#{character} : stephen strange

[arisfruity]

i've been reading so much ironstrange it's not even funny anymore but the thing that pisses me off the most is when authors will just...ignore??? stephens disability???? ironstrange get married and somehow stephen can wear a ring without trouble????

he's literally struggling to put on a watch bro

like the accident was his whole character arc how are you even getting rid of it???

i understand that writing a disabled character as a non-disabled person can be challenging, bc you don't have the same experience but it's really all in the movies and like...google.

his disability is part of his character, it's kind of jarring to see him without one

[artphotographyofmen]

Doctor Strange by Simone Bianchi

[doctorofmagic]

Doctor Strange's disability: a (much needed) chronological review

In view of recent ableism and drama on the other social hellsite involving Doctor Strange's disability, here's my response, based on *CANON* material. (link to the thread on said hellsite here)

Stephen disability is established since 1963, back in Strange Tales #115. The story is focused on a flashback which portrays his journey from the decay of his medical career because of a car accident to his path towards the mystic arts.

Note that, in this very same issue, the Ancient One never says he would heal Stephen's *hands*, but perhaps Stephen would find the cure within. In other words, Stephen was supposed to heal his heart and soul from arrogance and egoism through magic, not a physical cure.

Also note that there are limitations within every aspect of comic books' universes. In this case, we're talking about magic. Magic is not a miracle thing. It demands training and, most recently as established by v4, a cost (Doctor Strange v4 #4).

Another clue that "magic can heal anything because it's fantasy" is not a valid argument within Marvel's magic world, as seen in The Oath. Stephen had access to the Otkid's Elixir, which could heal any disease, but the formula was lost in order to save Wong's life.

One last example comes from Spider-Man Family #5 (2007), featuring Morbius and Spidey. It establishes that healing demands the exact same price when it comes to magic.

Long story short, it's clear that the magic side of Marvel does not offer a solution to diseases through magical miracles. So this argument is totally invalid ~within~ this established universe.

Now back to Doctor Strange... No, he isn't using magic to heal his hands unlike some misleading accounts are claiming. In fact, there are several panels which show that he's actually in constant pain. Here's some examples:

- Doctor Strange - Sorcerer Supreme #48 (1992).

- Captain Marvel v10 #6 (2019)

- Doctor Strange v4 #1 (2015)

He also struggles to hold a pen and write, relying on magic to do so, as seen in the Book of the Vishanti.

Then comes the stupid argument I saw.

"Oh, but Google says his hands are healed!" is not a gotcha moment you think it is. We had FOUR MAIN BOOKS after that (Surgeon Supreme, DODS, Strange v3 and current v6). Allow me to clarify the details in chronological order.

Stephen indeed made a "magic" gamble and healed his hands. That much is correct. But it's not all (panels from Doctor Strange v5 #19 - 2019).

Waid continued this storyline in a new book called Dr. Strange (Surgeon Supreme), which would portray Stephen's duality as the Sorcerer Supreme and a brilliant surgeon. Except the book was cancelled at issue #6 (2020), leaving the character in a kind of limbo. Now enter MacKay.

MacKay kept a little bit of the former storyline as seen in Death of the Doctor Strange #1 (2021). On top of that, his hands appeared healed. However, that lasted only until Kaecilius murdered Stephen and stole his hands.

Stephen's temporal duplicate used a regenerative spell to bring original Stephen back through Kaecilius' body and the stolen hands. In here, we can see that his hands are scarred just like after the car accident (DODS #5 - 2022). OG Stephen died a second time with scars as well.

Stephen is indeed seen writing in v6 but it's not clear if he's using magic or not. Besides, he's not working as a surgeon anymore. Moreover, MacKay considers Stephen disabled as seen in this recent issue of v6 (#7 - 2023): "My own connection to the aether, the magic of the world, the power of the Vishanti, the power of the Sorcerer Supreme... Gone. Without all of that? I am just an old man with useless hands and a blade in his stomach."

In conclusion,

As of CURRENT DOCTOR STRANGE RUN by Jed MacKay and Pasqual Ferry, in the year of our lord Vishanti, 2024, Stephen Strange is a disabled character and no magic or ableism will erase that. Thank you very much.

[xia0ming56]

Hated that last episode so i drew this to convince myself i liked it

[allthosepeopleilovetofangirlover]

Dating Stephen Strange Headcanons

Let's be real, this man is OBSESSED with you.

