Once upon a midnight dreary,I glanced at my calendar, weak and weary, A thought crossed my mind-- "Is it already week four? When will I ever do this many storytimes in a month again?"I opined: nevermore!Pardon the doggerel-- tonight's got me in the mood! It's Halloween, after all, and hopefully a happy one for you lot! I must ask: what could be spookier than poorly constructed poems or roughly-written rhymes? Why, only Hell itself! Hell... and Doctor Doom! Those two things go very well together, as we'll soon see, if you'll take a trip with me... into a tale of Triumph and Torment!
Okay, okay, I *promise* I won't be doing any more shitty poetry today. I also won't bother introducing this story, if you don't mind. Anyone who knows anything about comics, especially Marvel comics, knows about Triumph and Torment. Anyone who knows about Triumph and Torment has also sung its praises endlessly, save for the odd contrarian here or there... and, if I'm being honest, I am not either of those people.I'm not a contrarian, nor do I dislike the story, but I do think it's a smidge overrated. I consider it a very solid tale, with very few flaws and a great premise and execution, but not the absolute best thing either Mike Mignola nor Roger Stern have ever done. (Admittedly, it's up there for both of them, but still top 5 and not top 1.) I still love it, as much as I can love almost any comic, but I will not be spending most of this storytime gushing over it and there will be some criticisms here and there. Some statements might border on actual blasphemy, but I will take full responsibility for them and claim those as my opinion and my opinion alone. I've little to say on this filler page. It's a classy one, depicting (what I assume to be) the royal crest of Latveria torn above the Eye of Agamotto, but it's just here to fill space.
Even this credits page is a little bit more interesting, and that's due to two things: one, Mark Badger's positioning (he's the center of the entire team-- ironic, given his constant lack of credit, yet fitting), and two-- the panel they chose to introduce the story with.This panel wasn't drawn just for the credits page, but its contents are telling. It's just a black void... save for Victor Von Doom, on his knees, kneeling in front of a statue of his mother. That's going to set the tone for the entire rest of the book, and I think it was a great choice... that I'll have more to say on later.
We open on... not Doom, not his mother, not even Doctor Strange, but THE AGED GENGHIS! My favorite old bastard is back! This is, by far, his most prominent role in any story ever. When I first read this book, long before I'd read any other Strange or Doom material, I genuinely thought he'd been made up just for this one graphic novel. I'm very glad I was wrong, as this loony old man is one of my favorite supporting characters in the mythos, but I can definitely see why I thought as much with how this intro was phrased. (For those unaware of what I'm talking about: the Aged Genghis was first invented by Steve Ditko, in the original Strange Tales, and both Steve Englehart and Roger Stern made good use of him in their Dr. Strange ongoings.)
Doom's introduction in this story is a good one. He shows up, demands something, and throws a fit when he doesn't get it. He does all this while becoming insecure over an assumption he made, indulging in elder abuse, and proclaiming his own greatness. Yep, that's Doom.Great touch by Mignola and/or Badger in the final panel: Doom's face is hidden in darkness just after Victor becomes insecure over the "insult."
Dr. Strange's introduction is stellar, too! His appearance, in earlier Strange Tales garb, helps strengthen the flashback's continuity and nicely parallel the Genghis's own outfit. It also begins with him actively offering help to a frail old man, one whom he respects and clearly cares for, during an important time in which he might not be able to afford such diversions. It's an excellent demonstration of Strange's character that pairs beautifully with the introduction of his title. (As can be expected from master Stern!)
