Random Longbox

TITLE: Doctor Strange #2

PUBLISHER: Marvel Comics

COVER DATE: August 1974

COVER PRICE: $0.25

18 pages


WHAT I REMEMBER...

I love me some good Doctor Strange. Unfortunately, for as long as he's been around there's been a lot more chaff than wheat. Luckily for us, that Randomizer gave us a heaping helping of the good stuff. This was Doctor Strange's first self-titled series, and the first couple of dozen issues are some of my favorites.

The icing on the cake? The first half a dozen of those featured some truly epic art by Frank Brunner. There are three people that tackled the good doctor, that in my opinion are the holy trinity of Doctor Strange artists. Steve Ditko set the stage for Doc and his world in the Silver Age. Frank Brunner then came on and amped things up for the Bronze Age. And for the Modern Age, it doesn't get any better than Jackson Guice. That right there is about all you need as far as Doctor Strange is concerned.

The best of the crop from the 70's run are the issues that verged on the trippy. This issue falls squarely in that category as Doc is trapped in the Orb of Agamotto, fighting for his astral life while his body lies mortally wounded in the real world. The main protagonist for this particular story is the less than threatening Silver Dagger, but he's sidelined for the most part, as Strange desperately searches for a way out of the Orb.

Let's not waste any more time talking about it, and read it already...

A Separate Reality

• Co-Plotters: Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner
• Author: Steve Englehart
• Artist: Frank Brunner
• Inker: Dick Giordano
• Colorist: Frank Brunner
• Lettering: John Costanza
• Editor: Roy Thomas

And for those of you coming in late to the party, here's a recap of what happened last issue, right on page one.

So maybe the Silver Dagger stabbed him in the back instead of beheading him, but the dramatization is for the benefit of Clea who was taken prisoner by Silver Dagger last issue. It's his hope that seeing her beloved mistreated in this fashion, will break her spirit. Clea may be new to the realm of sorcery, but she's no dummy. She knows that if anyone can defeat the Silver Dagger, it's Doctor Strange.

Speaking of Doctor Strange, let's check in with him within the realm of the Orb of Agamotto.

Yikes...a winged, soul sucking space worm! Good thing Clea can't see this, as her confidence in Stephen would be sorely tested as his soul gets sucked up and swallowed whole.

What she doesn't know, is that Doc is about to get some help from some unlikely allies. First among them? The Silver Surfer.

So while the Surfer thinks he has arrived too late to save another victim of the Soul-Eater, what he doesn't realize is that the victim was Doctor Strange. Even without a mortal body, he is far from defenseless. Attacking the central nervous system of the creature, he manages to get himself vomited back to what passes for reality inside the orb.

Curiously, the Surfer does not recognize Doctor Strange. Since they've been team mates for the last two years, that can only mean that the Orb is pulling images from Doc's mind and making them manifest in its realm to interact with him. Their first task? Find his body, which has decided to go on a bit of a walkabout after having the soul sucked from it by the Soul Eater.

Following it's rambling footprints, they trail the mortal shell to a strange castle. What's even stranger is what they find inside the castle.

All right all you heroes, it's time to get crazy drunk on some off the Hulk's tea. And you don't turn down a cup of Hulk's tea, as that would make him angry...and you wouldn't like him very much when he's angry.

Reunited with his body, Doctor Strange is willing to throw caution to the wind and not only refuse Hulk's tea, but decides to leave the party early as well. Bad move, Doc.

Doctor Strange manages a spell or two of obfuscation that has the Defenders attacking phantom versions of himself. That leaves them wide open for a whammy of a spell that knocks 'em all unconscious, right as the Soul-Eater returns.

Luckily for Doctor Strange, not all of orb-created manifestations were quite as reactionary. With the help of the Silver Surfer and Valkyrie, they deduce that the Soul-Eater will keep on coming as Doc is the only one in the orb with an actual soul. To save himself, he must confront death itself at the center of the orb. Only then will he be able to free himself and return to the mortal world to save his beloved Clea.

With Valkyrie's winged horse as his guide, Doctor Strange closes out the issue heading right for the center of the Orb of Agamotto...sure of himself, and his actions, for the first time in a long time.

