Doctor Strange #10 Review

Written by: Jed MacKay
Art by: Pasqual Ferry
Colors by: Heather Moore
Letters by: VC’s Cory Petit
Cover art by: Alex Ross (cover A)
Cover price: $3.99
Release date: December 20, 2023

Doctor Strange #10 brings the conflict against General Strange to an end when Wang and the Agents of WAND arrive to perform a little magical surgery.

Is Doctor Strange #10 Good?

Doctor Strange #10 brings the brutal conflict against one of his most interesting villains in years to a close. Not with a cataclysmic battle but with a precisely executed dose of empathy and compassion. On paper, that sounds like a lot of hooey, but Pasqual Ferry makes it work much better than words could ever express.

When last we left Doctor Strange, he made a deal with the Trinity of Ashes after his attempt to engage the Vishanti failed. Strange hoped the Trinity’s power would be enough to tip the fight against General Strange in his favor, but it didn’t. Now, we learn Doctor Strange only needed the Trinity’s power to give him enough juice to stall so that Wong and the Agents of WAND could execute a plan of healing, courtesy of Doktor Zee’s psychedelic magic medicine. When all is said and done General Strange’s empathy is on the path to recovery, courtesy of an empathy transplant and a healthy dose of kindness.

Jed MacKay’s conclusion brings the totality of the ten issues to a close, including a prelude that ties up the loose ends concerning Aggamon’s murder and what to do with Clea’s half-sister. However, the run is continuing next month, so stay tuned for more reviews.

What’s great about Doctor Strange #10? The concept of “healing” General Strange by infusing him with the empathy he lost thousands of years ago sounds like hippie-dippie foo-foo nonsense, but MacKay makes it work. The surgery is magically bizarre, and the aftermath makes total sense because of the way it presents Doctor Strange as a doctor in the traditional sense.

What’s not so great about Doctor Strange #10? General Strange, we hardly knew ye. One of the flaws in MacKay’s writing in this title and several others is the consistent lack of an engaging villain. When MacKay finally figures out how to make a villain that captures your imagination, he’s defeated before we have time to see him do some truly despicable things. This title would have been much better served if MacKay had introduced the General much earlier instead of wasting the readers’ time with a one-and-done issue that went nowhere (e.g. Day out with Dormammu).

How’s the art? Again, an empathy surgery sounds wonky on paper, but Pasqual Ferry pulled out all the stops to make the “battle” magically weird and captivating. Ferry sometimes gets flack for visuals that lack an edge, but this is one case where his skill with soft, flowing shapes works.

About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.

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Bits and Pieces

Doctor Strange #10 brings the 10-issue arc to a close with a climactic battle that ends General Strange’s vendetta in the most fitting way possible from a hero who is also a doctor. MacKay’s concept of defeating the villain through healing sounds uninteresting on paper, but the script makes it work, and Pasqual Ferry’s whimsical visuals add just the punch needed for a satisfying finale.