Some regular Marvel moviegoers seemed surprised, even shocked, that “Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” is part horror film and has elements of the occult. He isn’t known as the “Sorcerer Supreme” for nothing.
Both of these elements have been a part of Dr. Strange in comics for decades, ever since Stan Lee and Steve Ditko created the character in the 1960s.
“The Death of Dr. Strange” continues this tradition.
Dr. Strange is killed off in the recent Marvel miniseries/crossover event.
While many people are ready to avenge his death and search for a possible suspect, only one person can solve the crime: Dr. Strange.
Early in his career as the Sorcerer Supreme and “Master of Black Magic”, which was the character’s original designation, Dr. Strange created a contingency plan for the possibility of Earth being left without a chief sorcerer. He cut a week out of his chronological timeline to use at a later date if needed.
With the older Dr. Strange dead, the younger Dr. Strange returns with a week to solve the crime and rectify the lack of a Sorcerer Supreme.
This element makes for what arguably should be a tragedy, after all, it is titled “The Death of Dr. Strange,” a fun adventure crime thriller. Even funnier, young Dr. Strange bears a strong resemblance to the character originally drawn by Ditko. Young Strange’s speech owes much to Lee’s dialogue for the character in the ’60s with its rhythmic cadences and alliterative oaths: “By the grizzled hosts of Hoggoth.”
As with most comic book characters, “death” is not final for superheroes, villains, supporting characters, etc. from Marvel or DC. Therefore, anyone looking for the collected issues of this miniseries should not be surprised or shocked to see the new adventures of Dr. Strange now available.
But it’s fun to see the return of the character compared to the character he has become.
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