Hypertime is a fictional concept in DC Comics which first appeared in the 1999 The Kingdom limited series. It is a variation of the Multiverse concept that existed in DC Comics before 1985's Crisis on Infinite Earths limited series and was created by Mark Waid and Grant Morrison .
102-650: Hypertime, described in The Kingdom #2 as "the vast interconnected web of parallel time-lines which comprise all reality", was an attempt by Waid to resolve the various tangled continuity issues that were supposed to have been solved by Crisis on Infinite Earths . Keith Dallas and Jason Sacks wrote: "Through Hypertime, Waid sought to resolve the contradictions in DC's continuity once and for all. Indeed, Hypertime allows for contradictions because anything that didn't make sense can be attributed to overlapping timelines". Hypertime
204-592: A "DCU logo on them" in addition to corner boxes with icons of the characters to help identify the family of titles; titles outside the DCU, such as Injustice: Gods Among Us and DC Bombshells would simply have the DC logo on them. DiDio also added that the Young Animal imprint would continue as a separate line of titles. In 2021, DC announced a line-wide relaunch of ongoing monthly superhero comic book titles. A number of miniseries and one-shots were also announced. It
306-675: A few examples. These 'beings' are most often created by individuals who possess vast intellects, like scientists Professor T.O. Morrow (maker of the Red Tornado), Dr. Will Magnus (who constructed the Metal Men) and Professor Ivo (who fabricated Amazo and other advanced androids using a form of Nano-technology developed by Lexcorp). Brainiac also emulates this technology as well as technology from other worlds. Similarly, some characters use technology to enhance their armor or modify cybernetic functions, for example Steel , Cyborg and
408-484: A friend, Thawne becomes the Reverse-Flash, vowing to making Barry's life a living hell until his nemesis learns to "make time" for him. Leading up to the 2017 The Button crossover, Thawne returns with his Pre- New 52 memories restored after a mysterious wave of energy strikes his alternate self , and he recalls being killed by Thomas Wayne during Flashpoint . Seeking revenge, Thawne attacks Bruce Wayne in
510-470: A good story and gets fans excited". When Superboy-Prime fractures reality from the pocket universe he is residing in, images of the world of Kingdom Come including Gog from The Kingdom limited series appears while doing so, showing that Superboy-Prime's actions created Hypertime. Mister Mind , disguised as Skeets , refers to Waverider as "the seer of Hypertime". An older Booster Gold , while explaining his duties to his son Rip Hunter , mentions
612-553: A kind of Valhalla for deceased speedsters. The Flash: Rebirth reveals that Barry Allen is a living generator of the Speed Force ever since the accident that transformed him into the Flash. It is possible to travel in time in this universe by several means, including moving faster than the speed of light. The Legion of Super-Heroes from 1,000 years into the future in particular have access to time-travel technology (although
714-481: A large number of them are humanoid, even human-like, in form (such as Kryptonians, who outwardly appear identical to Earth-born humans); some can even interbreed with Terrans. Some of these races have natural superpowers, but they are usually the same for all individuals of the same race, unlike Earth's metahumans. This was explained by the fact that in Earth's distant past Martians experimented on humanity, severely culling
816-598: A major villain in the DC Universe by writer Geoff Johns in The Flash: Rebirth . His resurrection is foreshadowed to occur in a near-future event . It is later revealed that Thawne's recreation of the accident behind Barry's powers made Thawne able to lure Barry out of the Speed Force during Final Crisis and temporarily turn his nemesis into the Black Flash. When Thawne reappears, he murders
918-595: A more wary approach, however. Back during World War II they started "Project M" to create experimental soldiers to fight in the war, such as the Creature Commandos . Most of these experiments remain a secret to the public. Currently, the government deals with metahumans and similar beings through its Department of Extranormal Operations (DEO), and more recently A.R.G.U.S. Covertly, they use an organization of costumed (but non-superhuman) agents known as " Checkmate ". The government also formed Task Force X (known as