SO, WHAT DID WE LEARN...

First and foremost, never turn down tea with the Hulk. If he doesn't get his regular dose of caffeine, look out!

Do you think he favors green tea or gray? I guess it depends on what his skin color at the time is. Do they have red tea?

Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner craft a well done tale, putting Doctor Strange through a series of challenges where he must use his mind in a world where the reality is a warped version of his memories. It allows just the right amount of trippyness, while giving him plenty of foes to battle, both familiar and bizarre.

I always love a good Doctor Strange story where he's essentially fighting himself, or manifestations pulled from his consciousness or powers, and this one doesn't disappoint. The use of the Defenders as visualizations of the superhero world as seen through the twisted lens of the Orb is the perfect meta-commentary on the team itself. Strange, bizarre, and seemingly thrown together at random with nothing but a vague sense of camaraderie (or Hulk's tea) holding them together.

Frank Brunner's artwork is just as good as I remember, truly shining when he gets to let loose with dimensions and perspective inside the surreal world of the Orb. It's a shame that we only got five or six issues with him on the art, but it's a testament to his talent that they loom so large in my memory.

All in all, this was a heckuva book and definitely one of the highlights of the Bronze Age. I only wish that they could capture this sense of what makes a good Doctor Strange story and apply it to today's Doctor Strange.

A while back Mrs. Random Longbox, who happens to be a fine art photographer in her secret identity, was commissioned to take some photos. One of her specialties is taking pictures of old (and sometimes forgotten) toys, imbuing them with character and giving them a chance to come to life again.

So during the recent hectic summer festival season, my wife was approached by a fan who wondered if she could do the same for a favorite toy of hers, one filled with sentimental meaning. Never one to let a good challenge go to waste, she agreed and anxiously awaited the toy's arrival in the mail.

So what was that toy, and why does it warrant a blog posting all its own here? Take a look...

I don't know what's cooler...the fact that my wife was commissioned out of the blue to take pictures of an Aquaman action figure, or that she got such awesome pictures out of it.

Here was my favorite of the bunch...

While the wife liked this one...

Not to be outdone, here was my four year old son's contribution...

If you enjoyed this peek into my wife's portfolio and are curious to see more, or are looking to add some fine art into your life, click here and be sure to tell her that some crazy comic book blogger sent you.

And speaking of said blogger, it's been a week so let's get to picking the next random book to review. Take it away Randomizer...

...and that book is Doctor Strange #2 from August 1974, published by Marvel Comics!

It's actually been almost a year and a half since we last go to read an issue from Doc's first series. It also has an appearance from one of my new favorite super teams, The Defenders. I haven't re-read this issue since I've discovered my fascination with the Defenders, so I'm looking forward to reading it again.

Plus, it's got some glorious Frank Brunner art. It's been over thirty years, but his rendition of Doctor Strange definitely ranks in the top three.

See you in a day or two for the review.

TITLE: Strange Tales #123

PUBLISHER: Marvel Comics

COVER DATE: August 1964

COVER PRICE: $0.12

8 pages


WHAT I REMEMBER...

We're finishing up the last of the three reprints from Giant-Size Marvel Triple Action #2, so there's not a whole lot of new insight to bring to the preamble at this point.

Steve Ditko makes his reappearance here the Random Longbox, after being absent for more than a year. He's illustrating a Dr. Strange story this time around, which makes me downright giddy. Throw in the fact that we'll get to see his version of Thor as well, and I may not be able to concentrate enough to do the review.

Sorry for the bit of excess hyperbole, all of these Stan Lee issues in a row must be rubbing off on me.

My apologies also to anyone who stumbles upon this review after googling the issue number, looking to read about the debut of the Beetle. We're technically reviewing the Giant-Size Marvel Triple Action #2 and it only includes the Dr. Strange story, not the Human Torch and Thing team-up against the Beetle. And not to get too sidetracked, but I just googled the original cover and boy did the Beetle have an awesomely retro costume. It makes me sad that that's not the one I'm familiar with from my reading.

"The Challenge of Loki!"

