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YMMV / Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

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    Tropes A to E 
  • Accidental Aesop: Teamwork is important. The Illuminati face Wanda without coordinating their efforts, which allows her to take them out one by one. In particular, Captain Carter and Captain Marvel just don't react while Black Bolt and Richards are killed.
  • Adorkable: America Chavez has a child-like love of all things pizza, with it being the first thing she goes after when she arrives in both the MCU's Earth and Earth-838.
  • Alternative Character Interpretation:
    • Regarding Wanda's characterization and actions, which were... contentious to say the least. Some see it as a classic Unstable Powered Woman situation and a derailment of a favorite character pushed to villainy for poor reasons. Others think previous MCU works and comics justify it with the Darkhold's corruptive powers (Agents of Shield in particular establishing that it corrupts anyone with no will save) but dislike that this interpretation effectively costs Wanda all her agency. And still others will argue that it follows up perfectly from Wandavision, where she was effectively a sympathetic supervillain, and like that it takes her crimes and actions there seriously.
    • Strange provokes Mordo by accusing him of sabotaging the Strange of Earth-838 to take his place as Sorcerer Supreme. Whether Strange is correct is never revealed, but Mordo's furious reaction could be read as him either desperately trying to cover his tracks, or simply taking offence to the suggestion that he would betray his late friend.
    • Was the Pizza Poppa (Bruce Campbell's cameo) threatening 616-Strange with mustard because Chavez didn't pay for the pizza balls? Or was he reacting like that due to the fact he assumed Strange took his outfit from the "Strange Museum", which is essentially a memorial site for Earth-838's Doctor Strange?
    • Wanda's powers include telepathy, so she could have easily explained how she knew America Chavez's name without Strange telling her as her having read his thoughts on the girl, but instead immediately drops the façade, even nearly name-dropping I Never Told You My Name. So the scene that originally appears to be Strange seeing through Wanda may have really been Wanda choosing to make it clear who was coming after America right off the bat so that he knew who he was facing. Given her Invincible Villain nature, it's more than possible that she voluntarily gave herself away to instill fear in the hearts of her foes.
    • Strange's inability to accept failure is shown in a very different light when we learn that its roots come from his being unable to save his sister as a child. Given this information, it's possible that the Ancient One's urging Strange to let go of his need to control everything was also, in part, her urging him to move on and accept that it wasn't his fault.
    • Wanda-838 is quick to reassure Wanda-616 that the former's children will be cared for. Is this because of genuine forgiveness for the later's dreamwalking rampage, or was it under the circumstance of having The Scarlet Witch standing right there in her home, and deescalating a potential standoff?
    • Throughout the film, up to Wanda's attack on Karma-Taj, Wong and Strange keep butting heads over Strange refusing to bow in Wong's presence due to Wong being the Sorcerer Supreme, until Strange finally willingly bows before Wong at the end of the film. Is this because Strange finally accepted Wong as Sorcerer Supreme and his journey through the multiverse put him in perspective, or did he only refuse to bow before because, at the time, they were in the middle of a crisis/preparing for war, and he didn't want to waste time with a silly tradition?
  • Angst? What Angst?: Neither Captain Carter nor Captain Marvel seem the least shocked by Wanda murdering two of their teammates in gruesome ways, nor did they try to step in and save Mr Fantastic while Wanda was busy literally ripping him to shreds.
  • Ass Pull: The fact that, in the conclusion, Wanda is somehow capable of destroying every single copy of the Darkhold across the multiverse with a single spell (and seems to have possibly died not from strain, but from being crushed). While she had summoned demons in other dimensions before, and she destroyed magic items at range - such as Strange's Sling Ring - this is a multiversal feat beyond anything we have seen from her before with no communication from the film of how it was done. There are certainly plausible explanations - affecting copies of items through sympathy is classic magic, Wanda has access to multiversal powers, Wanda has already ascended to her throne on Mount Wundagore as the Scarlet Witch, Wanda was chosen by Chthon, and we already saw a copy of the Darkhold destroyed - but which if any of these explanations apply are not specified.
  • Audience-Coloring Adaptation: Because the mainline universe was referred to as Earth-616 by the Illuminati, many general audiences assumed that 616 was the designation of the MCU when it was actually the designation of the comics' main universe. This led to confusion among general audiences when the trailer for Spiderman Across The Spiderverse correctly referred to the mainline universe as Earth-199999 instead.
  • Awesome Art: The posters for◊ the◊ film.◊ Seriously.◊ Many have praised them for being appropriately foreboding and ominous, necessary for the first MCU film with a focus on horror. Some have even gone to say that it averts the overused Floating Head Syndrome found in most posters for blockbuster films.
  • Awesome Ego: Wanda Maximoff has come a long way from where she was in Avengers: Age of Ultron, and now has a noticeable smugness in regards to her power. Her quick reveal as the Big Bad of the film (via corruption from the Darkhold) has her claim that all her attempts to obtain America Chavez was her being reasonable. Once she drops that, nothing can stop her. It's as horrifying as it is awesome to see her tear through the ranks of the Sorcerers of Kamar-Taj, escape/weaponize the Mirror Dimension, and even singlehandedly tear through another universe's Illuminati. She's one of the few people to genuinely terrify Doctor Strange. She really was justified having her rather smug demeanor earlier in the film.
  • Awesome Music:
    • The brief reprise of the X-Men: The Animated Series theme that plays when Professor X walks (or rather, hovers) into the scene.
    • "Lethal Symphonies", the track which underscores Strange-616's fight with Sinister Strange. Not only is it fittingly tense and dramatic, it gets bonus points for incorporating motifs from Beethoven's "Symphony No. 5 in C minor" and Bach's "Toccata and Fugue in D minor".
    • Wong's leitmotif is epic and grandiose, complete with a choir. A theme perfectly suited for the Sorcerer Supreme.
    • America Chavez's theme plays several times throughout the film. It is a somber, melancholic melody that captures both the character's tragic backstory and harrowing situation she's been in. It all culminates in the track Trust Your Power where Elfman turns the tragic leitmotif into a heroic and empowering theme.
  • Badass Decay: In contrast to Wanda's upgrade to being an Invincible Villain, a number of viewers are disappointed by Doctor Strange's showings in his own solo film before he gets the Darkhold, as both Avengers: Infinity War and Spider-Man: No Way Home (although he does get taken down by Spider-Man, a non-magic user, fairly quickly there), have shown Strange to be one of most skilled sorcerers in the MCU, with Thanos even impressed by his creativity. However, since he still shows far more power and versatility here than he ever has before, it's also a case of Can't Catch Up.
  • Broken Base:
    • Sam Raimi's direction is very divisive. For many, even some of the film's detractors, his directing style is a breath of fresh air in a franchise many consider, a few films notwithstanding, to be largely lacking in a strong visual style and auteurish direction. Praising Raimi's style of Horror Comedy, dynamic camerawork, and sincere campiness. On the other hand, just as many, especially those unfamiliar with Raimi’s previous work or films beyond his Spider-Man Trilogy, found his campy, over-the-top direction to be jarring, off-putting, and outdated. A third camp doesn’t mind Raimi’s style on its own and some viewers in this camp are even fans of his work, but find his style to be completely out of place in the MCU.
