The contents of Doctor Strange’s fridge in Spider-Man: No Way Home expose an even more horrible truth about the sorcerer. In Spider-Man: No Way Home, Doctor Strange played a pivotal role in the narrative after trying to help Peter Parker regain his anonymity. His actions directly led to the arrival of Spider-Man’s adversaries from across the multiverse, forcing him to turn to Peter, Ned and MJ in a bid to recapture the escaped enemies. This led a curious Ned to unearth the surprising contents of Strange's refrigerator in the Sanctum Sanctorum, with surprisingly stomach-churning results.

The contents of the fridge in Doctor Strange's home included a range of disgusting monsters trapped inside glass jars. Given their physical appearance, seeing them stuck next to more typical food is understandably unnerving. However, as gross as this first appeared, the Doctor Strange comics that this moment referenced were even more unpleasant. This was because they explained that Doctor Strange actually needed to eat these magical, and foul-tasting, creatures due to the cumulative effects that magical activities were having on his body. The idea of Strange actually eating the creatures in his fridge is a truly gross MCU Easter egg.

Related: Ned's Powers & Family History Explained: Will He Become An MCU Sorcerer?

Why Strange Needs To Eat Magical Monsters

Spiderman No Way Home - Doctor Strange casting a spell

There have been many examples of food and eating being used for humor and characterization in the MCU. The most well-known have involved Iron-Man and Ant-Man but in Avengers: Infinity War this extended to Doctor Strange and Wong discussing food plans and their preferences regarding Avengers-themed ice creams. As fun as this dialogue between them was, there was also a level of irony to it that only became clear by considering writer Jason Aaron’s run of Doctor Strange comics.

When taking over the Doctor Strange comics in 2015, Aarons decided that the character's powers were like a deus ex machina and that a price needed to be paid for Doctor Strange’s phenomenal magical gifts. This came in the form of his eating habits with the Doctor Strange comics suggesting that he could only eat magical monsters, which he described as “tasting like leprosy.” Unsurprisingly, the flavor was not the worst thing about this since these creatures were poisonous enough to kill a normal person. In fact, Wong claimed that it would eventually kill Doctor Stephen Strange too but that it was necessary to counteract the physical alterations to his body that had been caused by using magic. As such, it was a sacrifice worth making to allow Doctor Strange to continue saving lives.

Strange's Fridge Sets Up His Multiverse Of Madness Change

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness - Doctor Strange and Wong

Seeing the contents of Doctor Strange’s fridge in Spider-Man: No Way Home effectively foreshadowed the physical side effects that occurred when Doctor Strange used the Darkhold in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. It certainly implied that changes were already taking place in his body before then and that he and Wong were seeking ways to counteract these effects. More than this, it suggested that he was also fully aware of the extent of the stakes and potential personal cost of using the Darkhold against Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch. In this way, rather than just being gross and disgusting, the contents of his fridge in Spider-Man: No Way Home showed the true extent of the sacrifices made by the MCU’s Doctor Strange.

More: Doctor Strange 2 Prevented A Brutal Scarlet Witch Comic Moment In The MCU

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