Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

The world of magic expands a great deal which is nice, though the script struggles to truly define how it operates and how Wanda’s powers work along with it. Even still, I got what I wanted from a superhero-horror film. It was better handled here than in The New Mutants. What Raimi does with zombie Doctor Strange is brilliant and visually terrifying. It’s the best part of this multiverse story.

But what I appreciated most in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is the character depth given to both Strange, Wanda, and, to a minor degree, America. Doctor Strange is a dick and has always been a dick, but screenwriter Michael Waldron engagingly explores if he’s content with his life as a superhero or not. Our Wanda is the only one in the multiverse not to have children. Considering all the loss she’s experienced since Age of Ultron, you get the sense of how this much loss has fueled her obsession with the one thing she’s ever wanted, a family. Cumberbatch and Olsen have had these characters for quite some time now, and both finally come into their own. I also want to mention that Marvel finally has a female villain who truly is one… a Darth Vader villain, if you will.

“Doctor Strange is a dick and has always been a dick…”

America had to grow on me because she comes across as a Disney Channel teen in the prologue. But she comes into her own by the end. America has a compelling arc — trying to find her mothers, who she accidentally flung into another dimension. Raimi rightfully decided to save her story for another time as he knows we’re here for Doctor Strange.

Speaking of witch [sic], there are many cameos and just many that were suspected but did not come to pass. Thankfully, Raimi keeps this a Doctor Strange story which it needs to be. He doesn’t allow the appearance of the Illuminati to send his tale off course. It’s an incredible tease to the future of the MCU, but it is just a tease.

I’ll refrain from addressing the hate the film is getting online here, though I discuss a lot of it on the Film Threat live cast. All I can say is erase everything everyone says about Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and have fun. Don’t let the internet ruin that. But, honestly, I still don’t understand why this is receiving so much hate.