• Written by Stan (Miracle Man) Lee
• Illustrated by Steve (Marvel Man) Ditko
• Inked by George Roussos
• Lettered by Art (Magical Man) Simek

So what did George do to piss off Stan this month that he didn't get a merry Marvel moniker added to his credit?

It's an average day in the Sanctum Santorum that finds Dr. Strange practicing the mystic arts that make him the Sorcerer Supreme. Unfortunately for the good doctor, he's being watched by none other than Loki, the Asgardian God of Lies! With Loki forced to stay on Asgard by Odin himself, he needs to dupe somebody else into doing his dirty work for him. Who better than a mere mortal like Dr. Strange.

Using his spirit type, Loki appears before Dr. Strange to plead for his help. Appearing in chains, he explains to Dr. Strange that Thor has been fooling everybody into thinking he's a force for justice. In reality, he's been plotting to conquer mankind. Only Loki stands in his way, if only he wasn't bound by these damnable chains he could act to stop Thor!


A quick check with doc's magic amulet, and he can feel the evil in those chains. Loki explains that only the hammer of Thor can set him free, and he appeals to Dr. Strange to use his mystical powers to snatch it from the god of thunder.

Using a sliver of the leather handle that Loki has stolen from Thor long ago as an anchor of sorts, Dr. Strange calls upon Dormammu, Vishanti, and the Hosts of Hoggoth to create a giant mechanical hand that goes forth to steal the mighty Mjolnar.

While Loki is distracted by the sight of Thor falling to his death without his hammer to keep him aloft, Dr. Strange does a little investigating of his own. His magical amulet reveals that there is no evil to be found in the strand of leather from the handle of Mjolnar. The evil coming from the chains that he sensed earlier could not have come from Thor, so it must be Loki up to his old tricks.

An epic battle breaks out between a Sorcerer Supreme and an Asgardian god. Neither are able to gain the upper hand, until Loki pulls out a secret weapon.


Using the energy bands generated by his horns, Loki traps Dr. Strange in a shimmering cage. Calling upon the might of his amulet once again, Dr. Strange is able to counteract Loki's energy bands with a little light show all his own. When all of the smoke clears, there stands six separate sorcerers supreme!

While Loki is distracted in dealing with the duplicate Dr. Strange's, the real deal uses his astral form to sneak up behind Loki and reverse the spell which he used to steal Thor's hammer. With Thor now reunited with Mjolnar, and closing fast on the Sanctum Santorum, Loki realizes that the jig is up and he beats a hasty retreat back to Asgard.

With Loki no longer on Midgard, the hammer of Thor senses no further disruptions, and Thor continues on his way unaware of the battle that just transpired in which he was just a pawn. Doctor Strange, meanwhile, ponders the fact that he just barely beat a god and wonders what's to happen when next they meet.

SO, WHAT DID WE LEARN...

I love seeing heroes go up against villains outside their wheelhouse. You'd think that Loki would be a natural villain for Doctor Strange to match wits with, but from what I can tell there confrontations have been fairly limited. There's this story, an early appearance in Dr. Strange, and a three-parter in The Defenders (there are those pesky Defenders again, I swear I just need to bite the bullet and buy a complete run).

This story is rather simple, but it was fun seeing the two go toe-to-toe with the fancy light shows and contorted hand signs. The fact that Steve Ditko supplies the visuals makes the battle look more dramatic than it probably was.

Thor's appearance was altogether too brief, which basically just teased us with Ditko's versions of the Norse gods. His Doctor Strange is the real draw, and we got a nice three page battle out of it.

All in all, this is a great little 8-pager from the glory days of Marvel's Silver Age.

TITLE: Dr. Strange, Sorcerer Supreme #41

PUBLISHER: Marvel

COVER DATE: May 1992

COVER PRICE: $1.75

22 pages


WHAT I REMEMBER...

I gave Doctor Strange a lot of leeway in the 90’s, collecting this title up until it got knee deep into the Midnight Sons crossover, by which point it was near unreadable. The mid 90’s was not a kind period for the good doctor, as it seemed like there were more company wide crossovers and tie-ins happening than not. I’ve always preferred Dr. Strange working on the periphery of the Marvel universe, and all of the constant line-wide events seemed to draw him closer and closer to the mainstream superhero shenanigans.

