This [insert period of time to be decided here]'s topic is:
Doctor Strange!
Origin Story
Strange Tales (1951) #115
Stephen Strange is a brain surgeon, and like all other brain surgeons in pop culture, he is an asshole. That is, until an accident severely injuries his hands, ending his career. After exausting his resources in search of a cure, he travels to India (to be retconned as Tibet later on) to find The Ancient One, a mystic famous for his healing powers. And so it begins.
Suggested Readings
Strange Tales
Strange Tales (1951) #110 - #146 is the entire run of the original creators: Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.
Stan Lee, of course, is at the top of his game during this period. With an arsenal of exclamation points, aliterations and bullshit magical terms; Stan Lee keeps your head spinning at all moments as he guides you through the actions. But the headspinning doesn't stop there. Steve Ditko, most famous for Spider-Man, really showcases his talent in these issues. Weird dimensions, tentacle monsters, unnatural hand gestures; Strange Tales is a beautiful surrealistic cosmic nightmare; in a mix of Salvador Dali and the fascination for the cosmos that is usually Kirby's trademark, Ditko really gives us a lesson of things so weird that can trully only be experienced in a comic book.
Strange Tales #152
Doctor Strange (1974)
Doctor Strange #1 - #18 is the reason I started this thread.
While Frank Brunner is wonderful in his portrayal of Ditko's Cosmic Mystical-spaces, it is the script of Englehart that truly sells the story.
With a dedication to make sure the mystical stuff follows a dream-like logic; Englehart is able to, at the same time, deliver great surrealistic action and a pinch of hippie politics as his very first enemy is an hypocritical religious fundamentalist who claims to hate the dark arts in the name of God, but find excuses for himself to use them. His goal, to kill "The Demon" Doctor Strange and free (while brainwashing) Strange's pupil and lover, Clea, by treating her like a damsel in distress (which, well, she kind of is in this story).
Keep the recommendations coming and I'll add them here.
This site is a great help, though not everything in there is on Marvel Unlimited at the moment.
I plan to update this in the future and be better prepared for the next threads if this idea works out all right.
---
I love Marvel Unlimited. Yeah, I am six months behind the rest of the world, but other than that, it is just a dream to have access to all those stories.
The problem, though, is that it is lonely and cold here. I can't go into the comics thread because of spoilers, there are guides here and there about good runs and sagas, but again, it is kind of lonely.
So, the point of this thread is twofold:
To talk about marvel comics being mindful of spoilers for anything that is not yet on marvel unlimited
and
Recommend, read and talk about older runs, be they classic moments like The Dark Phoenix Saga, cult darlings like Gerber's Howard the Duck or more obscure stuff like the Great Lake Avengers.
Every [insert period of time to be decided here] we will choose a topic; not to restrict the conversation to that topic, but to help focus it a little bit, by giving people a clear set of stories to read, avoiding the dreadful "where do I start?"
But where do I start?
The Marvel universe is possibly older than anyone in this thread. trying to grasp it all may look like an insane thread. But don't worry, go at it on your own pace, I suggest starting simply at where you find interesting instead of chronological attempts, but hey, whatever floats your superboat.
What about The Topic? Should I restrict myself to that in this thread?
Not at all. You can talk about anything Marvel in here, the only rule is that the best Captain Marvel must be considered Monica Rambeau at all times.
The Topic is here to help; to give direction to what would otherwise be a patchwork of multiple storylines fighting for attention. To help you start at an arbitrary point if you feel completely lost be it because you are completely new to the Marvel universe or is exausting your personal "must read" list.
Ok, where do I start in Topic?
Again, where you wish. Going chronological when the pool of comics is smaller makes sense, so that's always an option, but go nuts. And write nuts, too! Share your thoughts on The Topic, do extensive reviews on decades-old issues, ramble about how The Topic has changed over the years. Whatever you like, tell us what about The Topic makes you happy/angry/catatonic/mindless.
What about spoilers?
Marvel Unlimited is 6 months behind your local comic book store. And so, it is 6 months all the internet hype, previews, and so on. That should be your main concern when dealing with spoilers. Assume that everyone here lives 6 months in the past. This should be our Sanctum Sanctorum, our Avengers Mansion, our Mary Jane's Warm Embrace. We should feel safe here from the evil of spoilers!
Marvel Unlimited updates every Monday, and so it is a good idea to be mindful of spoiling new releases at least until the end of the week.
Shouldn't be a "What Is Marvel Unlimited?" section somewhere in this Q&A
Yes! But I am lazy, goddamn it! I'll do it later!
