Marvel 1976.08 - Doctor Strange #17

Doctor Strange #17

Title: Utopia Rising!

Writer: Steve Englehart

Artist: Gene Colan

Villain: Stygyro

Regulars: Clea

The issue begins with Doctor Strange pursuing James Mandarin through the streets of Greenwich Village. After returning from Hell, he stole some books from Doctor Strange's house. Did he really think it wouldn't be noticed? Doctor Strange casts a spell to transport James Mandarin back to his sanctum with the books. Then he casts another spell to remove his memory and cast him out of the house.

James Mandarin had obviously grabbed books at random, thinking them all to be mystical volumes, but among them there's a copy of "New Atlantis" by Francis Bacon. Clea senses the word bicentennial in Doctor Strange's thoughts and asks what it means. He tells her that it's currently the 200th year of the founding of the United States. Together with Clea he travels back to London in 1618 to meet Francis Bacon. They meet in a pub called the Red Boot Inn, and Francis says they can attend the meeting of his Literary Society later in the evening.

As they leave the inn Doctor Strange and Clea are attacked by men that they initially think to be thieves. They're easily dismissed in a swordfight, but as they leave it's revealed that they're minor magicians, meaning it wasn't a random attack.

At Francis Bacon's home they find out that all the attendees are mystics, though nowhere near as advanced as Doctor Strange. Francis says that he and his friends are tired of the petty squabbles of the kings in Europe, and they dream of a new world where all men live in peace as equals. They think that the recently discovered American continent could be the place to found a new Utopia. When Doctor Strange and Clea leave, he gives them a manuscript containing the full text of "New Atlantis".

In their room at the inn Doctor Strange is attacked by the thieves he met earlier, this time accompanied by a powerful magician called Stygyro. Surprisingly, he knows Doctor Strange's name. They've come to steal the "New Atlantis" manuscript. It's destroyed in the battle, so Stygyro and the others leave. Francis Bacon arrives with his colleagues and tells them that he never intended to publish "New Atlantis", because he thought that it would be more successful in creating discussions as a lost writing.