‘Doctor Strange’ #17 review

Doctor Strange #17 makes good use of a side character that shows how important every member of a a supporting cast is in a comic.

Michael Guerrero

July 3, 2024

As the Blood Hunt event rages on, the Sanctum Sanctorum takes time to pivot towards a few important side characters. While this arc has slowed down the pace of the series a tad, it’s also given various side characters a spotlight they may not otherwise have been given the opportunity. In this issue, Jed MacKay and Pasqual Ferry deliver another engaging issue about how Stephen’s friends will do anything they can to save him.

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The issue focuses on Mordo, Bats, and Won, but mostly on Bats. While we have seen many of Stephen’s friends come to his aid, we haven’t seen “man’s best friend” do so. Here, Bats shows readers he’s more than just a ghost dog who’s undyingly loyal and also has the ability to access powers even he didn’t know existed. Although this issue is a bit light in nature, it continues the trend of carrying an unexpected emotional weight that makes for a fun story. Altogether, this issue’s focus on Bats determination to save one Strange from another makes for a good story.

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Additionally, the story is beautifully drawn and illustrated by Pasqual Ferry and Heather Moore once again. While Ferry continues to show how perfectly suited he is for a magical series, Moore’s sharp and bright colors help add another layer of mysticism to the story. A great example of this is right after Bats… tells a story. This series of events leads to an unlikely ally coming out of the shadows to provide aid in the most unlikely of ways. Yet, it perfectly fits the series’ tone; it’s both a little silly and pretty awesome at the same time. This reveal is elevated by the artistic strengths of the duo, who bring a godlike amount of intensity to this ally’s debut. Altogether, the story is beautifully drawn from start to finish.

While the series has done a good job fluctuating between the main story and giving each supporting cast member a moment in the spotlight, this issue, and arc have done a particularly good job with that, With the future of Doctor Strange unclear with only one more issue currently solicited, this issue can’t help but feel a bit like the beginning of a farewell. In the spirit of that, the issue does a nice job closing out this tie-in story while setting up the next issue. Moreover, the storytelling in this story finds its strength in depicting a campy comic adventure and preparing readers for what feels like the beginning of a new chapter for everyone at the Sanctum.