    • The very decision to take the film in a horror-inspired direction at all is quite divisive too. Some welcomed it, and many horror fans were glad to see the MCU finally tackle the genre after many action, espionage, sci-fi, and fantasy films that filled the franchise. Others however, felt that the decision was a completely unnecessary one, and considered it a genre that didn’t fit the MCU at all. Some people in this camp aren’t completely opposed to having a horror film in the MCU, but feel like a horror direction shouldn’t have been given to a character like Doctor Strange, and instead should have been given to other Marvel characters who they feel would have better fit a horror style, like Ghost Rider, Blade, and Elsa Bloodstone.
    • The post-credits scene: Many Sam Raimi fans found it to be a great tribute to the Evil Dead franchise as well as a hilarious scene overall, akin to Captain America's post-credits scene from Spider-Man: Homecoming. While those unfamiliar with the Evil Dead franchise and who Bruce Campbell is, found it to be disappointing and confusing.
    • Danny Elfman's score has also been divisive. For some, it's one of, if not the best soundtracks, in the entire MCU. Possessing a mystical and enthralling tone that blends well with Raimi’s horror style. While others consider it to be generic, unmemorable and are disappointed that Elfman didn't use Christopher Beck and Michael Giacchino's motifs for Strange and Wanda.
    • The decision to make Wanda the main antagonist of the film has divided a lot of fans of the character. Some fans loved the concept and thought it was the best part of the movie, since it showed just how powerful and dangerous Wanda's powers could be, as well as giving Raimi a chance to return to his horror-roots. Others were not on board with the idea at all, feeling that Wanda becoming a murderous supervillain went too far compared to her more morally-grey portrayal during the events of WandaVision and pretty much made it impossible for her be seen as a hero again. Comics fans also bring up the tendency for Wanda to become an antagonist in multiple comic storylines as a reason why they didn't like her antagonistic role here.
  • Catharsis Factor:
    • Watching Strange give Wanda a run for her money as he possesses the corpse of Defender Strange is pretty damn satisfying given how much damage she's inflicted over the course of the film. Chavez following it up by punching Wanda with enough force to actually make her stagger would already be awesome given how Wanda has tormented the poor girl, but she takes it to the next level by sending Wanda to Earth-838, right in front of Billy and Tommy, pretty much providing her Heel Realization.
    • While horrifying, it's also satisfying to watch Wanda wiping the floor with the Illuminati after their smug self-righteousness in the previous scene. Prof. Xavier excepting. One highlight being the sight of Captain Carter dying by her own shield, seeing as her establishing moment involved flinging it at Strange for absolutely no reason.
    • Even before Wanda demolishes the Illuminati, Strange mercilessly roasting them while put on trial can be extremely satisfying. It truly says something when Doctor Strange of all people calls you out for your own arrogance.
    • Seeing America come into her powers and give Wanda several well-deserved punches after everything she's put her through is very satisfying.
    • Wanda finally destroys the Darkhold, in every single universe, ensuring it can never be used for evil again. It's a moment worth cheering to as revenge is finally dealt out at the Tome of Eldritch Lore that manipulated Wanda in the first place, and doubly so for fans of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., where the book wrought havoc throughout the fourth season.
    • For some, Wanda finally being treated as a villain instead of being excused for her actions, which was a common complaint after the finale of WandaVision.
  • Contested Sequel: This film is the most divisive in terms of fan reception since Iron Man 3, and it might be the most truly contested sequel in terms of people finding it better or worse than its direct predecessor in the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe. Those who find it better will praise its creativity and bold direction from Sam Raimi, who fans say gives the film a visual edge, strong horror-influenced action and further exploring the mysticism and dark arts many felt were lacking in the previous film. Those who find the original film better will say this film suffers from a weaker and more scattershot script than the first, as well as seemingly sidelining the cast of the previous film in favor of focusing on Wanda, who even then is seen as distant, when not retreading, from her story in WandaVision.
  • Continuity Lock-Out:
  • Creepy Awesome:
    • Wanda has always at least skirted this trope, but she fully embraces it here. Corrupted by the Darkhold and more powerful than ever, she unleashes her might against anyone in her path in creative and horrifying ways, with special mention going to her merciless, brutal, but effortless and awesome massacre of the Illuminati.
    • Doctor Strange dreamwalking into the decaying corpse of one of his variants, then using the Souls of the Damned as a substitute Cloak of Levitation, is easily one of the most unsettling things the character has ever done, but it makes for a stunning visual, and Strange uses it to full effect against Wanda.
  • Draco in Leather Pants: Scarlet Witch, who is no stranger to this trope from previous entries in the MCU. Despite this film showing her at her absolute most villainous, there are still fans who try to excuse her actions in this film or even cheer it on. Worth noting that Elizabeth Olsen has admitted that Wanda is the clear villain in the movie (though also that she never expected such a portrayal based on her characterization in WandaVision) and while the Darkhold definitely is influencing her actions, even she blames herself for using it in the first place, and she still leaves a massive body count in pursuit of her children.
  • Ensemble Dark Horse:
    • John Krasinski's portrayal of Reed Richards was met with a very positive reception, and a vocal portion of audiences (especially the proponents of the fan casting campaign that no doubt influenced his casting in this film) were hoping he would reprise the role of Reed Richards for the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot before it was announced that Pedro Pascal was cast in the role.
    • Professor Xavier is loved for resembling the comic-friendly X-Men: The Animated Series and giving Patrick Stewart the chance to play one of his most well known roles in the MCU. His appearance has won over many who were initially skeptical about the X-Men being rebooted into the MCU. Being the only Illuminati member who gave Strange the chance to prove himself has helped.
    • The Pizza Poppa from Earth-838 is the staple Bruce Campbell cameo of Sam Raimi films, and quickly got a lot of attention online for how funny his appearance was. This was mostly due to Campbell getting his hand possessed to beat him up again and his surprise re-appearance in the post-credits scene where he breaks the fourth wall.
    • Black Bolt has probably gotten this treatment the most due to the short, but memorable scenes of him remorsefully executing Supreme Strange and his shockingly violent death scene, as well as his excellent costume that looks pulled right from the pages of a comic book. His inclusion in the film actually incited some fans to go watch the maligned Inhumans and read Black Bolt's solo run in the comics.
    • Sinister Strange became a big hit as well, thanks to Benedict Cumberbatch acting as a Creepy Awesome malicious Dr. Strange. How he represents Mordo's fears of Dr. Strange becoming a threat to the universe and Jumping Off the Slippery Slope helps make him stand out.
  • Epileptic Trees:
    • Like predecessors WandaVision and Spider-Man: No Way Home, every single piece of information was used as fuel for theories. Even a picture of two foreign dubbers was held up as evidence of the Raimiverse Spidey returning (said dubber explained in an interview when that image was brought up that "Scarlet Witch" was just talking about the movie they had just finished, as well as her wedding).
    • Adding to that, some believed that Defender Strange would be from the Raimi Spider-Man films, which mention Doctor Strange in the second film.
