Doctor Nicodemus West is a neurosurgeon who worked at Metro-General Hospital where he developed a rivalry with a fellow Doctor working there, Stephen Strange. West saved Strange's life after a near fatal car accident, although his work could not save Strange's hands which developed irreparable nerve damage. West continued working at the hospital while Strange searched for a way to fix his hands. The pair came back into contact when Strange brought in the Ancient One and personally asked West to take charge of the operation, although she could not be saved.
Biography
Successful Neurosurgeon
Working with Doctor Strange
- "Now's not the time for showing off, Strange!"
"How about ten minutes ago when you called the wrong time of death?" - ―Nicodemus West and Stephen Strange[src]
West watches Doctor Strange's operation
Nicodeous West was preparing to start recovering an apparently dead patient's organs, when fellow doctor Stephen Strange with Christine Palmer barged into the room and ordered him to stop because Strange had found an initially missed bullet lodged in the patient's brain. As Strange prepared to operate, he asked West to place his hand over his watch, as the ticking was distracting him. As West complied, Strange operated and saved the patient's life.
Immediately following the surgery, Strange asked Palmer if she and West were sleeping together. Palmer denied the accusation, stating it was against the "Strange Policy," a policy against dating coworkers that she named after him.[1]
Strange's Surgery
- "Give your body time to heal."
"You've ruined me..." - ―Nicodemus West and Stephen Strange[src]
Strange was in an car accident where his hands were crushed on impact and was brutally injured. West and Palmer oversaw the surgery done on Strange that took approximately eleven hours to save him. West was forced to put stainless steel pins inside the bones of both of Strange's hand, which left Strange's hands having permanent nerve damage. Once Strange awoke, he was in horror of seeing his damaged hands as West ordered him to rest and let his body have time to heal. Strange told West that he ruined him, as Palmer insisted that nobody could have done a better job, but Stephen stated he could have done better. Though West told Strange to let his body rest, Strange furiously accused him of ruining his body and career, leaving the doctor to try to spend his fortune to fix his hands. [1]
Operating on Ancient One
West prepares to operate on Ancient One
Several months later, Doctor Strange returned to Metro-General Hospital, rushing a mortally wounded woman to the emergency room. As colleague Christine Palmer began attempting to save the woman's life, Strange approached West and offered him a scalpel, showing West that he trusted him to save the woman's live. Despite his best efforts, however, the Ancient One passed away.[1]
Personality
West was known to be ignorant , according to Stephen Strange , a fellow doctor and rival of his. He is shown as quite careless and neglectful , when seen immediately trying to harvest the patient's organs without checking the patient thoroughly. Despite all these negative traits , he was quite reasonable shown when he complied with Strange to cover his watch while the latter demanded absolute silence when trying to remove the bullet from the patient's head. And when Strange's hands were injured beyond repair in the car accident, he advised him to give time for his body to heal.
Abilities
- Expert Physician: To be added
Relationships
Allies
- Metro-General Hospital
- Christine Palmer - Colleague
- Stephen Strange - Former Colleague and Work Rival, Patient
- Ancient One † - Patient
Gallery
Trivia
- In the comics, Doctor Nicodemus West was the surgeon who operated on Stephen Strange's hands following his auto accident. He also admired him due to Strange being an extremely intelligent and skillful surgeon, unlike in the film where he has a rivalry with Strange. Additionally, he followed Strange to Kamar-Taj many years later, and acquired a scarce set of mystical abilities.
References
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