DC’s New Multiverse Concept Is a Smart Solution to a Pop Culture Landscape Oversaturated with Alternate Realities

Warning: Spoilers for Absolute Power #4 and DC All In Special #1Pop culture has been arguably over-saturated with multiverse stories in the past decade, but DC Comics may have found the perfect solution. A massive expanse of alternate realities offers a literally limitless amount of potential for creators to pull 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 off Amanda Waller’s machine, preventing her multiversal army from reaching Earth. This was the critical moment that allowed the heroes to defeat Waller once and for all, but the choice didn’t come without a cost. While the heroes managed to prevent her army from invading Earth, it also sealed off the 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 the Earth, the Justice League will no longer be able to rely on reinforcements from other Earths in a crisis, including the multiversal explorers on teams like Justice League Incarnate team. It’s a major change to DC’s status quo, especially since its multiverse has been a key narrative factor for some of its most essential 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 just how important DC’s Multiverse has been to 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 only 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 these classic DC stories.

Now that Prime Earth is cut off from the multiverse, these kinds of stories just can’t happen.

But one of the biggest events of the past decade for DC was the one-two combo of Dark Nights: Metal and Dark Nights: Death Metal by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo. This 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 is cut off from the multiverse, these kinds of stories just can’t happen, and DC has smartly brought in another threat that still gives viewers a taste of the multiverse.

DC’s All In Special Revealed 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 be dealing with going forward. Instead of having to worry about the dark multiverse or any other infinite number of Earths, the only worlds that matter are Earth Prime and the Absolute Universe.

This new status quo allows DC to keenly focus on having just two universes they need to worry about. While other creators can continue doing 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’s a fantastic way for DC to really hone in on its essential universe-wide stories without overcomplicating things. After all, if there’s a major new universe that has appeared, it would be too easy to call Justice League Incarnate. But since Earth Prime is cut off from the multiverse, there’s no way to contact them.

DC’s Iconic Multiverse Has Just Gotten a Lot More Limited

Exploring Is Out of the Question

The DC Multiverse is vast, but it’s lost its sense of mystery over the years, especially as pop culture becomes more and more oversaturated with different kinds of multiverse stories, from Across the Spider-Verse to Everything Everywhere All at Once. In the world of DC Comics, which has one of the oldest multiverses in pop culture history, the Justice League has gotten the exploration of the multiverse pretty much down to a science. Barry Allen would regularly go on exploration trips throughout the multiverse, mapping out any planets he finds, meaning that neither readers nor the characters could really be surprised by what was out 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, available now both digitally and in a collected edition from DC Comics.

By sealing the multiverse off and making DC’s central story strictly about Earth Prime and the Absolute Universe, DC has brought back a sense of mystery to alternate realities. No one knows what’s really going on in the Absolute Universe, neither the readers nor the characters. It’s one of the most exciting multiverse story choices that DC has made in years, and it’s a universe 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’s a tool that offers limitless potential. But the problem with that limitless potential is it can quickly lose the sense of mystery and excitement that it once had. When a multiverse has infinite Earths in it, readers already know there must be a solution out there at 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 who has fused with the Joker, that’s no problem either. There’s no sense of surprise with a multiverse that has everything, because then nothing is exciting.

While Marvel had a giant multiverse that allowed writers to tell individual stories, they really focused on Earth-616 and Earth-1610.

This “new” method has already been proven to work, too. It’s no secret that the Absolute Universe is based on Marvel’s Ultimate Universe. The naming convention is even similar. While 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 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 Far More Exciting Than an Infinite Amount

Just about every franchise has dipped into the multiverse in the past few decades. It’s a staple of comics and has even begun finding its way into the wider realm of pop culture storytelling. While the infinite possibilities of the multiverse were fun, nothing beats a tight-focused story. The Absolute Universe is everything great about the multiverse, but small enough in scope that it feels like everything matters now. Of all the choices DC Comics has made with the multiverse, giving the 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!