10 Things Marvel Wants You To Forget About Doctor Strange
6. His Death In Ultimatum
The Ultimate Universe was an attempt by Marvel to offer a brand new line of comics for new readers, ones that weren't bogged down by decades worth of continuity like their main comics.
It was a concept that eventually grew a bit stale though as characters struggled to do much more than just rehash the same kind of adventures as their older counterparts. Marvel decided to bring in Jeph Loeb to shake things up.
Unfortunately, Jeph Loeb's Ultimatum comic was only a solution to creative stagnation in the same way that a tidal wave is a solution to drought. It was a horrible and badly written book that was little more than a collection of characters dying in completely idiotic and unnecessarily gruesome ways.
The most infamous example was what happened to Doctor Strange. Ultimatum introduced the Ultimate version of Dormammu by having him appear from nowhere with absolutely no explanation. He then killed Doctor Strange by choking him with his own cape until his head exploded like a finely moustached pimple. And then it just moved on to another scene.
It's become infamous as one of the worst scenes in one of the worst comics ever written. However, it seemingly did work. The Ultimate Universe managed to carry on for a few more years.