One of the biggest surprises of the first Doctor Strange movie was Chiwetel Ejiofor as Baron Mordo. Although, for this iteration of the character, he wasn’t referred to as a “Baron” just yet. That’s because he wasn’t a villain for ninety percent of the movie. In my opinion, that movie did Doctor Strange’s second most greatest villain some serious justice and set the stages for their impending rivalry. That will be the big conflict for Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. Or will it? The post-credits scene for Doctor Strange saw Karl Mordo finally deciding to live up to his villainous nature. What was cool about his villainous turn is that he didn’t just decide to become a villain for the sake of being Doctor Strange’s enemy. After discovering that the Ancient One was drawing power from the dark dimension to prolong her life, he became disillusioned with her ways and decided to walk his own path. Unfortunately, the path that he chose was not an heroic one. In his eyes, the many sorcerers of the world became a problem for the world and he decided to put an end to them. And as we can all guess, Doctor Strange is probably one of those sorcerers. Seeing Mordo lose his way and turn against Strange due to the differences in how they see the handling of magic was a far cry from how their rivalry came to be in the comics. In short, Mordo was a typical, power-seeking villain who hated Strange because the Ancient One liked him more.
Doesn’t exactly make for a compelling villain, but he did pose a serious threat for the Sorcerer Supreme for the longest time. That’s what we need for this Mordo and Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange. And let’s be honest, we can’t get enough of Chiwetel Ejiofor as this character. We got to see him be Strange’s mentor and comrade, but now it’s time to see him as the villain we know him as from the comics. The thing is, I wonder if he’ll actually be the main antagonist of Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. In fact, there’s a chance he might not be a full-blown villain. This Mordo seems to be more of an anti-villain who truly believes he’s doing the world a service by eliminating all sorcerers. If that means hunting those who are “abusing” magic, then he won’t hesitate to kill. That’s where he and Doctor Strange draw that line that separates them. Strange has all the magical power you can think of and if he wanted to, he can use it to destroy his enemies. But given that he’s a doctor first and a sorcerer second, he is adamant about his commitment to saving lives and not taking them. That’s what makes him such a compelling hero, but from the beginning, we see how dogmatic Mordo is about his dedication to hunting the magical threats of the MCU. If some magic-user is evil, he won’t hesitate to kill them.
That contrast between the two sorcerers was perfectly set up in the first Doctor Strange and will likely be expanded on in the Multiverse of Madness. If you’ve seen the trailer for it, you certainly caught Mordo with much longer hair and confronting Doctor Strange. At this point, he views Strange as a threat and after he’s opened the doors to the multiverse, this is all the reason Mordo needs to hunt Strange. It makes sense for a conflict between them, but we can’t forget the other potential threats. While Doctor Strange will be gaining more allies in this sequel, one of them probably can’t be trusted fully. I’m talking about the Scarlet Witch herself, Wanda Maximoff. The trailer reveals that Doctor Strange has approached her for help, but little does he know, Wanda is still probably searching for her “dead” children. Those children of hers were never technically real, but that won’t stop her from trying to find them. If this movie is about the multiverse, then it’s likely we can see some variants of her children. Even if that’s not the case, then the ending of WandaVision implies that a fraction of them did survive and are calling to her. Wanda is probably confused as to how it’s all happening, but she remembers full well on what she created.
The point is, I reckon Wanda will do anything to see her children again, even if they’re not real. This could change everything for her and make her take a darker path. If Doctor Strange is going to get in the way of that, then that will lead to some powerful conflict. And we’ve seen Wanda begin her path as the Scarlet Witch, which we Marvel fans know is bad news for everyone else. It’s possible Wanda could be the main antagonist of this sequel. Personally, I think this movie will set up the villainous path for the Scarlet Witch, which will see begin to unfold by the end. If that’s the case, then Mordo will be the villain for most of the movie. I think that’s how it should be, because we need to see Wanda make full use of her powers without the Avengers around to keep her in check. We know that Shuma-Gorath (at least that thing looks like it) is in the movie, so that’s a perfect villain to see Wanda unleash her true powers on. When everyone sees the harm she’s capable of, it’s possible Doctor Strange and Wong could see her as a threat. Or better yet, Mordo will instantly recognize her power and want to eliminate her. He might even try to get Strange and Wong to turn on her. Of course, that won’t sit well with the two of them, but they won’t ignore how dangerous she is. This can all lead to Wanda and Mordo coming into conflict. That’s a fight Mordo probably won’t win, especially if she thinks she can find her children. Given the story behind this movie, there’s all kinds of possibilities it can use. I still think Mordo will be the big bad, but will still set the stage for the Scarlet Witch becoming a villain. Maybe the What If…? Doctor Strange will take a more villainous turn? I doubt it, since he became more of an anti-hero, but this movie looks like it wants to surprise us. I say go all out.Doctor Strange
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