Stephen is the kind of guy who's either not into you at all or he's absolutely in love with you. There's no in between for him.

When you two got together, Stephen would follow you around, trying to see and remember basic things about you like your everyday habits, what you like and dislike. He did this because he wanted to know what would keep you happy and what wouldn't.

His love language is gift giving. Anytime if you even look at something and your eyes light up, he will remember what that was and will get it for you. No matter the cost.

You always reprimand him for buying something way too expensive for you, but all he replies with is : Darling, you're the most precious thing I have. This is the least I can do for you.

He's a hotshot surgeon, but he holds interest in nobody other than you. You're it for him.

You get jealous of women who tail him around, who can't get it in their heads that he's in a serious, committed relationship with you.

If you start doubting yourself and start feeling insecure, Stephen is always there to reassure you, calm you down, and doesn't even hesitate to show all those women that he belongs to you.

But he also doesn't hesitate to show other men that you belong to him.

Stephen is very possessive, and hates it when any other man gets too close to you. You're his, and no one else gets to be too close for comfort.

If he ever spots you laughing with someone, or talking to someone for too long, he'll try to revert your attention back to him.

God forbid, if he ever finds a man flirting with you or bothering you, his deadly glares with turn into violent punches.

He's also deadly protective, always touching you in some form at public events, and keeping an alert eye on your surroundings, searching if anyone is giving you unwanted attention.

Though you've told him dozens of times that you can protect yourself just fine, he's always unconvinced.

Though he doesn't underestimate you, he just wants to be a man who protects his lady.

He'll be hesitant to introduce to the fellow Avengers because he's worried that you'll be overwhelmed, but you insist that you'll be fine.

You constantly worry about his safety and well-being whenever he's on missions, that's something you cannot stop doing even after tons of reassuring from him.

He's arrogant, and has plenty of anger issues, but you motivate him to be a better person. And he likes it.

Your smile can melt his heart, and he'll keep the world at your feet if you just asked.

Despite being responsible and secretive about his powers, Stephen wouldn't hesitate to use them once in a while to make you feel happy.

You're a gem in Stephen's life, just like he is in yours. You're eternally grateful to have each other, and love each other unconditionally.

Masterlist

[couldntbedamned]

The Sharon Carter Fans greet you, Dr. Strange Fans.

[thefiery-phoenix]

YANDERE STEPHEN STRANGE HEADCANONS

You most likely must have met him through his time of him being a surgeon or a doctor, or you must've been some hero like him to catch his attention and make him notice you. Now, Stephen is someone who doesn't get impressed too easily but somehow you managed to impress him and for that, congratulations :) You now have a yandere wizard or sorcerer at the back of you

Heck, you might even be a random person just minding your own business and he feels intrigued by how unfazed and calm you appear. Now, when it comes to him getting obsessed with you, he's gonna be getting completely cocky since he's pretty sure his actions are subtle and you wouldn't possibly find out. He'll start trying his best to impress you either with his magic or his car, watches or even making balloon animals for you lol

You might be able to avoid him not for long since this man here can create portals and everything like a modern day Kurogiri, unless you work in the medical field like him. He'll literally make sure you stay WITH him where he can keep an eye on you and watch your graceful movements like a hawk

He can be really sneaky when it comes to stalking you. You won't even know he's stalking you at some point since he's damn good at hiding and lying low when stalking you

As a yandere, I have a feeling he might be possessive, obsessive and maybe a little bit.... manipulative too since he's also kinda good at sweet talk I think

Doctor Strange here really loves and admires your upbeat personality and the fact that you're sarcastic like him makes his heart beat even more for you. He'll listen to you sing and applaud you, telling you how wonderful and melodious your voice is. He thinks you sing like an angel but he doesn't like it when you show affection to undeserving morons that don't even deserve to LOOK at your direction. He'll get jealous if you hang out with Tony too often since you both are buddies and pals and so, he'll do his best to drag you away from him and try showing you some cool trick that'll end up leaving you impressed with it and him being proud and smug AF while he smirks. Cocky prick....

