Doctor Strange will become the Sorcerer Supreme once again. What does this mean for Clea going forward and when will Stephen Strange make his return?
There are a few things that remain certain in Marvel Comics: Mutants will always be hated, Steve Rogers can motivate anyone, and death isn’t permanent.
The latter is especially true when it comes to popular heroes. Wolverine and Spider-Man are examples of characters that have died and returned in a short amount of time. Spider-Man came back within a month of dying (read Spider-Man: The Other – Evolve or Die for more on that). Like other well liked characters, Doctor Strange is coming back from death sooner than expected.
Back in 2021, Doctor Stephen Strange was killed by Kaecilius in The Death of Doctor Strange. An underwhelming killer, but at least it was a surprise. Most times, the assailant is obvious. Kaecilius being the one who did it was a nice change of pace.
Before he died, Strange bequeathed all of his items and the title of Sorcerer Supreme to Clea. Everyone knew she’d become the protector of the realm. However, no one would have thought she’d lose the title this quickly. After less than two years, Marvel Comics is bringing Doctor Strange back and returning his title of Master of the Mystic Arts. Marvel.com announced,
"“Jed MacKay’s acclaimed work on the Doctor Strange mythos has captivated readers over the past year, and this March, a thrilling new chapter begins. Spinning out of the character’s terrifying demise in DEATH OF DOCTOR STRANGE and Clea’s time as Sorcerer Supreme in STRANGE comes an all-new ongoing series for Stephen Strange where he’ll resume his duties as Marvel’s Master of the Mystic Arts!”-Marvel.com"
What’s next for Clea?
Doctor Strange is more popular than ever now thanks to Benedict Cumberbatch’s performance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. If not for that, Clea may have remained the Sorcerer Supreme longer. Because of this, it’s impossible to measure how good or bad she’s done while doing the job. Although, since the world wasn’t overrun by mystical monsters and she did tell Doctor Doom that he wasn’t worthy of being Sorcerer Supreme, this writer will give her an A+.
With Strange coming back as Sorcerer Supreme, Clea might be heading back to the Dark Dimension where she was previously Sorcerer Supreme. Hopefully, this isn’t be the last we see of her. No longer being the Sorcerer Supreme shouldn’t have an affect on her popularity.
Not being Thor didn’t stop Jane Foster from being great. This should be the same for Clea. Her missions in the Dark Dimension could be something fans would love. Give her a writer like Leah Williams, Jason Aaron, or Vita Ayala and Clea’s stories will be amazing.
What’s next for Doctor Strange?
Doctor Strange will likely go back to business as usual. He’ll move back into the Sanctum Sanctorum, continue to make house calls when the need arises, and he’ll battle mystic evil at every turn. Hopefully he’ll go back to Strange Academy. His presence was missed there. The students and the faculty loved him. The readers probably did as well. Because of everything that was just mentioned, it makes this writer wonder if Stephen Strange needs the title of Sorcerer Supreme at all.
With the title comes mystic items like the Cloak of Levitation, the Eye of Agamotto, the Wand of Watoomb, and so much more. All things that are needed to protect the realm. If you’ve followed Stephen Strange over the last decade, you know that he didn’t need those items to be great. At one point, Doctor Voodoo was Sorcerer Supreme and Strange was still powerful. Maybe taking the title from Clea was premature. A new face could have worked if she remained around a bit longer. It’s not as if the two couldn’t coexist. Nevertheless, we’ll have to wait and see how things play out.
Will Doctor Strange become the Sorcerer Supreme again in the MCU?
When things happen in Marvel Comics, you can usually see the effects of it in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In the MCU, Wong is Sorcerer Supreme. As viewers saw in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Stephen didn’t need the title. He’s creative enough to find ways to win. In fact, at the end of the movie, Strange learned a lesson in humility. That being said, he could still regain his title in the MCU after he gets it back in the comics.
Wong has done some questionable things. Among them is breaking Emil Blonsky out of prison twice (once in Shang-Chi and again in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law). When asked to face what he did, Wong simply said no, claiming that he’s above the laws of man. Realistically, he kind of is. That doesn’t mean there won’t be repercussions for his actions. Among them could be Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine
Contessa has been popping up a lot since The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. If she arrested her ex-husband for helping Shuri and Okoye in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, there’s no way she would let this slide. It’s easy to see her bringing the Thunderbolts to Kamar-Taj to get him back and punish Wong. If this happens, Wong may be forced to face criminal charges and force Stephen back in charge. Of course, this would be after Stephen breaks his friend out of jail.
We’ll have to wait and see if the MCU’s Doctor Strange takes cues from his comic book counterpart.
Marvel Comics’ Doctor Strange No. 1 is scheduled to be on sale March 22. It will be written by Jed MacKay and drawn by Pasqual Ferry.
Stay tuned to Bam Smack Pow for more information as it comes out.
What do you think, readers? Do you think it’s too soon to bring Doctor Strange back? Let us know in the comments below.