Doctor Strange

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has made steadily smaller connection with the Marvel films, from sending in helicarriers to quick Sokovia meetings, and Doctor Strange will continue the trend. S.H.I.E.L.D. producers explain that while Coulson’s team won’t be palling around the Sanctum Sanctorum anytime soon, Season 4 will explore “some of those same ideas” as the magical Doctor Strange.

Given the comics’ history, Doctor Strange was going to be a difficult adaptation in 2016 no matter what. People are more culturally aware than ever, and turning a comic whose overall vibe from the days of its conception was pretty racist into a movie everyone could love was going to be tricky. Listen, this is Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s perception of Asian-ness: the 1960s weren’t exactly, as they say, “woke.”

Writer Jason Aaron and artist Chris Bachalo are still going strong on Doctor Strange. The 12th issue starts a new storyline called "Blood in the Aether." It features a powerless Stephen Strange, weakened by the events of "The Last Days of Magic," forced to deal with all of his greatest enemies who've decided, for obvious reasons, that this is the perfect time to come after him. The preview features Strange hiding out in what looks like a mystical Tiki Bar, which is then attacked by something terrifying, which he must fend off with just a glowing green sword.

Doctor Strange is set to hit U.S. theaters in November as Marvel’s last blockbuster superhero outing for 2016. Today, Marvel has released a new photo of the magic man in his Sanctum Sanctorum, as well as the full run time for the movie and a new, sooner release date (which will only be exciting if you’re in the U.K.).

The fact that Stan Lee is guaranteed to appear in nearly every single Marvel movie is one of those small little charms of the Marvel Cinematic Universe that I hope never goes away. Sure, some people probably view it as an annoying break in the fourth wall, but it also reminds audiences that we are watching a superhero comic book movie. These movies don’t need to choose between being cartoonish and deadly serious; they can be both, often at the same time, and Stan Lee always helps drive that point home.

Nobody knows exactly what Dan Harmon’s role in writing some additional last-minute scenes for Doctor Strange is exactly, and he hasn’t revealed anything aside from the fact that he will be on the writing team. But some Marvel fans have a lot of time on their hands, and CinemaBlend reports that a Reddit thread might hold the key to Doctor Strange’s mysteries.

Doctor Strange is set to hit theaters in a couple of months, but it looks like there’s still a little work left to do on Marvel’s latest superhero outing. The studio is reportedly receiving some assistance from a (pleasantly) surprising source, as Community creator Dan Harmon has been hired to help write some last-minute scenes for the upcoming film.

Is Chris Hemsworth’s Thor looking for a new primary care physician? Probably not, but he might be looking for a certain doctor.

Following yesterday’s reveal of two images from Doctor Strange, Marvel has revealed even more new photos from the Sorcerer Supreme’s upcoming solo film. And while the gallery above features several stills of Benedict Cumberbatch as Stephen Strange, you’ll also find some new sneak peeks at Chiwetel Ejiofor’s Baron Mordo and Mads Mikkelsen’s villainous Kaecilius, as well as our first good look at Benedict Wong as Wong. Oh, and there’s plenty of those mind-bending, Inception-style landscape shots, too.

When Tilda Swinton asks you to open your mind, the only answer is yes, obviously. When Tilda Swinton asks you to do anything, you should probably say yes. In Benedict Cumberbatch’s case, that means discovering dimensions beyond our own and becoming a mystical superhero, which seems pretty chill. As you can see in these new images from Doctor Strange, the transformation should be rather enlightening.