He'll kidnap you when he feels like you're either in danger or he just needs to have you with him, that's it PERIODT. He would have stalked you for something like 6 months to more and everything about you. He'll know and understand you'll be scared and confused and angry and you have to hand it to the man here, he has a lot of patience. But if you piss him off, you're wandering into dangerous territory. Does he feel bad for what he's done? Not even a little bit

If you try fighting him, he'll think it's amusing and not to mention adorable that you think you actually have a CHANCE of beating him and escaping him. He'll do his best to make you happy and will create and give you things with his magic. That's a pro of being in a relationship with a wizard lol. The worst way he could punish you is locking you in a room with his magic preventing you from escaping. He just wants you to love him and yes, he DOES intend having a family with you as well. Maybe 3-4 little ones running around. You best pray this man doesn't get jealous since if he does, he'll send many death glares to that person and after that, he's gonna torture them in the most brutal way possible with his magic. And he'll find out whatever you're planning since he's a sorcerer of course. Little things he likes doing with you are cuddling with you and talking about things you like. He shares the same interest in astrology as you and loves hearing you talk about it, and the way your eyes shine with interest. He'd feel like the worst person on the planet when he sees you crying and he'll do his best to comfort you, he knows it's tough but you can face the challenges together as a couple, he'll help you and be there for you no matter what

Even death won't be able to separate the 2 of you since he'll just find a way to bring you back to life. So, that 'Till death do us'' part won't apply. He might act like one hell of a god damn Tsundere once in a while but secretly, he's a complete sucker for your affection

[saturndoesnotsleep]

In my little corner of comfort and self indulgence, these two have a father-daughter relationship

[moodboards-aesthetics]

Stephen Strange aka Doctor Strange

[amaranthmori]

[hayanwulf]

Painful Flowers

Tony stared down at the scene in abject horror.

Flowers and petals pooled the entire floor of the room. The large four-poster bed had literally turned into a flower bed, comprising of flora unlike anything on Earth. Their shapes and colors were otherworldly, some colors unrecognizable even, each one of them possessing an unfathomable beauty.

And amidst it, covered in thorny vines and soft flowers, lay the cold, motionless body of Stephen Strange.

Tony had never hated flowers more in his life than he did right at that moment.

He slowly stepped in, his gut twisting into knots, senses repelled by the sweet, floral scent in the air, trying to ignore the way the petals felt squashy under his boots.

This had to be a nightmare. This had to be. Maybe if he punched himself now, he’d find himself back in his workshop, neck lying on his desk in an appalling angle that would pain him for the rest of the day; back in a world where, with just a quick call, the wizard would instantly show up at his workshop, walking out of a sparking portal with a haughty remark on his lips, his cloak fluttering on non-existent wind.

It was exactly a week ago that he had done just that.

Exactly a week ago when he had seemed fine. Or the week before that, during Tony and Pepper’s wedding. Or the week before that, when they had met up for their usual lunch date.

He had been completely fine.

There had been no outward signs. No coughing or concerning shortage of breath. No indications of a sad or downhearted mood. No traces of anything being wrong. No, he had simply been his usual self. Snarky, throwing playful banters around with Tony that they both found easy to engage in, sharp as a pencil with his comebacks, a trace of content satisfaction always wrapped around his aura whenever he was around Tony.

He could still recall the brightened expression in the sorcerer’s face when they had met last week, that small, genuine smile he had given Tony, his eyes sparkling with a special kind of attention which they didn’t seem to hold for many people in this world.

“Are you happy?” He had asked Tony, at the end of the day. “With you marriage?”

“Couldn’t imagine being happier,” Tony had replied, letting all of his contentment pour into his words.

“I’m happy for you, Tony.”

They hadn’t met after that day. Tony had sent a couple of texts, especially one about their missed lunch date on Wednesday, and had never gotten a reply. But that hadn’t raised any concerns or suspicions. Why would it have? They were superheroes, their lives were busy and unpredictable.

And now, a week later, Stephen lay lifelessly in his own bed, succumbed to Hanahaki.

Unpredicted in the most unpredictable way.

Tony dared to look down at the man’s face.

There was some scabbed blood at a corner of his lips, red-bathed flowers lying next to his head and on his neck from where he had obviously coughed them out of his lungs. Even in his frozen state, his eyebrows were a little tense, scrunched-up as though in pain.

It was very slow and very painful, Tony realized.

The thought made something squeeze painfully tight in his chest.

A blue butterfly sat on his nose, its wings opening and closing slowly. Tony had no way of knowing if it was supposed to be one of his magic butterflies, or if it had simply found its way in through some crack on the windows, allured by the fragrant flowers.

Sickening flowers.

There was a disturbing-looking thin, green vine coming out of the side of his eye. Thorns dotted the length of the vine, needle-thin and menacing.

