Where's the Collar? What Movie Fans Might be Able to Learn From the New DOCTOR STRANGE Comic Book Series



First things first, this is not saying that the DOCTOR STRANGE movie will be exactly like the new Doctor Strange comic book series which starts up this fall but Marvel is known to somewhat mirror and adapt things in their movies with things in the comics, and vice versa. While this may be some conjecture the new vision of this fall's comic book series may have clues for how the DOCTOR STRANGE movie might be.

In a new report by Entertainment Weekly, Marvel has officially announced their new Doctor Strange comic book series coming this fall and its creator has revealed how this version of the hero will be a bit different than past iterations from the comic universe. Again, this might be a clue as to how the movie character of Doctor Strange could be portrayed by actor Benedict Cumberbatch.


Writer Jason Aaron on the new way that Doctor Strange will have to deal with using his magical powers:

"We wanted a Doctor Strange who was always having to work for what he gets, and to show that when he shows up and uses his powers, it’s not like Captain America throwing his shield or Thor throwing his hammer. Strange has to worry about repercussions that those other heroes don’t have to worry about, because he’s a Sorcerer Supreme. We’re talking about the forces of magic. So whatever he does has repressions. Any of this stuff with magic, there’s always a cost to it. I think that’s kind of the only rule of magic we ever really talk about—everything he does, there’s a price to it. So he always has to kind of balance those skills and worry, 'if I save the day here, what repercussions will that have for me, or elsewhere in the world?' We liked him having to deal with that, and liked him being able to get his hands a little dirty, rather than just having him stand around, waving his hands and saving the day."

Marvel editor Nick Lowe on how Doctor Strange will be funny:

"And if I had to say something about what makes this series different…in preparing to work on this and edit this, I went back and re-read a lot of Doctor Strange stuff. A lot of it. And a lot of Doctor Strange stories, they’re trippy and cool, but they live a lot in the head. And I think what this series does is it lives more in the heart and in the gut. And this is a Doctor Strange who is much more relatable, and way funnier. He’s not Bart Simpson cracking jokes left and right…although that’s a good idea, Jason. We should use that! [laughs] But he definitely has a sense of humor and is not just there to be a straight man for other heroes to crack jokes."

Aaron on the larger responsibilities of Doctor Strange: 

"He’s a Sorcerer Supreme; he kind of walks the path not many other characters in the Marvel Universe walk. And certainly out of all of those people who deal with magic, he’s the guy sitting at the top of the pyramid. So I like that part of it. I like that he has a different beat than most of the other heroes, and he loves that. He loves the weirdness of it. He’s a weird guy. We talk about the fact that his house is maybe the last truly weird place left in New York City and the Marvel Universe. When you go inside, you never know what you’re going to find when you open any door. You certainly want to stay out of the refrigerator [laughs.] I like that it’s kind of a celebration of the strange and the weird, and he loves that. But at the same time, what he’s doing take a toll on him. And you can’t walk this path, you can’t be the Sorcerer Supreme without paying that price. Whether that’s a physical price or a mental one—you know, some day this job is going to kill you, or drive you insane, or worse. I like that balance of he’s having fun, but also this job is taking a toll on him."

Aaron teases his "new take" on Doctor Strange:

"So that’s sort of the same thing, where it’s a new story, it’s a new take on the character, but it’s something that still, in my mind, speaks to what’s at the core of a character’s long running mythology. But I think Doctor Strange is the same way. And Doctor Strange is even a little more wide open, in that we haven’t had an ongoing solo Doctor Strangebook for quite awhile. Just pile up the total number of solo Doctor Strange stories and it’s not the same sort of pile that you get withSpider-Man or Thor or Captain America, or some of the other bigger characters. But I like that we’re getting to kind of rebuild Doctor Strange from the ground up. I think what we’re doing speaks to what made Doctor Strange cool and unique in the Marvel Universe. Even back in the 1960s when he first appeared, he was kind of the first guy who dealt with the occult and the mystical in Marvel. So I like that it sets him off from the other heroes we know. Really, the story that begins in Doctor Strange #1 is just the beginning—the beginning of one big arc that will really redefine who Doctor Strange is and what his status quo is going forward."

Aaron talks about giving Doctor Strange a more hands-on approach with using weapons as well as his magic:

"In terms of the weapons, it kind of goes back to what I was talking about in making him more active, more of a hands-on kind of hero. So we’re not turning him into Captain America or Thor where he has one weapon he carries around at all times. But certainly, we don’t want him to just be the guy who stands there and shoots blasts of magic energy out of his hands. We want him to be able to dive into different kinds of fights. So we’ll see him use his power and use a lot of different weapons in very different ways. And yeah, Chris is having a blast with that, the way he draws, a very active superhero version of Doctor Strange. This first issue is really just the beginning of a huge new story in that it centers on a big new villain, and that’s a threat we kind of learn about as we go along and kind of fill in the pieces as we go. There’s this mysterious new threat out there that’s building and building and building, and will ultimately change what we know about Doctor Strange. It’s not about tearing everything down that he’s been before and throwing that out. This is just sort of him taking another step, adding another piece to his arsenal, so to speak. And just seeing him be able to dive into situations, and get his hands dirty in a way you haven’t seen him do before."

Lowe teases how it is no coincidence that this new version of Doctor Strange is coming out before the movie releases in 2016:

"It’s no surprise that there’s a Doctor Strange movie on the horizon. And just like we did for Guardians, we want to makes sure that we revitalize this character in publishing as well, and just like we did on Guardians, we want to put our top talent there to really show people who this character is and what he’s capable of, to reinvigorate comic fans and get them excited to see him on the big screen, too. And boy, do they have some great stuff planned for that movie."

Finally, here's artwork teases for the new, updated look of Doctor Strange and right off the bat you'll notice his giant collar is gone in favor for a more Jedi-like hood as part of his cloak.









Do you like this new take on Doctor Strange? How about his lack of a big collar? Sound off in the comments below.

DOCTOR STRANGE releases in theaters on November 4, 2016.

Read Entertainment Weekly's full post, here.



To read more about DOCTOR STRANGE, click here.