Marvel has released another volume of their Epic Collection line just in time for the Doctor Strange in The Multiverse of Madness hype. Collecting Doctor Strange comics from 1978-1982, Doctor Strange Epic Collection: The Reality War spans Doctor Strange #29-51, plus Man-Thing #4, material from Chamber of Chills #3-4 and Defenders #53. The Reality War follows Stephen Strange and his protégé/lover Clea through numerous adventures that tend to get repetitive when read in a giant volume like this.
The first story arc, written by Roger Stern and Ralph Macchio, happens over the collection of issues #29-37. Penciller Tom Sutton delivers outstanding art right at the start in the first issue, featuring a Nighthawk guest appearance where Stephen is tipped off at a supernatural occurrence where scientists are dying at the hands of a spectral ghost. The ongoing plot centers around The Dweller in Darkness, who feeds off fear and uses it as a weapon to try and dismantle Doctor Strange.
The resulting issues play out like monster-of-the-week fare, with Strange overcoming his obstacles and often with the last-minute deus ex machina of his Eye of Agamotto. Clea’s role this arc is increasingly frustrating as she helplessly flails at every turn and acts as a tool for Stephen to rescue. She is simply a feminine object that pines endlessly for Strange’s attention and desire and has no real goals of her own other than his. It’s not until later when Chris Claremont takes over that she is actually given something to do.
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Apart from an excellent guest appearance by Namor, the standout is villain Dream Weaver, a reality manipulator granted powers by the Dweller in Darkness to attack Strange and gain more power for herself. Unlike the usual mystical villain with larger-than-life speeches and maneuvers, Dream Weaver is just a New Yorker who comes upon these powers but maintains her spicy personality.
Claremont takes over starting with #38, and working with legendary Strange artist Gene Colan, spins a cross-title storyline with Man-Thing and Strange’s longtime nemesis, Baron Mordo. Set out to open the Seven Gates of Chaos, Mordo has been manipulating everything from behind the scenes. Tricked into thinking he was in a mindless state and no longer a threat, Mordo in fact was putting plans into action to cause chaos in his reality by seeking out the necessary sacrificial humans to open the Seven Gates of Chaos. After an incredible battle with an assist from the Man-Thing, Strange defeats Mordo, reverses his plans, and frees the humans from their prison.
All the while, Clea is finally given her own subplot. Strange’s faithful servant, Wong, has gone missing and Clea sets out on her own to find him. After being hunted by demon wraiths, Clea swaps bodies with a local neighbor, Sara Wolf, and sets out to find Wong. Strange goes after Clea only to discover she’s been sent into another dimension where she has teamed up with a pack of barbarians led by a wizard, Silver Fox, who is set to take back his kingdom from the villainess Shialmar – The Shadow Queen. Wong’s lineage is what caused him to be captured and dragged into this plot as his ancestor was a lover of Shialmar.
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Bill Kunkel and David Micheline take over the plot from Claremont and continue to expand the dynamics of Stephen and Clea’s relationship. Kerry Gammill is a breath of fresh air as his tighter pencil style gives the washy, mystical work of Colan a break. Together, they explore the lovers-vs-students duality of Stephen and Clea and the push and pull they bring to their relationship. Clea learns to understand when she is his pupil and when she is his girlfriend and is able to deftly cycle between the two to her advantage as she increases her focus in learning the craft of magic from Stephen, but still having access to him for comfort when she needs it.
The arc starts off with another Clea-focused storyline, giving her a hefty role to play as a conduit for a larger magical ritual set to free a spirit named Sibylla. Guest penciller Michael Golden jumps in for an adorable epilogue featuring Stephen and Clea on vacation and on a midnight swim. The art style is delightful and gives us a chance to see new spell/magic effects during their casual midnight swim.
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The Collection concludes with Roger Stern returning to write stories featuring the first meeting of Strange and Brother Voodoo, as well as more Mordo mayhem delightfully drawn by Marshall Rogers. After collecting countless realities worth of mystical energy, Mordo kidnaps Clea and a new female character named Morgana who shows promise as a new psychically-tuned human. Having been thrown through time by Mordo, Strange chases Morgana to 1941 for an early Nick Fury (pre-eye-patch era) involving more human and mystical sacrifices in order to create chaos and disorder. The story ends with Clea discovering that she doesn’t know if she truly loves Strange after telepathically hearing the love Morgana has for him. The end of the book contains one-off stories from Chamber of Chills and Defenders as almost footnotes to where Roger Stern borrowed previously established characters within the last collection of stories.
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The printing of the book is vibrant – the colors and inks are brilliant and a treat to enjoy all the magical reality-warping fun had within these pages. At approximately 25 comics worth of material the book is fairly priced at $44.99 equaling to a little over a dollar a comic.
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