1020-551: A negative version. The Reverse-Flash is therefore able to travel at superhuman speeds faster than the speed of light , deliver blows of extreme force by hitting the victim hundreds of times a second, run on water, generate vacuums, create afterimages ("speed mirages") of himself, and vibrate his molecules to pass through solid objects. Unlike original Speed Force users, Thawne has the ability to travel through and manipulate time, being able to drastically alter history and completely erase people from existence (other speedsters cannot change
1122-828: A plague. Even the Almeracian Empire was victim to impending destruction by Imperiex . Order is kept around the galaxy by the Guardians of the Universe and their agents, the Green Lantern Corps . Rival peacekeeping organizations include the Darkstars (created by the Guardians' rivals, the Controllers ) and the interplanetary mercenary organization L.E.G.I.O.N. Criminal organizations include
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#17327804508711224-461: A professor. He also eventually becomes the curator of the Flash Museum . Seeking to show Barry how much he's changed and be a partner, Thawne travels to the past. However, he is enraged after he witnesses Barry give Wally a talk on how "every second is a gift", similar to one that Barry gave him, and realises that he wasn't treated specially by Barry. Still seeking to spend time with Barry and be
1326-449: A reporter who had been hired to interview him, thus his future self wipes all of the reporter's romantic interests from existence. After finding out his would-be love interest did not return his affections, Thawne's future self traumatized the reporter as a child, causing the woman to be mute and institutionalized so that they never met each other. He later had his younger self find the time capsule containing his idol's costume to make himself
1428-496: A result, almost once per decade since the 1980s, the DC Universe experiences a major crisis that allows any number of changes from new versions of characters to appear as a whole reboot of the universe, restarting nominally all the characters into a new and modernized version of their lives. Meanwhile, DC has published occasional stories called Elseworlds , which often presented alternate versions of its characters. One told
1530-582: A single unnamed universe with a single history. However, not all the books rebooted post-Crisis. For example, the Legion of Superheroes book acted as if the Pre-Crisis Earth-1 history was still their past, a point driven home in the Cosmic Boy miniseries . It also removed the mechanism DC had been using to deal with continuity glitches or storylines that a later writer wanted to ignore (which
1632-684: A twice-monthly release schedule, a number of existing titles relaunching with new #1s, and the release of several new titles. DC has used the Green Lantern: Rebirth and The Flash: Rebirth miniseries as examples of the basis for the initiative, which has been described as a rebirth of the DC Universe. The DC Rebirth initiative will reintroduce concepts from pre- Flashpoint continuity, such as legacy, that have been lost with The New 52 and build "on everything that's been published since Action Comics #1 up thru The New 52." In October 2017, DC revealed that they would be discontinuing
1734-589: A vaporisation gun. In the 2018 event Flash War , Zolomon sends the Renegades to arrest Iris for Thawne's death, as part of a plan to instigate a conflict between Barry and Wally. It is revealed that, after being freed from prison by Captain Boomerang in Brightest Day , Thawne broke Zolomon out of prison and took him to the 25th Century, accepting his offer to work together. The pair secretly took over
1836-462: A way to explain apparent inconsistencies in stories written, editors at DC came to consider the varied continuity of multiple Earths too difficult to keep track of, and feared that it was an obstacle to accessibility for new readers. To address this, they published the cross-universe miniseries Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1985, which merged universes and characters, reducing the Multiverse to
1938-447: Is a network of alternate timelines that branch off from the DC Universe . These timelines sometimes overlap with each other, causing alterations in reality. Characters can cross from one timeline to another if needed. It has been analogized to a river network that branches out and then runs 'up stream' to feed back into itself before splitting off again. Hypertime has been used as a device to explain continuity errors . Some fans welcomed
2040-557: Is able to disrupt and fry nearby electronics, in addition to allowing him to manipulate magnetism. The events of Flashpoint turned him into a "living paradox", making him immune to timeline alterations and unable to be erased from existence. In the DC Rebirth relaunch, Thawne also gains the abilities to possess others, by phasing into their bodies, and to hypnotize others, by whispering at hyperspeed to implant subconscious suggestions into their minds. IGN ranked Eobard Thawne as