There were, however, a couple of highlights. I remember Mark Buckingham’s run with Warren Ellis and J.M. DeMatteis that closed out this series as being really good. Too bad it didn’t set the sales charts on fire, as the title was cancelled within 10 issues.

The other interesting run was the twenty or so issues when Geof Isherwood was doing the artwork. I don’t remember the stories being especially strong or memorable, but the artwork was good. Geof eventually took over writing chores from Roy Thomas, but it was clear by that time that the title was in decline. It was only a matter of time before Marvel would do something drastic...enter Midnight Sons.

This particular issue is early on in Geof Isherwood’s run, and appears to be a filler issue featuring Wolverine. I’d like to say I remember something about it, but with all of the Wolverine guest-stars happening around this time, they all just sort of blur together.

A Wolverine At The Door

• Writer: Roy Thomas
• Artist: Geof Isherwood
• Co-Plotter: Jean-Marc Lofficier
• Letterer: Pat Brosseau
• Colorist: George Roussos
• Editor: Mike Rockwitz
• Editor in Chief: Tom DeFalco

It’s the middle of the night, and all is quiet in Dr. Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum. Everything, that is, except for the basement where a familiar three clawed fist bursts from the floor. Pulling himself up, Wolverine makes his way upstairs into the private quarters of Stephen Strange and Clea. With a mindless stare, he begins to slash and hack at the sleeping sorcerers.


The master of the mystic arts, however, will not be surprised so easily in his own house. Floating above the bed, Dr. Strange uses all of the usual Seraphims, Hoggoths, and Agamottos to deduce that Wolverine is more than likely possessed by the N’Garai. Knowing that they will have anticipated Dr. Strange responding with magic, he decides to fight Wolverine with the martial arts skills that he learned from Wong, in an attempt to take Wolverine by surprise.


Proving that she is more than mere arm-candy, Clea throws an enchanted silver dagger to Stephen, which he uses stab Wolverine. Out of the wound seeps the evil essence that was controlling him. Dr. Strange uses a Scarlet Sphere of Cyttorak to trap the essence, and with the Eye of Agamotto, he sees it’s true form...The Undying Ones!

If you’re unfamiliar with the Undying Ones, Dr. Strange goes into a three page monologue about who they are. I’ll spare you the recap and give you the bullet points instead. Dr. Strange and The Defenders defeated the Undying Ones previously, but a new Nameless One know leads them. They plan on using the magical doorways called Sa’arpools to kill Dr. Strange and conquer our dimension. Now let’s get back to the action.

Dr. Strange devises a plan to shut the Sa’arpools permanently with a crystal shard containing the essence of the earth goddess Gaea, but it’s only going to work from the other side. That means that he and Wolverine are going through the doors to the world of the Undying Ones.


When they regain their footing in the monstrous dimension, Dr. Strange begins the incantation that will seal the gates for good. Before he can utter the final syllable, they are are attacked by a horde of Nameless Ones. The deomons manage to knock the crystal shard from Strange’s hand, and both it and Wolverine sink into a lake of green muck.

Wolverine fights the Undying Ones as they descend to the bottom of the muck, but they regenerate as quickly as he dispatches them. Overwhelmed, Wolverine swallows some of the muck which has the effect of transforming him and bringing out his wilder persona.


In his berserker rage, Wolverine attacks both friend and foe alike. Strange manages to struggle free and locate the crystal shard. Uttering the final syllable of his spell, the shard begins to seal the doorways and purge the demonic influence from Wolverine.

With the demons momentarily incapacitated, thanks to Wolverine and his demonic fury, they decide to make a hasty retreat through the dimensional doorway before it seals completely. Using Dr. Strange’s Cloak of Levitation, they escape just as the Undying Ones awake and give chase. Alas, the demons just aren’t quick enough as the gate completely seals behind Strange and Wolverine, just as they make their way through.