  • Esoteric Happy Ending: The end of the film has America staying in the Sacred Timeline and apparently studying to become a Sorcerer, tutored by Strange and Wong, which the film presents as a good ending for her to let her master her powers further and helping to defend herself in the future, before eventually setting out to find her mothers. However, with how the Incursions are explained by Reed Richards, America's mere presence in the Sacred Timeline all-but ensures that she will inevitably cause an Incursion between the Sacred Timeline and her home universe, destroying one or both universes. Moreover, it's incredibly likely that her parents, and the universe they wound up in, are already dead, given how much time has passed between America's Origin Story and the events of Multiverse Of Madness proper, which would make an Incursion highly likely.
  • Evil Is Cool: Even some critics who dislike Wanda suddenly turning evil offscreen have admitted how much fun Elizabeth Olsen has in Chewing the Scenery and playing a new, remorseless version of her character; the performance has been by far the most praised aspect of the film. Strange cosplaying as a lich by dreamwalking into his own corpse, then surrounding himself with a cloak of the souls of the damned, gets a similar reaction.

    Tropes F to I 
  • Fan-Disliked Explanation:
    • The reasoning for Wanda's Face–Heel Turn is pointed to being the Darkhold's corruptive influence. For a lot of viewers, this is really weak reasoning, as while the film drills it in how corrupting it is (as did Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), "a book made me do it" just feels weak. For many, a better idea would have been to use the demon Chthon, an elder god who has a history of targeting Wanda for Demonic Possession in the comics and who is name-dropped as the source of the Darkhold in the film, as the real Big Bad possessing Wanda as a proxy, particularly as Demonic Possession at least leaves Wanda open to redemption once exorcised.
    • Designating the MCU's sacred timeline (IE, the main universe) as "Earth-616" in the multiverse, as that's the designation of the main comics universe. Fans of all stripes, especially to the comics (including Ms Marvel herself, Iman Vellani) take umbrage with it as it falsely suggests that the MCU is the comics universe, or at least a strong adaptation of it, which it really isn't. Kevin Feige reportedly insisting on this point doesn't help matters.
  • Fan Nickname: The film features an evil book, demonic possession, and a campy horror infused tone. This made several viewers, Raimi fans especially, call the film Doctor Strange vs The Evil Dead. Some even consider it a more fitting title than Multiverse of Madness.
  • Fan-Preferred Cut Content: While Sam Raimi’s direction for the film has largely been praised, even by detractors, quite a sizable amount of viewers would have much rather seen what Scott Derrickson’s version of the movie would have been.
  • Fandom Rivalry:
    • Has one with Everything Everywhere All at Once, as both are sci-fi films about the multiverse with surreal visuals. Fans of the former film disdain this one for being a big-budget Marvel production that gets more attention and money than an original film they think is superior. Fans of Multiverse of Madness on the other hand find EEAaO fans to be absolutely insufferable and smug about their gloating of the former film’s quality and wish that they’d leave a fun, Superhero Horror movie alone and let people enjoy it on its own merits without a pointless comparison to that film. This really got started when Jamie Lee Curtis jokingly took a shot at Multiverse of Madness in an Instagram post. Some have even called the film the true Multiverse of Madness.note 
    • With Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022). Many fans disappointed with the lack of cameos in this movie have gravitated towards the former film for the sheer amount of fanservice and cameos it brought. Marvel fans however hit back, arguing that just because a films has more cameos doesn’t necessarily make it good, even if the MCU built a reputation of doing them.
  • Fanfic Fuel:
    • As it turns out, MCU-Mordo's Start of Darkness and subsequent villainy has occurred offscreen, with Strange alluding to battles between the two. With how little this is explored in the film, it's almost inviting fans to draw their own interpretations of what could've transpired.
    • The revelation that there's a universe where an Infinity War-style event played out, but with the likes of the X-Men, Fantastic Four, and Inhumans involved in the fight against Thanos is also ripe for fanfiction opportunities.
    • America has landed in over seventy alternate worlds in her travels, which is also rife with story potential, such as how those universes could differ in terms of history, aesthetics, and what their versions of pizza are like.
    • Since the only explanation of MCU Wanda's sudden Face–Heel Turn is a 30-second shot of her reading the Darkhold at the end of WandaVision, the movie practically invites fanfiction writers to fill in the gap between the projects and show how she went from willingly giving up her children to summoning demons to get them back.
    • The movie ends with America becoming an apprentice to the Mystic Arts in Kamar Taj. Imagine the kind of shenanigans she could get up to with that alone. Not to mention that we now have a woman who won (or lost, depending on who you ask) the Superpower Lottery with the ability to punch holes in the Multiverse now having settled down, ripe for kidnapping by any supervillain in the MCU who finds out about it.
  • Fanon Discontinuity: Most comic fans prefer to ignore the claim that the main reality of the MCU is designated as Earth-616, since that's the designation of the main comic universe and the official designation for the MCU is Earth-199999.
  • Franchise Original Sin: A common complaint about this film is how its portrayal of Wanda, Billy and Tommy is completely at odds with the stinger in WandaVision, which depicts Wanda shocked to hear her boys screaming for help; this is ignored and the variants of the twins in this film are in a loving home, only in danger when Wanda herself enters the scene. Fans of Wanda and her show have decried the film (and its writer, Michael Waldron), for ignoring the implications of the stinger to make Wanda much less sympathetic. However, character interpretations aside, retconning or ignoring stingers has been occurring in the MCU for most of its existence. For The Incredible Hulk, the stinger’s implication that the Avengers were being formed to take on the Hulk was completely ignored in subsequent films, and the entire context for Stark’s appearance was retconned away in a Marvel One Shot as a pretext to get General Ross to back off. Similarly, the stinger for Thor shows Erik Selvig agreeing to work with Nick Fury on the Tesseract, but showing he has been possessed in some way by Loki. While The Avengers does retain that plot element, it also retcons it by showing Loki initially possessing Selvig after Selvig has begun working with Fury. All that said, the retconning of stingers was easier to swallow in the franchise’s early days, as continuity was not as dense, the characters were less established and beloved, and the retcons themselves didn’t really affect the plot. Additionally, in the case of The Incredible Hulk, the film itself was markedly less beloved than what came after, so fans found it easier to ignore changes.
  • Friendly Fandoms:
  • Genius Bonus: When introduced to the Reed Richards of Earth-838, Strange scoffs at the Fantastic Four name, and sarcastically asks whether they charted in The '60s. There was indeed a lesser-known soul group known as the Fantastic Four, no relation to the Marvel characters, which formed in 1965, something that Strange would know, given his established knowledge of obscure music trivia. Does double duty as a Leaning on the Fourth Wall gag, as the comic Fantastic Four both debuted and (arguably) achieved their greatest popularity in the 1960s.
  • Heartwarming in Hindsight: With Patrick Stewart looking like the X-Men: The Animated Series version of Professor Xavier, instead of the X-Men Film Series version, and the release of X-Men '97, along with Deadpool & Wolverine having Deadpool and Wolverine get new, more comic-accurate outfits, it's easy to see this being the beginning of a much more comic-accurate X-Men in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
  • He Really Can Act:
    • Anson Mount, despite previously being saddled with an incredibly unpopular Marvel television series where his performance was seen as either one of the best or worst things about the series, manages to carry a surprisingly heartfelt moment as his quasi-reprisal of Black Bolt in a flashback where he mournfully says "I'm sorry" as he executes his universe's version of Doctor Strange. Considering that Black Bolt is a character restrained by his inability to speak without activating his destructive powers, those two words hit harder than you'd think.