So... this is a good page, but it unfortunately prompts me to bring up one of my major gripes with this book, as it's relevant to the middle two panels onward.This is a good book. It has many merits, among them its characterization of both its protagonists, and it has been rightfully lauded for its excellence.However, I cannot say I like the impact it's had on Dr. Doom specifically. These panels, wherein Doom barely flinches at the kind of full-facial burning that would probably kill a normal man and the monks fall for his boasts, are good. They are meant to highlight Doom's insecurity and arrogance, with Doom crowing about how love and compassion are for "lesser men" and constantly referring to himself in the third person, while the actual themes of the book contradict that boasting to prove that Doom is still human. Doom decries love and compassion as something for lesser men, but the entire book is about his love for his mother being so strong that he'd literally fight Mephisto in his own realm, every fucking year, just to get her out of hell. He discards pain as something only the weak experience, and tanks the mask to prove it, but is very clearly pained in multiple ways throughout the events of the story. It's an effective way of communicating that Doom is exceptional, strong-willed, intimidating... hypocritical, insecure, and HUMAN. Unfortunately, this message requires reading into the story to actually pick up on it. This has led to an absurd amount of people going the way of Doom's monks and believing his every word without thinking about it, which in turn has led to Doomwank beyond the highest degrees thought possible. I'm not sure I even need to clarify examples, given that Doomsday is coming out in less than two months and Marvel has gone all-in on spamming the fuck out of the character in the lead-up to it, but it's been a huge problem for a while now and I truly think this book is to blame for a lot of it.
But enough of that. I won't bring up the topic of Doomwank again-- I've said my peace on it, and it'll be easier to show rather than tell from here on out. I'll focus on the Genghis, instead, as this page is reiterating yet another lost component of old Marvel Magic. A huge part of it used to be willpower-- to even start learning magic, you had to persevere for years only to be able to do the simplest of things. It took Dr. Strange 19 months just to start astral projecting, for instance, and he likely spent every waking moment of his life at that point immersed in the art. To grow any further, as a sorcerer, you had to grow as a person. You had to become supremely confident in yourself-- enough to make deals with supernatural horrors and extradimensional aliens that could kill you with a whimper; enough to overcome any turbulent emotions that might interfere with your spellcasting; enough to cast those spells, in the first place, without fucking them up so hard that you accidentally lobotomize yourself or blow up a building.It was very heavily tied into New Age-y spiritual enlightenment, which itself was flavored with Ditko's own perspectives on the movement (for which I'll simply comment: he did not like hippies), which itself was condensed into a digestible comic-book format that prioritized cool fight scenes over navel-gazing paragraphs on its themes. It was an extremely unique combination of things, often well-balanced between spectacle and substance, that has since, unfortunately, been whittled down to a much more easily marketable flavor of Harry Potter magic that mostly involves going to school and glowing chakras. Oh well. Where was I? Right. The Genghis is walking. How's he doing it? Magic! Namely, the magic of WILLPOWER... which both our protagonists possess in spades!
I've not commented much on the art, so far, have I? There's reason for that. I'm not actually a huge fan of Mignola's. I can recognize his skill, and I do appreciate his work as good, but it's just not my style and I haven't much praise to give that most other people haven't put into better words. His and Kirby's works have a similar roughness about them that I don't really gravitate towards. Mark Badger's colors, however, help greatly enhance Mignola's work here. In contrast with his heavy shadows, Badger adds vibrant highlights and beautiful gradients to spells and backgrounds respectively. He properly conveys the dark beauty of the Southeast Asian jungle, the grandeur of the world's oldest magician at work, and the mundane hilarity of an old man rocketing off into a mountainous skyline with little more than his own choices of color. Mignola certainly helps-- he definitely deserves most of the credit for panel three, for instance-- but I think Badger's colors are the standout, and I'd go so far as to say that he deserves at least equal credit to Mignola when praising this book's art. It's a shame that he doesn't seem to have done much more work for Marvel. He's done stuff for Martian Manhunter and the Spectre over at DC, though... the temptation to read more about those characters grows ever-stronger.
I do like Mignola's atmospheric shots, I will say that much. This is a very nice page. I especially love how tiny the Aged Genghis looks in both of his panels. He is but one frail old man, not long for this world since before civilization was born, remaining only in stubborn service of something greater than him.
That first panel is another good example of Badger's coloring. Check out that orange and purple! Very appropriate for today, isn't it? I'm glad the story's getting in on the mood. :)The art in general is maybe the standout of this page. The Aged Genghis almost looks elvish, gnomish-- not quite human, with that protruding underbite and those pointed ears. (The blank pupils don't help, either.) Mignola's establishing shots are as good as ever, while his smaller-scale stuff with Strange fits his rough style. Strange really looks like he's been woken up in the middle of the night, slightly disheveled even while phoning in a flight, clearly caught off-guard and getting back on his feet.