2142-767: Is also collectively known as the Dominion. Other aliens in the outlying galaxies control armadas like the Khunds, Gordanians, Thanagarians, Spider Guild and, most recently, the Reach. Even though the majority of the DC Universe is policed by the Green Lantern Corps, and later the United Planets , most rogue races strive to conquer the known universe. One oddity is the Vegan star system. Due to an arrangement with
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#17327804508712244-460: Is available - but it is usually very expensive, and usually only rich or powerful individuals and organizations (or the scientific geniuses who create them) have access to them. S.T.A.R. Labs is an independent research outfit that often develops these devices, while Lexcorp is the main company selling them. The government also runs the secret Project Cadmus (located in the mountains near Metropolis) to develop clones and genetic manipulation without
2346-565: Is characterized as being fundamentally conceptual in nature, Hypertime is characterized as being emotional, with branches happening whenever decisions of great importance take place. Previous Crises are reclassified as being either Omniverse Crises (the Crisis on Infinite Earth, Infinite Crisis , Final Crisis , Multiversity , Dark Nights, and Dark Crisis ) or Hypertime Crises ( Zero Hour , The Kingdom, Flashpoint , Convergence , and Doomsday Clock ). DC Universe The DC Universe ( DCU )
2448-491: Is drawn. As well, certain dimensions function as crossover opportunities for heroes from different comic book companies to interact, either from competing companies, or from companies absorbed by competitors. The most notable example of the first kind of crossover has been between DC Comics and Marvel Comics , and the latter with Wildstorm Comics . An example of the latter kind of crossover would be DC's acquisition of Fawcett Comics , Quality Comics , and Charlton Comics and
2550-513: Is how Earths B and E came into existence) resulting in a convoluted explanation for characters like Hawkman. The Zero Hour limited series (1994) gave them an opportunity to revise timelines and rewrite the DC Universe history. However this failed right out of the gate as the writers had Waverider state all alternate histories had been wiped and yet have the Armageddon 2001 saga in the timeline which required multiple timelines to work. As
2652-448: Is killed by this reality's Batman with a sword stab through the chest, Barry travels back in time to stop Barry's younger self from altering history but instead, under Pandora 's manipulations, a third, new timeline is created, in which DC Comics' continuity takes place from 2011 onward. Thawne's origin is revised once again in the DC Rebirth relaunch. An only child when his parents died in an accident, Thawne grew up obsessed with
2754-475: Is murdered by Martha Wayne / Joker shortly afterwards. Eobard Thawne already possessed genius -level intellect by the standards of the 25th Century even prior to gaining his metahuman abilities, making him possibly one of the smartest individuals when in the 21st century. The Flash: Rebirth revealed that duplicating the accident behind Barry Allen 's powers corrupted the Speed Force which created
2856-483: Is only because most monsters play a less substantial role in the DC Universe. The plot-lines of Dinosaur Island and Skartaris are but a few examples of the experiments the DC universe contrives, yet its role in DC comics are played down when in comparison to other companies, therefore they are included as being a race from Earth. An easternized influence is more evident in most Marvel Comics literature, while DC Comics are exaggerated, under-influenced or sustained into
2958-530: Is part of a larger DC Universe and DC Multiverse . Originally created from the First Crisis , it was allegedly erased from existence because of the Flashpoint – Convergence effect, being replaced by " Prime Earth ". By the end of the storyline Superman Reborn , the timelines of New Earth and Prime Earth have realigned into one single reality. Many of the superhumans on Earth owe their powers to
3060-600: Is released from Iron Heights by Captain Boomerang who had hoped to better understand his version of the Entity's message. Thawne does not answer him directly, giving a cryptic response and eventually escaping as Captain Boomerang is confronted by the rest of the Rogues. Thawne uses his powers to completely rewrite his own history; he erases his younger brother from existence and kills his parents when they try to interfere with his research. Thawne later falls in love with Rose,