After inspecting the dimensional doorway to make sure that they are permanently closed, they decide to end the night with a drink or two. Surprisingly enough, Dr. Strange doesn’t stock beer at the sanctum santorum, but he does have some 12th century Prussian brandy that he’s been saving for a special occasion. Wolverine agrees, proving that maybe you can teach an old berserker new tricks.

SO, WHAT DID WE LEARN...

Never show up unexpectedly for a slumber party at Dr. Strange’s house, as you never know what dimension you’ll end up in. Although as a silver lining, you could do worse than kicking back when all is said and done with some 800 year old brandy.

As a filler story, this issue was mildly entertaining. I could live a happy life without ever reading another Wolverine story, but I know that’s probably not going to happen. There was really no compelling reason that this story demanded that Wolverine be in it, so I’m sure it was a sales driven decision. And who can really blame Marvel for that, when Wolverine was raking in the cash, clawed-hand over clawed-fist.

Geof Isherwood’s art was good, if a little rougher than I recall. I don’t ever remember seeing his work again after he left this title. It’s a shame, as I think his work would really shine with some state of the art coloring and production techniques.

The only real clunky part of the story was the massive continuity info-dump that Roy Thomas gives us to explain who the Undying Ones are and what their connection to Wolverine was. Honestly, if you need to bring the story to a screeching halt to try to desperately convince us that Wolverine really is integral to this particular story, you’ve probably already lost that battle.

All in all, it’s a decent enough little filler story, but at the end of the day it’s still just filler.

It's Monday, and what better way is there to celebrate the dawn of a new week with all of the challenges and opportunities it'll present than with some comic book talk. I'll start things off with some random thoughts that have been kicking around my brain over the last week.

• Stargirl needs a new costume. Ten years has been plenty long enough for the mid-thigh spandex shorts and bare midriff. Her character has matured a great deal since she was a rebellious teenage girl, becoming a super-hero to spite her step-father. After all, she's got one of the coolest looking props around with Jack Knight's cosmic staff, so it's about time she had a costume to match.



• Speaking of costumes, I'm a little underwhelmed with the Van Sciver redesigns of the Flash family in Flash Rebirth #5. Wally West's new costume is all right, but they really played it safe with that redesign. I hate the new duds for Jesse Quick. The Liberty Belle costume was a solid update on a classic costume. The new one? Not so much. The one I do really like is the new Impulse. The only problem I've ever had with Wally's kids was the overly-muscled one, so now that that's not an issue anymore I'm curious to see where this goes.



• I've long been a fan of Carlos Pacheco, keeping an eye out for his work since I first saw it on the Star Jammers mini with Warren Ellis from the mid-90's. I think I realized this week, however, that I really should've been saying that I'm a fan of Jesus Merino instead. The longtime penciller/inker team are now at different companies and you can definitely see who had the dominant style. Merino's work on Justice Society of America is everything that I've come to enjoy from their work over the past 10+ years, while Pacheco's work on Ultimate Comics Avengers looks kinda boring. His storytelling and layouts are still strong, but his pencils lack that extra punch that used to make his work stand out.



• I brought this up with the last installment of odds and sods, but it's worth mentioning again since I just read the latest issue last night. The Unwritten is still the strongest new title I've read in a long, long time. Don't let the obvious Harry Potter angle scare you off if you're not a fan of those books. I've never read a word of J.K. Rowling's work and I can't get enough of this book. Carey and Gross are doing some flat out phenomenal stuff with this title.



• Postings been a little light lately, so my apologies. Having your computer infected with annoying adware tends to make you not want to turn it on some days, and I've found that to be somewhat counterproductive to a prolific blog. If you really want to be kept in the loop for new posts here, the best way to do that is to follow the blog. Click on the FOLLOW button to the right, and help brighten my week.



• And finally, a quick shout-out is in order for the mania.com web site. If you do a google search for "Justice Society Jesus" to make sure you're spelling Jesus Merino's name right, they're listed first with a review of the comic before that other Jesus fella and all of his social justice stuff pops up. There's a website that knows how to massage the search engines!

Now that I got those out of my system, let's get the next random book picked to review.

...and that book is Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme #41 from May 1992, published by Marvel Comics!

