Hercules saw Sam Raimi's new DOCTOR STRANGE 2!!

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness FAQ

I am - Hercules!!

What's his name? "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness."

Who is responsible? Sam Raimi ("Darkman," "Army of Darkness," "The Quick and the Dead," Tobey Maguire's first three "Spider-Man" movies), directs from a script by "Loki" creator Michael Waldron ("Rick & Morty"). (Waldron is also reportedly scripting a new Star Wars movie for Lucasfilm and Marvel movie mastermind Kevin Feige.)

Hey, Waldron's former "Rick & Morty" boss, "Community" mastermind Dan Harmon, didn't he do an uncredited rewrite of Cumberbatch's first "Doctor Strange" movie? He did.

What does Disney say? "The MCU is unlocking the Multiverse and pushing its boundaries further than ever before. Journey into the unknown with Doctor Strange, who, with the aid of mystical allies old and new, traverses the mind-bending and dangerous alternate realities of the Multiverse to confront a mysterious new adversary."

What isn't Disney telling us? We learn early on that the "mysterious new adversary" is the Scarlet Witch, who has gone mad and murderous since the death of her robot boyfriend in "Avengers III". Strange's main mystical ally this time around is America Chavez, a super-powered new character who can't control his ability to cross universes.

Is "Madness" any good? It's a decent Marvel movie, but unfortunately not as wonderful as Raimi's "Darkman" or his first two Spidey movies. Also, this one made me laugh less than most of Raimi's movies. The best part about the new Strange is a superteam of supergroups dubbed The Illuminati that, for the first time if I'm not mistaken, uses intellectual property acquired through Disney's takeover of 20th Century Fox. The Illuminati arrive in the second hour. My second favorite part is perhaps the film's Raimiest, with a rotting zombie Strange battling his main adversary with an army of darkness.

Is "Madness" as good as last year's "No Way Home" or "The Suicide Squad"? It is not.

How did it start? "Did it kill him?" America Asks Ponytail Doctor Strange.

Does Mobius, Owen Wilson's Time Variant Authority Mobius Agent (not to be confused with Jared Leto's Morbius) appear here? Is Loki and/or his girlfriend Sylvie and/or Kang? I didn't notice any "Loki" cast members.

Is Bruce Campbell reprising any of the roles he played in Raimi's Spider-Man movies? I say no. Campbell plays a street vendor in the 833 universe. Or maybe 883.

Captain Carter's shield is on the poster. Is Hayley Atwell in it? Hayley Atwell is my favorite part of this movie.

Is Spider-Man hiding? No, although Strange of course acknowledges his multiversal adventures with young Peter Parker.

The Illuminati in the 2005 comedy book series consisted of Stephen Strange, Charles Xavier, Reed Richards, Black Bolt, Namor, and Tony Stark. Does he have a similar membership to the MCU? Namor and Iron Man are not in the mix.

So Tom Cruise isn't playing Tony Stark? Tom Cruise is not in this movie. And, for the record, I judge anyone willing to follow Robert Downey in this role either very brave or very reckless.

Do we see the face of Patrick Stewart? Yes. Interestingly, the Professor X we meet here seems to be from Fox's old cartoon series from the 1990s!

Is Xavier the only Illuminati member we see clearly? Or do they handle the Illuminati the same way the season finale "Peacemaker" handled the appearance of The Justice League, with some members in silhouette? We all see their (familiar) faces.

Familiar? Does Ioan Gruffudd or Miles Teller play Reed Richards? They cast someone who had never played the role before. Someone more famous.

Is Anson Mount, who played Black Bolt in the ABC/Marvel super series "Inhumans", reprising that role here? Yes.

Given that Elizabeth Olsen, who plays Wanda Maximoff the Scarlet Witch, is second on the call sheet, is it a safe bet that somehow Paul Bettany will reprise his role as The Vision? If Bettany is in this movie, I haven't noticed him.

Is Erik Lensherr on board? James Logan? Dead Pool? Asgardian warrior Baldar the Brave? Tobey Maguire? Andrew Garfield? None make appearances as far as I've noticed. But man, sometimes that big screen gets awfully busy!

Is Charlize Theron playing the witch Clea? Only during the credits.

Speaking of returns, how much screen time do Rachel McAdams, Benedict Wong, Michael Stuhlbarg and Chiwetel Ejiofor get? Wong may be the busiest here. McAdams and Ejiofor have a lot to do in the second half. Stuhlbarg's appearance is much shorter.

Was the multiverse created by Peter Parker, or Sylvie, Loki's girlfriend, or WandaVision, or "What if?" or what? Yes.

This new character, America Chavez. She can tra...