    • Elizabeth Olsen had spent all her other MCU film appearances in a supporting role among ensemble casts, and each entry seemed somewhat uncertain of Wanda's characterization. While WandaVision had allowed her to be the lead, here she also gets to cut loose, portraying Wanda as a tragic villain who is willing to hurt an innocent teenager just to get what she wants - as well as effectively playing an alternate version of herself and having the two interact in one of the movie's pivotal dramatic scenes. Some would say her future lies in playing villains, not heroes.
  • He's Just Hiding: Despite Wanda's seeming demise at the end of the film, the fact that a red burst of energy shoots out of the collapsing tower makes many think that this isn't the end of the road for Elizabeth Olsen's tenure in the MCU. The book Marvel Studio's Marvel Cinematic Universe: An Official Timeline would later confirm that Wanda in fact did die in this film.
  • I Knew It!: Based on the plot threads laid down by WandaVision, many fans correctly predicted that Wanda would end up being a villain in this film.
    • Extra points to Movie Bob, who made this prediction before WandaVision even came out.
  • It's the Same, Now It Sucks!:
    • One common complaint from a few critics is that instead of continuing her arc from WandaVision, Wanda's story is essentially the same as in the show, only with more violence: Wanda snaps due to all the loss she's suffered, commits crimes in her attempt to gain a family, eventually comes to a Heel Realization and disappears from view.
    • The entire Multiverse premise of the movie for some audiences, as the concept has become very popular in contemporary media. After several years of DC's Arrowverse shows featuring it, followed by Marvel's own Spider-Man: No Way Home (as well as a tease/fake-out in Spider-Man: Far From Home), Loki (2021), and What If…? (2021) all involving it in some regard (hell, even Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings delved into the concept of alternate dimensions, and the non-MCU, Sony-produced Marvel feature Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was focused on it, while Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Morbius both touch on it to establish themselves as part of the MCU's Multiverse). Even besides film, both Marvel and DC have made hefty use of it in their comics and other media, particularly the gaming and animated front, too. Combined with even other works unrelated to the superhero genre (such as the Dueling Work Everything Everywhere All at Once, noted above), some believe the multiverse concept has become a fad. While it appears that the multiverse concept is being set up to replace the Infinity Stones as the MCU's primary Myth Arc, it's definitely gotten a lot of usage very quickly, especially compared to how the Infinity Stones were more spaced out, and with it being used elsewhere too within the same genre sphere (The Flash (2023) is also set to be focused around the concept, as are the sequels to the aforementioned Spider-Verse), some audiences and critics have expressed frustration with it. Of course, there's still quite a number of fans that still love the usage no matter in some regards.

    Tropes J to P 
  • Jerkass Woobie: Wanda is perfectly okay with killing countless Kamar-Taj sorcerers and a child, along with possibly causing an incursion and dooming countless universes if it means she can harness America's power so she can use it to find her children. However, given the fact she's still struggling with the loss of her children, is negatively influenced by the Darkhold, and ends up with a Heel Realization so severe it's implied it drives her to suicide, one can't help but shed a tear for her.
  • Jerks Are Worse Than Villains: While Scarlet Witch is a Tragic Villain and Bruce Campbell is too funny in his cameo as an abrasive vender, the Illuminati are hated for their smug self-righteousness (Prof. Xavier and to a lesser extent Mr. Fantastic excepting) which made their horrific deaths by the former long overdue.
  • Just Here for Godzilla:
    • Several fans who otherwise don't care for Doctor Strange or his supporting cast have expressed interest in this film simply because it marks Sam Raimi's return to the director's chair in nine years, ever since 2013's Oz the Great and Powerful. The fact that Multiverse of Madness is marketed as a Superhero Horror film, a mashup of two genres that Raimi has had exponential experience with, only further excited fans of his work.
    • Seeing Patrick Stewart having a role had many fans on board with many debates as to whether or not he's reprising his role as Charles Xavier. A TV ad a week before the movie's premiere confirms that he is.
    • And then there are those who are excited for Bruce Campbell, who has teased his appearance in the film on several occasions. While many are fine with a brief but memorable cameo, several others believe that he will be appearing as his iconic Ash Williams from Evil Dead series despite not being a Marvel character.note  Others are speculating he'll be playing a variant of Mysterio, as he was planned to be in the original Raimi Spider-Man films, or even the Strange variant from their universe. His actual role is as a "Pizza Poppa" pizza balls vendor, whose hand gets cursed by Strange into punching him repeatedly, reminiscent of Evil Dead 2. He's also awarded the second post credits scene.
    • Many Scarlet Witch fans are interested in the movie for the sole purpose of seeing how Wanda and her story develops following the events of WandaVision.
    • Several fans of America Chavez have noted their interest in the film solely hinges on her, and how her presence along with the appearance of Tommy and Billy in one trailer brings the possibility of an on-screen Young Avengers teamup one step closer.note 
    • The film's final act (The scenes starting from Sinister Strange up until the ending) is considered by many Sam Raimi fans to be the best part of the movie. As they feel it’s when film fully plays to Raimi’s strengths, being goofy, creepy, yet sincere. As such, it’s quite common for some Raimi fans to watch the movie solely for that third act during re-watches.
  • Memetic Badass: Billy and Tommy's infamous off-key, ice cream song has been hyped up in a way similar to Morbius (2022). With many ironically calling it one of the best songs ever made or a song powerful enough to defeat Kang.
  • Memetic Loser:
    • Many see Mr. Fantastic (838) as this. He's presented as the smartest man on Earth by his Illuminati fellows, yet in the following scene warns Wanda of Black Bolt's power and indirectly gives her the idea of how to kill him. Then he follows it up by attempting to simply grab a sorceress that can kill from a distance, instead of using any of the gadgets that Mr. Fantastic is famous for in other continuities. Some have even gone as far as to draw art of AUs involving the likes of Superman where Reed reveals his powers and weaknesses as well.
    • Doctor Strange, due to how none of his Alternate Selves have remained with Christine, with many joking that he is "bitchless" across the multiverse.
    • Professor X, due to this movie being the fourth time that Patrick Stewart's Charles Xavier gets killed.
  • Memetic Troll: A meme exists of Reed Richards actually proving himself the Smartest Man in the Universe by using Reverse Psychology to trick Wanda into giving him what he wants: i.e. when he mentions the woman he loves is married to another, Wanda divorces them, and when Reed compliments Wanda's clothes, well…
  • Misaimed Fandom: The fact that a clearly corrupted Wanda's statement about how every mother creates her children with "magic" is seen as a Heartwarming Moment, if also a Moment of Awesome, says a lot. This is supposed to be a sign of her losing all touch with reality, but it seems that people, especially mothers who have been pregnant and given birth, are inclined to side with her on this statement.
  • Narm:
    • Probably a homage to Raimi's horror films, but the jumpscares and the clichéd scare chords are more laughable than effective, much in part to how frequently they occur. But then again, that can also be part of the fun.
    • Wanda's blackened fingertips should look unsettling, but the effect looks more like she went overboard putting on nail polish.
    • “The Wong Transition”, in which a bird’s eye view shot of Wanda leaving the charred forest gradually fades in to a closeup of Wong, giving the impression of a giant Wong looming over the landscape.
