters in the Marvel Universe. I know Marvel live-action projects featuring supernatural folks, have been a bit of a mixed bag. I thought Blade was relatively well-received (I never watched the earlier Blade films), but Ghost Rider and Man-Thing were critical failures on pretty much every level (I saw bits of the first Ghost Rider and just didn't have the stamina to see it through). I'm curious if Marvel Studios will do a better job with these horror-based people in the future.

[Albert1981]

I thought the "arguments" we had earlier about language were most illuminating. I just concluded watching a wonderful PBS documentary on Hemingway, and it only reinforced my views on how diction should be used in literature (I include comic books in this category) and films/shows. Famed authors such as Elmore Leonard, J.D. Salinger, Ralph Ellison, James Jones, Ray Bradbury and Norman Mailer (and a host of other authors) followed in his wake, and their structuring of sentences in their own novels and short stories were heavily influenced by Papa's work. I actually think language and its use by characters could influence the popularity of those characters. In the 90s, when I read comics more diligently, the more popular characters such as Spider-Man, Daredevil, Wolverine, Punisher, Venom and Deadpool used rather non-verbose and non-flowery dialogue. To a lesser extent, the prose of other popular characters such as Ghost Rider, Blade and Moon Knight was relatively simple and unostentatious and removed a lot of "clutter and frills". That just tells me that characters whose speech is straight-forward and naturalistic are the most "accessible" ones and they connect with readers on a stronger level. That's why I think, in my VERY humble opinion, that Stephen should adopt some of the speech patterns of those characters in live-action and in the comic books. Doctor Strange is very popular in the MCU right now. If he talked like Thor did before Ragnarok, I don't think he would be.

[Clea]

Oh, thank you so much! You are my go to guy/gal when it comes to Strange-related matters.

Gal.

Have you read many Doctor Strange comics, current or Silver Age?

[DigiCom]

That just tells me that characters whose speech is straight-forward and naturalistic are the most "accessible" ones and they connect with readers on a stronger level. That's why I think, in my VERY humble opinion, that Stephen should adopt some of the speech patterns of those characters in live-action and in the comic books. Doctor Strange is very popular in the MCU right now. If he talked like Thor did before Ragnarok, I don't think he would be.

While you are of course entitled to your opinion, I cannot agree. Speech patterns, word choice, diction and so forth should arise from character, not from external circumstance. Not every character should be "accessible". It's the same mindset that often leads to Stephen being depowered, simply because a writer wants to make him more "relatable" and/or "realistic".

What this leads to, sometimes, is a character who has had EVERYTHING that made him unique taken away from him, all in the service of some editorial archetype.

Formal speech pattern? Not accessible. He should be quippy and sarcastic
Regular love interest? Nah, let's make him a playboy. That sells better.
Magical powers? Let's take them away, so he has to work for everything.
Fancy costume? Too comicbooky... let's throw him in a turtleneck and a trenchcoat.
Old-fashioned origin? Too cliched, and a bit racist. Let's make it a Matrix ripoff, instead.
Had to learn humility in his origin story? Let's strip that lesson and make him learn it again!

But hey... he's still Doctor Strange. He just lacks the same personality, backstory, looks, and powers!

(While I'm exaggerating for effect, many of those changes were actually done in ONE MINI about 16 years ago.)

[Eto]

Just finished Strange Tales #136.
Although, it's not an epic story, I like the fact that Strange was able to control his cloak with his mind (a mystic mold covered his face, thus making it impossible to cast spells), it shows that he's always got a plan B.
Thus far (reading since STales #110) there were a lot of stories were Strange outmanoeuvred enemies, I love it!

Question regarding this issue,

Did Strange kill him when he said: "I shall bathe you in the enchanted light, until your menace is ended, forever!"

Or did he put him in limbo?

[Clea]

I am a pretty big fan of Stephen Strange he is my favorite, I've read all of the series except for surgeon supreme. I didn't know about surgeon supreme at all till I seen it was mentioned here. I hope he gets a full fledged series again and as a fan of Clea as well I hope Strange and Clea get back together, I thought they were good together. Though after what he did to Clea by removing her memories of him in issue #17 in the 2018 Doctor Strange series, I doubt she will want to get back with him. He asked her at the end of issue #17 if their was a chance of them getting back together and she said yes that she still loves him. Then he removes her memories of him and I want to see what happens between the 2 after she recovers from what he did to her. I may be a fan of Doctor Strange but some of the things he does is questionable at the very least.

I enjoyed the Surgeon Supreme series written by Mark Waid. Waid is a skilled writer and he knows Strange and his story history very well. Strange had his hands fixed with magic so now he can be a doctor again as well as Sorcerer Supreme. I thought it was well written, though since it was cancelled there's no way to know now what Waid had been planning longer term. It's quite a break from Strange's previous history. I have no idea if Waid meant for this to be how Strange would be portrayed going forward, or if Strange having his hands magically healed would be undone at some point as part of a larger story arc. I guess we'll see when Marvel gives us another series.

As for Clea, if they do bring her back into the comics again, I'll be interested to see how they show her reacting to having her memories erased. I like Clea and Strange together as a couple, but their relationship has not always been portrayed well. I'd hope they'll write her as an adult with her own agency.

[DigiCom]

Did Strange kill him when he said: "I shall bathe you in the enchanted light, until your menace is ended, forever!"

Or did he put him in limbo?

Well, the villain never came back, so...