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148-478: Disney Magic is a cruise ship owned and operated by Disney Cruise Line , a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company . She is the line's first vessel, later followed by the Disney Wonder , Disney Dream , Disney Fantasy , Disney Wish , and Disney Treasure . She has 11 public decks, can accommodate 2,700 passengers in 875 staterooms, and has a crew of approximately 950. The interior of Disney Magic

296-628: A humanoid species of water-breathers that live in Earth's oceans. Most of these races have advanced technology but existed hidden from humanity until recent times. More variants of humanity can be found in the Savage Land (see Places below). Most of the Savage Land races have their origin from a group of primitive ape-men who seems to have escaped the Celestial experiments and whose influence

444-765: A museum ship , still gets underway several times a year for six-hour "Living History Cruises" that take the ship through Baltimore Harbor, down the Patapsco River , and into the Chesapeake Bay, and she is also the largest cruise ship operating under the American flag on the United States East Coast. Currently the three largest cruise line holding companies and operators in the world are Carnival Corporation & plc, Royal Caribbean Group and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings . As an industry,

592-463: A North American clientele added every year since 2001, as well as others servicing European clientele until the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 saw the entire industry all but shut down. The average age of a cruise ship in 2024 is 17.5 years. Operators of cruise ships are known as cruise lines, which are companies that sell cruises to the public. Cruise lines have a dual character; they are partly in

740-417: A combined capacity of 664,602 passengers. Cruising has become a major part of the tourism industry, with an estimated market of $ 29.4 billion per year, and over 19 million passengers carried worldwide annually as of 2011 . The industry's rapid growth saw nine or more newly built ships catering to a North American clientele added every year since 2001, as well as others servicing European clientele until

888-471: A consequence, their acts are recurrently dangerous to mortals. When dire threats threaten the universe, it is not uncommon for these beings to gather together to discuss the threat and even act on it. Most conceptual entities are simply interested in furthering their essential function or to keep the balance with an opposing force. However, certain cosmic entities, such as Galactus , the In-Betweener ,

1036-448: A crew deck with a swimming pool and hot tubs. The International Labour Organization 's 2006 Maritime Labour Convention is also known as the "Seafarers' Bill of Rights". Most cruise lines since the 2000s have to some extent priced the cruising experience à la carte , as passenger spending aboard generates significantly more than ticket sales. The passenger's ticket includes the stateroom accommodation, room service, unlimited meals in

1184-542: A day, making it the second largest concentration of Olympic accommodation behind the Olympic Village. This hosting solution has been used since then in Games held in coastal cities, such as at Sydney 2000 , Athens 2004 , London 2012 , Sochi 2014 , Rio 2016 and was going to be used at Tokyo 2020 . Cruise ships have been used to accommodate displaced persons during hurricanes. For example, on 1 September 2005,

1332-451: A diverse range of ethnically themed restaurants aboard each ship. Ships also feature numerous bars and nightclubs for passenger entertainment; the majority of cruise lines do not include alcoholic beverages in their fares and passengers are expected to pay for drinks as they consume them. Most cruise lines also prohibit passengers from bringing aboard and consuming their own beverages, including alcohol, while aboard. Alcohol purchased duty-free

1480-427: A few hundred passengers". After 1980, they offered increasing amenities. As of 2010, city-sized ships have dozens of amenities. There have been nine or more new cruise ships added every year since 2001, including the 11 members of the aforementioned Vista class, and all at 100,000  GT or greater. The only actual ocean liner to be completed in recent years has been Cunard Line's Queen Mary 2 in 2004. Following

1628-509: A higher realm known as Paradise, proving that some form of Heaven and Hell do exist in this Universe, seemingly like those in keeping with common real-world religious belief. Similarly, demons are evil magical beings who take affairs in the matters of the universe. Some of the most powerful are Blackheart , Mephisto , Nightmare , Satannish , Thog the Nether-Spawn and Zom . There are also powerful benevolent mystical entities such as

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1776-469: A mist-like substance; some of the most powerful are capable of controlling the weather to a somewhat limited degree. All vampires must ingest blood to maintain their survival and physical vitality. So long as they do so regularly, they cease to age and are immune to diseases. They retain the well-known vulnerabilities common to vampires in other media interpretations, including sunlight, garlic, religious icons and weapons made of silver. Vampires can be killed by

1924-462: A new direction in human evolution, as he is born with superpowers even though his genetic profile said he was an ordinary human being. The majority of the public is unaware of what may cause superhuman powers. Other possible origins for superhuman powers include magic , genetic manipulation and/or bionic implants. Some heroes and villains have no powers at all but depend instead on hand-to-hand combat training or advanced technological equipment. In

2072-524: A perimeter accessible only by passengers and not by locals. Ports of call have often oriented their own businesses and facilities towards meeting the needs of visiting cruise ships. In one case, Icy Strait Point in Alaska, the entire destination was created explicitly and solely for cruise ship visitors. On "cruises to nowhere" or "nowhere voyages", some cruise ships make two- to three-night round trips without visiting any ports of call. Travel to and from

2220-846: A possible manifestation/ avatar of the One-Above-All . The mentioned One-Above-All is believed to be the supreme, omnipotent being, who solely created the Marvel Multiverse , and possibly acted beyond. He also brought to life the Living Tribunal , an extremely powerful cosmic entity, who serves to maintain balance within the Multiverse. The Marvel Universe is part of a Multiverse , with various universes coexisting simultaneously, usually without affecting each other directly. Furthermore, each universe has various other dimensions associated with it, and one such group

2368-629: A precursor to Marvel's series of reference material, The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe , which followed shortly on the heels of Contest of Champions . The Marvel Universe is strongly based on the real world. Earth in the Marvel Universe has all the features of the real one: same countries, same personalities (politicians, movie stars, etc.), same historical events (such as World War II), and so on; however, it also contains many other fictional elements: countries such as Wakanda and Latveria (very small nations) and organizations like

2516-508: A reputation as "party ships" for younger travelers, but have become large, modern, yet still profitable, as well as Holland America Line and Cunard Line, whose ships cultivate an image of classic elegance. In 2004, Carnival had merged Cunard's headquarters with that of Princess Cruises in Santa Clarita, California so that administrative, financial and technology services could be combined, ending Cunard's history where it had operated as

2664-717: A sacred vow not to intervene in events, though the Watcher assigned to Earth, Uatu , has violated this oath on several occasions. The Elders of the Universe are ancient aliens who have often had a great impact on many worlds for billions of years, acting alone or as a group. A power called the Power Primordial is channeled through them. Many other races exist and have formed an "Intergalactic Council" to have their say on matters that affect them all, such as interference from Earth humans in their affairs. Also abundant in

2812-688: A series of fires burned on the island. Most cruise ships sail the Caribbean or the Mediterranean. Others operate elsewhere in places like Alaska , the South Pacific, the Baltic Sea and New England . A cruise ship that is moving from one of these regions to another will commonly operate a repositioning cruise while doing so. Expedition cruise lines, which usually operate small ships, visit certain more specialized destinations such as

2960-564: A standalone company (subsidiary) regardless of parent ownership. However, Cunard did regain some independence in 2009 when its headquarters were moved to Carnival House in Southampton. The common practice in the cruise industry in listing cruise ship transfers and orders is to list the smaller operating company, not the larger holding corporation, as the recipient cruise line of the sale, transfer, or new order. In other words, Carnival Cruise Line and Holland America Line, for example, are