    • The thing that started America Chavez's tragic life on the run in the first place? A wasp happened to land on her hand, causing her to freak out and accidentally open a portal, sucking her parents into another universe to their presumed deaths. While the scene itself is quite tragic and disturbing, the fact that a tiny bug ruined her life makes it morbidly comedic in a way.
    • The Illuminati's whole confrontation with Wanda is supposed to be a shocking and dramatic scene of both how powerful Wanda is, and how far she'll go to get what she wants. However, while the scene starts tense, the fight immediately goes into becoming humorous when Reed gives Wanda an easy way to get rid of the biggest threat, and then is shredded to pieces while his teammates don't even make a move to subdue her, and soon after the other members fall to her as well. As such, many viewers have come to find the whole thing silly once they got over the initial shock factor.
    • Sinister Strange's death by falling off of his tower and impaled by spikes, only to suddenly awaken his third eye and glare intensely at Christine Palmer-838, due to how quick, sudden and unelaborated it is.
    • The Souls of the Damned coming after Strange-616 for dreamwalking into a corpse is supposed to come across as creepy, but the mood can be spoiled when one of the female ghosts who sounds like a classroom teacher scolds Dr. Strange in a manner like he got caught cheating on an exam and is being put in detention for breaking the rules. It sounds so arbitrary like they only reason you can't dreamwalk into a corpse is because someone says it's against their rules.
    • Wanda's facial expression during her showdown with America Chavez is supposed to highlight how insane Wanda has become by this point. It quickly became a meme following the film's release.
    • The last scene of the movie has Stephen suddenly drop down in immense pain as he forms a third eye that shows his corruption that he suffered for using the Darkhold. Which is dramatic and unsettling, if not a bit sudden. The mid-credits one, however, pushes the first one into Narm due to the fact that it seems to skip over all the insinuations about Stephen being corrupted, and accept having a third eye without any comments about it, making it feel like the former scene was an overdramatic set up for something that was immediately brushed past.
    • Wanda appearing right out of nowhere in the tunnel to scare America. While most of the film’s jumpscares are already pretty narm-y for some, this one stands out in particular for being insanely predictable. Mostly because, Strange, Christine, and America stop dead in their tracks. The camera zooms in their faces and the barrier making it pretty obvious for the audience to know what’s about to happen. America’s memetic, over-the-top reaction to the scare makes the scene even more laughable for others.
    • The tunnel chase as a whole can come across as narm-y because of the simple fact that Wanda can fly and use telekinesis therefore her limping after the trio can come across as ridiculous.
  • Narm Charm:
    • "SORCERERS, FORTIFY YOUR MINDS!!!"
    • Mr. Fantastic is ultimately killed when Wanda makes his head pop like a balloon. While this seems cartoonish on paper, it's properly horrifying in the film itself as we hear Reed scream in horror before he finally dies.
    • Strange saying "I love you in every universe" to Christine (Earth-838) should be one of the cheesiest lines in the entire MCU. But Benedict Cumberbatch delivers it so sincerely that one can't help but find it sweet.
    • Similarly, America telling Strange "I'm glad I fell into your universe" could have also come across as equally cheesy. However, Xochitl Gomez's acting makes what should be an eye-rolling line into a truly heartwarming moment.
    • Professor Xavier's appearance is treated as someone who Strange should know with him being revealed as the final member of the Illuminati. Normally, it would be silly for a complete stranger to make such a grand entrance but considering that Patrick Stewart is reprising his role from the X-Men Film Series and the theme song of X-Men: The Animated Series is being played, it becomes awesome to finally see Professor X making his grand debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
    • Doctor Strange and Sinister Strange use their magic to make the notes from sheet music into projectiles, which play Beethoven's best hits upon impact. It's incredibly silly, but you can't help but respect it for being a unique spin on typical hero-vs-villain brawls.
    • While the Souls of the Damned attacking Strange-616 for possessing a corpse might make one chuckle due to one of them acting like Dr. Strange needs to be disciplined for cheating, when Dr. Strange gets control of the souls and wears them like a Cloak of Levitation, the scene can have a certain charm for how tables are turned. The souls may also invoke memories of how the demons sound in Evil Dead.
    • Strange giving a You Are Better Than You Think You Are speech to America while in the decaying and charred corpse of his Defender variant should have defused the fuzzies, but Cumberbatch and Gomez's acting makes it work.
    • Some of the film's jumpscares, such as Sinister Strange's third eye suddenly opening after his death, a giant monster appearing out of darkness in Mount Wundagore, and The Scarlet Witch snapping Professor X's neck, complete with a cliché Scare Chord, can be unintentionally hilarious due to how predictable they can be. However, given that Sam Raimi is known to make audiences both scream and laugh (either intentionally or not). The over-the-top and even silly nature of the scares can make them quite fun to watch.
    • America Chavez's life being ruined by a wasp landing on her hand can make some viewers unintentionally chuckle. However, Elfman's score combined with the genuine look of distraught on Xochitl Gomez's face still makes the scene heartbreaking to watch.
    • When Strange dreamwalks into Defender Strange's corpse, the dramatic faces he makes as it happens is more funny than dramatic. Given how the scene is clearly meant to be a fun homage to classic zombie movies however, Cumberbatch's over-the-top faces can make the scene even more entertaining.
    • The metal guitar riff that plays when Strange realizes he can use the spirits attacking his zombie body to his advantage, synced up with a dramatic Eye Awaken. It's just a shame the guitar didn't stick around for the rest of the scene, which looks like something from a death metal album cover.
    • When Strange passes out because Mordo poured the Sands of Nisanti into his tea, the film uses a cartoonish Iris Out to transition from him to Wanda. The transition should feel completely out of place, but unlike another 2022 superhero movie that also used an Iris Out transition, Morbius (2022) whose use of the transition clashed with that film's mostly serious nature, this film already has quite a campy and over-the-top tone throughout making it not as distracting and more so adds to the movie's charm.
  • Nausea Fuel:
    • Strange and Wong defeat Gargantos by ripping out its gigantic eye. You've got to wonder if Sam Raimi watched The Suicide Squad beforehand.
    • After the backfire that kills him, the pulped remains of Black Bolt's skull and brain start sliding down the back of his cowl before he collapses.
    • While the film is already more bloody than most MCU films, special mention goes to Strange dreamwalking into his dead alternate self, resulting in multiple shots focusing on his badly disjointed fingers and decaying face.
  • Never Live It Down: This movie's incarnation of Mr. Fantastic (838) will forever be infamous for being introduced as "the smartest man alive", then immediately disproving that title when he tells Wanda exactly who she has to watch out for the most (Black Bolt) and, indirectly, how to neutralize him.
  • Nightmare Retardant: Gargantos looks impressive, but it sounds like a cat farting.
  • One-Scene Wonder:
    • Michael Stuhlbarg as Nicodemus West, Strange's rival surgeon from the previous movie, appears in the film for no less than 3 minutes. He's there for Stephen to ponder whether the Snap had to happen the way that it did by sacrificing the time stone. Stuhlbarg's subdued yet still emotional performance really makes you feel for the man who lost both his brother and cats while he was gone for those 5 years. He also delivers one film's best comebacks.
      West: Did it have to happen that way? Was there any other path?
      Strange: No. But I made the only play we had.
