WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for The Death of Doctor Strange #1, available now from Marvel Comics.

For as long as he has been part of the Marvel Universe, Doctor Strange has been one of its most iconic heroes. Over the years, he has stood firm as the first and last line of defense against dark forces, but The Death of Doctor Strange looks to change all of that for the worse. Despite all of his power, nothing can stop the brutal end that is coming his way, and Doctor Strange's demise is going to have the kind of repercussions that could tear the entire world apart.

When someone knocks on the doors of his Sanctum Sanctorum, Doctor Strange finds a familiar yet unexpected face who greets him with malicious intent. Almost as soon as Strange has opened the door, he is set upon in a vicious attack. In just a few short moments, the Sorcerer Supreme has been left helpless against this unseen assailant. When the killing blow is struck, it is felt all across the world by those in tune with the supernatural.

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The moment that Doctor Strange loses his life is sensed by everyone from Wong to Reed Richards to the Mighty Thor himself, almost as if it were a warning of things to come. Not long before his untimely demise in the pages of The Death of Doctor Strange #1 by Jed MacKay, Lee Garbett, Antonio Fabela and VC's Cory Petit, the Sorcerer Supreme was seen giving a lecture to his students at the Strange Academy. Unlike the majority of their coursework, that day's lesson centered around the Sorcerer Supreme's place in the universe, specifically as the power behind the Master Spell in the form of a mystic barrier which largely prevents dark forces from invading the Marvel Universe.

Now that he's gone, that barrier has begun to break down near instantaneously, and the ominous air that fell over the world with Doctor Strange's death gives way to something even worse. While his allies mourn his loss, they also become aware of the threats that have sprung up in the wake of the tragedy. Demons from multiple dimensions have already begun flooding in all over the globe, claiming portions of it for themselves while leaving neighboring nations considering their nuclear options. As great as the mystery of who killed Doctor Strange is, there might not be time to solve it if the planet itself is overrun by demonic forces before the sleuthing can even begin.

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Doctor Strange has battled against plenty of horrifying foes over the years, from the Eldritch Shuma Gorath to the cannibalistic Kulan Gath, but all of those adventures overshadowed the even more important work that he was doing behind the scenes every single day. Doctor Strange hasn't always maintained his title as the Sorcerer Supreme, but he has never let Earth's greatest mystical defenses fall like this, either. Then again, he wasn't abruptly murdered the last time he passed that particular torch, which of course changes things greatly. With any luck, those who he has left behind will be able to figure out how to do Doctor Strange's old job before his death leads to the end of the world as we know it.

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