3108-405: A wooden stake driven through the heart, though they return to life if the stake is removed. Vampires are highly allergic to silver and can be killed with it. While they normally heal rapidly, injuries inflicted by silver weapons heal at a much slower rate if the injuries are not fatal. Vampires can also be killed by decapitation or being burned with fire, with burning them to ashes and then scattering

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3256-484: Is Patricia Disney, former wife of Walt Disney 's nephew, Roy E. Disney . Disney had cruise ship designs drawn up by February 1994. Disney Cruise Line in 1995 ordered Disney Magic and Disney Wonder from Fincantieri in Italy . The ship was built in two halves with the bow built at Fincatieri's Ancona shipyard and the stern at their Marghera shipyard. The planned maiden voyage was for March 12, 1998. In January 1997,

3404-495: Is Stark Industries, owned by Tony Stark ( Iron Man ), but there are others. Advanced technology has also been given to humans by hidden races, aliens, or time travelers like Kang the Conqueror , who is known to have influenced the robotics industry in the past. In superhumans, the energy required for their superpowers either comes from within using their own body as a source or, if the demand of energy exceeds what their body

3552-516: Is a member). The lords of the various pantheons sometimes gather in groups known as either the Council of Godheads or the Council of Skyfathers. The gods were forced to stop meddling with humanity (at least openly) a thousand years ago by the Celestials , and most people today believe them to be fictional. Other pantheons have been depicted in the Marvel Universe that is still actively worshiped in

3700-473: Is capable to deliver, comes from another source. Marvel tries to explain most superpowers and their sources "scientifically", usually through the use of fictional science-like concepts, such as: A degree of paranoid fear against mutants exists due to stories of mutants being a species or even a subspecies of humans ( Homo superior or Homo sapiens superior ) that is evolving and is meant to replace normal humans. This has caused organizations to form to deal with

3848-567: Is collectively known as a Reality. Often what is referred to in the comics as a Universe is actually a Reality . According to mythology, the Multiverse has been created by the omnipotent being One-Above-All . Even the Marvel Multiverse, however, is only a part of the Omniverse, which consists of all of fiction and reality combined, including all the works that are outside of Marvel's copyright restrictions. The action of most of

3996-472: Is decorated in the Art Deco style. The ship has 20 bright yellow lifeboats which, along with the black, red, and white colors of the ship itself, match the colors of Mickey Mouse. This change from the standard safety orange took a waiver of international maritime rules. As with other Disney cruise ships, the ship's horn blast plays a snippet of " When You Wish Upon a Star ". Disney Magic ' s "godmother"

4144-427: Is defined for the ship, often suits and ties or even tuxedos for men, and formal dresses for women. The menu is more upscale than usual. Besides the dining room, modern cruise ships often contain one or more casual buffet-style eateries, which may be open 24 hours and with menus that vary throughout the day to provide meals ranging from breakfast to late-night snacks. In recent years, cruise lines have started to include

4292-474: Is either restricted from use after the license expires or the characters redesigned or renamed to avoid copyright infringement. Within the fictional history of the Marvel Universe, the tradition of using costumed secret identities to fight or commit evil had long existed, but it came into prominence during the days of the American " Wild West " with heroes such as Carter Slade/the Phantom Rider . During

4440-541: Is known as Earth-616 or Prime Earth . Some of Timely Comics (the 1930s and '40s predecessor to Marvel Comics) characters coexisted in the same world was first established in Marvel Mystery Comics #7 (1940) where Namor was mentioned in Human Torch 's story, and vice versa. Later several superheroes (who starred in separate stories in the series up to that point) met each other in a group dubbed

4588-575: Is known by various names and appearances in other cultures and among the various pantheons, but she is the same being. As a result, she is a member of every polytheistic pantheon of 'gods' worshiped by humans. Besides mythological gods, many deities made up by Marvel writers exist as well, such as the Dark Gods, enemies of the Asgardians . The Dark Gods are a race of 'gods' that have been worshiped by extraterrestrial races. Well-known alien races like

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4736-869: Is located in the Andromeda Galaxy, the Kree Empire in the Greater Magellanic Cloud, which is a satellite of the Milky Way galaxy in which Earth, of course, is found, and the Shi´ar Empire is located somewhere between them in one of the smaller galaxies (perhaps the Triangulum Galaxy); frequently, these three empires are quoted as the main political powers "in the universe". Similarly, the Local Group seems to be

4884-652: Is one of the principal deities of Hindu religion, his defeat offended some followers of Hinduism. This battle was retconned later as having been the deity Indra , the Hindu god of thunder, who was posing as Shiva, that met defeat. To avoid offending the believers of still active religions, Marvel features such deities as characters in the background or who make very brief cameo appearances. Marvel's depiction of vampires has been heavily influenced by various interpretations of popular media, such as Bram Stoker 's Dracula . As with many other supernatural creatures, Marvel entwined

5032-730: Is present in all modern Homo sapiens . Other leftovers from the era when primitive humanoids walked on Earth still exist, such as the radiation-altered Neanderthal man known as the Missing Link , an enemy of the Hulk. The Marvel Universe also contains hundreds of intelligent alien races. Earth has interacted with many of them because a major " hyperspace warp" happens to exist in the Solar System . The three major space empires are: The three are often in direct or indirect conflict, which occasionally involves Earth humans; in particular,

5180-552: Is purely due to story conveniences (or a somewhat haphazardly shifting patchwork pattern of authors), and mainly that the fictional "continuity" has been maintained and expanded far beyond what Stan Lee and others originally planned or hoped for. Hence, the passing of time was more discernible in the very early years, such as the graduation of Spider-Man ; and what started as children or teenaged characters, such as Kitty Pryde , Franklin Richards , Valeria Richards , Power Pack , or

5328-472: Is sealed and returned to passengers when they disembark. There is often a central galley responsible for serving all major restaurants aboard the ship, though specialty restaurants may have their own separate galleys. As with any vessel, adequate provisioning is crucial, especially on a cruise ship serving several thousand meals at each seating. For example, a quasi "military operation" is required to load and unload 3,600 passengers and eight tons of food at

5476-671: Is the first crossover comic book in modern Marvel continuity (first meeting of Fantastic Four and the Hulk). Eventually, many of the leading heroes (Ant-Man, Wasp, Iron Man, Thor and the Hulk) assembled into a team known as the Avengers , which debuted in September 1963. This was not the first time that Marvel's characters had interacted with one another— Namor the Sub-Mariner and the original Human Torch had been rivals when Marvel

5624-535: Is unknown why this happens, though a warp known as the Nexus of All Realities exists in a swamp in the Florida Everglades of Earth-616. For the most part, this does not matter, as most beings are unaware that this occurs, or even that their universes were recently "born" from another. However, individuals and organizations exist that try to monitor or manipulate the various realities. These include Immortus ,

5772-551: The All-Winners Squad . Though the concept of a shared universe was not new or unique to comic books in 1961, writer/editor Stan Lee , together with several artists including Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko , created a series of titles where events in one book would have repercussions in another title and serialized stories would show characters' growth and change. Headline characters in one title would make cameos or guest appearances in other books. Fantastic Four #12

5920-514: The Bahamas , New England , and Canada . In September, she was relocated to Galveston, Texas for the remainder of the year and offered 4-night Caribbean cruises, 6, 7, and 8-night Western Caribbean cruises, and 8-night Bahamian cruises. In June 2013, Disney Magic was re-positioned to Barcelona for the summer. Disney Magic was put in for an overhaul at Navantia shipyard, Cadiz, Spain . In October 2013, Disney Cruise Line completed renovations to

