Doctor Strange #400 (Marvel)
Mark Waid (w) Various (a)
One of the first wave of marvel's characters created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, Doctor Strange first appeared in Strange Tales #110 way back in 1963 and didn't even feature on the cover. Doctor Strange took over the title during Marvel's sixties expansion but sadly his solo title did not last.
There have been several Doctor Strange series over the years and this is the latest having reached a mere 10 issues so far but with the addition of "legacy numbering" the goof Dosctor reaches a landmark 400 issues.
The whole "feel" of the Doctors world of magic was wonderfully dreamed up by the late, great Steve Ditko who drew Doc's early adventures. Dorammu, the Mindless Ones the strange dimensions and imagery and Clea all stem from Ditko's pencils.
The recent Doctor Strange movie revived the character though revisionist in it's presentation as the need for "diversity" led to to the Ancient one changing sex.
Image: By Source, Fair use
However in this comic the proper status quo is re-established as the Ancient One re-appears from the Astral world and is human again. His magic stolen by an unknown enemy. Stephen has to keep the Ancient One alive and train him in the arts of magic again. The pupil turned teacher.
And the threat explored and it's a strange one indeed, unfortunately continued in the next issue as the book contains several short stories after a blinding opening that abruptly ends.
Tales of bullying, dreams and the origin of the Doctor all appear as back up tales. I'll have to see if I can get a back order for the next few issues to continue the story. It is good. And weird.
Rating: 5 Stars
No comments:
Post a Comment