Don’t look now, but there is a renewed emphasis on magic in Marvel Comics. Whereas science used to rule the day with a litany of inventors like Reed Richards, Tony Stark, and Hank Pym creating new technologies and innovations, masters of the mystic arts have seen a rise in their membership. Along with an increase in numbers, Marvel Comics has flipped the very idea behind magic and the way it’s handled by its users.

There is likely a very simple reason for this change in application, and it would appear we have the films based on the comics properties to thank for that. Marvel Studios first broached the subject of science vs. magic in 2011’s Thor, when the God of Thunder explained to Jane Foster how magic and science can be considered two sides of the same coin. “Your ancestors called it magic and you call it science. Well, I come from a place where they are one and the same thing.”

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An advantage of having science mirror sorcery is that it allows audiences to better comprehend the latter. Many properties treat magic as a “get out of jail free card” that allows the hero of the story to overcome great odds by conjuring a spell out of thin air to defeat the villain. Hard and fast rules are rarely applied to the practice of studying and using magic. Contrast this with science, where a person has to use their brains for the purposes of creation. Using the mind in this regard is easier to accept compared to a character using "witchcraft."

Of course, the scientific mascot in the MCU is Tony Stark, who kicked off Marvel’s dominance on the big screen with Iron Man. Thor and his Asgardian brothers and sisters consider magic an advanced form of science, with examples being energy manipulation, healing techniques, and their unique weapons. After more than ten films under its belt, Marvel Studios introduced a new dynamic to its shared universe with Doctor Strange in 2016. Dr. Stephen Strange’s journey to becoming the Sorcerer Supreme opened a world of possibilities for future films with the astral plane, teleportation, new dimensions, and time/space manipulation.

Not one to miss a golden opportunity, Marvel Comics quickly launched a Doctor Strange ongoing series ahead of its theatrical release, more than likely looking to piggyback on the film's heavy marketing push. The star-studded creative team of writer Jason Aaron and artist Chris Bachalo not only established a new set of rules for how Doctor Strange would deal with magic -- with a price being paid for each spell cast -- but also ushered in a wave of unexpected magicians with backgrounds in the sciences.

One of these individuals is a billionaire playboy philanthropist named Tony Stark, the Sorcerer Supreme of the far-flung future.

Tony Stark as the Sorcerer Supreme

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It's understandable to ask what could turn a futurist like Iron Man into a person who would give his life over to the mystic arts. Infamous Iron Man #9 gave us our first look at Future Stark as the Sorcerer Supreme when he projected himself into the past as a vision to one of his Iron Man replacements, Victor von Doom. It's noteworthy that Marvel approached the idea of naming Tony the Sorcerer Supreme in Infamous Iron Man since the title stars Victor, who himself was a master of sorcery and sciences as Doctor Doom.

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Though "Tony Stark, Sorcerer Supreme" only lasted a couple of pages, it was enough to make fans curious to learn more about Tony’s new role. The wait wasn’t too long, as Generations: Iron Man & Ironheart took the young Ironheart Riri Williams on a trip to meet her 126-year old mentor, a magic-practicing Tony Stark. When Riri asks how Tony went from a lifetime of technological pursuit to a mystical spiritual awakening, his response goes back to the MCU’s phrase of the two being one and the same. In that sense, Tony doesn't really turn over a new leaf; he merely adapted the principles he perfected in the sciences and applied them to magic.

While Doctor Strange is the perennial Sorcerer Supreme in the Marvel universe, transferring that mantle to a household name like Tony Stark is a move that could elevate the role in the eyes of the general public, who is more familiar with the feature films than the comics. Plus, if Tony dedicated himself to studying magic like he did the sciences, it’s a foregone conclusion that he would move ahead of the pack to be its number one sorcerer. Especially when we know they are essentially interchangeable. However, as readers of the comics soon discovered, Tony isn’t the only scientist who is displaying a natural ability for the mystic arts.

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The X-Men’s time-displaced Beast is another well-known scientist who has recently begun studying magic. When he seeks out Doctor Strange’s help after his teammate Cyclops is injured in the second volume of All-New X-Men, Henry McCoy is the one to tell Strange that magic spells can be explained through mathematical formulas and have a scientific base at their center, which again goes back to the motto from the MCU.

Feeling as if he's now stuck in a time period where scientific advancements have passed him by, Henry has devoted himself to the dark arts. This marks one huge difference Tony and Henry's time as sorcerers. Though Doctor Strange gifted Henry with the Third Eye of Horus, his curious nature leads him to push his limits with spells he shouldn't be attempting just yet. Henry is doing all this for purely selfish reasons. He is used to being the smartest person in the room, with his mind being one of his best assets on the battlefield. But since being brought to the present, Henry has hit a cognitive brick wall. Magic is one resource where he can differentiate himself from the pack and stand out again.

One negative outcome of Beast's dark magic meddling is who he's chosen to mentor him, the longtime X-Men nemesis the Goblin Queen. She's the devil whispering into Henry's ear with promises to help him become the man he was destined to be. The truth of the matter is, the Goblin Queen uses Beast to open a dimensional portal to unleash her horde of demons.

The final example of a scientist dabbling in magic came in Amazing Spider-Man when Norman Osborn tried to resurrect his dormant Green Goblin persona. After modern science fails him, Norman goes off on what would normally be a hero's journey in search of alternative methods. Atop a desolate, snowy mountaintop, Norman finds a group of monks at the entrance to the Temple With No Name. Because of Norman's indomitable will, strength of spirit, and great need (all things you'd find heroes possessing), they offer to help him. Unable to keep his villainous nature under wraps, Norman gets greedy and turns on the same monks who have been training him. It's revealed everything Norman experienced was another test shrouded as an illusion. Though he ends the issue in the same place he began it, we are shown that Norman has (or, had) the potential to be a very powerful sorcerer in the Marvel universe if he chose that route.

These are only a few recent examples of the comics using the films' formula for introducing more mysticism inside its pages. What if more characters with a science background decide to test the magical waters? Black Panther comes from the technologically advanced country of Wakanda, yet he is also a hero whose mythos include elements of magic that can be emphasized more. Even Doctor Strange was a doctor before he was a sorceror. Could Lunella Lafayette, recently crowned the smartest person in the Marvel universe, put her intelligence to use to study magic as well?

With Marvel Studios and Marvel Comics borrowing concepts from one another, we should start to see more examples of magic and science being viewed as equals going forward.