6068-570: The Big Bang . 'The " Fulcrum " is a comparatively recent addition to the hierarchy, that "all" cosmic entities allegedly serve, of a level of raw power stated to far surpass the might of the Watchers and the Celestials. Unlike most other entities, it is capable of conscience, compassion, and even a sense of humor, and has stated that it wants other cosmic beings to develop such as well. He is

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6216-431: The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 saw the entire industry all but shut down. The average age of a cruise ship in 2024 is 17.5 years. The construction market for cruise ships is dominated by three European companies and one Asian company. Operators of cruise ships are known as cruise lines. Cruise ships are organized much like floating hotels, with a complete hospitality staff in addition to the usual ship's crew. Traditionally,

6364-526: The COVID-19 pandemic , Disney Magic was anchored in Dover , England on and off from May 2020 and was due to stay until at least August 2021. At that time, she sailed a series of "staycation cruises" (no port visits or excursions, subject to restrictions) exclusively in the United Kingdom. UK cruises concluded on October 4, 2021, when Disney Magic repositioned to Miami, Florida and commenced cruises to

6512-661: The Captain Britain Corps , the Time Variance Authority , the Timebreakers / Exiles , and Kang the Conqueror 's forces. It is possible to travel through time without creating a new alternative universe, instead of altering events in the future, but this seems to have devastating and very far-reaching repercussions, as depicted in Marvel 1602 (it almost destroyed the whole multiverse, including

6660-565: The Caribbean islands out of Port Canaveral. In May 2005, Disney Magic was dispatched to the West Coast as part of Disneyland 's 50th Anniversary celebrations and as a test for California expansion. The transfer cruise sold out quicker than expected. Bookings from first time Disney cruisers were up for these cruises by at least 60%. In May 2007, Disney Magic started her inaugural Mediterranean cruises out of Barcelona , Spain . At

6808-478: The French Line 's SS  France (1961), and Cunard Line 's RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 (1969) were designed to serve the dual purposes of ocean liner during the northern hemisphere summer months and cruise ship in the winter, incorporating doors and baffles that could be open or closed to divide classes or open the ship to one class, wherein all passengers received roughly the same quality berthing and most of

6956-897: The Frightful Four , the Lethal Legion , the Legion of the Unliving , the Black Order , the Annihilation Wave , and the Cabal . Most of the superhumans in Marvel's Earth owe their powers to the Celestials , cosmic entities who visited Earth millions of years ago and experimented on their prehistoric ancestors (a process they also carried out on several other planets). This resulted in the creation of two hidden races ,

7104-646: The Hulk , Namor the Sub-Mariner and the Silver Surfer , while the most recent incarnation of the team consists of street-level New York City heroes Daredevil , Jessica Jones , Luke Cage and Iron Fist . The Guardians of the Galaxy include Marvel's cosmic characters such as Adam Warlock , Star-Lord , Gamora , Drax the Destroyer , Rocket Raccoon and Groot , but the team has also introduced other heroes into

7252-839: The Inhumans (composed of Blackagar Boltagon , Medusalith Amaquelin-Boltagon , Crystalia Amaquelin-Boltagon/Crystal , Gorgon , Karnak Mandel-Azur/Karnak the Shatterer , Triton and Lockjaw ) and Alexi Shostakov/the Red Guardian . Other notable heroes from the Bronze Age and Modern Age from the early-to-mid 1970s to the early 1990s include James "Logan" Howlett/Wolverine , Ororo Munroe/Storm , Piotr "Peter" Rasputin/Colossus , Kurt Wagner/Nightcrawler , Luke Cage (also known as Power-Man), Danny Rand/Iron Fist , Misty Knight , Colleen Wing , Barbara "Bobbi" Morse/Mockingbird ,

7400-518: The Inhumans , another genetically unstable race (like the Deviants, but in their case, it is due to their use of a substance called the "Terrigen Mists") that was created by a Kree experiment long ago; the Subterraneans , a race of humanoids adapted to living below the surface, created by the Deviants (some Subterraneans were transformed into the 'Lava Men' by a demon); and Homo mermanus ,

7548-549: The Maelstrom , or the Stranger have demonstrated personality, motivations, or (except for the first one mentioned) even ambitions beyond their functions, but often maintain the perspective that morality is entirely relative, or that destroying civilizations of "lesser" beings is no eviler than if these beings destroyed an anthill. Others such as Uatu the Watcher , Eon, or the Celestials , Ashema and Tiamut are aberrations in

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7696-681: The Mickey Mouse Club and other changes were made. In 2010, Disney Magic sailed Disney Cruise Lines' inaugural Northern Europe itineraries, homeported in the port of Dover , 70 miles from London , England . She sailed to Norway , the British Isles , and the Baltic Sea during her brief three-month season. With the October 6, 2017 cruise from New York to the Bahamas, Disney Cruise Line held its first Marvel Day at Sea. During

7844-680: The New Mutants are all allowed to age at wildly shifting rates (in the second case even backward at times), whereas surrounding characters somewhat dependent on a certain age limit do not change at all. This recurrently creates inherently contradictory effects, as events are routinely described to have happened several years ago, even in cases when this would mean that some of the involved characters would have been toddlers. Different approaches also exist regarding allowing "second-generation" descendants of heroes or villains, full-grown over 18 years after an event (for example, Hulkling , other members of

7992-542: The New Warriors , David Haller/Legion , John Proudstar/Warpath-Thunderbird , Anna Marie LeBeau/Rogue and Jubilation Lee/Jubilee . Some of Marvel's more recent creations from the mid-to-late 1990s, 2000s and 2010s, such as Wade Wilson/Deadpool , Remy LeBeau/Gambit , Nathan Summers/Cable , Neena Thurman/Domino , Clarice Fong/Blink , the Thunderbolts , Yelena Belova (also known as the second Black Widow),

8140-503: The Oasis -class ships is the split, atrium structure, made possible by the hull's extraordinary width, with the 6-deck high Central Park and Boardwalk outdoor areas running down the middle of the ship and verandas on all decks. In two short decades (1988–2009), the largest class cruise ships have grown a third longer (268 to 364.75 m, 879 ft 3 in to 1,196 ft 8 in), doubled their widths (32.2 to 65.7 m, 105 ft 8 in to 215 ft 7 in), nearly tripled

8288-433: The Runaways , the modern Guardians of the Galaxy , the modern Defenders (based on the Netflix MCU version of the same name ), Laura Kinney/X-23 (a.k.a. the second Wolverine), Shuri , the Dora Milaje , Daisy Johnson (also known as Quake), Phil Coulson , Melinda May , Bucky Barnes/the Winter Soldier , Maria Hill , Miles Morales (the second Spider-Man of the Ultimate Marvel Universe), Hope van Dyne (also known as

8436-452: The Shi'ar and Skrulls also have beings they worship as 'gods', though little has been revealed about them. Many persons and beings have falsely pretended to be gods or demons during history; in particular, none of the ones claiming to be major figures from Judeo-Christian beliefs have turned out to be the real article, although several angels have appeared in recent years, as well as an apparent true rebellion and expulsion of angels from

