36: Strange Tales

Generally since his Ditko beginnings, Stephen Strange had been presented as aloof, all knowing and whenever a suitable occasion arose, all powerful. Gillis wanted to humanise the good Doctor and apply some logic, or at least boundaries, to his seemingly infinite magic. He accomplished this through character deconstruction (before it became fashionable), inching Strange down the road to hell, one good intention at a time.

Doctor Strange #79-81 (1986-7)

Pencils: Chris Warner
Inks: Randy Emberlin

Numerous plot threads are gathered together in this three part finale.

A preoccupied Strange has largely been ignoring new houseguest Topaz's distress, but his attempts at recovering the lost half of her soul only draw the attentions of something malevolent. Namely alien sorcerer Urthona. Warner draws terrific warlike Predator style aliens, good practice for the real thing which he later became known for over at Dark Horse.

Stephen arrives back from Marseille, then heads out on a date with occasional love interest Morganna Blessing. The date is interrupted by one of Urthona's warriors, who mortally wounds a distracted Dr Strange. Now desperate, his astral form takes over Morganna, only to watch his precious Sanctum Sanctorum torn from its foundations and hurled into space, with Wong and Topaz trapped inside...

The middle act focuses on Stephen's subsequent fight for life on the operating table. To remove both the extensive physical and mystical damage, Strange essentially operates on himself, guiding Sara through his astral form. There's a scene in the first Dr Strange movie which Gillis felt was based on this issue, although he went uncredited. At one point Stephen's old friend Valkyrie appears to guide him to the afterlife, but he eventually rallies.

In the final act a mostly healed Doc, complete with repaired cloak and Enitharmon's apprentice Rintrah in tow, takes the fight to Urthona. Rintrah is one of Gillis' coolest and most lasting creations, a gentle giant who resembles a green alien minotaur. He even pops up in the second Strange movie. An intriguing PBG sidenote about all the funky character names: "When I took over the Doctor from Roger Stern, I had all these plans to incorporate (William) Blake's mythology in an epic none had ever seen before. The principal factor squashing this was the switch over to Strange Tales. While the strategy was sound, I quickly realized what I had in mind just couldn't be done in 11-page installments. (In retrospect my ideas were already moving in a different direction.) The results of this were a few character with names from Blake: Enitharmon the Weaver, the evil Sorcerer Urthona, and Rintrah."

Back to the story... Urthona holds Wong and Topaz hostage, while a still weak Strange combats him in Rintrah's body. Strange eventually concludes the only way to save his friends and stop this powerful sorcerer is to destroy the stolen talismans and tomes that are augmenting his power.

It's a fateful decision that would soon come back to haunt him. Urthona does a runner with the Darkhold and has only made one more appearance since. #81 turned out to be the final issue of this volume of Doctor Strange...

In Doctor Strange and Cloak & Dagger, Carl Potts edited two steady bimonthly titles that did not warrant, yet missed the increased exposure of monthly status. Jim Shooter's solution was to merge the two into a shared monthly. Potts suggested naming the new combined title Strange Tales, after the classic anthology that birthed Strange. The drop from a full 22 pages to an 11 page backup required a rethink by Gillis, but the streamlined saga that resulted is a highlight in Strange history.

Strange Tales #1-3 (1987) - Doctor Strange

Pencils: Chris Warner
Inks: Randy Emberlin

With the Sanctum returned to its foundations on Earth (let's not worry about how), a Topaz now reunited with the other half of her soul stages an impromptu intervention for Stephen. Summoning his ex Clea makes for an uncomfortable three way conversation. 

A stressed, cornered Strange has an out of character meltdown:

After pushing Cleo away once more, he goes after the first of many ancient demons let loose by destroying the Sanctum's scrolls and talismans.

Gillis posited that these objects of power locked away in the Sanctum that were keeping ancient forces of evil in check, were also largely empowering Dr Strange. 

I'm no Dr S expert, but I'm not convinced on the notion that Stephen draws so much power from ancient trinkets he inherited. Surely he has accumulated vast knowledge and magical affinity over his many years practising? Gillis and Stern had a theory that Strange was up to a century old, using magics to extend his lifespan, like his master the Ancient One. This would explain his distance and coldness from his peers, whom he will soon outlive. To be pedantic, Ditko and Lee's origin appears to take place in the 1950's judging from the fashion and technology. 1920's at a push possibly. Still, it's a theory that adds depth to the character.

After reluctantly killing the demon's human host, followed by a return encounter with Khats, Stephen concludes the only way to rid the world of all the evils he unleashed is to fake his own death. Being a powerful sorcerer renders making the world believe he was killed by the Beyonder a fairly straightforward task. Next: Road trip! And so not the fun kind.