Warning: Spoilers for Absolute Power #4 and DC All in Special #1Pop culture has arguably been over-saturated with multiverse stories in the past decade, however DC Comics May have found the perfect solution. A massive expanse of alternate realities offers a literally limitless amount of potential for creators to draw from. DC has one of the biggest multiverses in comics - if not all of pop culture - which is why it's such a shock that the publisher has just closed the door on it.
During the climax of Absolute power #4 by Mark Waid and Dan Mora The Flash shuts down Amanda Waller's machine, preventing her Multiversal Army from reaching Earth. This was the crucial moment that allowed the heroes to defeat Waller once and for all, but the choice did not come without a cost. While the heroes managed to prevent her army from invading Earth, It also sealed off Prime Earth from the rest of the multiverse.
While sealing off the Multiverse was the only way to stop Amanda Waller from gaining "absolute power" over Earth, the Justice League will no longer be able to rely on reinforcements from other Earths in a crisis, including the Multiverse Explorers on teams like Justice League Incarnate Team. It is A major change to DC's status quoEspecially since its multiverse was a key narrative factor for some of its most basic stories.
DC's multiverse has been the heart of dozens of iconic stories
Absolute power #4 by Mark Waid, Dan Mora, Alejandro Sánchez and Ariana Maher
It's hard to overstate how important DC's multiverse has been in the history of comics. Major storylines that define the history of DC Comics revolve around the Multiverse - Like the classic Crisis on Infinite Earths By Marv Wolfman and George Pérez. This story completely changed the face of DC Comics and reset the multiverse, bringing everything to just one Earth, before the multiverse returned in Infinite Crisis By Geoff Johns, Phil Jimenez, and more. Absolute power And DC All In Special are clearly pulling plot elements from the classic DC stories.
Now that Prime Earth is removed from the multiverse, these kinds of stories cannot happen.
But one of the biggest events of the last decade for DC was the one-two combo of Dark Nights: Metal And Dark Nights: Death metal By Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo. The storyline involved the dark multiverse rising up and attacking the main multiverse, nearly destroying everything. The Metal And Death metal Combination was a major event that once again completely refreshed the multiverse and changed how characters interacted with it. Now that Prime Earth has been removed from the multiverse, These kinds of stories simply cannot happenAnd DC has smartly brought in another threat that still gives viewers a taste of the multiverse.
DC S All in special Revealing the brand new Absolute Universe
DC All In Special #1 by Joshua Williamson, Scott Snyder, Daniel Sampere, Wes Craig, Dan Mora, Alejandro Sánchez, Mike Spicer, Tamra Bonvillain, and Steve Wands
DC's multiverse offered an infinite number of possibilities and threats, which was both a good thing and a bad thing. The existence of the multiverse meant that a creator could really do whatever they wanted, but it also meant that the universe and overall plot could feel much less focused. DC has expertly gotten around this by introducing the Absolute Universe, which will function as The only alternate universe that the Earth Prime heroes will deal with Go ahead. Instead of worrying about the Dark Multiverse or any other infinite number of Earths, the only worlds that matter are Earth Prime and the Absolute Universe.
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This new status quo allows DC to focus on only two universes they need to worry about. While other creators may continue to create stories in the multiverse - the Elseworlds line is still going strong - none of them will have any bearing on the plot currently unfolding in the main DCU and the Absolute Universe variants. It is a fantastic way for DC to really hone in on its basic universe-wide stories without overcomplicating things. After all, if there is a major new universe coming out, it would be too easy to call it Justice League Incarnate. But since Earth Prime was removed from the multiverse, there is no way to contact them.
DC's iconic multiverse just got a whole lot more limited
Exploring is out of the question
The DC Multiverse is vast, but it has lost its sense of mystery over the years, especially as pop culture becomes more and more oversaturated with different kinds of multiverse stories, from Over the Spider-Verse to Everything everywhere all at once. In the world of DC Comics, who did One of the oldest multiverses in pop culture historyJustice League has got the exploration of the multiverse pretty much down to a science. Barry Allen would constantly go on exploration trips throughout the multiverse, mapping out any planets he found, meaning that neither readers nor the characters could really be surprised by what was there.
Looking for more stories about DC superheroes exploring the multiverse? Try starting with Infinite Frontier-era miniseries Justice League Incarnate by Joshua Williamson, Dennis Culver and Andrei Bressan, now available both digitally and in a collected edition from DC Comics.
By sealing the multiverse and making DC's central story strictly about Earth Prime and the Absolute Universe, DC has brought a sense of mystery to alternate realities. No one knows what is really happening in this absolute universe, neither the readers nor the characters. It is one of The most exciting multiverse storytelling choices DC has made in years, and it's a universe that DC has admitted they're committed to for years to come.
The Absolute Universe is the perfect answer to multiverse fatigue
The multiverse is finally exciting again
The multiverse is an easy trap for comic franchises to fall into. It is a tool that offers limitless potential. But the problem with this limitless potential is that it can quickly lose the sense of mystery and excitement that it once had. When a multiverse has infinite earth in it, Readers already know that there must be a solution there in the ready. If a creator needs a superman who has absorbed every sun in his universe for unlimited power, he can be brought in. If a story needs a Batman fused with the Joker, that's no problem either. There is no sense of surprise with a multiverse that has everything, because then nothing is exciting.
Although Marvel had a giant multiverse that allowed writers to tell individual stories, they really focused on Earth-616 and Earth-1610.
The "new" method has been proven to work as well. It's no secret that the Absolute Universe is based on Marvel's Ultimate Universe. The naming convention is even similar. Although Marvel had a giant multiverse that allowed creators to tell individual stories, they really focused on Earth-616 and Earth-1610. The Ultimate Universe was a massive success for Marvel And led to fantastic characters such as Miles Morales. While DC has always had an expansive multiverse, the publisher never really had a focus on two specific realities - until now.
DC's multiverse is more exciting than ever
Two planets are much more exciting than an infinite amount
Almost every franchise has dipped into the multiverse in the last few decades. It's a staple of comics and has even begun to find its way into the wider realm of pop culture storytelling. While the infinite possibilities of the multiverse are fun, nothing beats a tightly-focused story. The Absolute Universe is everything big about the Multiverse, but small enough in scope that it feels like everything matters now. Of all the choices DC Comics Done with the Multiverse, giving Prime Earth a break from it and focusing on the Absolute Universe is one of the best ideas in years.
DC All In Special #1 And Absolute power #4 are available now from DC Comics!