Issue(s): Doctor Strange #33
Cover Date: Sep 91
Title: "The Alexandria quatrain"
Credits:
Roy Thomas & Dann Thomas / Roy Thomas & Jean-Marc Lofficier,- Writer
Chris Marrinan / Larry Alexander - Penciler
Mark McKenna & Friends / Tim Dzon - Inker
Barry Dutter - Assistant Editor
Mike Rockwitz - Editor

Review/plot:
Thanos has frozen all of the heroes that have come to attack him, and he decides that he should also deal with the person who sent them: Dr. Strange. So Thanos throws Strange into some kind of maelstrom (no, not that Maelstrom). Clea gets drawn in too. The two magic-users manage to cast a spell freeing them from the storm, but they wind up in the past, in ancient Egypt. They wind up meeting Julius Ceasar and Cleopatra.

And fighting against a wizard named Zota.

From the perspective of the locals, this all takes place ten years before Strange helped Cleopatra in Strange Tales #124.

Strange and Cleo are then pulled back to the present with the help of Dr. Druid.

Meanwhile, the Fear Lords conclude their meeting.

There is not much to say. The Dweller in Darkness recounts his history, which goes back to the days of ancient Atlantis. He's also responsible for the creation of D'Spayre and he was secretly behind the origin of the first Mr. Fear. He claims he's got other pawns in place as well, but we don't get to hear about them or what his plans are. I said in the entry for the first part of this back-up feature that it was really more of a saga introducing the characters than an actual story, and that's still the case here. The Fear Lords will become the main story with issue #38.

So with the exception of the arrival of Dr. Druid, basically nothing happens in this issue.

Quality Rating: C-

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: This takes place in the moments when the heroes are frozen by Thanos during the very beginning of Infinity Gauntlet #4. I think reading it between Infinity Gauntlet #3-4 works best since you can basically assume that the heroes were frozen as soon as they showed up at the end of #3.

References:

• Strange met Cleopatra and Zota in Strange Tales #124.
  
• Dr. Druid found out he was a prototype for Dr. Strange in Avengers Spotlight #37.
  
• Druid is now trying to make up for having betrayed the Avengers in Avengers #295-297.
  
• The Dweller in the Darkness tells a story about the Serpent Crown, which was summarized in Amazing Spider-Man annual #23, and which incorporates elements of Atlantean history from Fear #15.
  
• The Dweller appeared in "various issues" between Doctor Strange #30 and Doctor Strange #33.
  
• The Dweller also appeared in Thor #223.
  
• Mr. Fear appeared in Daredevil #6.

Crossover: Infinity Gauntlet

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

fnord, maybe I'm missing something, but why is Zota tagged? Granted, this and the Strange Tales story are his only appearances, but I thought you didn't tag the "natives" in time travel tales.

Yeah, he really shouldn't have been. I've deleted him.

Given that those are the only kind of stories he appears in, it's almost a shame, but...