Mania Grade: C-

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Info:

• Title: Strange #1
• Writer: Mark Waid
• Artist: Emma Rios
• Color Artist: Christina Strain
• Letterer: Todd Klein
• Publisher: Marvel Comics
• Publication Date: November 11, 2009
• Price: $2.99
• Series:

STRANGE #1 Review

STRANGE #1 Review
© Mania

Stephen Strange has lost the title of Sorcerer Supreme. As the brief recap on the first page of the book shows us, his arrogance has cost him the use of his hands as well as his mastery over the mystic arts. Shamed and humiliated, he attends a baseball game where he finds out that the visiting team’s players are actually demons who’ve shown up to collect on a deal that a losing team made with Tul’uth, the Lord High Incubus of Games and Chance.

No, I’m totally serious.

So Doct… excuse me, Stephen Strange teams up with the granddaughter of the team’s owner, works a little magic and plays a game of baseball in order to ensure that a swirling vortex doesn’t consume the souls of everyone in attendance.

The Good

I gotta give it to Mark Waid for coming up with a good idea here. The whole “selling our souls for a championship” thing and the idea of a cursed baseball team is a pretty clever one. And maybe if I was a bigger baseball fan, I might’ve cared.

It’s Mark Waid and Mark Waid is a good writer. Despite my complete lack of interest in baseball and my “meh” feeling in regard to the art (it wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t my style), I have to say that I was totally into the story from beginning to end. The characters were handled well for the most part and the story was sound and it built to a nice climax. I didn’t hate it.

The Bad

I guess my main complaint is that I felt a little cheated. Strange’s recent use of black magic and the somber tone of his previous appearances throughout the Marvel Universe, combined with the ominous figure on the cover surrounded by arcane symbols, led me to believe we were getting a serious comic featuring a deposed Sorcerer Supreme. Instead we got a funny story about baseball and demons. It was a good story, I guess, but quite a letdown.

I’ll admit that Emma Rios is a talented artist even though the whole pseudo-manga thing doesn’t really do much for me, nor did the bright colors that appeared as though they would continue to glow if I read this book in a dark closet. Again – not necessarily a bad thing, but just not what I was looking for.

I thought the foreshadowing with the obvious future sidekick was like a giant neon sign pointing you in the direction this book would be taking. And why the hell don’t they just call him Doctor Strange? He is a doctor – a medical doctor. It’s not like Doctor Strange is his superhero code name; it’s his name! It’s his actual, real name yet he introduced himself as “Doctor St – never mind. Just call me Stephen.” Okay, I get it, he’s not the same man he once was, blah, blah, blah… it’s just kind of dumb. My opinion.

STRANGE #1 cover by Tom Coker

The Bottom Line

Had this story appeared as a backup feature somewhere, I’d probably be sitting here telling you it was a charming little throwaway yarn that fans of America’s Pastime will undoubtedly enjoy. And perhaps you will enjoy it! As I said, it isn’t necessarily bad; I just thought it was kind of stupid. I didn’t see any real promise of an exploration of Stephen Strange’s character or the humiliation he felt at being stripped of his title or anything of the sort. And I certainly didn’t feel it was worth the three bucks they’re charging you for it.

That being said, it didn’t exactly offend me with its terrible quality either. I didn’t throw the book in the trash with disgust after trudging my way through it. I just wasn’t that impressed. It’s terribly clichéd and totally predictable, but still a decent read if that makes any sense. If you’re just looking for a book that doesn’t have all the dark n’ dreary stuff usually associated with Marvel (and magic) comics, then maybe Strange will be a good fit for you. Personally, I think the character deserves better, especially considering what he’s been through recently.