Dr. Strange,blue Masked Golden Age Vision Superhero

 Dr. Strange,blue Masked Superhero

I started reading Doctor Strange in 1970, first in reprints contained in Marvel Tales, then later in Marvel Premiere.  Always one of my favorite characters, but when I unearthed Dr. Strange #177 (volume 1, circa 1968), I was astonished to see that the good Doctor once wore a mask:Not only did Doc have an earthly mask (which gave an other-worldly
 Spectre or Phantom Stranger type of appearance with white eye-slits), there were other improvements.
 Whereas Doc’s original costume was more Eastern, with billowing robes and a sash, the new costume
had removed those elements.  Now he had a streamlined costume, skintight, with new boots and flared gloves.

Gee,the kids just went wow cool.He nolonger resembled some Mandrake guy,but a blue faced Silver Surfer,wearing a modified Doctor Strange outfit and stopped buying.Bravo Marvel.Good Job.
This cover by Gene Colan and Tom Palmer became an instant classic.  Marvel even made a poster out of it, which I managed to find and put on my wall.Well,it is an impressive look-unfortunately,it was a bad change for

Doctor Strange to adopt,once his look was established over a decade.

Roy Thomas, who wrote the series at that point, came up with a convenient excuse for the costume change:



The villain Asmodeus had assumed Strange’s identity on Earth, and had trapped Doc and Clea in another dimension.  In order to escape, Doc needed to transform…his image,into a blue version of the Original Vision,mixed elements of Doc's image.s this dynamic splash page proudly displays! Well,gee-why not just conjure up a Groucho Marx nose and glasses fool it that way."Many the faves,of the man called Doctor Strange.Strange does this and get back the Marvel Earth,beat the fuck out of Asmodeus,until he so screwy,he begins to act like Buggs Bunny villian.
''Which way he go.''-Asmodeus,
''Right here,Doctor orders.Drop through this black hole''-Strange
''Opps...nooooooooooooooooo.Not the bottemless hole dimension.-Asmdeus.
 The real reason for the costume change was the downward sales spiral on Doctor Strange.  He’s never been a strong seller within his own title.   The costume lasted from Doctor Strange 177 to 183.  When the Doctor popped up a year or so later in the Defenders and Marvel Premiere, he reverted back to his original Ditko designed outfit.

There have been two attempts to bring back this costume.


The first was the 2002 mini-series The Order, which featured the Defenders reuniting to conquer the world (under the mind-control of Yandroth).  The story wasn’t the greatest, but it featured great covers by Carlos Pacheco.  Doc really becomes the focal point of this cover in The Order #5.
The next costume revival will occur just one month from now—in Hulk #10, on sale in late February 2009.  Hulk once again teams up with his former Defenders to battle Red Hulk and his team of Offenders (Baron Mordo, Tiger Shark, and Terrax), courtesy of Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness.  I can’t wait for this story arc.  I think I heard on Word Balloon that Loeb is pulling the Defenders out of different time periods.  Notice that McGuinness has made one slight alteration—he kept the Ditko curves on the top part of the cape, instead of the Colan designed spikes.

Bite your tongue! The blue period was a low for the character. Save the full mask look for Vizh and Silver Surfer.  I LOVE that Doc is a middle-aged man. He's really not much older than Tony Stark or many of the others.

SATURDAY

The Wastebasket

Disposable Thoughts on a Disposable Culture

Doctor Strange and the Vision

In Part Three of my Doctor Strange Chronology, I mentioned my belief that the “superhero” costume given to the Master of the Mystic Arts in Doctor Strange # 177 (February 1969) may have been inspired by the look of the Golden Age Vision, and even allowed Roy Thomas, on some level, to pretend he was working on a series featuring this beloved character instead of the Silver Age sorcerer.

After all, it was Roy Thomas who introduced the modern-day Vision to the Marvel Universe in Avengers # 57 (October 1968) – only a few months before the debut of the revised Doctor Strange. The heroic android was a reinvention of the Vision character created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby for Marvel Mystery Comics in 1940. This mysterious lawman from another dimension was one of Roy’s favorites from that era, leading him not only to introduce the new character, but to use the original as one of Rick Jones’ psychic projections at the climax of the Kree-Skrull War in Avengers # 97.

