Birth.Movies.Death. Avengers: Endgame Commemorative Issue
By Jim Braden @jbraden6
In the ten years since its first film debuted, the MCU has introduced most of the A-list stable of Marvel heroes. Considering the depth of that bench, Marvel has done a commendable job of capturing most of the main origin stories, the majority of which feature the character putting aside his or her own desires and fears in the interest of serving the greater good, often at tremendous personal cost. Tony Stark went from showboating playboy to selfless leader. Steve Rogers gave up being an all-American hero to become a rogue agent. Thor evolved from carefree bro-god to a haunted survivor of Asgard. Doctor Strange went from being a caustic, egotistical misanthrope to…well, he apparently hasn’t changed all that much. Or has he?
When we first meet him, Stephen Strange is already a sorcerer with a scalpel, and his outsized ego keeps others at arm’s length. Just as Benedict Cumberbatch played his version of Sherlock as a self-described “high-functioning sociopath,” he plays Strange as hopelessly detached from his fellow humans, and Strange seems fine with that. He’s not at the top of his medical field because he has a passion for helping others, but because he knows he’s the best at it, and being the best is all that matters.
We all know the rest. Strange is grievously injured in a car wreck and, unable to perform surgery, loses everything in his quest to regain his sense of self-worth. Emotionally bereft and desperate for redemption, he washes up on the steps of Kamar-Taj, where the Ancient One agrees to train him in the mystical arts. As soon as his training begins, however, his humble pie goes uneaten as he throws himself into his studies, determined to once more become the best, whatever the cost.
As he grows in power, he challenges every fundamental tenet of his new faith, even going so far as to question the Ancient One’s integrity. Despite being a newbie in the world of ancient magic and evil gods, Strange is utterly confident that he’s ahead of the game. He’s better than Wong; he’s better than Mordo; better even than the Ancient One, herself.
When Strange finally confronts the big bad, Dormammu, he waltzes in like a boss. On the surface, this looks like the climax of a hero’s journey — Strange has set his ego aside for the greater good, sacrificing himself again and again in order to trap and eventually thwart the demon and save the world. The thing is, Strange already knew he’d defeated Dormammu before he even walked through the door. Yes, it must have been a drag being brutally murdered in countless ways over countless time loops before finally convincing Dormammu to call it quits, but think about the last video game you played. How much suffering did you personally endure when your character died? None. You reloaded your last saved game and tried it again. Strange knew with each death that he’d respawn, thereby negating the value of his “sacrifice.” If anything, thwarting Dormammu was the ultimate power move, and only served to drive Strange’s ego to even greater heights.
At the end of the movie, Strange is a hero, of sorts — he accepts the mantle of Sorcerer Supreme and protector of reality — but with no surrender of self. He’s remains the unmoved mover. Hell, he even puts the God of Thunder in his place as soon as he meets him, handing Thor a magic beer and telling him to GTFO. He’s the best…again.
And then, enter Thanos.
When Thanos’ minions arrive, Strange confronts them alongside Iron Man, Spider-man and Bruce Banner. It’s only when these other marquee heroes show up that Strange must come to terms with his place in the universe. Each of them have, over the course of their respective character arcs, given themselves over to the greater fight, each with the knowledge that they might be called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice. These are real heroes, and though Strange tries to run his game on them, he can’t claim the high ground because he hasn’t yet completed that arc. His posturing falls flat, and he knows it. Once the initial NYC battle transitions to outer space, Strange has to admit that not only is he incapable of defeating Thanos on his own, but that for the first time, he’s not the biggest, baddest guy in the room. Just to remind us where he stands on his character arc, he tells us that he’d readily sacrifice Tony and Peter if it means stopping Thanos. He never once mentions sacrificing himself.
When Strange realizes that the Eye of Agamatto contains the Time Stone, he casts himself into the future and witnesses 14,000,604 scenarios in which Thanos’ plan succeeds, but only one in which it fails. When Thanos arrives and trounces the heroes, Strange must choose between giving up the stone or letting Iron Man die. Given that he ultimately surrenders the stone to save Tony, Strange knows that not only will Thanos complete the Infinity Gauntlet, but that Strange himself will not be a part of the final battle to defeat him, since this timeline inevitably involves his death.
Given the likelihood that this timeline eventually involves the resurrection of all the Snapped, including Strange, one could argue that this is no greater sacrifice than those committed in his showdown with Dormammu. This time, however, Strange is uncertain — there are countless variables that, being dead, he can’t control. This is the only scenario in which Thanos might be defeated, but it’s not guaranteed. Strange acts with the knowledge that this could be his true end, and that someone else will have to finish the fight or fail in the attempt. In other words, someone ultimately has more control over the endgame than he does.
He lets himself be killed anyway.
Strange’s path toward selflessness and sacrifice has been a long one, but through his interactions with the other Marvel heroes, he has finally, truly, earned his place among them.