8584-467: The South Pacific , and the Baltic Sea . Large cruise ships have been identified as one of the major causes of overtourism . Italy, a traditional focus of the Grand Tour , offered an early cruise experience on the Francesco I , flying the flag of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies . Built in 1831, the Francesco I sailed from Naples in early June 1833, preceded by an advertising campaign. Nobles, authorities, and royal princes from all over Europe boarded

8732-846: The Vision , Simon Williams/Wonder Man , Hercules , Kevin Plunder/Ka-Zar , Groot , Nick Fury , T'Challa/the Black Panther , Mar-Vell (the first Captain Marvel), Carol Danvers (also known as the first Ms. Marvel, Binary, Warbird, and the current Captain Marvel), Sam Wilson/the Falcon , Dane Whitman/the Black Knight , Norrin Radd/the Silver Surfer , Jane Foster (also known as the second Thor), Warren Worthington III/the Angel-Archangel , Hank McCoy/the Beast , Scott Summers/Cyclops , Robert "Bobby" Drake/the Iceman , Jean Grey (also known as Marvel Girl and Phoenix), Charles Xavier/Professor X , Lorna Dane/Polaris , Alex Summers/Havok , Sean Cassidy/the Banshee , Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic , Susan Storm/the Invisible Woman , Johnny Storm/the Human Torch , Ben Grimm/the Thing , Brunnhilde/the Valkyrie ,

8880-423: The Young Avengers , the Runaways , and the Secret Warriors ), whereas other books, such as Young Allies use the inherent contradiction to debunk similar claims. If a past storyline wherein a direct depiction of a then-current president or similar is referred to in a later era, it tends to become updated accordingly, sometimes with an "in-joke" acknowledgment. A more recent explanation was given by Galactus to

9028-425: The afterlife ). Also, time itself passes much differently within the confines of the Marvel Universe than it does in the real world. Despite various characters having appeared within company publications for decades, few, if any, have aged to any appreciable degree. For example, the patriotic hero Captain America was created in 1941 but stopped appearing in titles soon after the end of World War II . The character

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9176-423: The "megaships" of Carnival and Royal Caribbean—designed such that virtually all of their suites are balconies. Several specialty lines offer "expedition cruising" or only operate small ships, visiting certain destinations such as the Arctic and Antarctica, or the Galápagos Islands . John W. Brown , which formerly operated as part of the United States Merchant Marine during World War II before being converted to

9324-488: The 1960s, intercontinental travelers switched from ships to planes, sending the ocean liner trade into a terminal decline. Certain characteristics of older ocean liners made them unsuitable for cruising duties, such as high fuel consumption, deep draught preventing them from entering shallow ports, and cabins (often windowless) designed to maximize passenger numbers rather than comfort. In the late 1950s and 1960s, ships such as Holland America Line 's SS  Rotterdam (1959),

9472-432: The 1990s led to many cruise lines being bought by much larger holding companies and continue to operate as "brands" or subsidiaries of the holding company. Brands continue to be maintained partly because of the expectation of repeat customer loyalty, and also to offer different levels of quality and service. For instance, Carnival Corporation & plc owns both Carnival Cruise Line , whose former image were vessels that had

9620-457: The 20th century, the tradition was reinvigorated by Steve Rogers/Captain America and the Invaders in the 1940s, who fought for the Allies of World War II . Unlike the DC Universe , few of Marvel's Golden Age characters have risen to prominence in modern publications; Captain America is one exception, and to a lesser extent, his contemporary, Namor the Sub-Mariner , primarily because both of these characters were reintroduced to readers and

9768-404: The Arctic and Antarctica, or the Galápagos Islands . Marvel Universe The Marvel Universe is further depicted as existing within a " multiverse " consisting of thousands of separate universes, all of which are the creations of Marvel Comics and all of which are, in a sense, "Marvel universes". In this context, "Marvel Universe" is taken to refer to the mainstream Marvel continuity , which

9916-550: The Avengers have included Marvel's major heroes as members at one time or another. The X-Men are a team of mutants led by Professor X and include many of Marvel's most popular characters, such as Wolverine and others. The Fantastic Four are viewed as "Marvel's First Family" of superheroes, usually consisting of Mister Fantastic , the Invisible Woman , the Human Torch and the Thing , as well as siblings Franklin and Valeria Richards . The Defenders were an ad hoc team usually brought together by Doctor Strange which has included

10064-439: The Bahamas. Then, in the summer of 2022, she returned to Europe for European cruises before returning to the US for the fall. In May 2023, Disney Magic completed a three-week dry dock maintenance period in the Bahamas, followed by trials and operations from San Juan, Puerto Rico , serving the Southern Caribbean and ABC itineraries. Entertainment on Disney Magic includes live Broadway-style shows with many Disney characters at

10212-419: The Barbarian Nyarlathotep and Set. Some deities or demonic beings that are original characters of Marvel have been heavily influenced by these mythologies, such as Shuma-Gorath . Most of the current generation of gods have been revealed to be the descendants of the Elder Goddess Gaea . The two most featured pantheons are the Asgardians (of whom Thor is a member) and the Olympians (of whom Hercules

10360-426: The Barbarian , Red Sonja , Kull the Conqueror , and Solomon Kane also have real-life existences in the Marvel Universe. The Hyborian Era of Conan and Kull is considered part of Earth-616 pre-recorded history. However, they rarely encounter modern Marvel superhero characters. This is most likely possible due to the uncertain legal status of Howard's works before 2006 when they became public domain. As of 2019, Conan

10508-442: The Barbarian, as well as Kull the Conqueror and Solomon Kane, have been firmly integrated, thanks to Marvel regaining the publishing rights to the characters. Other licensed works that have been incorporated into the Marvel Universe include Godzilla , the Transformers , the film 2001: A Space Odyssey (in the character of Machine Man ), Rom the Spaceknight , the Micronauts , and the Shogun Warriors . In most cases, such material

10656-617: The DC Universe. This is one method of explaining the various crossover stories co-published by the two companies. Pop culture characters such as Sherlock Holmes , Dracula and the Frankenstein Monster exist in the Marvel Universe. This is usually justified as a second-hand account of events as told to credited authors Sir Arthur Conan Doyle , Bram Stoker and Mary Shelley , although the general public continues to believe them to be fictional. Robert E. Howard 's Conan

10804-720: The Destroyer , Peter Quill/Star-Lord , Gamora , Rocket Raccoon , Frank Castle/the Punisher , Marc Spector/the Moon Knight , the Eternals (composed of Ikaris , Thena , Ajak , Makkari , Kingo , Phastos , Gilgamesh and Sprite ), War Machine , Nova (Richard Rider), Adam Warlock , Power Pack , Betsy Braddock , Scott Lang (the second Ant-Man), Felicia Hardy/the Black Cat , Silver Sable , Katherine "Kitty" Pryde (also known as Shadowcat, Ariel, Sprite, Star-Lord and

10952-911: The Fixer) and Jolt , while the current incarnation of the team is made up of reformed supervillains/anti-heroes working for the government: Deadpool , the Punisher , the Red Hulk , the Winter Soldier and the Ghost . Although teams of supervillains are few and far between, notable examples include the Masters of Evil , the Emissaries of Evil , the Brotherhood of Mutants , the Sinister Six ,

11100-678: The Kree and Skrulls are ancient enemies, and the Kree-Skrull War has involved humans on several occasions. The Skrulls have also been known to be in a long and consistent war against the Majesdanians, who live on a milky planet named Majesdane. The war between the two had started after two Majesdanians, Frank and Leslie Dean of the Pride had been kicked out for criminal activities; the two traveled to Earth, where Frank and Leslie stopped