He had wept thorny vines, not normal tears.

And it looked excruciating.

Tony hadn’t even known that was something possible in Hanahaki. Probably shouldn’t be. Probably had to do something with magic, the same magic that had resulted in all of these unrecognizable flowers Tony was staring down at, instead of normal, Earthly flowers.

“How..?” He asked, voice barely above a whisper.

Wong sighed softly from somewhere at his right. Tony didn’t care to look as the other sorcerer spoke, his eyes unable to leave the impossibly pale, lifeless man lying in front of him.

“According to the apprentices, he locked himself in a week ago. I was gone to another dimension the entire week. When I came back it was to learn that he hadn’t been seen around the entire time. It took me hours to break the spells he put up to ward his room.” A pause, then a tentative, “He left us sometime last night.”

Tony’s eyes stung as he took a step back, shaking his head in disbelief. This couldn’t be. It just couldn’t. Nothing made sense here. “He visited me a week ago. He was fine.” His words quivered.

“Don’t forget that he.. was, a powerful sorcerer. He’s been hiding his condition for a while.”

Tony snapped his head over to Wong, glaring at him through tears. “Not powerful enough to overcome fucking petal disease?”

He vibrated with anger. Whether that was towards Wong or the unmoving man on the bed or that fucked up disease, he didn’t know.

It didn’t make sense. You didn’t just die from Hanahaki, not in 21st century where you had effective solutions for symptom management and high-tech life support, where you had access to therapy and support communities and what-fucking-not. Very, very rarely did Hanahaki progress into a terminal stage in the modern world, and those were almost always cases where the person’s unrequited love or significant other had passed away, leaving them with no way of having a closure.

Wong’s own gaze was stuck on Stephen, eyes stricken with grief and what seemed like guilt. “Then maybe his love was more powerful than his magic.”

The comment made him recoil, his stomach twisting with a complicated mix of emotions he didn’t understand, his eyes moving back to the bed of flowers.

Stephen had never told him anything. He.. they had been friends. At least.. at least Tony had thought so.

Clearly, Stephen hadn’t shared the sentiment. Because Tony had never been told about this.. this soul-crushing love Stephen had held for someone in this world. He had sat next to Tony through tedious meetings about the Accords, had shared lunch with Tony every Wednesday, had taught Tony the endless wonders of magic, had made him love magic rather than fear it, had listened to Tony rant late at night about his latest inventions..

He had fought alongside Tony on Titan, had stayed with him through pain and hopelessness and victory. He had stood by Tony’s side as the government had welcomed Rogers back to the states and he had never left.

And yet.. yet he’d never trusted Tony enough to confide in him, to tell him that he held someone so close to his heart.

No, instead he had chosen to lock himself up in his room for the final days of his life, withering away as more and more tragically beautiful flowers sprouted out of his misery.

It stung.

It stung so bad, it constricted around Tony’s heart and lungs like a python’s death grip, dug its disgusting blackened claws deep into the crevices of his soul, made it hard to breathe as he attempted to suck in a ragged breath.

Suddenly the pain morphed, and a vengeful kind of anger rose, higher and higher until it was boiling just beneath his skin. He turned his eyes to Wong.

“Who?”

Wong closed his eyes in a pained movement, shaking his head. “It is not my place to tell.”

Between one moment and another, Tony had crossed over to the sorcerer, holding the neck of his tunic in a vicious grip, eyes fiercely glaring down at the other man. “Don’t fucking bullshit me, Wong,” he spat, voice almost a growl from the ferocious anger roaring inside of him. “He’s.. he’s gone and it doesn’t matter anymore whose place it is to tell! Who did he love?”

Wong did not wither under his gaze in the least. “And what will you do, once you learn their name?”

“I will give them a piece of my fucking mind,” he snarled. “I will tell them how despicable a person they are, for not accepting his love.” For rejecting the person who would have given them an endless repertoire of affection, who would have treated them with nothing less than utmost respect, who was possibly, quite literally, capable of plucking the moon and stars out of the sky on their command.

How fucking dare they not even give him a chance?

Tony would not forgive them. He would tell them exactly what they had done, what they had turned down.

To be entirely honest, he was currently in a state of mind where he would probably just uproot their entire life and personally make sure that they would never be able to experience love again.

Wong didn’t need to know that, however.

“And what if they didn’t know?”

Tony’s grip wavered a little. “What?”