      West: Of course, you do. The best surgeon and the best superhero. But you still didn't get the girl.
    • Maybe it's because Sam Raimi was the director, but who could have predicted seeing Bruce Campbell in this movie? He plays a disgruntled food-vendor that tries picking a fight with Stephen and America only for Stephen to make him fight his own hand. Sound familiar?
    • Everyone in the Illuminati, aside from that universe's version of Karl Mordo (who has a greater number of scenes), are only in the film for what amounts to extended cameos, yet their appearances are among the most discussed and memorable things in the film. Mr. Fantastic and Professor X in particular are spotted as a highlight since it may give fans a taste of what to expect in the Fantastic Four and X-Men reboots.
  • Paranoia Fuel:
    • Every dream you ever had actually happened to a version of you somewhere in the Multiverse. Yes, even that one. You know what it was. On the flip side, there is a variant of you out there that knows that embarrassing thing you did.
    • The Darkhold lets those skilled enough to wield it to possess alternate versions of themselves, and only people who really use the Darkhold are either total psychos or become psychos eventually. Now imagine this: the Multiverse spans infinitely and practically anything is possible within it... including a version of you that has the Darkhold and knows how to use it. Like Sinister Strange, this variant might be the kind of guy that likes to mess with those variants and makes them kill themselves, and that's if you're lucky. They could be more like Wanda, who would make you go on a killing spree, with every intention of taking those you love for themselves.
  • Presumed Flop: A case of a film being labelled as a disappointment due to the lofty expectations placed on it as opposed to its actual performance. The film received a mixed critical reception, slightly undershot its forecasted $1 billion mark, and founds itself released amongst a set of other MCU and comic book films with inconsistent financial returns, all of which have caused some critics to file Multiverse of Madness within that category. Nonetheless, the film still earned $952 million worldwide ($411 million domestic) on a $200 million budget, achieved the highest opening weekend of any film in 2022, and is within the upper percentile of MCU grosses overall; achieving that in spite of the film not being released in Russia or China, two countries that previously gave the MCU extra box office strength.

    Tropes R to W 
  • Rescued from the Scrappy Heap:
    • Anson Mount's Black Bolt debuted in one of the MCU's most maligned entries. His surprise return in this film won many fans over with his more comic-accurate costume, more impressive use of his powers, and his shockingly graphic death.
    • America Chavez in the comics is an extremely polarizing character amongst readers due to her often abrasive, brutally honest, Jerkass personality. While many of those detractors still don't consider the film's version of America to be a great character, they find her to be, at the very least, a vast improvement over her comic counterpart. Due to her being far less abrasive to others, her Deadpan Snarker attitude being of the friendlier variety, and having a heartwarming, almost father/daughter-like bond with Strange.
  • Romantic Plot Tumor: It can be difficult to care much about Stephen and Christine's failed relationship given they weren't even together in the first movie and she's been a nonentity in the MCU films since then. Doesn't help that she gets married to someone else at the start of this film, so it's very clear from early on that despite the focus the pairing gets, they won't wind up together.
  • Rooting for the Empire:
    • This film has scenes reminiscent of a Slasher Movie, and even works to evoke common audience reactions. Specifically, slashers are infamous for having unlikeable, idiotic, or bland characters that result in the audience wanting to see the slashers do their work on them all. This movie evokes this with the Illuminati. Captain Carter and Captain Marvel are smug and self-righteous. Reed Richards, in an attempt to reason with Wanda, reveals Blackbolt's weakness that gets him killed. Blackbolt himself can't even talk and thus not much is learned about him. Collectively, they also disregard Doctor Strange's warnings about Wanda, and hypocritically chastise him for his own smugness. As a result, it's easy for audiences to root for Wanda as she slaughters them all, even though she's using horrific and violent methods.
    • Wanda herself receives unintended sympathy from viewers. Theater patrons in some YouTube reactions taken from theaters had many audience members supporting Wanda during several lines that are supposed to establish her villainy. note  There's even a Misaimed Fandom of people who sided with her when she said "That's what every mother does" in reference to mothers creating children with magic and found it heartwarming or even awesome. The fact that she suffers one misery after another in nearly all her appearances in the MCU (which includes Vision dying thrice) so far, helps people to feel sorry for her.
  • Salvaged Story:
    • There's a wider variety of magic in terms of spells, color, and style in the film, as with more unique magic combat such as 616-Strange and Sinister Strange's musical sheet fight, no doubt to alleviate some of the criticisms of the common orange sparkly style of magic previously seen in the MCU.
    • Fans had previously been disappointed that the Eye of Agamotto was merely a container for the Time Stone in the MCU in its previous appearances. However, in this film Strange is shown using it to reveal an invisible Gargantos, showing that it does seem to have its comic abilities after all.
    • After criticisms that the costume design for the Inhumans series was unimpressive and poorly reflected the elaborate costumes of the original comics, Black Bolt finally appears in his classic suit, complete with the tuning-fork helmet.
    • Christine was viewed as a bit of wasted potential in the previous film, merely serving as a Satellite Love Interest and not getting to interact with anyone besides Strange. Here, the first sequence is her wedding, making them Amicable Exes. Then an alternate version of her features prominently in Earth-838, now as a scientist working with the Illuminati. She gets to act as America's protector, help her flee from Wanda, travel with Strange to another universe and get in on the action herself by fighting off the souls of the damned attacking him.
  • Signature Scene:
    • The utterly one-sided battle between Wanda and The Illuminati is easily the most talked about (and memed) part of the movie, as the power levels and actions of all the characters involved is often subject to much discussion. In particular, Black Bolt's death stands out as a very shocking and gory moment in the whole sequence.
    • Main (Sacred Timeline) Strange and Sinister Strange's Magic Music battle is often talked about by fans, simply due to how damn creative and fun it was to see and listen to.
  • Shocking Moments: The deaths of The Illuminati at the hands of Wanda. Of note are the deaths of Black Bolt and Mr. Fantastic, whose deaths were particularly gruesome. What's most notable about it, however, is how it's all entirely onscreen in full graphic detail.
  • Special Effect Failure:
    • The CGI depicting the third eye that using the Darkhold produces isn't particularly convincing. The fact that it often appears in scenes filled with cutting edge visual effects makes it stand out even more.
    • In the scene where Strange and America travel through multiple universes, one of those universes has the duo underwater. America ends up really close to the camera and exposes some very dodgy CGI◊ in the process.
  • Spiritual Successor:
    • To Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 2. Both films have the protagonist witness their loved one prepare to marry someone else (though unlike Peter-2, Strange ultimately lets go of Christine), and feature a villain who's willing to use something that is actively corrupting their mind to the point where they're willing to destroy worlds for what they want, only to see that they have to do what's right for everyone and set aside their dreams.
    • In a similar vein, this feels like an Evil Dead film that never was. A wise-cracking Byronic Hero with rotten luck gets caught up in a magical adventure he largely doesn't want to be on, deals with a demonic and corrupting book, confronts evil versions of himself, is haunted by his past personal failures, and mainly solves problems with quick wits and resorting to half-baked ideas that inevitably cause bigger problems in the long-run.