11248-490: The Marvel Comics titles takes place in a continuity known as Earth-616 . This continuity exists in a multiverse alongside trillions of alternative continuities. Alternative continuities in the Marvel Multiverse are generally defined in terms of their differences from Earth-616. Continuities besides Earth-616 include the following (for a complete listing see Multiverse (Marvel Comics) ): One cannot normally alter

11396-452: The Marvel Universe are legendary creatures such as gods, demons and vampires . The 'gods' of most polytheistic pantheons are powerful, immortal human-like races residing in other dimensions who visited Earth in ancient times, and became the basis of many legends. However, all of these 'gods' share a common ancestry and connection to Earth due to Gaea, the primeval Elder Goddess that infused her life essence into all living things on Earth. Gaea

11544-449: The Marvel Universe compared to the real world, owing to the serial nature of storytelling, with the stories of certain issues picking up mere seconds after the conclusion of the previous one, while a whole month has passed by in "real-time". Marvel's major heroes were created in the 1960s, but the amount of time that has passed between then and now within the universe itself has (after a prolonged period of being identified as about 10 years in

11692-719: The Marvel Universe during the 1960s. Marvel's most prominent heroes were created during the Silver Age of Comic Books in the 1960s to early 1970s, including Peter Parker/Spider-Man , Tony Stark/Iron Man , Thor , Bruce Banner/the Hulk , Stephen Strange/Doctor Strange , Matt Murdock/Daredevil , Ant-Man and the Wasp (Hank Pym and Janet van Dyne), Natasha Romanoff/the Black Widow , Clint Barton/Hawkeye , Pietro Maxmioff/Quicksilver , Wanda Maximoff/the Scarlet Witch ,

11840-599: The Marvel Universe is home to a large number of superheroes and supervillains , who have gained their powers by any of these means. The general public is so familiar with such concepts that Empire State University has a scholarship for "aliens, dimensional travelers, clones, independent machine intelligences and other students outside the norm", businesses and residences have superhero property insurance and bookmakers take bets on their battles' outcomes, and New York air traffic controllers handle starships landing at local airports . Comparatively, little time passes in

11988-414: The Marvel Universe's history; if a time-traveler should cause an alteration to the established flow of events at some point in the past, a divergent universe will simply "branch out" from the existing timeline, and the time-traveler will still return to his or her unaltered original universe. Those realities can also spawn realities of their own. There exist hundreds, probably thousands of such realities. It

12136-569: The Marvel Universe, technology is considerably more advanced than in the real world; this is due to unique individuals of genius-level intelligence, such as Reed Richards ( Mister Fantastic ) of the Fantastic Four. However, most of the advanced devices (such as powered armor and death rays ) are too expensive for the common citizen, and are usually in the hands of government organizations like S.H.I.E.L.D., or powerful criminal organizations like A.I.M. One major company producing these devices

12284-531: The Marvel Universe. (A universe incorporating all these types of fantastic elements is fairly rare; another example is the DC Universe .) Monsters also play a more prominent role with east Asian origins of magical incantation, outlandish sorcery and manifesting principle in the Marvel Universe. One such case is Fin Fang Foom arising from the ashes of tantric magic. Thanks to these extra elements, Earth in

12432-648: The Pride . The Midnight Sons consist of supernatural heroes such as Blade , Ghost Rider , Moon Knight , Elsa Bloodstone , Hellstrom , the Werewolf and the Man-Thing . The Thunderbolts' original incarnation were supervillains disguised as superheroes consisting of Citizen V (a.k.a. Helmut Zemo ), MACH-IV (a.k.a. the Beetle), Songbird (a.k.a. Screaming Mimi), Moonstone (a.k.a. Meteorite), Techno/the Ogre (a.k.a.

12580-527: The Red Queen and the second Wasp), Cassandra Lang (also known as Stature, Stinger, Ant-Girl and Giant-Girl), the Stepford Cuckoos , Amadeus Cho (also known as the second Hulk), Kamala Khan (also known as the second Ms. Marvel), Kate Bishop (also known as the third Hawkeye), Lunaella Lafayette/Moon Girl , America Chavez (also known as the second Miss America), Robbie Reyes (also known as

12728-661: The Red Queen), Emma Frost (also known as the White Queen), Jennifer Walters/the She-Hulk , Tyrone Johnson/Cloak and Tandy Bowen/Dagger , Brian Braddock/Captain Britain , Doreen Green/Squirrel Girl , Elektra Natchios , the New Mutants (composed of Illyana Rasputin/Magik , Xi'an Coy Minh/Karma , Danielle Moonstar/Mirage , Sam Guthrie/Cannonball , Rahne Sinclair/Wolfsbane , Doug Ramsey/Cypher , Warlock and others),

12876-561: The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) contracted three Carnival Cruise Lines vessels ( Carnival Fantasy , the former Carnival Holiday , and the Carnival Sensation ) to house Hurricane Katrina evacuees. In 2017, cruise ships were used to help transport residents from some Caribbean islands destroyed by Hurricane Irma , as well as Puerto Rico residents displaced by Hurricane Maria . The cruise ships have also been used for evacuations. In 2010, in response to

13024-641: The Ultimates, namely that some important events – for instance, the creation of the Fantastic Four or the Avengers – have a 'gravity' all their own and warp time around them, causing the timeline to subtly change to accommodate this. While the Marvel Universe is presumably as large as the non-fictional universe comic book readers inhabit, for all intents and purposes the Local Group is the universe; practically all action takes place in it. The Skrull Empire

13172-526: The Vishanti; or amoral and malevolent entities who are not truly demonic, such as Dormammu and the Octessence, or ones heavily drawing upon the mythologies of H. P. Lovecraft and Robert E. Howard . Some supernatural beings, entities and human characters created by Lovecraft and Howard, who were friends and influenced each other's work, have been adapted by Marvel and include Abdul Alhazred , Conan

13320-618: The Walt Disney Theater, the Buena Vista movie theater, which features both Disney films and first-run movies, several night clubs and lounges, several pools, and many Disney-themed parties and celebrations, including a Sail-Away Celebration, Pirate Night, and sometimes a Marvel or Star Wars Day at Sea. On the ship's forward funnel, there is a 24-by-14 foot LED screen known as the Funnel Vision , due to its location on

13468-854: The White Tiger (Hector Ayala), Shang-Chi , Greer Grant Nelson/Tigra , Jessica Drew (also known as Spider-Woman), the Ghost Rider (Johnny Blaze), Daimon Hellstrom , Satana Hellstrom , Theodore "Ted" Sallis/the Man-Thing , Eric Brooks/Blade the Vampire-Slayer , Michael Morbius/Morbius the Living Vampire , Howard the Duck , Monica Rambeau (also known as Photon, Pulsar, Spectrum and the second Captain Marvel), Moondragon , Drax

13616-481: The actual adventures of the superheroes (except for details not known to the public, like their secret identities); many of these are licensed with the permission of the heroes themselves, who customarily donate their share of profits to charity. Additionally, the DC Comics Universe is also said to exist in the Marvel Universe as one of the many alternative universes. The reverse may also be said concerning

