Like his comic book counterpart, Benedict Cumberbatch's Stephen Strange in the Marvel Cinematic Universe started out as an arrogant man. Oh sure, he was a world-famous surgeon who helped countless people, but he was primarily driven by boosting his ego and pushing his career forward. However, the man did have some selflessness in him, as you can see in a Doctor Strange deleted scene showing him taking care of a hurt pup. Take a look!
While searching for Kamar-Taj in Kathmandu, Nepal, Stephen Strange comes across a dog with an injured paw in this deleted Doctor Strange scene provided by USA Today. As he inspects his patient, a hooded figure watches from across the street. Strange successfully bandages the dog, to which he receives one of those classic (and cute) dog handshakes. Strange then jokes about the canine won't be so happy once he gets his bill, but the pup goes on its way. Sadly, no good deed goes unpunished, and after healing the dog, Strange is surrounded by thugs who want his watch, an encounter we saw unfound in Doctor Strange's final cut.
Even though this scene isn't integral to Doctor Strange's main plot by any means, it does paint the New York surgeon in a better light. By that point in the story, his career has been ruined thanks to the car accident and he's lost nearly everything in his efforts to heal his hands. Finding Kamar-Taj is his last hope, so he's not obligated to help that dog, but he decides to anyway. By placing this scene back into the main narrative, it also provides more context for why the hooded figure, who is later revealed to be Karl Mordo, decides to save Stephen from those criminals. However, if director Scott Derrickson was keen on not highlighting the good in Stephen until he enters Kamar-Taj and starts studying the mystic arts, then taking out the dog healing scene was a wise decision.
Fortunately, Stephen Strange found his higher calling as Doctor Strange progressed, becoming a sorcerer and taking over as the guardian of the New York Sanctum. I realize the good Doctor has a lot to keep him busy, but maybe if he's looking to make his cool hideout a little more homey and comforting, he could track down that dog, give him a bath and have him be the Sanctum Sanctorum's official pet.
Doctor Strange will be released on Digital HD next Tuesday, February 14, and the Blu-ray/DVD release will follow on February 28. The Master of the Mystic Arts will return on November 3 for Thor: Ragnarok, as well as Avengers: Infinity War on May 4, 2018.
