‘Doctor Strange 2’ explained: From the third eye to Illuminati – Los Angeles Times

Spoiler warning: The following article discusses both major and minor plot details of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and is intended to be read after youve seen the movie. If youre looking for less spoiler-y Strange stories, check out our review and report from the world premiere on the movies connections to WandaVision.

A whole cosmos of comic-book elements are introduced or re-introduced in pivotal ways into the Marvel Cinematic Universe by Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, now playing in theaters nationwide. Heres a handy-dandy A-Z (or A-W) guide to the most important and their comics origins.

If WandaVision bore a large-strokes resemblance to the epic 2005 Marvel Comics crossover event House of M (Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch suffers a nervous breakdown triggered by personal loss in the comics, her children; on TV, her husband and creates an entirely new reality), Multiverse is very roughly analogous to the epic crossover event Avengers Disassembled (2004), which preceded House of M. In Disassembled, Wanda distraught over the loss of her magical children goes bananas and kills a whole bunch of heroes. Thats about it, comparison-wise, but thats a pretty big It.

Mentioned in passing in Multiverse of Madness by alternate Christine Palmer (Rachel McAdams), the comics version is a government think-tank tied to the origins of the Fantastic Four. In the 2015 Fantastic Four movie, The Baxter Foundation is the brainchild of Sue Storms father, Franklin, and provides the scholarship/job to Reed Richards that sets this whole super-thing in motion. It may or may not pop up in the MCUs Fantastic movie currently in development; either way, the Baxter Building serves as the Fantastic Fours headquarters.

Rachel McAdams as Dr. Christine Palmer, Benedict Cumberbatch as Dr. Stephen Strange, and Xochitl Gomez as America Chavez explore another strand of the MCU in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

(Marvel Studios)

If ever there were a Marvel element meant for a Sam Raimi movie, its this compendium of evil magic committed to parchment made of flesh. It was written by a very bad person, the Elder God/later demon Chthon, and serves as a kind of conduit for his not-very-nice power to Earth. Its also called The Book of Sins, which sounds fun, but its chapters always seem to come to unhappy endings.

This bad, bad book first materialized in Marvel Spotlight No. 4 in 1972 (it was mentioned, but not shown, in No. 3). Since, it has appeared onscreen in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Runaways and WandaVision, in which it passed from the hands of Agatha Harkness to Wanda Maximoff.

The short version is Earth-616" houses the main continuity of Marvel Comics. Not that the term is often used, as some Marvel editors have derisively likened it to competitor DCs use of Earth-One and Earth-Two (primarily to explain why some of DCs heroes were around in the 1940s) but its canon, like it or not. Much of Multiverse of Madness, as again mentioned by Dr. Palmer, takes place on Earth-838.

Apart from eventual Young Avenger America Chavez trans-universe-porting into the MCU and the end-credits scene finally bringing in Doctor Stranges enduring love from the comics, Clea (and probably also explaining why Charlize Theron wasnt cast as Thena in Eternals), the sequels most-attention getting introduction will be that of The Illuminati.

This group of solemnly overconfident eggheads manifests here as Earth-838s Sorcerer Supreme Mordo, Inhumans leader Black Bolt, Captain Marvel, Captain Carter (as previously seen on Disney+s animated What if ...?), Fantastic Four leader Reed Richards and X-Men leader Professor X (played by Patrick Stewart in one of the most explicit connections yet between the Fox Marvel movies and mutants and the MCU).

As in the comics, The Illuminati seem to exist as a cautionary tale against unelected elites secretly making momentous decisions for everyone (see the World Security Council, et al). There are differences between this iteration and the classic cabal that first appeared in New Avengers No. 7 in 2005 (notably excluding Namor and Tony Stark here), but they remain every bit as effective and likeable as on the page. As my 14-year-old son said before watching the film, The Illuminati are incompetent fools. They suck.

No. This isnt in the comics. Why is it in the movie? Talk about hitting a sour note. This silly symphony lands in infamy with a thud, right beside the Raimis Spider-Man 3" dance sequence.

Benedict Cumberbatch as Dr. Stephen Strange in Marvel Studios Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

(Marvel Studios)

During the siege of Kamar-Taj, we briefly meet a couple of wizards who stand out among the rest. One is hard to miss because hes a green minotaur. This would be Rintrah, from the extra-dimensional planet RVaal. You asked. Anyway, hes a longtime ally and acolyte of Stranges.

The other Kamar-Taj wizard of note is Sara, played by Sheila Atim (who appeared notably in Halle Berrys directorial debut, Bruised). Considering the moment she gets onscreen with Wong, this may be Sara Wolfe, Wongs love interest in the comics. In the comics, however, shes of Cheyenne descent and not a wizard, but Stranges secretary. So maybe, maybe not.

The Third Eye or Minds Eye is an ancient concept from multiple spiritual traditions involving perception beyond what can be normally experienced by the five senses. There are many ways to interpret this, from the mystical/supernatural to enlightenment or simple mindfulness.

In Marvel Comics, Stranges third eye is a manifestation of the Eye of Agamotto, which was introduced in the MCU as a containment vessel for the Time Stone. In the comics, among its powers is a truth-revealing light (which would come in handy when those pesky Skrulls show up in the MCUs upcoming Secret Invasion).

In Multiverse, we first see a third eye appear on the forehead of a version of our hero who bears a stark resemblance to Strange Supreme, the warped iteration of Strange who causes a universe-ending incursion in the animated What if ...? TV series. That implies it might be an artifact from the Strange Supreme-wielded Darkhold, which might freak out some fans when it shows up on 616 Stranges forehead at the films conclusion. But worry not; he seems cool with being a triclops when he returns mid-credits, implying this third eye is more like the comics version simply a gateway to greater perception with a few extra abilities thrown in for kicks.

None of this explains, however, how the Eye of Agamotto is around 616 Stranges neck years after Thanos crushed it in Avengers: Infinity War. Is there, like, a magical item repair shop in Greenwich Village? Maybe Etsy to the rescue? (Theres actually a likely answer in that not just the Time Stone, but the Eye Thanos destroyed in Infinity War may have been a fake, though the MCU has not established that.)

Benedict Wong as Wong is held captive in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

(Marvel Studios)

Wundagore Mountain is a longstanding location in Marvel Comics (dating back to Thor No. 134, 1966). Its where the Elder God/demon Chthon wrote the Darkhold and where he was later imprisoned by Morgan le Fay (yes, that Morgan le Fay, so theres some Black Knight sprinkled in here, too). It was also the base of operations of the High Evolutionary, one of the coolest-looking characters in all of Marvel. Anyway, its apparently where Wanda and Pietro Maximoff were born, so its a fitting final resting place for well, you know who if youve seen the film.