I was first struck by the similarities between the two while reading Essential Doctor Strange v.2, and I think it was the lack of color that really allowed me to notice the resemblance. And of course, the original art that Roy Thomas used to write the script would not have been colored yet, thus minimizing the distinctions between the characters. Take a close look. Though their costumes are quite similar, they have almost exactly the same head. The clearest similarity is in the distinctive shape of the eyes, and I was immediately reminded of a quote from Jack Kirby that I had recently read:

“The Silver Surfer is simple – the same with Spider-Man’s eyes, which actually date back to the Vision. I don’t know if you ever saw the Vision I created for the old Atlas mags which was, I think, at the same time Captain America was out. I set the pattern for the eyes, which are kind of mystic.”

--Jack Kirby
1969

Indeed, the Vision, the Silver Surfer, and the new Doctor Strange all had the exact same eye shape, as well as having big “bald” heads and typically grim features. Kirby’s comment that these eyes are “mystic” is especially interesting.

A side-by-side comparison shows the many points of commonality between the two characters in question. Both wear flowing red-and-yellow capes with pointy collars, have a dark cool-colored bodysuit with pointy gauntlets and a band around the waist. Doctor Strange’s costume is certainly more elaborate, with lots of little fiddly-bits, of course, but even with color, I find the comparison striking.

Perhaps the most telling evidence is the ease with which a page from one of Doctor Strange’s comics can be converted into a new adventure for Aarkus, a.k.a. the Vision. Here, in this page by Gene Colan and Tom Palmer from Doctor Strange # 181, some minor touch-ups and a different coloring job give new life to a Golden Age hero, as Nightmare’s Dream Dimension doubles for the Vision’s Smoke World.

Naturally, it may not have been some grand scheme of Roy Thomas’ to change one character into the other. He may not even have been aware of what he was doing. The re-design of Doctor Strange would certainly have involved Roy as writer/assistant editor, and also editor Stan Lee, artist Gene Colan, and possibly John Romita, who often acted as staff artist/art director/costume designer in those days. Even publisher Martin Goodman may have had some say in the matter. But I see Roy as a driving force on this book. And as to whether there was some subconscious influence deriving from his deep love of Golden Age superheroes, who can say?

The visuals speak for themselves. You be the judge.


The above Jack Kirby quote appears in The Comics Journal Library, vol. 1: Jack Kirby (p.4), published by Fantagraphics Books.

For me, it's important that Doc not be masked. Aside, from the Hello, Doctor! factor, it's important because he has no secret identity. His lack of a mask is representative of his "what you see is what you get" style. He's honesty personified, no subterfuge, no games. He's given up any other life to be the Sorcerer Supreme.

So, while I'm thrilled he's getting back together with the old gang, I hope the blue face is a brief arc. Maybe he's been walking the earth again and this is the rebirth to his newfound inner peace, the coccoon he will emerge from. Or not. I believe there was also a brief period in the '90's when the mask made a comeback. Right around the time that a younger Dr. Strange w/ long hair and Lennon-style sunglasses became the "default" doctor, however temporarily. Don't recall the entire storyline or justification, but it wasn't very good.The blue faced Doc Strange was a stupid idea. First, it looked as if the Silver Surfer was wearing a modified Doc Strange get up. It fact, the first I saw this version of Doc Strange was in a Defender comic, in a flashback sequence. I was totally confused as who wearing a modified Dr.Strange look, with the Surfers face.Doc Strange,s true is his costume is the original one, not blue faced version of the Silver Surfer-which I'm might had some bearing why this design was chosen. Now the look might have worked another character-an alien sorcerer, similar to Doctor Strange, but really do these major alterations work major characters, unless costumes really stink like say Thor.

The blue faced period was a low for the character. Save the full mask look for the Vision and Silver Surfer. Doc Strange work as he was originally presented. Costume changed generally isn’t the problem. It’s always bad storytelling that kills a book, not cosmetic look to attract the narrow minded boobs who need the same here that they are getting elsewhere. The thinking is to make cooler-with it, to current generation, who something is old or corny, who will start buying something they never planned to buy anyway. Often it shows desperation and stupidity on the part of the producers of the material and misguided fan boys, who become producers of such material, begin it must have cool, when was out when I was young decide to bring it back again. Well if it didn’t work then, then it won’t work now or years from now. Like the look, give it another character-maybe an alien Doctor Strange or one from alternate reality-not the standard character.Altering a chacters appeance slightly might over time as say Superman or Batman,but the ka boom change often are acts of stupidity and despiration.Unless,the chacters look is really bad,say Daredevil and done early on,the change often won't stick.

  Nuff said