13764-486: The addition of a casino and other entertainment amenities, the crossing was advertised as a vacation in itself. The 1977–1986 television series The Love Boat helped to popularize the concept as a romantic opportunity for couples. Industry experts credit the series with increasing interest in the cruise industry, especially for those that weren't newlyweds or senior citizens, and for the resulting demand to spur investment in new ships instead of conversions. The influence

13912-412: The ashes being the most effective means of ensuring their demise (scattering the ashes is done so that the vampire cannot be mystically resurrected). The cosmic entities are beings of unbelievably great levels of power (the weakest of whom can destroy entire planets) who exist to perform duties that maintain the existence of the universe. Most do not care at all about "lesser beings" such as humans, and as

14060-869: The base fare on Regent Seven Seas ships includes most alcoholic beverages on board ship and most shore excursions in ports of call, as well as all gratuities that would normally be paid to hotel staff on the ship. The fare may also include a one-night hotel stay before boarding, and the air fare to and from the cruise's origin and destination ports. Many cruise lines have loyalty programs . Using these and by booking inexpensive tickets, some people have found it cheaper to live continuously on cruise ships instead of on land. Cruise ships and former liners sometimes find use in applications other than those for which they were built. Due to slower speed and reduced seaworthiness, as well as being largely introduced after several major wars, cruise ships have also been used as troop transport vessels. By contrast, ocean liners were often seen as

14208-659: The beginning and end of each cruise, for the Royal Princess . Modern cruise ships typically have aboard some or all of the following facilities: Some ships have bowling alleys, ice skating rinks, rock climbing walls, sky-diving simulators, miniature golf courses, video arcades, ziplines, surfing simulators, water slides, basketball courts, tennis courts, chain restaurants, ropes obstacle courses, and even roller coasters. Crew are usually hired on three to eleven month contracts which may then be renewed as mutually agreed, depending on service ratings from passengers as well as

14356-448: The common citizens in various ways. Over time, a few Marvel Comics writers lobbied Marvel editors to incorporate the idea of a Multiverse resembling DC's parallel worlds ; this plot device allows one to create several fictional universes which normally do not overlap. What happens on Earth in the main Marvel Universe would normally not affect what happens on a parallel Earth in another Marvel-created universe. However, writers would have

14504-428: The company's group insurance plan. The direct salary is low by North American standards, though restaurant staff have considerable earning potential from passenger tips. Crew members do not have any expenses while on board, because food and accommodation, medical care, and transportation for most employees, are included. Bard College at Simon's Rock professor Francisca Oyogoa states that "Crewing agencies often exploit

14652-433: The creative ability to write stories in which people from one such universe would visit this alternative universe. In 1982, Marvel published the miniseries Contest of Champions , in which all of the major heroes in existence at the time were gathered together to deal with one threat. This was Marvel's first miniseries. Each issue contained biographical information on many major costumed characters; these biographies were

14800-706: The cruise lines from this common industry practice point of view; whereas Carnival Corporation & plc and Royal Caribbean Group , for example, can be considered holding corporations of cruise lines. This industry practice of using the smaller operating company, not the larger holding corporation, is also followed in the list of cruise lines and in member-based reviews of cruise lines. Some cruise lines have specialties; for example, Saga Cruises only allows passengers over 50 years old aboard their ships, and Star Clippers and formerly Windjammer Barefoot Cruises and Windstar Cruises only operate tall ships . Regent Seven Seas Cruises operates medium-sized vessels—smaller than

14948-473: The cruise ship business has been volatile. The ships are large capital investments with high operating costs. A persistent decrease in bookings can put a company in financial jeopardy. Cruise lines have sold, renovated, or renamed their ships to keep up with travel trends. Cruise lines operate their ships almost constantly. If the maintenance is unscheduled, it can result, potentially, in thousands of dissatisfied customers. A wave of failures and consolidations in

15096-472: The cruise ship, which sailed in just over three months to Taormina , Catania , Syracuse , Malta , Corfu , Patras , Delphi , Zante , Athens , Smyrna and Constantinople , providing passengers with excursions and guided tours. P&O first introduced passenger-cruising services in 1844, advertising sea tours to destinations such as Gibraltar , Malta and Athens, sailing from Southampton . The forerunner of modern cruise holidays , these voyages were

15244-405: The cyclical nature of the cruise line operator. Most staff work 77-hour work weeks for 10 months continuously followed by two months of vacation. There are no paid vacations or pensions for service, non-management crew, depending on the level of the position and the type of the contract. Non-service and management crew members get paid vacation, medical, retirement options, and can participate in

15392-465: The desperation of potential employees." Living arrangements vary by cruise line, but mostly by shipboard position. In general two employees share a cabin with a shower, commode and a desk with a television set, while senior officers are assigned single cabins. There is a set of facilities for the crew separate from that for passengers, such as mess rooms and bars, recreation rooms, prayer rooms/mosques, and fitness center, with some larger ships even having

15540-430: The end of the summer, she returned to her home port of Port Canaveral. In the summer of 2008, Disney Magic was moved to Los Angeles once again. The ship returned to Barcelona in 2010 for another summer of Mediterranean cruises, as well as several northern European cruises before again returning to Port Canaveral in September. In May 2012, Disney Magic was relocated to New York City , where she sailed 8-night cruises to

15688-516: The espionage agency S.H.I.E.L.D. and its enemies, HYDRA and A.I.M. In 2009 Marvel officially described its world's geography in a two-part miniseries, the Marvel Atlas . Most importantly, the Marvel Universe also incorporates examples of almost all major science fiction and fantasy concepts, with writers adding more continuously. Aliens, gods, magic, cosmic powers and extremely advanced human-developed technology all exist prominently in

15836-422: The first "mega-cruise ship". The main exception was Cunard's Queen Elizabeth 2 : although being put on more cruises, she maintained the regular transatlantic crossing tradition throughout the year, but with a stronger focus on leisure passengers, catering to a niche market of those who appreciated the several days at sea. International celebrities were hired to perform acts on board, along with cabarets , and with

15984-424: The first of their kind. P&O Cruises is the world's oldest cruise line . The company later introduced round trips to destinations such as Alexandria and Constantinople. It underwent a period of rapid expansion in the latter half of the 19th century, commissioning larger and more luxurious ships to serve the steadily expanding market. Notable ships of the era include SS  Ravenna built in 1880, which became

16132-524: The first ship built with a total steel superstructure, and SS  Valetta built in 1889. The cruise of Augusta Victoria in the Mediterranean and the Near East from 22 January to 22 March 1891, with 241 passengers including Albert Ballin and wife themselves, is often stated to have been the first ever cruise. Christian Wilhelm Allers published an illustrated account of it as Backschisch . The first vessel built exclusively for luxury cruising

16280-471: The first ticket for Magic 's first trip was raffled off on Lifetime channel , while ticket sales would begin in September 1997. Delays on the construction of MS Rotterdam kept additional workers from the Magic . Thus, by November 1997, the cruise line initially rescheduled the ship's initial voyage to April 30, 1998. However, further delays from suppliers and poor weather conditions at Fincantieri pushed back

16428-852: The fourth Ghost Rider), Riri Williams/Ironheart and Spider-Gwen ( Gwen Stacy of Earth-65) have become popular characters in their own right. Prominent teams of superheroes include the Avengers , the X-Men , the Fantastic Four , the Defenders , the Inhumans , S.H.I.E.L.D. , the Howling Commandos , the Guardians of the Galaxy , the Runaways , the Midnight Sons and the Thunderbolts . All these groups have varying lineups;