Badger's colors make this some truly stunning work.I am trying very hard not to laugh at that last panel. His eyes don't even line up properly...
The top half of this page establishes loads of stuff right off the bat. It makes clear Strange's position in relation to other sorcerers, the level of secrecy between all of them (not everyone knows his title, just of his prowess!), his mythical reputation, and the fact that he's committed VAMPIRE GENOCIDE. It also implies his history in Asia, if you look at the people he comes to as friends and where names like theirs can be found, but you already knew of that if you've been reading along.Mignola draws all the guys with capes like little chess pieces with pawns for heads. I'm glad he can also appreciate the fun in that, lol. Cloaks, capes, robes; all that stuff can be super fun to draw if you just let yourself go with the flow like he's doing here. Apologies if the Australian's gigantic bare ass is distracting you from that. You're missing out.
Who indeed?
WE THREE, VISHANTI! Of course-- who else? They've actually had very few appearances up until now, only appearing twice before this graphic novel, and would continue to make themselves sparse until the mid-90s. This first panel is a huge deal.
Badger's colors are incredible. How many times am I allowed to say that? It must be getting annoying by now.
Poor St. Thomas takes the first hit so that he can act as exposition. Unfortunate! (It's kind of a shame that he hasn't returned. He's delightfully silly. Give him to Brother Voodoo, let them be a comedic duo of supernatural detectives or something.)
Doom, you cheating bastard. Take that mask off! (Oh, wait.)Notice how Strange has yet to attack.
>"...and he is neither entranced, nor a fool!"This page gives us our first look into the complex relationship between doctors Doom and Strange. The unfortunately-offline MightyGodKing put this into better words than I ever could, but-- in short-- Strange is one of very, very, VERY few men that Doom outright respects. He'd never admit to it in those terms, of course, but he'll do everything short of of it. Hell, in the very same panel I'm quoting, Doom admits his own inferiority! ("For every foe I stopped... you defeated two.")
Doom is trounced in one move... and the *real* challenge begins!Those who've read Strange Tales might recognize that specific conjuration of the Crimson Bands! I'm not 100% sure it was intentional, but I'm relatively sure that this is meant to be the Crimson CIRCLE of Cyttorak, first seen in Strange Tales #125. It actually predates the bands, having been Cyttorak's first canonical invocation (and appearance overall), and generally takes the form of a red sphere with bits sticking out of it... not unlike the one seen here!
One of those extremely rare instances in which the Eye's multiple properties and their various segregations are taken advantage of! Ditko used to do this, quite a lot, but none of the authors that succeeded him really considered such a thing... until now!As is more typical for the stranger of our doctors, his wits and problem-solving win the day.
That lazy eye is getting really distracting. Panel 2 looks bad.Doom stands alone while Strange is showered in praise! Strange even gets a chance to be humble-- not something he's known for, these days, unfortunately-- which he was able to do much more often back when this was written. Funnily enough, it only earns him more praise-- from the Vishanti themselves, no less!
You'll note that Doom's respect for Stephen isn't entirely reciprocated... at least right now. This story changes it, somewhat, but we're currently watching the final embers of Stephen's straightforward animosity towards Doom vanish.
There! Right there, in the second panel! Can you see them? Can you see the winds of change blowing? It's a gust carried over from the first-- in which the entire tone of the story changes in a mere paragraph-- but it grows stronger in the second, with Strange reluctantly acquiescing to the aggressive monarch... and beginning to wonder if there's more to the man underneath the mask! But there's no time for that now-- we can't discuss such matters. There's an entire temple falling on our heads, after all! We've got to get out of here!!
Another page which has spawned an unfortunate amount of Doomwank. Strange's preconceptions being slowly broken down is very interesting to watch. He's clearly trying to cling onto his original idea of Doom as a no-good dictator, (as is more than reasonable when you've mostly heard of him through the secondhand accounts of superheroes,) but he's too curious and polite to just ignore the decency of Doom's mechanical work or the gentle way in which he treats a child.