“What if Stephen had never confessed his love, as you seem to assume.”

He looked at the sorcerer from one eye to the other, feeling his own eyebrows crease progressively. “He would.”

Wong shook his head. “He didn’t.”

Tony abruptly released the sorcerer, stepping back as frustration boiled in his chest. “He would. Why wouldn’t he? If he loved them so much..” If he loved them enough to reach the terminal stage of Hanahaki, to not seek treatment in time.. surely, that meant that he had confessed his love to them?

Nobody died of Hanahaki. Nobody wanted to die — well, except suicidal people, but they didn’t necessarily go seeking out Hanahaki for that particularly. Nobody would.

Hanahaki was cruel. It was torture, the worst kind of body horror. It slowly turned your insides into flowers, pretty and fragrant and absolutely sardonic with the way it birthed beauty out of your despair, making you feel every bit of agony as you lost parts of yourself bit by bit, quite literally.

So no, there was no way Stephen would’ve wanted that. Surely, he’d have tried to court his love first before giving up so hopelessly, right?

“He had his reasons, Stark,” Wong said, and Tony couldn’t believe this. No. He couldn’t take this anymore.

What fucking reason warranted preferring to die over never getting over, nor confessing his love?

Why?

Why?

He wanted to walk over to Stephen, grab his shoulders by force and shake him, maybe slap him a few until he expelled all the answers. God, he wished he could do that right now.

‘I’m happy for you, Tony.’

He wished he had asked Stephen at that moment, if he was happy.

He wished he could rewind time. Wished he could go back to the previous week and ask exactly that. And then pin the sorcerer down in his workshop, not let him leave, plug him to a life support right then and there and bully him into accepting treatment.

He wished he could just.. talk to him.

About all the damn questions and mysteries swirling in Tony’s mind. About everything that Tony should have talked about, sooner. About why Stephen thought that his love for this person was important enough to give up his life for.

Why.

Why..

Damn it, Stephen.

His legs gave out and he crumpled to the floor, thick, hot tears streaming down his face. His hand touched the floor, and caught the silken texture of petals. He clamped his fist over them until it hurt, feeling the sickening velvet getting crushed in his grip.

The blue butterfly that had been giving Stephen company, fluttered down to Tony and settled on his thigh, almost as though trying to provide him a soothing touch with its weightless wings. One last piece of Stephen, trying to tell him, it’s okay.

It was the only semblance of comfort.

And an absolute joke of a closure.

Because he knew nothing. He had no answers, and now, he would never have the chance to obtain them.

[artphotographyofmen]

Doctor Strange by Chris Schweizer

[mids-stupid-shit]

The only superhero you'll ever need

[nekojetto]

Superior Ironman design for Supreme animatics project

You can really count this one as a "work in progress" x) I'm pretty happy with his face and expressions but not yet with the suit who is too much "detroit become human" style for now. Who is not ugly but I want something more originale for him haha! And I admit I didn't have the courage to end his armor for now x))

I was searching a bad guy who can be strong as Supreme in the same theme as "what if...?" serie and I heard about Superior Ironman story some month ago. So He suits perfectly for this role! He's not as powerfull as Supreme but I loved the idea of Magic vs science and charismatic Tony vs Zero social skill Stephen HAHAHA

So yeah he's basically a mean girl here x,)

[shydaydreamer28]

Awww.

Poor baby. He's freezing 🤭

[doctorofmagic]

What's next?

Blood Hunt is over and, as ever, I feel compelled to share my thoughts and expectations/predictions. And make it double because you know this post will be longer since we're talking about my favorite doctors, and that means apologies in advance ~

As already mentioned before, Stephen's suspicion was debated whether Victor was the one pulling the strings behind the event or not. And I suppose it isn't necessarily true at this point. I see Victor (at least, the current characterization of his entire persona) as one of the smartest opportunists in the Marvel universe. Tracing back a couple of years to his latest appearances, it happened a few times: he took part of Dormammu's power when he teamed up with the Guardians of the Galaxy and the X-Men; he created his own team of mutants, using it to create connections and collect debts, as well as stealing a seed of Krakoa; despite being a flashback, he used Eddie and his symbiote to study immortality in order to save his mother and also obtain the Darkhold, among many other schemes. He is, after all, a villain, and seeks power and control, although his motivations are unique to his character, which means he will do as he pleases.