  • They Changed It, Now It Sucks!:
    • Though it's not without its moments, quite a few fans weren't entirely impressed with Danny Elfman's soundtrack for this film. Many criticisms note that the music feels rather generic for the most part, and barely incorporates usage of Strange's own theme that Michael Giacchino had perfected in the first Doctor Strange film and onwards, particularly the preceding film in the MCU. It doesn't help that the previous MCU film Elfman helped score drew similar complaints upon its release. Elfman also doesn't use the theme music Christophe Beck gave Wanda in WandaVision, though he does use a hint of the four-note Leitmotif that accompanied the show's title. Another point of contention came when one Twitter user discovered that one track (Stranger Things Will Happen) uses a cue that sounds almost identical to a snippet from Elfman's much-maligned Justice League (2017) soundtrack. You can listen to the similarities here.
    • While Xochitl Gomez's performance is generally considered to be good, America Chavez's treatment in the film has gotten this reaction from fans of the character from the comics, who is popularly regarded for her cocky, no-nonsense tough-girl exterior and for being the Flying Brick Big Girl of the teams she's on. The film downplays/removes all her non-portal-making powers, reduces her to a kid who needs saving, and generally lacks a lot of the feisty charm of the comic character. Doesn't help that she had a noted Age Lift, and that Gomez is significantly lighter-skinned than the comic character, which was also the same case for her moms. Although for the powers issue, part of the arc for her is learning to control them, at least leaving it open for future installments to develop the rest of them.
    • America's new backstory has also received a lot of criticism from fans of her comic counterpart. As they feel changing the heroic sacrifice of America's parents into an accident caused by a wasp landing on America's hand turns what should be a tragic moment into unintentional hilarity.
    • A minor case, but Earth-838 designating the core MCU universe as "Earth-616" has annoyed some comicbook fans, partially because it contradicts the official designation of the MCU universe in previous handbooks (it's Earth-199999), but especially because Earth-616 is the designation of the main Marvel Universe in the comics, causing a contradiction. While this was likely done as an attempt at nodding to the comics, it comes off as not understanding the reasoning behind these designations (so that every iteration of Marvel canon is uniquely counted as canon somewhere). It also has the unintended side-effect of drawing attention to all the other cases of They Changed It, Now It Sucks! in the MCU, given that the MCU doesn't really resemble Earth-616 very much, so calling it Earth-616 comes off as disingenuous. Even some MCU cast members (most notably Ms. Marvel (2022) lead star Iman Vellani) who have knowledge over the source material call this out. What's worse, it retroactively makes Mysterio's claims of the MCU being Earth-616 an In-Universe example of Accidentally-Correct Writing, which undermines the fact that he is supposed to be a fraud making things up as he goes.note 
  • They Copied It, Now It Sucks: One common complaint of the movie is that Wanda's motivation is identical to the Kingpin's in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, along with her emotional climax being nearly beat for beat identical to Kingpin's as well. They basically took the first film adaptation of a Marvel multiverse story and repeated the villain's story.
  • They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character:
    • After The Stinger of the first film, it was implied that MCU-Mordo would play an important role in the sequel. However, he's only mentioned when Strange confronts Supreme Mordo, alluding to him making various attempts on Strange's life, and Strange uses the knowledge of his Mordo's hubris and arrogance to defeat his counterpart. Yet MCU-Mordo never appears in the movie, with everything that happened between the two sorcerers in the last years being narrated by Strange himself. Several incredibly accurate leaks for the movie indicate that the original opening scene for the film would be MCU-Mordo stalking Wanda and being decapitated by her, so the removal of this scene indicates that there may still be more planned for him.
    • The Illuminati end up as this trope. Despite the excitement of finally seeing Professor Charles Xavier, Mister Fantastic, Captain Carter, Maria Rambeau as Captain Marvel, and Black Bolt in the live-action MCU, they all end up as a momentary speedbump on the losing end of an absolutely vicious Curb-Stomp Battle by an alternate Wanda possessed by the Scarlet Witch. Reed Richards doesn't even get to properly demonstrate his powers, unlike the others.
    • WandaVision ended with Wanda's children calling to her for help, seemingly setting up a story where she attempts to rescue them. The movie never refers to her belief that they're in danger, and the children from WandaVision are never seen in the movie, just two variants who were born to a different universe's Wanda, who don't get to show the personalities or powers of the Billy and Tommy from the show. Granted, with how much time has passed, and the events said to have happened, Wanda could have gone a different route in her journey.
    • A big deal was made of the Living Tribunal being revealed in the TV spots, with some presuming he would be a part of the overarching plot given his whole schtick is being a cosmic judge, which could've provided an interesting face-off against Strange or Wanda. In the final film, however, that's literally all we see of him as Strange and Chavez hop through various alternate realities.
    • When Gargantos — an adaptation of popular recurring Dr. Strange antagonist Shuma-Gorath — appeared in the trailers, fans were excited and speculated he might be the Big Bad. However, Dr. Strange and Wong handily overpower and kill Gargantos in the film's opening act. Some argue Gargantos could've been used to make Wanda's Face–Heel Turn go down smoother, as having her be manipulated or outright possessed by an Eldritch Abomination (be it him or the mentioned-but-unseen Chthon) could have made for a better, more easily understood reasoning for her corruption than the Darkhold, not to mention avoided the Continuity Lock-Out the latter brought on.
    • A number of America Chavez's fans excited to see her make her MCU debut were disappointed that her role in the film was largely limited to being a MacGuffin Super-Person, wishing that the writers had done more with her character. Many fans hoping for her to be the MCU's first outright LGBT character were likewise disappointed by the film only indirectly alluding to her being a lesbian, with Kevin Feige explaining that the decision was made because the MCU version of America is only 14 and the film's focus is on other aspects of her life. Of course, this is still only her first appearance and there is quite a few ways her story could go from here.
    • Rintrah, the green Minotaur sorcerer in Kamar-Taj. He could have been an interesting character, but he only has a couple of scenes, one line of dialogue and never even interacts with Strange or Wong. Especially with him being an extradimensional alien in the comics, it could have been interesting in this movie. It's not clear how he got to Earth when it's specified the Wizards of Kamar-Taj know next to nothing about the multiverse.
    • Given the plot of Wanda trying to claim the life and children of a happier version of herself many have questioned the complete absence of her husband Vision and why she wouldn't try to seek a life with him as well as their kids. Doesn't help that his absence from this world despite his kids' presence is never elaborated on. And while Wanda's last appearance showed her starting to move on from his death, that doesn't really explain why she wouldn't seek him out if she's regressed this much into seeking other family members.
    • Despite her death supposedly being the driving factor as to why he became a doctor in the first place, Strange's sister Donna gets only mentioned once in an exchange between him and Sinister Strange and is never brought up again. note  Some viewers lament that her death could have been better explored and felt that Strange's inability to move on from Donna's death would have been a more compelling character arc than his failed relationship with Christine, perhaps even setting Strange up as a Foil to Wanda over their shared grief over losing a loved one.
  • They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot:
    • The synopsis of a multiversal adventure has the potential to feature the characters in a wide variety of fantastical and perilous locations, which could've been especially interesting given Raimi's visual style and his experience with zany adventure and horror. In the film, though, we only see a bunch of different Earths when Strange and Chavez teleport to Earth-838. In fact, not including the different variants, there are about three realities explored in depth in the film (Earth-616, Earth-838, Sinister Strange's Earth). Some fans have speculated this may however be Marvel Studios saving the really crazy stuff for later (like in an adaptation of the 2015 Secret Wars, which the sixth Avengers film would later be confirmed to be based on).
