Issue(s): Strange Tales #116 (Dr. Strange story only)
Cover Date: Jan 64
Title: "Return to the Nightmare World"
Credits:
Stan Lee - Writer
Steve Ditko - Penciler

Review/plot:
Dr. Strange stories up to #121 are not necessarily different than all the fantasy back-ups in all the Tales and Journeys books, except they have a consistent protagonist and the quality is higher. They are all along the lines of Dr. Strange investigating some mystical phenomenon, and they are very similar to the bizarre horror stories that have been written at Marvel since the late 50s, except the art is phenomenal. Ditko's art is bizarre and wildly imaginative.

Dr. Strange wanders the Dream Dimenson and rescues dreamers from Nightmare.

A lot of my Strange Tales are from the Essentials trade, but i have this issue reprinted in color so i get the full effect.

Dr. Strange's reputation is large enough at this point that the police come to him to investigate unusual occurrences. I'm assuming that Strange's manservant is Wong; he is still not named.

Strange relies heavily on his "magic" amulet - not yet the Eye of Agamotto. He also draws on the power of the Dread Dormammu quite frequently, which was surprising to me.

This issue also has the first reference to the Hosts of Hoggoth, but they aren't "hoary" yet.

Quality Rating: C+

Historical Significance Rating: 3 - formative Dr. Strange story

Chronological Placement Considerations: There is still nothing here that places these stories in any particular period.

References: N/A

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: Marvel Collector's Item Classics #6

i need to start saying "Who disturbs min?" when people come to talk to me.

i think i miss the excessive narration that you get in these comics that you don't see in current issues. Stan Lee's whole setup in the beginning when he's introducing Nightmare is great. it was just the right amount of narration, unlike some issues where the art shows the guy about to throw a punch, the character says he's going to throw a punch, and the narrator lets you know a punch will be thrown.

although, i read somewhere that a person needs to be told something at least 6 times before they remember it...

"Strange relies heavily on his "magic" amulet - not yet identified as the Eye of Agamotto."

Technically speaking, I don't think that IS the Eye of Agamotto - if memory serves, he started out with a more ordinary clasp/amulet (the square design), and the more familiar Eye of Agamotto (the one with all the little orbs circling the larger central orb) is a different amulet he got later after the Ancient One deemed him worthy.

I'd have to track down all of my copies of Marvel Saga to try and pinpoint for sure what issue I'm thinking of for the switch, but I vaguely remember something like that happening at some point (unless I'm hallucinating).

You're not hallucinating, PO. The actual Eye first appears in #127. I've re-worded the entry here for clarity. Thanks.

I was never really a big fan of Ditko's Spider-man art, but man, there might not have been another artist alive at the time more suited to Dr. Strange. I was never big on Dr. Strange but the art here is just perfect for the story.

He was given the Eye of Agamotto upon his first defeat of Dormammu.