In other words, Victor is complex. His ego and pride exceeds every hero's and villain's in this fictional universe, meaning that, despite his alliances, he will betray his partners if the opportunity arises. Go ahead and ask Namor. It's part of their dynamics.

(Fantastic Four v1 #6)

And yet, no matter how many times, his frenemies will always end up meeting with him once more, especially when it comes to save the world from bigger threats.

(Avengers/X-Men: AXIS #8)

In short, he's always eager to betray his allies but has a very strict code and takes an incredible amount of pride when it comes to his word. It's very contradictory of him, but it's part of his complexity. Take a look, for instance, in these following panels: he makes an alliance with Eddie, betrays him by stealing his symbiote and, when defeated, stays his hand and doesn't send his arm after Eddie.

(Venom: Lethal Protector II #4-5)

With all that in mind, my intent here boils down to what happened in Blood Hunt and the relationship he shares with Stephen.

(Blood Hunt #5)

First of all, Victor doesn't consider this a betrayal. Stephen used his words poorly, and an opportunity emerged. It IS convenient, it IS shady, and he is aware of that. But that's what Doom does.

Secondly, Victor wouldn't mind betraying Stephen if he didn't respect him. Why am I saying that? Because he has done it before to several allies, as I just discussed. And he doesn't care. But this isn't some random guy who only had something he wanted. This is the man who went to literal hell with him in order to save his beloved mother. They fought as much as they teamed up. Victor saved and took Stephen's life in different moments.

There's this gray area of respect that was totally exploited and taken advantadge of. And of course it was, Victor is an antagonist. It's the drama sauce being cooked here.

But that doesn't mean that this is the end. And here comes an important part -- whether you consider it biased or not by own my interpretations: what comes next?

I don't believe for a second that we're getting a new Secret Wars or a new portrayal of a tyrant. As I stated before, Victor craves acknowledgment, which comes as his need to rule and control things his way. This is why he declared himself the true savior of the planet.

(Blood Hunt #5)

Having the mantle is an accomplishment to his status of power. Or so he thinks. What he doesn't know is the pain and loneliness Stephen has been through by carrying this duty. It's not a blessing, it's a burden.

(What If? Magik Became Sorcerer Supreme)

I believe this is the point of having Doom as the Sorcerer Supreme. It's a mantle every magic user craves, but no one is truly aware of what it means. And Victor is about to find out.

As for Stephen, I've collected all the sneak peeks from Doctor Strange #18 that Pasqual posted on ig (here). And he's really depressed for losing the mantle, just as I suspected. In here, we see that he's reminiscing the moment he gave Victor a piece of his soul.

I strongly believe this will play an important part in the story. Because Jed's Stephen carries such a compassionate soul filled with overwhelming altruism and love. Yes, there's a piece missing in Stephen's soul, but what that piece will do in a heart of iron like Victor's?

See where I'm going with this...?

This is what I have in mind, of course. And, unfortunately, it really depends on the next writer. Some of them really enjoy Victor's shallow villainous side. But if we get someone who sees through Doom's layers, we're really walking towards to an interesting reading. Which means we can expect anything at this point, from Secret Wars level of tyranny, leading the sorcerers to retrieve the mantle, to a wholesome character development that will shift the scales of their relationship.

Lastly, before I conclude this post, I just want to touch some points regarding technicalities. In my opinion, I don't believe Jed was forced to conclude his Doctor Strange run(s) because of MCU!synergy. I'm not saying there isn't synergy at play here, but Jed has been hitting Doom since Strange v3, way before this year's announcement. He IS the one who wrote Blood Hunt, after all. Still, I'm really saddened that he's concluding his trilogy. No one has ever shown such a level of passion towards Stephen and Clea like he did. And I was really blessed to witness it all from the very beginning. I don't know what's coming next for Stephen, but I'm pretty sure he will not be disappear completely. Sided? Unfortunately, yes. It's Doom's time to have the spotlight. But definitely not completely gone.

With that in mind, I'm aware that this conclusion caused discomfort and mistrust in the fandom. It's hard for me to love these two characters who are intertwined in a frenemies relationship and not feel excited about it. But I hear you. I see them both with depth and love them even in their flaws. And I hope that the next story will highlight these aspects. I can always be wrong. But if I can offer just a little of comfort, I will always try.

This isn't a goodbye. We still have the last DS issue. That one will be harder. But we've been through so much worse, right? No matter what, this Sanctum will always be open.