8 Problems With The MCU That Doctor Strange Doesn't Fix
3. Every Hero Feels Like Tony Stark
It's hardly a criticism that has gone unnoticed - even the most casual of movie fans would probably be able to spot a few striking similarities between Stephen Strange and Tony Stark - but the fact that the Sorcerer Supreme shares both visual traits and personality traits with everyone's second-favourite billionaire playboy superhero is, quite frankly, boring.
It's not just those two who share a resemblance either. Strange's origin story and Stark's origin story (the arrogant, wealthy, self-righteous a-hole who must endure an arduous set of circumstances in order to learn a lesson and become a 'better man') is mirrored by Thor, and to a certain extent, Ant-Man - who lacks the wealth but commits multiple crimes on his way to becoming the father his daughter desperately needs.
Each of the aforementioned heroes also shares an overly quippy, excessively self-confident persona too, and along with Star-Lord, would all begin to blur together if they were placed in the same room. It looks as though Marvel are positioning Doctor Strange as Iron Man's 'replacement' as their flagship hero - after all, Robert Downey Jr won't be playing the part forever - hence all the parallels.
But that's a risk.
Cockiness is a trait that eventually turns people away, and given how often Marvel have been copying and pasting the same type of hero into different movies, there's a chance they could annoy their audience. This aside, it's plain disappointing to watch the studio lazily rely on a formula that did them the world of good back in 2008 - but ironically enough, may be one of their greatest weaknesses.