who's enjoying the current run of Doctor strange by Jason Aaron ?

[Moriarty]

The problem is, they KEEP depowering him. The last time was in NEw Avengers, between 2008 and 2010. And he'd been written as underpowered even earlier.

(Anyone else remember "magic can't duplicate what science has created"?)

It's deeply irritating that he FINALLY gets an ongoing again, after being treated like a skunk-haired stepchild for so long... only to see him written out of character and stripped of everything that makes him interesting. And for what... synergy with an upcoming movie that isn't even following Aaron's nebulous "Magic has a price and you have to eat garbage" philosophy?

Meh.

i think it was only natural. especially how powered up he was during Hickman's stories.

[Of Atlantis]

You mean like how magic is utterly destroyed in Doctor Strange... and pretty much every other book with a magic-using character isn't affected?

That's why I said hopefully. I wish Strange had spawned spinoff books coming from Last Days of Magic starring character we already know. Would be interesting seeing some of them struggle with the new status quo. Of course, this status quo is far from permanent, I can only assume. Maybe those books with magic characters either exist before LDoM or after that's been solved.

[Lee Stone]

It WAS done ages ago, in the first run of OFFICIAL HANDBOOK TO THE MARVEL UNIVERSE. And re-iterated almost a decade ago in MARVEL TAROT. The problem is, too many writers ignored it.

I'm dumfounded that, despite their desire to have concrete restrictions and rules on magic, they simply ignore the setup that was defined in the Handbook (and even more plainly explained for people in the Realms of Magic sourcebook).
It was near perfect.

[Strangefan]

I am always happy to have new stories surround Doctor Strange. Each writer, through the years, has their own interpretation. As long as it had magic, Strange's cunning and perserverance and could usually handle it. The only thing that has gotten me through this current series is that perserverance, because so much of the current mag ignores everything in his past. Well, everything good. To me, the biggest problem with stories in comics is that it takes so long to tell them. Seeing Strange, and magic, torn apart for a year with no end in sight is trying. I need a little oasis of hope here and there, not being b%$$ch slapped left and right. The old Strange comics, even in the darkest of times reminded the reader that Doctor Strange has hope, and the ability to see the finest sliver of light. Now it is all eating really weird things (and I like octopus, but not alive) and wielding axes. The axe part I could get around, but I really hate magic has eternal damaging cost, but Science nerds can create endlessly overnight the most fantastical machine. I think Marvel has magic and science confused.

I do like the Bar with no Doors, and I most certainly agree Strange's mag should be a place for all Marvel magic users to visit. I just want Aaron to get around to the world building, now that he has so devastatingly destroyed all the wonder in Strange's world.

[Aliltron]

I'll admit that I don't know much of Dr. Strange at all but I've really enjoyed this run so far. I can see how many wouldn't like the "death" of magic angle but I've found it to be a really interesting take on the character. I especially love how Aaron has brought in quite a few other "magic users" from the MU to fight with Strange. I also really enjoy the art. I wouldn't say it's one of my favorite Marvel books right now, but I do enjoy it a lot.

[DigiCom]

I think that's the key, really.

The readers who aren't familiar with the character, and hence are coming at the book cold, enjoy it for what it is.

But the longtime fans... not so much. This Strange is almost unrecognizable, and most of the new elements Aaron has added do not feel (IMO, anyway) as interesting as what has been retconned away, especially since the basic plot is almost the same as his early THOR run.

Two audiences, two disparate reactions.

In all fairness, however, I don't really have a problem with the art, and I do like the Bar With No Doors. It's really the radical shift in character and theoretical underpinnings that turn me off.

[Reviresco]

There's a price to pay for reading Aaron and Bachalo's Doctor Strange.

It causes bleeding of the eyes, nausea, headaches from constant face palming, and a general malaise with Marvel that can ultimately end in death of interest in Doctor Strange if not _all_ Marvel books. Avoid at all cost.