Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness: 10 Reasons It Sucks

The eagerly awaited Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has finally arrived and sadly it's... not good.

Although the film benefits from Sam Raimi's excellent direction and solid performances all around, the writing is so bad that the film is ultimately an appalling mess that is quite frankly unpleasant to watch. And damn it, that is crushing.

After all, aside from Spider-Man: No Way Home, this was the most anticipated film in the MCU's Phase 4 thanks to the irresistible premise, the presence of the great Sam Raimi in the director's chair and the boundless possibilities for superhero insanity and thrilling fan-service, and it was also delayed thanks to Covid.

Therefore, it feels fair to call this, by far and away, the most disappointing MCU film or TV show to date. Not the worst - it's still better than Eternals, Iron Man 2, Thor: The Dark World and What If? - but the most disappointing.

Basically, if you're going out to see it you really, really should keep your expectations firmly in check else you're in for a thoroughly dispiriting let-down. Here's why...

Alright, this one doesn't just relate to this movie in particular, but it stands out a lot nonetheless.

When Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) is talking to one of his variants, he reveals that his younger sister drowned when he was a child and this is what drove him to become a doctor in the first place.

Of course, the immediate question is 'Why the hell have we never heard this before?' given that Doctor Strange has appeared in six MCU films at this point, but it's arguable that they should've cut this line. Why? Because it reveals just how much Marvel dropped the ball by cutting out a scene depicting this from the original film.

This would've perfectly fit into previous appearances by showing what drives Doctor Strange and more importantly, showing why he's grown into such a difficult man. The biggest problem with the first Doctor Strange was that the overly unlikeable hero was impossible to root for, so giving him this backstory and thus allowing viewers to understand how he's become the man he is would've improved the whole thing.

Since this vital bit of backstory wasn't included before, it shouldn't have been hastily dropped in like this. It makes Doctor Strange's already sketchy evolution throughout the films - he's become a more sensible character by the end of the first film, but then made that stupid decision to cast that spell in No Way Home - look even dumber in retrospect.