Especially during times like these! Cared for in Doom's castle, impressed by his mother's notes, listening to him recount (in wistful tones) the smile of his long-lost mother... how could one think of a man as pure evil in a situation such as this?
For all the complaining I've done about Doom's characterization so far, I must commend this page. Could it be argued as belonging to the same school as the last two I didn't like as much? Yes. Would I, personally, group it with them? No. I think it does a good job at balancing Doom's more sympathetic aspects with his more heinous ones. He shows concern for both his family and his new friend*, proves his iron will by committing to an extremely perilous act of magical warfare, and communicates his extremely meritocratic** mindset while simultaneously proving his insecurity. He MUST earn everything he has. He must, at all times, prove himself to be the BEST (or, if not the best, at least better than RICHARDS). To ask for help is weakness-- to subject oneself to it is no greater an act than falling to one's knees and offering to pleasure a stranger for money. It is the ultimate insult, and it is something that DOOM will not tolerate. He is above such things, he convinces himself, and he must prove so at every possible moment.* Fellow magician** With the exception of the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and any other capes that try to get in his way specifically. Those assholes cheated.
I won't have much to say on the following few pages, as they're mostly a recap of Cynthia Von Doom's backstory. (Which is a good one, mind, but not new information.) Most of the comments I could make would be repetitive-- Badger's colors are beautiful, Mignola does good work with heavy shadows, all of the scenic shots are perfect-- so I'll spare you them and let the story speak for itself.
Some of Doom's backstory, too, which is where I believe the plot starts to drag a bit. It's not useless information-- although it's new, it's still essential to the story, like Cynthia's-- it's just a rather lengthy diversion from the present day, and it repeats information for almost anyone who's read a story with Dr. Doom in it before. This is an eight-page long (when combined with Cynthia's backstory) tangent in a 77-page story. Although it is very well-executed, and was generously appreciated while I was very new to the universe, its length is noticeable (especially on rereads).
"Not match... SURPASS!" Could be Doom's entire motto, really. Especially given that it's said in reference to someone he considers himself beneath!
It begins...!
This first panel could make for a really great video game cover.
This page is well-remembered for good reason. Every single one of the book's best qualities are on display. Stern's writing, Badger's colors, Mignola's pencils-- all of it is in perfect form. Even the demons are on their best behavior!
That greatness extends to this page! In all honesty, I think Mignola's Mephisto might actually be the best part about this book. I don't even know how to describe it; he just draws the demon perfectly. There's just the right amount of humanity in his face to be unsettling, just enough demonic stretching and sneering to be intimidating-- even at his most "normal"-looking, like in panel 2, he is ethereal and brooding and imposing. Absolutely everything the demon lord of (a) hell should be.
This unique situation actually gives Strange a chance to mentor Doom, somewhat. It, ironically, makes this escapade feel like an extension of the tutoring he'd done for Doom a few pages prior. Strange calls for a certain technique to be performed, Doom obeys-- Doom questions the result, Strange elaborates. I think it's a very nice touch-- intentional or not, it continues that established relationship in a way that implies the recency of that intensive study.
Even Mephisto is surprised that Doom would debase himself by accepting such tutelage!
One might wonder why neither Strange nor Doom would establish a psychic link at this point, given that they're both sorcerers who've been established to be able to do that, but there're a multitude of reasons it might not've been feasible. Mephisto could probably hear right through it, for one, and Doom's armor might have some anti-telepathic stuff built into it. (I don't actually know if it does off the bat, but I'd be very surprised if it didn't.) I only mention this because it's just come to mind-- it is in no way a huge plot flaw, and wouldn't change the outcome of this separation regardless.
The further Strange falls, the further down the panel he's drawn.I am assuming that Mignola meant to communicate Strange's cloak becoming hooked on the cliff in the first panel, but I honestly can't tell due to the way he's drawn it. It's just as likely that Strange slipped off the edge and found out that his cloak wasn't working the hard way. Which would be odd, given that it's been shown to work two pages before this... hence my assumption that it was meant to be hooked on something. It would also explain why Strange's head snapped backwards before he fell.