I hope y'all have your internet sarcasm detectors on, because "Yea, it's another Marvel book from the 90's!" That's three in a row, for everybody keeping score at home. "And is that Wolverine on the cover? Woo hoo!"

In all seriousness, I'm actually surprised that we've seen so little Wolverine on the blog up to this point. This is, after all, the twenty-first book from the 90's that we've reviewed and this is the first gratuitous Wolverine guest shot so far. I say we can consider ourselves lucky.

While I'm glad to see another Dr. Strange book pop up, I am disappointed that we've once again missed the Roy Thomas/Jackson Guice run that I fondly remember. Oh well, but it's like my mom always used to say...if you live by the Randomizer, you die by the Randomizer!

And speaking of the Randomizer, it appears to have gotten itself caught in a bit of rut. Not only is it stuck on 90's Marvel books, but this is the second pick in a row (and the third pick overall) from May of 1992. So while you're waiting for the review that'll pop up in a day or two, relive the time that was May 1992 over here and here.

TITLE: Doctor Strange #26

PUBLISHER: Marvel

COVER DATE: December 1977

COVER PRICE: $0.35

17 pages


WHAT I REMEMBER...

I started reading Doctor Strange regularly with his third series, Dr. Strange, Sorcerer Supreme, in the late 80's. Mild curiosity brought me in, and the fabulous work of Jackson Guice hooked me. His work made such an impression on me at the time, that I'm still looking for a Doctor Strange book that lives up to my memories of that period.

I've since completed my collection of Doctor Strange books from his second series up to the wonderful Brian K. Vaughn and Marco Martin mini-series. With the possible exception of the latter, I've never found another period in his history that has captured my attention in the same way.

I am still reading however, and the first 40 or so issues of his second series are a run that I haven't had a chance to sit down and read in any sort of regular fashion since I have completed that run. I guess I can take solace in the fact that there's still hope.

This particular issue is the last of Jim Starlin's three issues. I'm generally a fan of his cosmic stuff, so I'm curious to see how he handles the doctor.

The Return Of The Ancient One!

• Story: Jim Starlin
• Layout: Jim Starlin
• Finished Art: Rudy Nebres
• Letterer: Annette Kawecki
• Colorists: Janice Cohen & Phil Rache
• Editor: Archie Goodwin

The story opens up in the Sanctum Sanctorum of Dr. Strange, as he is in deep meditation. Behind him, bound hand and foot in mystic energy, is his antagonist from last issue...Dr. Stranger Yet!

I have to say, right off the bat that I love that name. It's a nifty play on Dr. Strange's name, while successfully treading the line between goofy and interesting. I can only imagine if this villain had been around in the early 90's and enjoyed any semblance of popularity. I'm sure there would have been spin-off series for Dr. Strangest By Far...or Dr. Most Strangest...or Dr. Strangestest!

His visuals seem like a beta tested version of Beta Ray Bill, with a little bit of Larfleeze thrown in for good measure. I have no idea what his motivations are or how effective a protagonist he was, but already I'm intrigued.

Thankfully for us, this is a pre-90's book so everything is spelled out in a succinct couple of pages that brings us up to speed. I'll try to do it all in one sentence for brevity's sake...Dr. Strange was trying to stop the Creators from altering the universe when he inadvertently helped them succeed, causing many changes on the Earth in the form of bestial mutations affecting the population of which Dr. Stranger Yet was born. Wow, that actually makes a lot more sense than I thought it would going in.

Dr. Strange decides to use the Eye of Agamatto to delve into the creature's mind to attempt to find out what to do next to save his world. He comes away with two pieces of information. Firstly, that the Creators are not the main villain behind this scheme to remake the Earth, and secondly...the Ancient One has returned to the mortal plane.

We now pick up with the Ancient One, who has decided to put his great power to a more conventional use...conjuring up hooch! Something tells me that if magic was real, this would be a booming cottage industry.

Dr. Strange manages to track down the Ancient One in the alley in which he has passed out. Awakening him from his slumber, he listens as the Ancient One tells how he came to be found in this state.