16576-623: The godlike Eternals and the genetically unstable Deviants , in addition to giving some humans an "x-factor" in their genes, which sometimes activates naturally, resulting in sometimes superpowered, sometimes disfigured individuals called mutants . Others require other factors (such as radiation ) for their powers to come forth. Depending on the genetic profile, individuals who are exposed to different chemicals or radiation will often suffer death or injury, while in others it will cause superhuman abilities to manifest. Except for psionic abilities, these powers are usually random; rarely do two people have

16724-605: The late-19th century, Albert Ballin, director of the Hamburg-America Line, was the first to send his transatlantic ships out on long southern cruises during the worst of the North Atlantic winter seasons. Other companies followed suit. Some of them built specialized ships designed for easy transformation between summer crossings and winter cruising. In 1897 three luxury liners, all European-owned, offered transportation between Europe and North America. In 1906

16872-700: The maiden voyage even further by a few months. The bow was towed to the Marghera shipyard where the halves were joined. With livery and design evocative of the RMS Queen Mary , Disney Magic set sail on her maiden voyage on July 30, 1998, out of her home port, Port Canaveral in Florida . The ship's initial cruises were to Nassau, Bahamas with a stop at Disney Cruise Line 's Castaway Cay over three to four nights. Originally, from 2000, Disney Magic had been undertaking weekly cruises to Castaway Cay and

17020-744: The main dining room (or main restaurant) and buffet, access to shows, and use of pool and gym facilities, while there is a daily gratuity charge to cover housekeeping and waiter service. However, there are extra charges for alcohol and soft drinks, official cruise photos, Internet and wi-fi access, and specialty restaurants. Cruise lines earn significantly from selling onshore excursions offered by local contractors; keeping 50% or more of what passengers spend for these tours. In addition, cruise ships earn significant commissions on sales from onshore stores that are promoted on board as "preferred" (as much as 40% of gross sales). Facilitating this practice are modern cruise terminals with establishments of duty-free shops inside

17168-511: The mass cruising market. They also were the first series of cruise ships to include a multi-story lobby with a glass elevator and had a single deck devoted entirely to cabins with private balconies, instead of oceanview cabins. Other cruise lines soon launched ships with similar attributes, such as the Fantasy class , leading up to the Panamax -type Vista class , designed such that two-thirds of

17316-427: The mid-to-late 1990s) most recently been identified as 13 years. Consequently, the settings of some events which were contemporary when written have to be updated every few years to "make sense" in this floating timeline . Thus, the events of previous stories are considered to have happened within a certain number of years before the publishing date of the current issue. For example, Spider-Man 's high school graduation

17464-605: The number had increased to seven. The British Inman Line owned City of Paris , the Cunard Line had Campania and Lucania . The White Star Line owned Majestic and Teutonic . La Lorraine and La Savoie sailed for the French Compagnie Générale Transatlantique . Modern cruise ships tend to have less hull strength, speed, and agility compared to ocean liners. With the advent of large passenger jet aircraft in

17612-401: The oceanview staterooms have balconies. As the veranda suites were particularly lucrative for cruise lines, something which was lacking in older ocean liners, recent cruise ships have been designed to maximize such amenities and have been described as "balcony-laden floating condominiums". Until 1975–1980, cruises offered shuffleboard , deck chairs, "drinks with umbrellas and little else for

17760-912: The origin of vampires with aspects of the mythologies created by Lovecraft and Howard. They were created by magical rites performed by priests of Atlantis before the Great Cataclysm that destroyed much of the world, with Varnae becoming the first vampire. Marvel would depict vampires as frequent antagonists during the Hyborian Age to Howard characters such as Kull and Conan. In recent years, Marvel's depiction of vampires has altered greatly by creating various subspecies of vampires that exist in clans that greatly differ in appearance and belief. All vampires are depicted with varying degrees of superhuman strength, speed, stamina, agility, reflexes and accelerated healing. Many are capable of transforming into animals such as bats or wolves; some can transform into

17908-909: The other Disney cruise ships). Additionally, the upscale, adults-only restaurant Palo, situated at the rear of the ship, requires a separate reservation and serves high-end Italian cuisine. The ship features a nursery, Oceaneer Club, Oceaneer Lab, Edge, and Vibe for kids entertainment. Cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing . Unlike ocean liners , which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on tours known as "shore excursions". Modern cruise ships tend to have less hull strength, speed, and agility compared to ocean liners. However, they have added amenities to cater to water tourists , with recent vessels being described as "balcony-laden floating condominiums". As of November 2022 there were 302 cruise ships operating worldwide, with

18056-539: The port of departure is usually the passengers' responsibility, although purchasing a transfer pass from the cruise line for the trip between the airport and cruise terminal will guarantee that the ship will not leave until the passenger is aboard. Similarly, if the passenger books a shore excursion with the cruise line and the tour runs late, the ship is obliged to remain until the passenger returns. Luxury cruise lines such as Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Crystal Cruises market their fares as "all-inclusive". For example,

18204-574: The pride of their country and used to rival liners of other nations, and have been requisitioned during both World Wars and the Falklands War to transport soldiers and serve as hospital ships . During the 1992 Summer Olympics , eleven cruise ships docked at the Port of Barcelona for an average of 18 days, served as floating hotels to help accommodate the large influx of visitors to the Games. They were available to sponsors and hosted 11,000 guests

18352-465: The problem, who can be divided into three camps: those who seek peaceful coexistence between mutants and normal humans (the X-Men and their affiliated groups), those who seek to control or eliminate humans to give mutants safety or dominance ( Magneto and his followers, as well as other mutants such as Apocalypse ), and those who seek to regulate or eliminate mutants in favor of humans. The latter often use

18500-513: The real world, including those worshiped by the Aboriginal inhabitants of Australia, the gods of Hinduism , the Shinto gods and the gods of Zoroastrianism . These deities are rarely depicted, however. One such appearance generated a good deal of controversy as the depiction involved a fight between Marvel's incarnation of Thor and the Hindu god Shiva , a battle which Shiva lost. As Shiva

18648-609: The rear of one of the ship's funnels, where guests can watch various movies and shows either from the deck or from inside Goofy's Pool. Shows from the Walt Disney Theatre may include: All Aboard , Let The Magic Begin , Twice Charmed: A Twist on the Cinderella Story , Tangled the Musical , Disney Dreams: An Enchanted Classic , and A Final Farewell Show . Former shows included Villains Tonight! , which

18796-573: The retirement of her running mate Queen Elizabeth 2 in November 2008, Queen Mary 2 is the only liner operating on scheduled transatlantic service, though she also sees significant service on cruise routes. Queen Mary 2 was for a time the largest passenger ship before being surpassed by Royal Caribbean International 's Freedom -class vessels in 2006. The Freedom -class ships were in turn overtaken by RCI's own Oasis -class vessels which entered service in 2009 and 2010. A distinctive feature of

18944-552: The robots known as the Sentinels as weapons. Certain species are regarded as subhuman , like the Morlocks , who lurk beneath New York City and have been discriminated against by the outside world because of their mutant deformities. The Morlocks have recently joined the terrorist organization Gene Nation. In addition to mutants, Eternals, and Deviants, several other intelligent races have existed secretly on Earth. These include