This page will unfortunately beget more complaints. More repeated information-- *several pages of it,* right as things are starting to get interesting. This slightly-tweaked recap lasts *five pages,* which brings the total recap count to 13 pages out of 77! That's almost one seventh of the story just dedicated to repeating information that most people reading this will already know. (For those who think that doesn't sound like much-- the most verbose Silver Age recaps, which could last multiple pages in a row, rarely took up more than a tenth of the total page count.) I understand why this is the case, and I don't think these recaps are poorly executed, but it makes rereads of this novel sometimes hard to stomach.
This specific recap is expertly done, serving both as a test of Strange's character and exposition on his past, but it is still very clearly here to fill the audience in on who Strange is and how he ended up this way. Regardless, I'd say this is seriously one of the best recaps of Strange's origin out there. (And there are a *ton* of those, so that's high praise.) Into Shamballa beats it for brevity and execution, but Mignola gets some very pretty shots into this one and I think the pacing is brisk enough to only be a bother if you've read this story a whole bunch (like I have). The second half of this page is much better than the first-- the transition from doorknob to stickshift (also a nice touch-- when paired with the vintage driving gloves, immediately communicates that Stephen is *old* and Stephen was *rich*) is perfect, and the car on the road is appropriately scenic. Meanwhile, Strange's face in the second panel... honestly looks a lot more like Baron Mordo's, to a distracting degree.Notice, also, Stephen fighting back against what Mephisto's putting him through! It's clear that he's being puppeted a bit, forced to relive his traumatic past-- and, just as he's catching on and about to change things, Mephisto switches the scenery so that Strange is once again helpless. Good stuff.
Bueno.
Recall that I said "slightly-tweaked" recap. :)
Not a great day for it, but nice!
Strange gets the upper hand!
One of my favorite pages in the book. It pains me, greatly, to know how few people have taken panel four to heart, both in regards to their own lives and in regards to Stephen's characterization.
>>156128934Yeah, I seem to have underestimated just how many storytimes were going to be posted today lol.Ah well. The story content's fitting enough. Might as well post it, no matter the busyness of the catalog!
Ugh, god, this page's very very good too! Another one of my favorites, so soon after another! I said I wouldn't spend this entire storytime gushing, and I don't think I have... but, lord, I'll have to gush over the good stuff just a little bit! Look at the way Doom just crumbles in panel four! The way his bravado melts away the moment he sees his mother's face-- the way the final panel mirrors the first on the page where Cynthia is selling her soul, with Doom in her place and Mephisto's cloak becoming negative space... fuck, man, it's so good.
Though he's well aware of Mephisto's methods, Strange is too loyal to simply let Doom waste away..!
A fact which Doom most certainly knows, and takes advantage of!This page is a special one. It's one of the very, very few, from this time period, (which I can recall,) that actually shows Doom being outright remorseful. He maintains his showmanship and ego throughout this, of course, but you can see scrawls of guilt etched into his every word.The cheapening of this pathos in recent years has really bothered me, but I've spent enough of this storytime complaining about it. It won't be brought up again.The next few pages will have no commentary.
A well-chosen panel indeed.
ANOTHER TWEESTThis is bullshit!No, really, this is bullshit. I don't like it. It's too convenient and hampers the entire sequence that came before this. Doom's reactions and emotions in those pages were genuine, raw-- and we're supposed to believe it was all part of his keikaku to beat the shit out of Mephisto? Why could a a tiny sonic disk do what the spells of a master sorcerer couldn't? How did Strange not notice a disk THE SIZE OF HIS PALM underneath something that is constantly rubbing against his clothes? How did that disk activate while he was stuck in a crystal, where he couldn't move, but didn't activate while he was flinging himself hither and thither, wiping out tens of demons with spell after spell? Did Doom attach it to Strange while they switched places? If so, how'd Mephisto not notice?I think this is here as a means to a happy ending, sort of a rule-of-cool way to get the plot moving again, but I genuinely dislike it and I think it's one of the biggest flaws of the book. I'd have much preferred Doom trying to get Strange out of there through his own spellwork (and possibly failing, adding to the hopelessness), or some attempt to sacrifice himself the same way he betrayed Strange, or even Strange breaking out through Mephisto's own error somehow.
