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Author Topic: Dr. Strange
doublechinner
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No thread for [Dr. Strange: The Oath]? No Stephen Strange fans among the Legionati, besides me? I started reading Dr. Strange in some teeny-tiny paperback reprints of the original Lee/Ditko run. I love the character, just as I love his DC counterpart, Dr. Fate.

Having read most of what has been published for the Sorcerer Supreme, I think Vaughn and Martin's take is one of the best ever. Vaughn's Strange is arrogant but still heroic, and fiercely loyal to his friends, the way the character should be.

Playing off his past as a surgeon seems like a great idea, and so far not too deconstructionist for my taste. The character always had this duality in him -- the arrogant surgeon and the humble mystic -- that probably informed Lee's characterization, but was never exploited so explicitly.

And, the Night Nurse is an awesome character--her existence seems a perfectly logical extension of a Marvel Universe where outcast heroes actually bleed. Of course, I would expect that Spider-Man is waiting in the ER at Bellevue, because he can't use his health insurance without revealing his secret identity (Oops. I forgot.)

Marcos Martin's art style strikes me as a Marvel/Strange analog to Bruce Timm and Darwyn Cooke, taking the iconic art style and making it live for a contemporary world. Beautiful stuff. Easily the best take on Strange since Rogers and Austin.

This book is loads better than JMS's ponderous, wonderless and depressing retcon of the origin from a couple of years ago.

[Edited to rm "The Oath" from thread title]

[ March 03, 2011, 12:32 PM: Message edited by: Reboot ]

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...but you don't have a moment where you're sitting there staring at a table full of twenty-five characters with little name signs that say, "Hi, my superpower is confusing you!"

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ActorLad
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I really want to be picking this up now but do to my sitch I'll have to wait till the tpb comes out.

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walkwithcrowds
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This is on my pull list but I haven't been to my CBS in a while, due to present buying so I am skint.
I have heard lot's of good things about it.

Doublechinner, what did you think of "Strange" from a couple of years back?
I quite liked it but Marvel seem to be a bit reticent about what continuity this follows.
Was it a failed reboot or does the new series follow on from it (or does it stick to the established history)?

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Be lucky

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profh0011
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Some of my favorite art from the early 70's...


http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/drstrange/MP%2011.jpg
http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/drstrange/DS%2003.jpg
http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/drstrange/DS%2003%20p01.jpg
http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/mte/MTE%2006.jpg
http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/mte/MTE%2006%20back.jpg
http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/mte/MTE%2006%20pin-up.jpg


Isn't it disgraceful this guy left the book because he said he was "bored"?

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profh0011
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Bob Larkin's cover the the Simon & Shuster book...

http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/drstrange/DS%201979%20tpb.jpg


After so many thick volumes, I suspect someone at Marvel decided, instead of
putting out ONE big book this year, HEY, let's put out FOUR skinny ones! More
money to squeeze out of the SUCKERS...


Larkin did a lot of paperback books, including a run of DOC SAVAGE, and while
this looks nice, it's far from his best work. Come to think of it, MOST of these
S&S collections have DULL-as-dishwater covers, and BLAND-beyond-belief design.


I mean, if you're gonna do a a book collecting stories of ONE character,
wouldn't it make more sense to use that character's LOGO? I've asked this
before, and always, some SMARTASS will say (taking the side of some anonymous
book publisher employee or design firm freelander), "Oh, they probably wanted it
to appeal to general audiences". B***S***!!!


Listen, I went to art school for 2 years, and I had "typography" for 6 months.
One of the main ideas that sunk in was, you come up with a logo for a product,
and you use that logo-- EVERYWHERE. Look at the rock band CHICAGO. Same logo
from their 2nd album all the way to today! That's called "product
identification".


Compare the S&S Doc book's logo (or utter lack thereof) with the following...


the "Treasury" logo...
http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/mte/MTE%2006.jpg


the 70's logo...
http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/drstrange/DS%2021.jpg


the late-60's logo..
http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/drstrange/DS%20177.jpg


Doc went thru multiple logos over the years, my own favorite is the one used
when Roy Thomas & Gene Colan were on the book. It was quite noticeable when, a
FEW issues into a revival of the title decades later, they brought back the
"Roy" logo with the very issue HE got back on the book for a good long run.


When I did my "DR. WEIRD" cover for Gary Carlson (still unused), I did it as a
tribute to the late-60's era, right down to the logo...

http://www.webspawner.com/users/zodiaccomics/imageGallery/DW_pin-up%2002_website.JPG

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Reboot
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Oh, those are hardly the only logos Strange has had...

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My favourites of those are the second-from-top in the left column, and the third-from-top in the right column...

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My views are my own and do not reflect those of everyone else... and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Cobalt, Reboot & iB present 21st Century Legion: Earth War.

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profh0011
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Well, that saves me the trouble of looking them all up!


While the "70's" version sure lasted a long time, I have the feeling they came up with that mostly fit fit it under that stupid "MGC" BANNER that defaced every one of their books for about a decade.

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Set
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I like Reboots choices as well, although the third down on the right is my total favorite.

Second or third down in the middle column are the ones I remember from my own collecting days.

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profh0011
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2 versions of the same cover (sort of)... one UGH-LEE, and the other, one I really like...


http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/drstrange/DEF%20DOT%2001.jpg

http://www.samcci.nostromo.no/drstrange/DEF%20Ess%2001A.jpg

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