Stephen Strange: Doctor Strange Appreciation 2021

[Clea]

I'd have to do more research than I have time for to verify this, but I am almost certain that, during Roy Thomas' run on "Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme" there were scenes with the Sanctum gang watching television. After all, at the time Rintrah was part of the group and he liked to use disguises of old movie actors. He must have seen them somewhere. I also have a strong memory of Imei asking Sarah why the people on the TV were laughing so hard at everything the man on TV said, and Sarah explained the concept of a laugh-track to her.

Dang, my memory is just filled with useless information!!!!

And, just to add to the "magic creates something from nothing" comments: yeah, that's not exactly how it works. It takes effort to do magic. Think of it like physical effort. How does Spider-Man lift heavy weights? Does he do it "out of nothing"? No, he uses his muscles, but because of his spider stamina, it generally doesn't show like it is any great effort unless it is a really heavy weight. He doesn't seem to tire--but eventually he does. Magic is the same way. It takes effort to magic up things...but small stuff (like creating or transporting money) doesn't take all that much effort and so it seems like there is no strain....but Doc kept doing it for, oh, four hours straight, he would get very tired. The energy is still expended. Larger spells take more effort and tire him out more. And larger spells have other side effects that he generally tries to avoid if he can.

I forget where, but I recall where Strange reluctantly uses a "refresher" spell to re-energize himself--but I recall him doing it reluctantly because he knows he will pay for it (with utter exhaustion) later. That was probably in a Roger Stern story. It is the sort of touch that Stern was so great in adding to the stories.

Tulku, you are 100% correct. Not only does Strange have a TV, Rintrah, Sara, Wong, and Imei all gathered to watch Strange on his own TV because he got invited to speak on a TV talk show. LOL. And this is the same story where Sara explains a laugh track to Imei.

Clearly, amazing recall of story detail is one of your superhero powers.

From Sorcerer Supreme #11, 1989.

[Eto]

I've started with Doctor Strange solo comic 169-183.

I've read the issues up until and including #173.




#169
What did this issue provide that we didn't know from Strange Tales #115?
It's a solid issue, but it's literally a retelling of his origin.
Stephen, you're the sorcerer supreme and you still smoke?!
Bruh....think of your health man!


#170
Lmfao so
- Strange beat Nightmare with his cloak of levitation? I mean I know it's not an ordinary cloak, but still.....man it's got his own will, doesn't it!

- Ancient One, are you dense? You think this is some kind of game?! For a man of his age and how wise he's supposed to be....he does make some questionable decisions.


#171
At last...Dormammu has returned!
Last time we saw him in Strange Tales issue 146!


#172
I like this issue, because it provides the reader where Dormammu has been up to all this time in the aftermath of Dormammu vs Eternity.



#173
Interesting way how the orb of agamotto works. Put your hands on it and voila....you have now added some extra juice to the person you are looking at.

Stephen hasn't really beaten Dormammu this time, only forced him to leave with the winds of watoomb!
Epic issue! Finally I get to see more of Clea actually doing something.

[Albert1981]

Wow! I FINALLY read through all three of Brandon Sanderson's Laws of Magic today. What a talented and gifted writer he is. And he was able to explain magic in a way that I UNDERSTOOD. Not something that happens to me too often. Dude's got some interesting and excellent ideas about writing. Thanks to DigiCom and MaximoffTrash for the reference. I will post Sanderson's three laws here:

https://www.brandonsanderson.com/sandersons-first-law/

https://www.brandonsanderson.com/sandersons-second-law/

https://www.brandonsanderson.com/san...-law-of-magic/

It's no wonder he's had such a big influence on fantasy writing in the literary genre during the past fifteen years. I agree with a lot of his points. I'm surprised Quesada and Bendis didn't pay any attention to his advice on writing magic for the comic books. I say this because it appears to me that Sanderson knows QUITE a bit about superheroes too. He thinks the comic books actually use "hard" magic systems. I wouldn't mind seeing him write a Strange book. I'm curious about what his views on WandaVision are.

[Clea]

I've started with Doctor Strange solo comic 169-183.

I've read the issues up until and including #173.




#169
What did this issue provide that we didn't know from Strange Tales #115?
It's a solid issue, but it's literally a retelling of his origin.
Stephen, you're the sorcerer supreme and you still smoke?!
Bruh....think of your health man!


#170
Lmfao so
- Strange beat Nightmare with his cloak of levitation? I mean I know it's not an ordinary cloak, but still.....man it's got his own will, doesn't it!

- Ancient One, are you dense? You think this is some kind of game?! For a man of his age and how wise he's supposed to be....he does make some questionable decisions.


#171
At last...Dormammu has returned!
Last time we saw him in Strange Tales issue 146!


#172
I like this issue, because it provides the reader where Dormammu has been up to all this time in the aftermath of Dormammu vs Eternity.



#173
Interesting way how the orb of agamotto works. Put your hands on it and voila....you have now added some extra juice to the person you are looking at.