It does lead to a cool fight scene, though, so it can be forgiven.I'm only half-joking. I'm so hard on this specific plot point because the rest of this book is so good. Where Into Shamballa's flaws are part of why I love it, Triumph and Torment's really aren't. Shamballa is almost made better by its flaws-- its corny ending and somewhat loose plot only add to the art and general feeling of the book-- while Triumph and Torment is good in spite of them. I suppose that's rather fitting for both books and their themes.
Pages like these make me wonder why Mignola isn't the only man allowed to draw Mephisto.
REALLY wonder. I can't properly convey my current expression, but imagine a dog drooling over a gigantic chicken and you might be able to ascertain a close approximation. Maybe pages like these are why Marvel editorial is so infatuated with shoving Mephisto down our throats! (I'm not even sure I'd be mad, if so.)Even in the heat of battle, even while facing otherworldly horrors that would drive a normal man insane... Doom still takes the time to thank his ally, and his ally replies by reinforcing his loyalty and compassion with a simple gesture.
Doom makes a bet...
...and it turns out just as well as the last time he tried to bargain with Mephisto!Mephisto can't be defeated by science, but his crystal prisons sure can be! Hrrmmm.
It takes an expert in the field to get better results! A certain technique is asked of Doom, and he obeys. Doom questions the result...
...and MEPHISTO explains! (Alongside Strange.)A prison which only the master of Hades could destroy... what's that make Strange, then?
What a dynamic final panel!
The *moment* Doom and Strange are back... Doom's ego returns, and Boris is never to learn of Doom's "weakness" in hell.
Strange sees fit to clarify for the metal-clad monarch, while further implying that it might have all been Doom's doing... personally, I think Strange is giving him a bit too much credit there, but the thought is an interesting one and it adds some greyness to this bittersweet ending.
And so, it all comes full circle, with the Aged Genghis and his long-suffering aide... both the first and last things we see in this book!
thanks, man. i love this comic. i wish marvel would reprint it
Thank you all for reading along with me! Whether this is your first or however-many'th time, I'm glad to have had you here.I've attached a hasty update to the truly ancient Dr. Doom recommendation image floating around /co/, in case anyone here is looking to read more Doom-centric stories, and I only wish I could be more thorough and well-researched in my recommendations. Alas, I haven't had much free time as of late, and most of that time has been siphoned into these storytimes. I hope this quick revision is satisfactory, and I hope you enjoy all the stories it points you towards. If you're instead looking to read more Dr. Strange... well, as my name betrays, I've a lot more to say on that matter! You can start with this .zip:http://www.mediafire.com/download/araspaddej639ae/Doctor+Strange+Introductory+Package.zipwhich was provided to us by a kind anon from 12 years ago, risen from his internet grave to haunt you all today, and contains .cbz's of many great Strange stories. It also contains a .cbz of this very story, for those simply looking to own that, and I would recommend downloading it regardless of whether you're a Strange fan or not! (Don't worry, Mediafire won't bite.)
