Marvel fans have reached the end of Doctor Strange’s solo title. The recent Marvel summer blockbuster event Blood Hunt has come and went, and had some major ramifications for the larger Marvel Universe. Thankfully, the Avengers were able to stop the vampire invasion, but at a heavy cost. Doctor Strange, Black Panther, and Miles Morales were all turned into vampires by Blade, who was possessed by the elder vampire Varnae. Doctor Strange and Black Panther were able to regain their humanity, but even that wasn’t the biggest change to happen to Stephen Strange. No, his deal with Doctor Doom wound up costing Doctor Strange dearly, and resulted in the end of the latter’s ongoing series.
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*WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Doctor Strange #18. Continue reading at your own risk!
Doctor Strange #18 comes from the creative team of Jed MacKay, Pasqual Ferry, Heather Moore, and VC’s Cory Petit. For those who don’t know how Blood Hunt #5 concluded, it featured Doctor Strange lending Doctor Doom the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme to help stop Varnae. However, instead of relinquishing the Sorcerer Supreme role once the vampires were vanquished, Doctor Doom kept it for himself. Naturally, this leaves Doctor Strange in a state of limbo. One of his longtime foes, Baron Mordo, attempts to capitalize on the chaos, but is easily repelled by Strange and his wife, Clea. Our hero isn’t going to take this lying down, and begins devising a plan to get back what was taken from him.
Doctor Strange reacts to losing Sorcerer Supreme title to Doctor Doom
One of the first stops Doctor Strange makes is to the Vishanti to see if they can intervene and help him reclaim his title as Sorcerer Supreme. The three deities decide to remain neutral in Strange’s dispute with Doctor Strange, mostly because Strange made Victor Von Doom the Sorcerer Supreme. Plus, Doom had a hand in saving the world, so he is technically living up to his responsibilities. With that avenue closed to him, Doctor Strange decides to pay Doctor Doom a visit.
Doom has constructed a dome over Latveria, keeping Doctor Strange from entering the country. Strange takes his anger out on the dome, punching it until his knuckles are bloody and bruised. Doctor Strange believes Doom knew that the vampire uprising was coming, and used it to his advantage to manipulate events in his favor. Strange even contemplates using his reformed counterpart, General Strange, to strike back against Doom.
Ultimately, Doctor Strange returns to his Sanctum Santorum without attacking Doctor Doom. With Clea’s help, he’s resigned himself to his new status quo, whether he likes it or not. Clea mentions how Strange has been betrayed from all sides – by the ghost of his brother Victor Strange, his friend Blade, the inactions of the Vishanti, and his rival Doctor Doom. However, the one person who will never betray him is Clea. And the world still needs Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme or not.
And with that, Marvel’s Doctor Strange series reaches its finale. Marvel makes no mention of when another Doctor Strange title will launch, or who the creative team will be. We could even be looking at a potential title featuring Doctor Doom. With 2025 teasing “One World Under Doom,” the villain is poised to cast a large shadow over the Marvel Universe going forward.
