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ULTIMATE MARVEL TEAM UP #13
Highly Recommended (9/10)
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Marvel Comics
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Ted McKeever
Colors: Transparency Digital
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Price: $2.25 US/$3.65 CAN |
The problem with Dr. Strange, see, is the same problem that's inherent to some other Marvel characters, like, say, Thor. It's the stilted speech and the far-from-mortal experiences and adventures. I never connected with characters like that because their mythic or mystical natures robbed them of any sense of humanity. That's one of the reasons that last month's origin story -- which focused a great deal on the typical Dr. Strange attitude -- didn't work for me as well as other "ultimate" stories Bendis has written.
Here, that problem is solved. Bendis presents us with a Dr. Strange who's not the "Master of the Mystic Arts" or the "Sorceror Supreme." This Stephen Strange is the "Slack-ass University Student Majoring in the Mystic Arts Who'd Rather Be at a Frat Kegger." Like Bendis's take on Spider-Man, he's basically just a kid who's in over his head. This is easily the funniest "ultimate" story Bendis has written so far, and McKeever's twisted, dark art somehow adds to the goofy quality.
Spider-Man crashes into the Sanctum Sanctorum of Stephen Strange as his servant Wong tutors him on the mystic arts. Strange freaks and ends up banishing Spidey to a limbo-like dimension. After retrieving him, they discover that Spidey's entrance broke the mystic barriers protecting the house, leaving the young heroes to stave off Xandu's attempt to steal the Wand of Watoomb.
McKeever's exaggerated and angular style boasts a bizarre organic quality as well. While the distorted figures and settings are well suited to a supernatural story, one wouldn't expect that it would work for humor. But it does. McKeever's exaggerations capture the characters' incredulous reactions perfectly.
What makes this story work is that the main characters react to the weirdness around them just as anyone in the real world would: they scream and screw up. It makes for hilarious reading as well. Bendis pokes fun at the super-hero genre by having the super-heroes point out how ridiculous and bizarre everything around them has become.
Bendis reeled me in initially, though, with a powerful story of childhood trauma and bad parenting. Stephen Strange is defined by the fact that he never knew his father. His lack of direction in life stems from that fact, and his new focus -- delving into the world of magic that he can barely believe, let alone understand -- grows out of his desire to know his dad. Anyone can relate to being disappointed in a parent or wanting to connect with one on a deeper level.
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