If you're still in need of more Dr. Strange after that, I would recommend reading absolutely everything on this list (some of which is already contained in the aforementioned .zip; Strange Tales vol 1 is not, but I would highly recommend it as a starting point),as well as the entirety of Doctor Strange's second ongoing (Dr. Strange vol 2/1974/Master of the Mystic Arts).There are a bunch of other, much nicher stories that I also want to shout out:>New Avengers (2013) Annual,>Strange Tales v3,>Marvel Fanfare #5, #6, #20, #21, #41, and #49,and Amazing Spider-Man Annuals #2 and #14 come to mind most quickly,while a substantial swathe of the first Defenders ongoing (primarily everything written by Englehart, Gerber, Wein, Kraft, and DeMatteis), including Marvel Feature #1-3 and every Giant-Size Defenders issue, are also great. Anything that Busiek wrote for them isn't bad either, but not as good as Gerber/Englehart/Kraft/DeMatteis were (and a fair amount of it won't make sense if you don't read Gerber first).None of this nicher stuff is required reading, but if you're in dire need of some good Strange I'd recommend all of it.There is a *lot* of good Dr. Strange out there. Almost everything from 1985 and before that includes him as a character is some level of good. Even some stories after the new millennium with him in it aren't terrible. I'm biased, of course-- he's my favorite cape by far-- but even by objective metrics, plenty of his ongoing issues have a fair amount of artistic merit. I'd heavily recommend them to any aspiring comic artist who wants to experiment with paneling or play with the format's strengths and limitations in general. With all that said... thank you for very much for reading! May the Vishanti smile upon you, may your Halloween be a happy one, and may you triumph over any torment that's thrown your way!
>>156129335Good news, anon! It was reprinted a few months ago, on September 2nd! ...I have no idea if it's still in stock, but it's got a new cover by Peach Momoko and everything. I hope you can still find it for cheap.
>>156128324>It's kind of a shame that he hasn't returned.He did have a one-panel cameo in some event crossover that came up in Magister's Spider-Man storytime, but I agree that a character that's essentially magic Dee Jay deserves way better.
Bump, I'll read after sorting some stuff.
Bump, thanks OP
great story
Halloween bump
YOUR MOTHER SUCKS COCKS IN HELL
>>156131819shit, anon, did you make that yourself?
>>156128716https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yP2PebTM7C4
>>156132098No, some drawfag made it 11 years ago. (I checked the archives.) Still, the repost is appreciated! I wonder what that drawfag's doing now.>>156129894Damn, they brought him back just to waste on a cameo?? That's cruel. :(>>156132423Man, that game rules.
>>156132676>Damn, they brought him back just to waste on a cameo?? That's cruel. :(Yeah, and I mean literally one panel: https://desuarchive.org/co/thread/153985806/#153986040
>>156132747A cameo wherein he jobs for the sake of an event... sigh. :(Color me completely unsurprised that Busiek was the one to do it, though. I'm honestly more surprised he went for Jules and Inshallah instead of any of the Strange Tales sorcerers (esp. Rama Kaliph). I get why he didn't use Phyffe or any of the later ones, since Busiek doesn't seem to be a huge magic guy at all, but he's huge on the Silver Age and there were loads of one-off magical one-offs to choose from in ST.
Halloween bumpo
>>156132423To complete the atmosphere trifecta>>156128152https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVDto2B8vN4>>156128163>>156128532https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dYGQpVWhkg
>>156134276wtf that music is awesome
>>156132098No, but I did request it in the drawthread.
>>156134276I loved how much animation the stages had in MSH. Magnetos spaceship would eventually fly near a sun changing the entire backdrop.Best music was probably Shuma Gorath, and his stage had infinite sides once you broke the walls.
>>156128395Strange, flat-out beating Doom in one page would never happen these days
>>156128639I guess the woman next to Doom in the lower panels has been retconned to be Valeria, who I don't think existed yet in continuity
>>156129322Thanks for the Storytime anonGuess it will be interesting to compare this to that Doom/Strange one-shot Ewing is writing since a lot has happened to these two and their relationship since this book came out
>>1561352813D will never match it, honestly. MvC3 looked cool and all, but nothing could beat MSH. Not even MvC2.>>156135742Unfortunately not, no. Doom could really use it, too. :/>>156135848Valeria is the name of Doom's old girlfriend. Reed's daughter is named after her, as part and parcel of Doom helping her exist at all. Erhem. It's convoluted time-travel and magic stuff, not... what you're thinking.>>156136051It will be interesting indeed. I have little faith in Ewing, for various reasons, but his Strange is one of the most okay in the bullpen at the moment so it will at least be mildly interesting to read. As much as any newer comic can be, anyways.
