(1977) Spider-Man (1977) The Incredible Hulk (1977) The Incredible Hulk: Death in the Family (1878) Doctor Strange (1979) Captain America (1979) Captain America II: Death Too Soon

This was the "MCU" of the 1970s. As a kid,, I ate these up. Of them, Spider-Man and the Hulk went on to be series, the other entries did not. Spider-Man ran on Wednesday nights, and wasn't particularly good - the Hulk? Well everyone knows about how well THAT series did. In the case of Doctor Strange, it is particularly disappointing that it never jumped to a series, as it really was the next best entry after the Incredible Hulk.

Certainly, this tv movie has its issues, Dr. Strange being inexplicably transformed from a surgeon into a psychiatry resident among them. The effects are, of course, dated and we don't get a classic Dr. Strange villain - but that is the case with all of the other Marvel tv films of the era. What we do get though, is a well costumed, decent portrayal of the titular hero and a throwaway portrayal of his love interest Clea.

If you are a fan of the character of Doctor Strange, this little oddity is worth a watch. If your exposure to the character is limited to the FAR superior film with Benedict Cumberbatch, you will be disappointed. There is no fair way to compare the two. One is a failed pilot and the other a modern cinematic blockbuster. But, if you go into this with realistic expectations, you will find yourself enjoy it.

By itself, the film is a very dated and very cheesy 70s film about an evil sorceress who wants to defeat her magical rival. It's somewhat fun to watch. As an adaptation of Doctor Strange, it fails because it takes far too long to transform the titular character from a regular human to the sorcerer supreme. The setup has some decent suspense as a civilian is under the spell of the villain Morgan LeFay and Stephen Strange has to figure out what's going on, all while the current sorcerer is under threat. However, this drags on for too long and the payoff is anticlimactic as Doctor Strange learns his powers too quickly and the special effects are laughable.

Yeah, this is one of those movies where the majority of people out there don't believe you when you say that long before Cumberbatch there was Peter Hooten. But there is truth to it, just take this 1978 TV movie that is based on the Marvel comic book of the same name; Dr. Strange.

The 1970s saw a handful of Marvel heroes make their transition from the colored pages of the comic books and onto the screens, in bigger or smaller success.

I have actually never seen this 1978 movie from writers Philip DeGuere Jr., Steve Ditko and Stan Lee before now in 2022, when I had the opportunity to sit down and watch the movie. So it was sort of an appetizer for the upcoming "Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" movie, I suppose.

Well, I can't claim that I was particularly impressed with director Philip DeGuere Jr.'s 1978 movie. It felt like you took the comic book and spliced it up with a 1970s acid trip. It was pretty spacy and out there, especially the astral travel scene.

The storyline in this 1978 movie was just not solid enough. The movie ran for 93 minutes and ultimately then very little actually happened throughout the course of the movie, which made it somewhat of a struggle to sit through the movie. Actually, "Dr. Strange" felt more like a hospital drama than it felt like a superhero movie set in the Marvel universe.

The acting in the movie was generally adequate, however I can't fathom why they opted to have Peter Hooten in the leading role as Dr. Stephen Strange. The actor was simply too wooden and rigid in his performance, and seemed rather unable to portray emotions. It was nice, though, to see Jessica Walter and Clyde Kusatsu in this movie.

I am sure that hardcore fans of the Marvel comic books will get a kick out of this 1978 movie. But for a regular viewer, and one that is not overly keen on superheroes to begin with, then director Philip DeGuere Jr. Just didn't deliver a particularly wholesome movie.

My rating of "Dr. Strange" lands on a very generous four out of ten stars.