19092-563: The roster such as Kitty Pryde , the Silver Surfer, the Thing and Nova . The Inhumans are a royal family consisting of Black Bolt , Medusa , Crystal , Gorgon , Triton , Karnak and Lockjaw , who rule the city of Attilan. The Runaways are a group of teenagers and a dinosaur consisting of Alex Wilder , Nico Minoru , Karolina Dean , Chase Stein , Molly Hayes , Gert Yorkes and Old Lace who rebel against their evil parents known as

19240-591: The same facilities. (Passengers in cabins in certain grades on the Queen Elizabeth 2 had access only to certain dining rooms). Ocean liner services almost ceased in the 1970s and 1980s. The Rotterdam was put on permanent cruise service in 1968, while the France (at the time the largest passenger vessel in the world) was mothballed in 1974, sold to Norwegian Cruise Line in 1979, and after major renovations relaunched as SS  Norway in 1980, thus becoming

19388-409: The same set of powers. It is not clear why the Celestials did this, although it is known that they continue to observe humanity's evolution. A Marvel series titled Earth X explored one possible reason for this: that superhumans are meant to protect a Celestial embryo that grows inside Earth against any planetary threats and have done so for eons. An X-Men villain that is known as Vargas claims to be

19536-460: The sense of sympathizing with, and occasionally coming to the defense of, humanity. The Phoenix Force first received personification in Jean Grey . The Phoenix Force is composed of the psionic energy from all living beings' past, present, and future, and is an embodiment of rebirth and destructive transformation through "burning away what doesn't work", and helped to restart the universe before

19684-560: The ship's events (such as shows and performances) for the late diners, but this problem is usually fixed by having a shorter version of the event take place before late dinner. Cunard Line ships maintain the class tradition of ocean liners and have separate dining rooms for different types of suites, while Celebrity Cruises and Princess Cruises have a standard dining room and "upgrade" specialty restaurants that require pre-booking and cover charges. Many cruises schedule one or more "formal dining" nights. Guests dress "formally", however, that

19832-534: The ship, including updates to the ship's cabins, lounges, restaurants and spa and introduced new features including; "Marvel's Avengers Academy", a play area based on Marvel 's Avengers characters , the AquaDunk and the AquaLab, consisting of a pool and waterslide. The short-lived Carioca's restaurant replaced Parrot Cay, which would later be replaced with Rapunzel 's Royal Table in 2018. Club Disney Junior replaced

19980-498: The ships' restaurants organize two dinner services per day, early dining and late dining, and passengers are allocated a set dining time for the entire cruise; a recent trend is to allow diners to dine whenever they want. Besides the dining room, modern cruise ships often contain one or more casual buffet-style eateries. Most cruise ships sail the Caribbean or the Mediterranean . Others operate elsewhere in places like Alaska ,

20128-401: The ships' restaurants organize two dinner services per day, early dining and late dining, and passengers are allocated a set dining time for the entire cruise; a recent trend is to allow diners to dine whenever they want. Having two dinner times allows the ship to have enough time and space to accommodate all of its guests. Having two different dinner services can cause some conflicts with some of

20276-476: The shutdown of UK airspace due to the eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajökull volcano, the newly completed Celebrity Eclipse was used to rescue 2,000 British tourists stranded in Spain as an act of goodwill by the owners. The ship departed from Southampton for Bilbao on 21 April, and returned on 23 April. A cruise ship was kept on standby in case inhabitants of Kangaroo Island required evacuation in 2020 after

20424-419: The total number of cabins on all of the world's cruise ships amount to less than 2% of the world's hotel rooms. Cruise ships are organized much like floating hotels, with a complete hospitality staff in addition to the usual ship's crew. It is not uncommon for the most luxurious ships to have more crew and staff than passengers. Dining on almost all cruise ships is included in the cruise price. Traditionally,

20572-582: The total passenger count (2,744 to 7,600), and more than tripled in volume (73,000 to 248,000 GT). Also, the "megaships" went from a single deck with verandas to all decks with verandas. As of November 2022 there were 302 cruise ships operating worldwide, with a combined capacity of 664,602 passengers. Cruising has become a major part of the tourism industry, with an estimated market of $ 29.4 billion per year, and over 19 million passengers carried worldwide annually as of 2011 . The industry's rapid growth saw nine or more newly built ships catering to

20720-451: The transportation business, and partly in the leisure entertainment business, a duality that carries down into the ships themselves, which have both a crew headed by the ship's captain, and a hospitality staff headed by the equivalent of a hotel manager . Among cruise lines, some are direct descendants of the traditional passenger shipping lines (such as Cunard), while others were founded from the 1960s specifically for cruising. Historically,

20868-509: The war against Earth in exchange for giving the Skrulls the location of Majesdane, which was hidden behind the corona of a white dwarf . The war had gone on for 16 years minimum; it ended abruptly after the Skrulls shot a barrage of missiles at Majesdane, who retaliated. Another prominent alien race is the Watchers , immortal and wise beings who watch over the Marvel Universe and have taken

21016-677: Was Prinzessin Victoria Luise of the German Empire, designed by Albert Ballin, general manager of the Hamburg-America Line . The ship was completed in 1900. The practice of luxury cruising made steady inroads into the more established market for transatlantic crossings . In the competition for passengers, ocean liners – Titanic being the most famous example – added luxuries such as fine dining , luxury services , and staterooms with finer appointments. In

21164-436: Was Timely Comics (Marvel Vault), under editor Martin Goodman — but it was the first time that the comic book publisher's characters seemed to share a world. The Marvel Universe was also notable for setting its central titles in New York City ; by contrast, many DC heroes live in fictional cities. Care was taken to portray the city and the world as realistically as possible, with the presence of superhumans affecting

21312-561: Was changed in a 2004 storyline to refer to the War on Terror in Afghanistan , whereas the original Iron Man stories had referred to the Vietnam War in Vietnam ; similarly, The Punisher 's backstory has also been changed as well. Marvel Comics itself exists as a company within the Marvel Universe, and versions of people such as Stan Lee and Jack Kirby have appeared in some of the stories, whereas characters like Steve Rogers, ( Captain America 's alter ego ), have worked for Marvel. The Marvel of this reality publishes comics that adapt

21460-439: Was particularly notable for Princess Cruises , a line that partnered with the series and received a great deal of attention as a result. Contemporary cruise ships built in the late 1980s and later, such as the Sovereign class which broke the size record held for decades by Norway , showed characteristics of size once reserved for ocean liners. The Sovereign -class ships were the first "megaships" to be built specifically for

21608-407: Was published in Amazing Spider-Man #28 (September 1965), his college graduation in Amazing Spider-Man #185 (October 1978), and his high school reunion in Marvel Knights Spider-Man #7 (December 2004). Because of the floating timeline, where stories refer to real-life historic events, these references are later ignored or rewritten to suit current sensibilities; for instance, the origin of Iron Man

21756-414: Was replaced by Tangled . Disney Cruise line is known for pioneering the rotational dining setup, in which guests and their wait staff rotate through three differently themed restaurants throughout their cruise. The Disney Magic ' s restaurants include Lumiere's (serving primarily French Cuisine), Rapunzel's Royal Table (serving German-inspired food), and Animator's Palate (which is present on three of

21904-499: Was revived more than 20 years later, explained as having been frozen in a block of ice though believed to be dead, to lead Marvel's latest team of superheroes the Avengers . This first Avengers team featured several characters that would go on to be some of the company's most famous and most popular. Although the characters would be portrayed in hundreds and even thousands of adventures over the decades, they have been portrayed as having aged little or not at all. Naturally, this tendency

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