>>156136093>Valeria is the name of Doom's old girlfriend.But I don't think she existed as a character at this point; she was i think a Claremont creation that Waid then used to show how evil Doom is by turning her into armour
>>156136175Anon, she debuted in 1969 and was made by Roy Thomas... she was around by this point. Are you confusing her with Margali Szardos? She was another gypsy-- a witch-- but not related to Doom. Claremont made her.The armor thing was the real Valeria, though.
>>156136202Fair point my mistake
>>156136235It's alright, it's probably pretty confusing for people who aren't drowning themselves in old comics. (Not helping matters is that Doom's girlfriend doesn't actually have a last name, which makes discerning the two on that alone a headache.) Thank you for all the bumps, btw. I'm glad everyone's enjoying the story. (I'm a bit shy about how negative I got at some points, but hopefully it was still clear that I do in fact really like the story regardless.)
>>156128101Happy Halloween. Thank you for the storytime
>>156128101Suppportive bump, nice poem too>>156128104Which is the rest of the top 5 if you're still here?>>156128152loving everyone's drip, the way the story is structured kinda reminds me of old time's tales, even a bit like good samaritan's parables from the bible
>>156128178I liked the last days of magic run because of this, it felt like the wizards are constantly trying to find a way to stave off doom while acruing ever higher interests with their patrons>>156128192I know very little about art so I will just say: pretty>>156128290So cool!
>>156137816>Which is the rest of the top 5 if you're still here?I haven't read much Mignola, primarily due to the aforementioned "not my thing," but I tend to prefer his earlier work as a rule. I guess just look at anything he did in Marvel Fanfare and I'll probably prefer it to something like Hellboy. No top 5 for him, sorry.Stern is a little easier, though I've yet to read much more than his Strange so I'll probably miss out on all the stuff everyone else raves about (namely Avengers, Spidey). With that context in mind, it probably goes something like:>MotMA #55>Montesi Formula>Triumph and Torment>Lead-up to Into the Dark Dimension (general span of issues #65-69)>Into the Dark DimensionNot even sure if that's in any particular order, but something like that. I really need to read more of his stuff, but I've not had the time for it as of late and both of the books he does best on are huge tasks that I've been planning on reading all the way through for a while. If I don't start on them by the end of the year, I'll probably skip ahead to Stern and work backwards from there. :/Sorry.>the way the story is structured kinda reminds me of old time's tales, even a bit like good samaritan's parables from the bibleMaybe a good point. I can't comment on the accuracy of your comparison, as I've never read the Bible, but T&T definitely has a sort of fairy-taleish element to it that used to be more common in comics that were trying to be grand but not deadly serious. It's one of the things I miss about newer comics-- a near total lack of that sort of mystical element to them.
Bump for reading later
>>156128532happiest of all, the people of latveria>>156128656>>156128665Makes me wonder how much of the conversation was allowed by Doom and how much was planned, two entirely different things
>>156128324This girl really walking around in just a coat and thong and boots?
>>156129069oh dear>>156129080given the beginning, I thought the truth would be That the spell mirrors that made by the Vishanti's, and while to Mefisto the crystal would look unbreakable, Strange would only need to walk out from it it would also add to Stephen's progression, to realize that trusting Doom can lead to good outcomes>>156129097this panel rocks>>156129118this one too
>>156138134Thanks for answering, I will write them down to read them later>Maybe a good point. I can't comment on the accuracy of your comparison, as I've never read the Bible, but T&T definitely has a sort of fairy-taleish element to it that used to be more common in comics that were trying to be grand but not deadly serious. It's one of the things I miss about newer comics-- a near total lack of that sort of mystical element to them.Most of it boils down to presenting clear and cut characters, they might get blurred down the line later in the story, but fairytales start making clear what each character's role on the story is, Doom is bad, so he comes, demands and hurts the Aged Genghis, Stephen is good, so he steps in and helps even to his own detriment, now you only need a third mage who prays what it doesn't preach, or a second old man that will make it so Doom proves himself repented or further condemns himselfin a way his mother is filling that role here, isn't she?
>>156129322thanks op
Re no re r re re m R ebb B e v Kim plobebevs
