Despite Doctor Strange 2 receiving somewhat mixed reviews, Raimi makes his grand return to superhero cinema in style, bringing with him many shock elements from the horror genre that give the film a unique identity in the MCU. This means the Scarlet Witch’s hunt for América Chávez not only features plenty of jump scares but also some rather brutal images that almost seem out of place in Marvel Studios’ family-friendly content.
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Under The Guise Of The Scarlet Witch
If there’s one thing Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness accomplishes is getting the plot moving fast and while the film generally handles its pacing fairly well, it rushes to reveal Wanda Maximoff as its true villain. After her solo series, audiences weren’t entirely sure what effect the Darkhold would have in the Scarlet Witch and here that question is answered rather swiftly, basically canceling out all character development from WandaVision.
The fact that Wanda blows her cover with Strange by accident only adds insult to injury. It’s not the harrowing mess some of the movie’s images are, but as far as story goes it might make some wonder “is that it”?
Black Bolt Bites The Dust
The sacrifice of sorcerer Sara Wolfe may be The Multiverse of Madness’ first gruesome death, but it’s not as shocking as seeing Anson Mount’s Black Bolt get his brains blown out by a blood-soaked Wanda. The character himself is an odd addition, considering many MCU fans are not familiarized with ABC’s Inhumans series that was universally panned by critics and audiences, yet Black Bolt punishment here is far worse than even the most heavy-handed review.
More than anything, Black Bolt’s death is confirmation for what follows the rest of the film as Wanda goes on a murderous rampage with the sole purpose of reuniting with her children from some other universe.
Reed Richards Gets Shredded
It doesn’t take long for the film’s second superhero death to take place, and unfortunately, it’s fan-favorite casting John Krasinski who finds himself on the receiving end of Wanda’s spaghetti treatment. While both Raimi’s comments in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’ Blu-Ray edition suggest Krasinski was indeed the ultimate symbol for fan service, there’s currently very little certainty over him holding on to that role for the long term.
Sure, Richards getting shredded to pieces is part of the Fantastic Four’s comic book lore and it pales in comparison to seeing Black Bolt’s skull crushed like a melon, yet here his death is so trivial that it’s almost as if Raimi and Feige had decided to give fans such epic cameos only to take them away with that same power. Arguably one of the movie’s best or worst moments depending on who gets asked about it.
Better Wait For X-Men ‘97
After plowing through almost all the Illuminati lineup, it’s almost a given that Professor X is up next to meet his end at the hands of the Scarlet Witch and yet, somehow, considering the nature of these two individuals’ powers, Raimi delivers a true shocker nonetheless as Wanda snaps Charles necks without any kind of mercy.
MCU fans have been waiting anxiously to see just what Marvel Studios and company could do with the X-Men and this tease is like a bittersweet free sample of that. Doctor Strange 2 didn’t need Sir Patrick Stewart, but it sure doesn’t hurt to have him, plus his death reveals Wanda’s true corrupted demonic face.
The Three-Eyed Doctor
Fans had gotten a glimpse at what a three-eyed Doctor Strange looked like in the movie’s trailers, in this case, Sinister Strange the villainous variant by Earth-616’s Stephen which he ultimately defeats in a classical music duel. In The Multiverse of Madness the third eye is seen as a symptom of the mind’s corruption after prolonged exposure to the Darkhold dark powers, although the comics tell a very different story.
The movie’s cliffhanger ending is seemingly resolved when Stephen appears to have harnessed his third eye’s powers and Charlize Theron shows up to potentially set up Doctor Strange 3. With the Darkhold gone, it’s possible this third eye could be related to Doctor Strange’s favorite trinket, the Eye of Agamotto, regardless of it not having the time stone anymore; or it could also be a sign of Stephen’s powers getting a substantial level up after all, this variant already proved to be more worthy than others, plus Doctor Strange and Thor look like Phase Four’s true leaders.
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is available on Disney Plus.
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