Stephen hasn't really beaten Dormammu this time, only forced him to leave with the winds of watoomb!
Epic issue! Finally I get to see more of Clea actually doing something.

The Ancient One did several things that made me wonder what the heck he was thinking. As for Clea finally doing something... Poor Clea was used as a damsel in distress plot device more than a person with her own agency for years. I found it to be annoying.

[Albert1981]

Funny, I was reading through an old CBR article from almost a decade ago. A passage in it related to Doctor Strange caught my attention:

"Asked about Doctor Stange, Arune Singh pointed to the "Doctor Strange: Season One" graphic novel coming up from Greg Pak and Emma Rios. Axel Alonso said "there's no lack of love for Doctor Strange, but we need to work out what Marvel magic is." The editors do not want a deus ex machina style of magic, Alonso said. "It's elusive-as soon as we figure it out, you'll see 'Doctor Strange' #1."

This article and passage was published in 2012. Marvel Comics apparently STILL hasn't "worked out what Marvel magic is!" But apparently Marvel Studios has. It just floors me that mythological characters in the Thor franchise, cosmic characters in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, and magical characters like Doctor Strange, Loki and the Scarlet Witch are VERY popular on screen, but are not nearly as prominent on the printed page. I consider Iron Fist, Moon Knight, Ghost Rider and to some extent Blade to be STREET LEVEL characters despite their supernatural status. I DON'T consider them to be all that "magical".

[Phoenixx9]

I always hated how they used to make Clea appear weak or be captured as if she had no powers.

I would love to see Clea in animation and on screen!

[Clea]

I'm very fond of the story in Sorcerer Supreme 1-2, Nov. 1988, Jan. 1989, written by Peter Gillis. While Strange is astral projecting to investigate an apparent mystical being, back at the Sanctum Dormammu possesses Strange's body. Not good! To hide from Dormammu, Strange possesses the body of a rat. He has some rat adventures, performs earth magic to invoke Gaea for aid, and wields an immensely powerful magical amulet, all while his astral self is possessing the body of the rat. With last second help from a couple of surprise appearances, it all turns out well in the end. The panel of rat-Strange contemplating his next steps always amuses me, I think because he looks so serious, even as a rat. It was a heck of a fine way to kick off that run of Sorcerer Supreme, IMO.

[DigiCom]

Funny, I was reading through an old CBR article from almost a decade ago. A passage in it related to Doctor Strange caught my attention:

"Asked about Doctor Stange, Arune Singh pointed to the "Doctor Strange: Season One" graphic novel coming up from Greg Pak and Emma Rios. Axel Alonso said "there's no lack of love for Doctor Strange, but we need to work out what Marvel magic is." The editors do not want a deus ex machina style of magic, Alonso said. "It's elusive-as soon as we figure it out, you'll see 'Doctor Strange' #1."

This article and passage was published in 2012. Marvel Comics apparently STILL hasn't "worked out what Marvel magic is!" But apparently Marvel Studios has. It just floors me that mythological characters in the Thor franchise, cosmic characters in the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise, and magical characters like Doctor Strange, Loki and the Scarlet Witch are VERY popular on screen, but are not nearly as prominent on the printed page. I consider Iron Fist, Moon Knight, Ghost Rider and to some extent Blade to be STREET LEVEL characters despite their supernatural status. I DON'T consider them to be all that "magical".

More like "Our pet writers don't like the old rules, so we have to BS new ones".

Strange has NEVER been a "deus ex machina" character. It's only unimaginative writers who think he is.

While I don't hold Sanderson in as high esteem as you (until this thread, I'd barely heard of him), his comments about magic are pretty solid.

[Oberon]

I've started with Doctor Strange solo comic 169-183.

I've read the issues up until and including #173.




#169
What did this issue provide that we didn't know from Strange Tales #115?
It's a solid issue, but it's literally a retelling of his origin.
Stephen, you're the sorcerer supreme and you still smoke?!
Bruh....think of your health man!

When that came out I was around 12 and though the smoking seemed "very adult" to me - it was the late '60s or so, right,

the context is very different for those of us who grew up with smokers and smoking everywhere.

Doc seemed quite cool. Nick Fury cool. Must be the Steranko art?

** edit. The first origin story I saw, as the referenced earlier issue was when I was probably 10 and just not quite there yet in terms of reading comics. So quite new to me at the time.

[Clea]

More like "Our pet writers don't like the old rules, so we have to BS new ones".

Strange has NEVER been a "deus ex machina" character. It's only unimaginative writers who think he is.

While I don't hold Sanderson in as high esteem as you (until this thread, I'd barely heard of him), his comments about magic are pretty solid.

I think it was a combination of factors: writers not liking the old rules because the rules of Marvel magic (possibly because the existing rules made Strange more powerful than 99% of the non-magical character set so he was hard to use well in a non-magic focused story), with writers who simply didn't know the rules so they would borrow Strange into their stories and have him hand-wave a solution to their plot.