Doctor Strange!
Origin Story
Strange Tales (1951) #115
Stephen Strange is a brain surgeon, and like all other brain surgeons in pop culture, he is an asshole. That is, until an accident severely injuries his hands, ending his career. After exausting his resources in search of a cure, he travels to India (to be retconned as Tibet later on) to find The Ancient One, a mystic famous for his healing powers. And so it begins.
Suggested Readings
Strange Tales
Strange Tales (1951) #110 - #146 is the entire run of the original creators: Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.
Stan Lee, of course, is at the top of his game during this period. With an arsenal of exclamation points, aliterations and bullshit magical terms; Stan Lee keeps your head spinning at all moments as he guides you through the actions. But the headspinning doesn't stop there. Steve Ditko, most famous for Spider-Man, really showcases his talent in these issues. Weird dimensions, tentacle monsters, unnatural hand gestures; Strange Tales is a beautiful surrealistic cosmic nightmare; in a mix of Salvador Dali and the fascination for the cosmos that is usually Kirby's trademark, Ditko really gives us a lesson of things so weird that can trully only be experienced in a comic book.
flashbandit16 said:
Strange Tales #152
Doctor Strange (1974)
Doctor Strange #1 - #18 is the reason I started this thread.
While Frank Brunner is wonderful in his portrayal of Ditko's Cosmic Mystical-spaces, it is the script of Englehart that truly sells the story.
With a dedication to make sure the mystical stuff follows a dream-like logic; Englehart is able to, at the same time, deliver great surrealistic action and a pinch of hippie politics as his very first enemy is an hypocritical religious fundamentalist who claims to hate the dark arts in the name of God, but find excuses for himself to use them. His goal, to kill "The Demon" Doctor Strange and free (while brainwashing) Strange's pupil and lover, Clea, by treating her like a damsel in distress (which, well, she kind of is in this story).
Keep the recommendations coming and I'll add them here.
This site is a great help, though not everything in there is on Marvel Unlimited at the moment.
I plan to update this in the future and be better prepared for the next threads if this idea works out all right.
---
I love Marvel Unlimited. Yeah, I am six months behind the rest of the world, but other than that, it is just a dream to have access to all those stories.
The problem, though, is that it is lonely and cold here. I can't go into the comics thread because of spoilers, there are guides here and there about good runs and sagas, but again, it is kind of lonely.
So, the point of this thread is twofold:
To talk about marvel comics being mindful of spoilers for anything that is not yet on marvel unlimited
and
Recommend, read and talk about older runs, be they classic moments like The Dark Phoenix Saga, cult darlings like Gerber's Howard the Duck or more obscure stuff like the Great Lake Avengers.
Every [insert period of time to be decided here] we will choose a topic; not to restrict the conversation to that topic, but to help focus it a little bit, by giving people a clear set of stories to read, avoiding the dreadful "where do I start?"
But where do I start?
The Marvel universe is possibly older than anyone in this thread. trying to grasp it all may look like an insane thread. But don't worry, go at it on your own pace, I suggest starting simply at where you find interesting instead of chronological attempts, but hey, whatever floats your superboat.
What about The Topic? Should I restrict myself to that in this thread?
Not at all. You can talk about anything Marvel in here, the only rule is that the best Captain Marvel must be considered Monica Rambeau at all times.
The Topic is here to help; to give direction to what would otherwise be a patchwork of multiple storylines fighting for attention. To help you start at an arbitrary point if you feel completely lost be it because you are completely new to the Marvel universe or is exausting your personal "must read" list.
Ok, where do I start in Topic?
Again, where you wish. Going chronological when the pool of comics is smaller makes sense, so that's always an option, but go nuts. And write nuts, too! Share your thoughts on The Topic, do extensive reviews on decades-old issues, ramble about how The Topic has changed over the years. Whatever you like, tell us what about The Topic makes you happy/angry/catatonic/mindless.
What about spoilers?
Marvel Unlimited is 6 months behind your local comic book store. And so, it is 6 months all the internet hype, previews, and so on. That should be your main concern when dealing with spoilers. Assume that everyone here lives 6 months in the past. This should be our Sanctum Sanctorum, our Avengers Mansion, our Mary Jane's Warm Embrace. We should feel safe here from the evil of spoilers!
Marvel Unlimited updates every Monday, and so it is a good idea to be mindful of spoiling new releases at least until the end of the week.
Shouldn't be a "What Is Marvel Unlimited?" section somewhere in this Q&A
Yes! But I am lazy, goddamn it! I'll do it later!