    • The timing of this film's release led some to think that the plot would somehow tie into the Multiverse crisis in season 1 of Loki, especially since Michael Waldron was the head writer of both that show and Multiverse of Madness. It turns out the two events have nothing to do with one another, though Kevin Feige did hint that both this film and Spider-Man: No Way Home only happened in-universe because of Loki's Season 1 finale.
    • For a film that centralizes around magic and witchcraft there's a great lack of actual magic spells in the film. Besides the musical fight and the dreamwalking spells, there's really only the energy beams and weapons. Fans who wanted to see more of the visually stunning and diverse spells like Hoary Hosts Of Hoggoth, Seven Suns Of Cinnebus, Images Of Ikonn among other spells will leave disappointed.
    • The Stinger of WandaVision implied Wanda's children were in danger, and suggested she would have to rescue them from an unknown entity, mirroring an arc in the comics where her children were being held prisoner by Master Pandemonium. This movie ignores the stinger almost entirely and focuses on Wanda attempting to abduct children from another universe.
  • Too Cool to Live: The entire Illuminati, sans their version of Karl Mordo, who survives. An alternate version of the MCU where the X-Men, Fantastic Four, and Inhumans have been around from the start, and their respective leaders are on the team? Empowered versions of fan-favorite characters like Peggy Carter as a stand-in for Captain America, or Maria Rambeau as their version of Captain Marvel? All of them are met with gruesome ends moments after running into the Scarlet Witch.
  • Tough Act to Follow: The film follows Spider-Man: No Way Home, one of the most beloved MCU films of all time. No Way Home being a major Inter Continuity Crossover was also expected of this very film given its title, premise, and its director also helming one of the film continuities involved in said crossover. Suffice to say, many were disappointed when it wasn't the case.
  • Ugly Cute: Gargantos is a horrifying Eldritch Abomination with giant tentacles. However, its expressive eye and mouthless sounds make it kind of adorable.
  • Uncertain Audience: In a similar case to Eternals, many reviewers took issue with the movie’s constantly clashing tones. The film attempts to appeal to fans of Sam Raimi’s work and horror fans through its brutal kills, creepy atmosphere and jump scares. But it still feels the need to add many of the classic MCU trademarks such as snarky dialogue, fan service cameos, and a heavy dose of Continuity Lock-Out. MCU fans who are used to the family-friendly and conventional style, were put off by the horror elements and many of Raimi's quirks, while horror fans groaned at the many tired clichés and tropes. This left fans of both sides quite unsatisfied, or at least not satisfied enough.
  • Unexpected Character:
    • Gargantos makes a surprise appearance during the teaser, where they are shown fighting Strange and his allies, despite the fact that they are an obscure enemy of Namor who only had two appearances in the comics.note 
    • The film marks the MCU debut of America Chavez, a character who has little, if any, connection to Strange in the comics — though the movie explicitly being about the multiverse does make her involvement logical, since her whole deal is inter-dimensional travel.
    • After being rumored for a while, the final TV spots finally confirmed the appearance of not just Professor X as portrayed by Patrick Stewart, but a version visually resembling that of X-Men: The Animated Series. His appearance in this film was especially surprising, given that Stewart had previously stated that he had retired the character in Logan alongside Hugh Jackman's Wolverine.
    • Absolutely no one saw Black Bolt's inclusion in the Illuminati coming, let alone it being as a Role Reprise by Anson Mount. Even if he was a founder of the team in the comics, the fact that Inhumans was one of, if not the most poorly-received entries in the MCU's lineup (so poorly received in fact, that it, and any further references to the Inhumans themselves were more or less rendered Canon Discontinuity) indicated there was little chance he would appear.
    • Mix this with unexpected actor. While some didn't expect Reed Richards would make an appearance in this film before his scheduled appearance in his own film, nobody expected he would be played by John Krasinski, who was an extremely popular fan casting for the character.note 
    • Ditto for The Stinger. Clea is a prominent ally in Doctor Strange's supporting cast in the comics, but she had yet to appear in the MCU... until the last few minutes of this film, where she is played by Charlize Theron.
    • In a cross-franchise example, the fact that Disney's Oswald the Lucky Rabbit is featured as a cartoon that Wanda's kids are watching is very unexpected due to the character's obscurity.
  • Unintentionally Sympathetic: Supreme Strange using the Darkhold to find a way to stop his version of Thanos is talked about by The Illuminati as being arrogant and short-sighted. While it may have been foolish of Supreme Strange to try solve the problem by himself, he was attempting to save trillions of innocent people from being killed by Thanos, so his desperation in using the Darkhold so much does make sense and his causing an Incursion that destroyed another universe was a complete accident, one which the moment he found out about caused him to renounce the Darkhold and help The Illuminati find The Book of Vishanti to stop Thanos. Considering his drive to save the universe, him owning up when he did something wrong even when it was an accident, the fact that he did find a way to save the universe, and his wilingness to give up his own life when it was decided that he might be a threat, in many ways he is exactly the hero The Illuminati told the Universe he was. This is only helped the fact that The Illuminati are willing to kill Sacred Timeline Strange not because he did anything wrong, but because he might do something wrong, despite knowing the good intentions of their Strange.
  • Visual Effects of Awesome: Like was the case for the first film, the effects involving magic are stunning. In contrast to its predecessor, whose visual spectacles were mainly about psychedelic and kaleidoscopic dimensions; this film's spectacles lie in Sam Raimi's dynamic camerawork and frenetic editing. The 3D presentation is also fantastic, to the point it received the first IMAX 3D release in the US in over two years.Explanation
  • The Woobie:
    • America Chavez discovered her powers at a young age when she accidentally opened a portal after getting frightened by a bee, a portal that sent her mothers into the Multiverse. In the present, she's on the run from a Wanda driven to madness and despair by the Darkhold, perfectly willing to kill the young girl for her powers. She already has trust issues given the last Strange she was allied with betrayed and almost killed her. Thankfully, by the end of the film, she's been able to find a supportive community in the form of the Kamar-Taj sorcerers.
    • Earth-838's Wanda has it pretty bad — she gets taken over by 616-Wanda (i.e. the Scarlet Witch), and becomes trapped in a mental prison that resembles the rubble she was buried under as a child. During this time, Scarlet Witch goes on a relentless pursuit of America through the Illuminati Headquarters, putting the body through physical harm as she battles robots and superheroes, gets tossed around badly, walks through glass barefooted, and ultimately gets flooded in a tunnel. Once she gets what she came for, Scarlet Witch ends the spell, leaving 838-Wanda stranded in-between dimensions, forced to levitate back to her world and tend to the wounds. And then at the end of the movie, Scarlet Witch storms into her home and proceeds to toss her across the room in front of her children, threatening them into staying quiet as she does so, with the intent to take them away from her. If that wasn't enough, 838-Wanda's calm and collected response after all this implies that she was aware of what was happening to some degree. And that's without getting into how her reputation might be damaged in the future by 616-Wanda's actions, such as brutally slaying a handful of the planet's most famous heroes.

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