Dumb Things In Doctor Strange Everyone Just Ignored
Sure, Marvel's Doctor Strange hit a few of the same notes as other movies in the MCU, but it also introduced the world of magic into the same reality as Captain America and Iron Man. So, it definitely had some heavy lifting to do.
For the most part, Doctor Strange checked all the boxes and knocked it out of the park. Star Benedict Cumberbatch did a fantastic job of bringing Dr. Stephen Strange to life, and the film told a compelling story, with some mind-blowing visuals to boot. But it wasn't perfect, and like most big popcorn flicks, there were still a few major head-scratchers in this one.
Doctor Strange is kind of a Mary Sue
The title "Mary Sue" refers to a character who is almost too flawless, be it at picking up a skillset or simply being a really good person. The phrase was bandied around quite a lot around the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens in regards to Rey and how she was rocking those Jedi skills with nary a lesson. In some ways, the same applies to Doctor Strange.
Yes, he falters a bit early on, but by the middle of the movie, he goes from struggling student to magical prodigy. Then, when the action ramps up, he holds his own against Kaecilius during the assault on the Sanctums, while other sorcerers are getting taken out left and right. Strange is a bright guy, but c'mon. He goes from skeptic novice to magic ninja a bit too quickly.
Wait, Doctor Strange doesn't even use a Surface Pro?
Marvel movies have never been afraid of clunky product placement. Just ask Tony Stark about his dime store cell phone in Captain America: Civil War. In Doctor Strange, things are a bit more subtle, but one noticeable little moment sticks out like a sore thumb.
Strange brings his laptop along, and it turns out he's using a Surface 3 laptop. That is fine, but c'mon—a rich surgeon like Strange couldn't spring for a Surface Pro? That's weak sauce, bro.
Strange's baffling injury and recovery
Strange manages to hold his own against Kaecilius, even getting the drop on him. But, after the fight, he's stabbed in the chest with a magical spear. We see quite a lot of blood, and he's on the verge of bleeding out when he makes it to the hospital for help.
Thankfully, the Cloak of Levitation jumps in to protect him so he can make his escape. But, why didn't the cape just block the spear to begin with? That cloak seems to have near-omniscient knowledge of when things are about to hit Strange. So, why couldn't it just jump in front and block the shot?
Not to mention that Strange seems totally fine right after getting patched up at the hospital. That's one heck of a quick recovery, right?
Where are the rest of these wizards?
When Strange is going through his training, there are a boatload of other would-be wizards taking on the same drills and learning the same magic alongside him. So, where were all these folks when Kaecilius attacked the Sanctums?
The Ancient One knows he's going to try and take out the Sanctums, so she has just one dude all by himself hanging out to serve as defender? Why not set up a platoon of wizards at each Sanctum in case of an assault? They obviously have the numbers—we've seen them at Kamar-Taj. So, why not put these folks to work and let them do some good? That is why they're training in the first place, right?
Why chain the books if thieves can still just grab them?
The entire story kicks off with Kaecilius stealing the spells from the library at Kamar-Taj to summon Dormammu. So, why keep those extremely dangerous books behind something as flimsy as small chain? This is, like, the worst idea ever, as seen by Kaecilius literally walking right in and grabbing them.
Strange, meanwhile, goes a step further and opens up a portal to grab books at will. So what's to stop any other rogue wizard from doing that, too, with nefarious intent?
Yes, no knowledge is forbidden in Kamar-Taj, but you have a librarian—would it be so crazy to lock these things up in some kind of magical vault in case of attack? Then, if someone needs to read them, that's why you have a librarian. Wong can dish 'em out as needed for study and still keep an eye on things.
How have we never seen these guys before?
We're told the sorcerers protect the world from mystical threats, as opposed to the physical ones seen in previous films, which is supposed to explain away why we haven't heard much from these folk over the first few phases of Marvel movies. Okay, that does make some sense. But wouldn't Loki's attack in The Avengers kind of fall under that banner? He's a Norse god who opens a portal with an Infinity Stone to try and take over the world. You'd think that might draw the attention of the Ancient One and her band of magical heroes.
Heck, at the end of the film we even see Strange catching up with Thor to keep tabs on what's going down in his city, so the sorcerers have obviously been playing some type of role before Strange is introduced to the mystic arts. So, if this magical world has been protecting us from threats all this time, it's hard to believe they never crossed paths with a few of Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
The absurd timing
Doctor Strange has been devouring pretty much any magical knowledge he could, and then he dives into the book about time manipulation at the exact moment Kaecilius attacks. A bit coincidental, no?
For that matter, where the heck has Kaecilius been all those months or years when Strange was getting trained? It's almost as if he built a pause into his plan to ... umm ... allow Strange to learn enough to fight him. You know, because the plot demands it.
Seriously, Kaecilius steals the pages for his spell then waits months to stage his next attack. Why? All he did was allow the Ancient One more time to plan and beef up defenses (which she kind of fails to do, but still).
Where's the time travel fallout?
Mordo spends most of the movie warning Strange over and over about messing around with time, noting it can result in everything from spatial paradoxes to time loops. As he's keen to repeat: "The bill comes due. Always." But then Strange uses the Eye of Agamotto to rewind the clock on all of downtown Hong Kong, to before the sanctum falls, in an effort to save the day. He then mucks around with a time loop to stop Dormammu in a very clever move.
If messing around with an apple was dangerous, you'd think erasing the fall of an entire city is flirting with all-out cosmic disaster, right? But after all those warnings from Mordo, there are no obvious consequences for Strange's actions. Nada. So, what was all the fuss about in the first place?
Wait, so why did Mordo go bad?
Mordo is obviously shocked and disappointed when he learns that the Ancient One was drawing from the Dark Dimension to extend her life and protect reality. It was a shady bargain and deception, one of those things only rationalized by saying the end justifies the means. Then, when Strange goes to trick Dormammu, Mordo assumes that Stephen has given in to his power. But, he sees that is obviously not the case when Strange saves the day and gets Dormammu to hit the bricks. So, after all this, Mordo decides to just go rogue and start taking out other wizards?
Why doesn't he try to fill the void left by the Ancient One? He's been fairly devoted to fighting for good up until this point, and even after his disappointment that it took violating the natural law to stop the baddies, it still doesn't explain why he goes bad. It's a big leap for him to equate what Strange has done with what Kaecilius was trying to do.
Oh, and Mordo can take away people's magic, now?
Speaking of which, Mordo's new mission is apparently to go around and take magic away from people who use it. Which he can apparently just ... do now? Boy, that ability sure would've come in handy a bit earlier.
If Mordo is capable of just zapping the magic out of someone, why didn't he use that nifty skill against a few of those bad guys?