Marvel Finally Reveals The Twisted Origin of The Mindless Ones

Spoilers for Strange Academy #9 ahead!

Marvel has added a new twist to the origins of the Mindless Ones, one that suggests they were not always so mindless. The Mindless Ones  have been a staple of the magical side of the Marvel Universe and a thorn in the side of Doctor Strange since their introduction more than 50 years ago. Now two Strange Academy students have discovered a disturbing secret about them.

First appearing in 1964’s Strange Tales #127, the Mindless Ones were the brainchild of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Originating in a realm called the Dread Dimension, the Mindless Ones have functioned as muscle for many of Marvel’s most evil magic users, Doctor Strange’s arch-nemesis Doramammu prime among them. Standing taller than an average human with impenetrable, stone-like hides, the Mindless Ones are also super strong and capable of firing energy blasts. As the name implies, the Mindless Ones possess no independent will or free thought—but now readers learn this was not always the case.

In Strange Academy #9, written by Skottie Young with art by Humberto Ramos and colors by Edgar Delgado, the academy is holding Parent’s Day. Most of the students’ families have shown up for a day of fun together, with two notable exceptions: Calvin Morse and Doyle Dorammamu; Calvin came from the foster system and thus no parents to visit and Doyle’s father is one of Doctor Strange’s greatest foes, and thus most certainly not on the guest list. The two decide to break from the rest of the student body and go exploring. They stumble into a forbidden area and are intercepted by some of the Academy’s own Mindless Ones, who Calvin notes are acting “not mindless.” Doyle acknowledges this, saying these Mindless Ones see his father (Dormammu) in him. Doyle apologizes to the Mindless Ones for his father, who Doyle reveals imprisoned the Mindless Ones and drained them of their intelligence. Doyle and Calvin then rejoin their friends for the festivities.

Doyle’s revelation about the Mindless Ones adds a horrifying wrinkle to what fans know about the Mindless Ones. Most origins pegged the Mindless Ones as being created with no free thought, but this no longer seems to be the case. The question then is: where exactly did they come from? How did the Mindless Ones end up in Dormammu’s service? And what might happen if all of them are able to shake off Dormammu’s influence? There is clearly more to the Mindless Ones than readers previously thought, and hopefully something that will be explored in future issues.

With their intimidating physical presence and savage nature, the Mindless Ones have still been nothing more than cannon fodder for the magical heavyweights of the Marvel Universe such as Doctor Strange, but now readers learn there is more than meets the eye with them. Strange Academy #9 is available in stores now and on all digital comics platforms.

About The Author

Shaun Corley
(1378 Articles Published)

Shaun Corley is a pop culture enthusiast living in the Pacific Northwest. After stints in both customer service and academia, he’s turned his attention to writing about comic books–his lifelong passion. He is a graduate of Radford University, with a degree in English. When not reading comics, he enjoys spending time with his fiance and their dog.

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