Featuring: Dr. Strange
Release: February 11, 1964
Cover: May 1964
12 cents
Written at midnight by: Stan Lee
Drawn by candlelight by: Steve Ditko
Lettered at twilight by: S. Rosen
9 pages
Dr. Strange gets a blurb on the issue’s cover, but no picture.
Dr. Strange has a new tagline. No longer the “Master of Black Magic”, he is now “Master of the Mystic Arts”. This one will stick around for quite some time until Dr. Strange earns a higher title. The stories themselves will still occasionally mention his mastery of black magic for a little while longer.
Ultimately, this seems a simple story. Dr. Strange and a haunted house. There is a twist that the house itself is an interdimensional being acting the part of the ghost. But that’s the type of twist we are used to from many comics of this era. There is some societal commentary about television and the news and audiences to be found. The fact that a news program is dedicating time to what seems to be a publicity stunt about a haunted house tells us something about the world. The fact that audiences don’t believe the reporter when he claims to be in danger speaks to something as well.
But the true power of this story lies with Ditko. He’s good at the dark and moody that this story calls for. It’s all about tone. He’s got two things to convey. The first is how scary this house is; he does that. The second is that Dr. Strange is even scarier than the scary things. Ditko conveys that too. This issue is a stellar showcase of his talents.
The all-seeing eye of his amulet is a focal point for Dr. Strange’s power. It emerges from the amulet to rest on Strange’s forehead. First time we have seen this effect.
Invocations:
- Spells of the Omipotent Oshtur
- In the name of the Dread Dormammu
- By the Hosts of the Hoary Hoggoth
- I call upon the mystic realm!
- The fury of the ageless Vishanti
- By the Twelve Moons of Munnopor
- Vapors of Vishanti
- Mystic Hosts of Hoggoth
This is the first reference to the Omnipotent Oshtur. The spells of Oshtur we witness act like a giant invisible hand. Also new is the reference to the Twelve Moons of Munnopor. We’ve seen references to the Hosts of Hoggoth before, but I think this is the first time Hoggoth has been described as “Hoary”. Not a word I know well, “hoary” means grey or white and is often used as an adjective to describe the elderly.
“In the name of the venerated Ancient One, I dismiss the powers that be! They have served me well!”
Consider the true source of much of Dr. Strange’s power. He calls upon these “powers that be”, ancient sorcerers or demons or other powers, and draws power from them, then dismisses them. That’s wild.
Some twenty years ago, I got it in my head that I wanted every Marvel superhero comic. In the name of money and other practical concerns, I scoped that goal down in two ways. First, I noted Marvel published over 30,000 comics in the 90s alone, many of which were garbage. So I decided I would focus on comics 1961-1991.
Then I decided I would be content with reprints, that I just wanted every comic in some form. So collection series like the Essential, Omnibus or Marvel Masterworks lines took care of a lot of the more expensive comics. This was necessary, but has drawbacks.
For example, I had written a paragraph that represented the material in a way that was completely, 180 degrees, backwards. I was very close to publishing this misrepresentation of the material before I double-checked against a scan of the original found online.
I had written a paragraph complimenting Stan on his usage of the word “whence”. Only to realize it was actually the Masterworks editor I had to thank. I should have noticed the odd amount of whitespace when I was typing my notes.
Now, Merriam-Webster tells me both phrasings are technically allowable, and it’s obvious both are in common usage. But one phrase makes sense, and one does not. Dr. Strange must be someone very careful with his language.
That said, I have mixed feelings toward the correction. I appreciate that the reprint editor recognized a vitious mode of speech when he saw it. But I’m really curious to read these comics how they originally looked, without the cleaning. Let Spider-Man be Peter Palmer or even Superman. Let Jane Nelson be Jane Nelson. Let Dormammu be Mormammu. And, painful as it may be… if Stan wrote “from whence” and Rosen penned it in… then let the comic say “from whence”.
I feel icky just typing those two words together.
Rating: ★★★½, 65/100
Significance: ★★☆☆☆
I read this story in Marvel Masterworks: Dr. Strange vol. 1. You can also find the story in Dr. Strange Epic Collection vol. 1: Master of the Mystic Arts. Or on Kindle.
Characters:
- Dr. Strange
- Allan Stevens
- Bill Brinkly
- House of Shadows/Dweller in the Shadows
Story notes:
- A cottage on the outskirts of the city.
- Allan Stevens, network reporter, to broadcast audio live from haunted house; goal is to spend the evening there and prove the house is not haunted.
- Dr. Strange follows in his unphysical ectoplasmic form, unseen by human eyes.
- Stevens sees a lamp floating in the air and strange mists.
- Audiences are skeptical that Stevens is not acting when he panics.
- The House has come from another space-time continuum to observe us, disguised as a haunted house.
- Dr. Strange banishes the House from our dimension.
#190 story in reading order
Next: Sgt. Fury #7
Previous: Strange Tales #120