In either case, I agree with you that it's only unimaginative writers (and fans) who think that Strange is a deus ex machina character who needs to be somehow 'fixed' so that he plays well with the other characters.

[MRP]

I've started with Doctor Strange solo comic 169-183.

I've read the issues up until and including #173.




#169
What did this issue provide that we didn't know from Strange Tales #115?
It's a solid issue, but it's literally a retelling of his origin.

A couple of things to remember from that era-

-Doc's origin hadn't been seen in years and audiences turned over every 4-6 years, long time readers were the exception not the rule

-so likely no one had seen Doc's origin as reprints, trades, the internet and comic shops really weren't a part of the landscape and unless you happened to have a copy of that Strange Tales issue, you would have never seen Doc's origin.

-Doc 169 was the first issue ever to have Doctor Strange as its title and while not a #1, it was a first issue of sorts and was likely to bring in new readers who were seeing that title for the first time and curious who the reader was

In that context, it made perfect sense to do a retelling of Doc's origin story in that issue as it provided all the audience that had started reading after the Strange Tales issue and had never seen the origin a chance to learn Doc's origin.

-M

[Tulku]

I'm very fond of the story in Sorcerer Supreme 1-2, Nov. 1988, Jan. 1989, written by Peter Gillis. While Strange is astral projecting to investigate an apparent mystical being, back at the Sanctum Dormammu possesses Strange's body. Not good! To hide from Dormammu, Strange possesses the body of a rat. He has some rat adventures, performs earth magic to invoke Gaea for aid, and wields an immensely powerful magical amulet, all while his astral self is possessing the body of the rat. With last second help from a couple of surprise appearances, it all turns out well in the end. The panel of rat-Strange contemplating his next steps always amuses me, I think because he looks so serious, even as a rat. It was a heck of a fine way to kick off that run of Sorcerer Supreme, IMO.

Ah! The Wings of Needless Sorrow! One of my favorite mystical objects--exceptionally powerful, but with the catch that it makes the unwary do that which will cause themselves the most harm. One of its major attributes is that it allows a sorcerer to steal the power of spells used against you and add it to your own power. But the catch is always there. I have long wished that some writer would come along to explore the Wings more thoroughly.

[Clea]

Ah! The Wings of Needless Sorrow! One of my favorite mystical objects--exceptionally powerful, but with the catch that it makes the unwary do that which will cause themselves the most harm. One of its major attributes is that it allows a sorcerer to steal the power of spells used against you and add it to your own power. But the catch is always there. I have long wished that some writer would come along to explore the Wings more thoroughly.

It is a fascinating and incredibly dark amulet, created by the Great Old Ones before mankind appeared on Earth. Strange used it himself for a while when he felt unworthy because he'd used black magic - a foolish thing for him to have done, IMO, since this amulet is cursed and causes the intense feelings of despair and destruction if you're exposed to it for too long. Ebony Maw used it to control Strange's mind and summon Shuma Gorath in the 2013 Infinity tie in Mighty Avengers #2, written by Al Ewing. I don't recall if it's been used since.

[Albert1981]

More like "Our pet writers don't like the old rules, so we have to BS new ones".

Strange has NEVER been a "deus ex machina" character. It's only unimaginative writers who think he is.

While I don't hold Sanderson in as high esteem as you (until this thread, I'd barely heard of him), his comments about magic are pretty solid.

Well, you should know by now that I'm very easily impressed. I agree with you about Sanderson's comments regarding magic. I found some comments online you might agree with:

"Marvel apparently sees it to be perfectly fine to use Strange as their own “fix things up” plot device whenever a writer plots himself into a corner. They really should just rename him Dr. Deus ex Machina. The tragic irony in Marvel’s handling of Dr. Strange as a Deus ex Machina, is that they have allowed him to be used as such – and despite their protestations of same, continue to do so. But it is this very treatment that they have seen fit to label as a character flaw, when in fact the flaw is with the writers and editors.

To counterbalance this trend, this has led to Strange being used to show how big a threat is, by its presenting him with a hard time, if not a total defeat, so that the other, more popular heroes can swoop in and save the day. This Marvel thinks allows the reader to see the threat level, as well as a means to an end by which Strange can be “taken down a peg”. Unfortunately, this occurs so often that it seems that there isn’t much Strange can actually do anymore."

So basically Strange is a victim of the "Worf Effect" because he's perceived to be as too strong by Marvel?!

[Albert1981]

It is a fascinating and incredibly dark amulet, created by the Great Old Ones before mankind appeared on Earth. Strange used it himself for a while when he felt unworthy because he'd used black magic - a foolish thing for him to have done, IMO, since this amulet is cursed and causes the intense feelings of despair and destruction if you're exposed to it for too long. Ebony Maw used it to control Strange's mind and summon Shuma Gorath in the 2013 Infinity tie in Mighty Avengers #2, written by Al Ewing. I don't recall if it's been used since.

Looks like Stephen has been done with shirts for some time now.