Since he was one with the universe, he was adversely affected when the Creators messed with creation. Taking refuge in a mortal shell, he arrived on Earth to seek out Stephen's help. Unable to find him, he takes to the bottle as "alcohol retards the change the creators are inflicting upon mankind, and eases the agony my soul suffers."

Thank god that Dr. Strange is not the Ancient One's sponsor, for he buys that excuse hook, line and sinker.

Their reunion is short lived, however, as they are beset upon by the High Priests of the New Order bestowed upon the Earth by the Creators. It's up to Dr. Strange to take them out, as the Ancient One is still nursing a hangover.

We get all of the old standards from Dr. Strange's spellbook, including the Shield of Seraphim and the Crimson Bands of Cyttorak. He manages to put three of the High Priests down for the count before the fourth gets the jump on him.

Luckily for him, the Ancient One's metabolism was working overtime and he has overcome the effects of the alcohol just in time to help out his student. He vanquishes the Astral Eye that was giving Dr. Strange a hard time, collapsing once again from the strain on his mortal body.

In a last act of heroism, he is able to transport himself and Dr. Strange to the being that holds the real power behind the recent machinations of the Creators. Through dimensions unseen and unnamed they travel, finally arriving at the feet of the In-Betweener!

SO, WHAT DID WE LEARN...

It must have been tough being a Dr. Strange fan in the 70's. This story is relatively short by today's standards, clocking in at a scant 17 pages. Alot of books from this era were of a similar length, but Doctor Strange was bi-monthly! So you had to wait 60 days to get your next fix, which works out to about half a page per day.

I enjoyed this issue, but it did move a tad slowly for a book that came out at a snail's pace. I enjoyed what Jim Starlin was doing, but would have appreciated a bit less expository narration and a little more spellcasting. Apparently I'm not alone either, as the letters page in this issue is filled with raves for the current creative team.

Alas, they're done with this issue. Considering the cliffhanger, ending with the introduction of a character created by Jim Starlin himself, it seems an odd time for him to depart. I wonder what the backstory was on this creative shuffle?

Looking over the creator credits, that seems to be a major problem for this series. In the first 30-some issues, there are at least 7 different writers and 10 pencillers. That makes me thankful for the Roy Thomas/Dann Thomas/Jackson Guice issues that I grew up on, as they managed to do about 20 issues with only one fill-in.

I'm going to keep up my quest for the next great Doctor Strange book, but in the meantime I'll still have my longboxes. Luckily for me, the next holes in my collection to fill are the Roy Thomas stuff from the late 60's and the even earlier Steve Ditko issues. Hope springs eternal.

So with all of the recent activity with comic books on the corporate level, we here at Random Longbox headquarters decided we should figure out what it all means to you...the average Random Longbox reader.

You got Disney buying Marvel Comics...Warner Brothers reorganizing DC Comics...whose to know where we stand?

With that in mind, the Randomizer just returned from a three day retreat with the lawyers that we have on staff, determined to get to the bottom of it all to keep you informed.

Our conclusion?

We're just as in the dark as anybody else. We'll still be posting reviews, feeling our way through the hazy, gray fog of the fair use doctrine. Besides, our website is small enough not to be noticed by the Empire, which is advantageous for everbody since our readers are anxious to avoid attracting attention to themselves.

Now I know what you're thinking...aren't I afraid that the Empire is going to find out about this little website and shut me down?

Well I've just made a deal that will keep the Empire out of here forever.

Oops...did I just borrow some dialogue from The Empire Strikes Back? We should probably just get on with it and get the Randomizer to pick the next book for us to review, as it looks like it's going to need to take a trip out to Skywalker Ranch and apologize to Mr. Lucas in person.

...and that book is Doctor Strange #26 from December 1977, published by Marvel Comics.

So if our head wasn't spinning enough trying to understand U.S. Copyright Law, we now have to delve headfirst into a 1970's Doctor Strange comic?

The Randomizer has a cruel sense of humor.

Join me in a day or two for the review as we take a trip with Stephen Strange through the astral plane, across dimensions, all while using as many alliterative, idiosyncratic colloquialisms as possible.