3162-491: Is resurrected via his connection to the Negative Speed Force and returns to the future, to examine the difference between the pre and post-Flashpoint timelines. He is present at Iris's house when Iris arrives with Wallace West , who Thawne brutally beats and denounces as a fake, before kidnapping Iris and bringing her to the 25th century. Barry arrives and is quickly beaten by Thawne, who reveals his identity as
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3264-552: Is something even they do not know. In the 2009–2010 storyline " Blackest Night ", the Pre- Crisis version of Thawne's broken-necked corpse is reanimated as a member of the Black Lantern Corps . The black power ring downloaded the corpse's memories, resulting in him not knowing of Barry's death and resurrection. Declaring himself the " Black Flash ", he hunts down and attacks Barry who manages to elude him for
3366-553: Is the Secret Society of Super Villains of which there have been several versions. Most villain teams are usually small, having been formed of individuals who know each other personally, such as the Central City Rogues , or have some other reason to work together (mercenary groups like the H.I.V.E. , fanatical cults such as Kobra , etc.). Technology more advanced than that which currently exists in real life
3468-759: Is the shared universe in which most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. In context, the term "DC Universe" usually refers to the main DC continuity . It contains various superheroes such as Superman , Batman , Wonder Woman , Aquaman , and Flash ; as well as teams such as the Justice League , the Suicide Squad , and the Teen Titans . It also contains well-known supervillains , including Joker , Lex Luthor , Cheetah , Reverse-Flash , and Darkseid . Beyond
3570-582: Is the follow-up to the DC Rebirth relaunch. In late 2022, DC announced a new line-wide initiative titled the Dawn Of DC. The Dawn of DC is a year long story telling initiative with various new, ongoing and limited series. The Dawn of DC titles received a new trade dress. The initiative meant to change the tone for the DC universe into something brighter and lighter, as well as creating more inter-connectivity between multiple series. The basic concept of
3672-432: Is too powerful in the physical world, where harnessing magic can distort and even destroy reality if not properly controlled (e.g., if a Lord of Order succumbs to certain events, so will a Lord of Chaos). There are several types of cosmic entities, such as: The DC Universe is composed of a number of different dimensional planes , most notably parallel Earths (see Multiverse ), but the latter were eliminated when reality
3774-453: The Flash of the 25th century. He sheds a tear as his altered past self runs past him while saying "It won't last long. You will never find love. You will never be the Flash. Barry Allen destroyed my future. It's time I destroyed his.". In the 2011 Flashpoint storyline, a new timeline is created through the alteration of history . Thawne reveals that his body is permanently connected to
3876-604: The Reverse-Flash and Professor Zoom , is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics . Created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino , the character first appeared in The Flash #139 (August 31st 1963) and has since endured as the archenemy of Barry Allen / The Flash . Eobard Thawne, as introduced by name in The Flash #153, is the first and most well-known character to assume
3978-780: The All-Star Squadron to protect the United States from the Axis powers . However, due to a magical spell cast by Adolf Hitler (using the Spear of Destiny and the Holy Grail ) the most powerful heroes were unable to enter Axis-held territories, leaving the offensive portion of the war to be fought mainly by normal humans such as Sgt. Rock while the superheroes participated in defensive activities in Allied territories. After
4080-572: The Batcave and destroys Thomas's letter. Thawne brutally beats and verbally taunts Bruce before picking up the Comedian's smiley-face pin , which teleports him away to an unknown location. Thawne is then teleported back to the Batcave, having been bathed in radiation by a mysterious entity. As he collapses, Thawne says "God...I saw...God." Batman and Barry later come across Thawne in possession of
4182-571: The Cyborg Superman . There are a few intelligent races living on Earth that the public at large did not know about until recent times. Among these are the Amazons of Themyscira and Bana-Mighdall and the last survivors of Atlantis, who changed themselves into water-breathing forms, including the human-like Poseidonians and the mermaid-like Tritonians. Other species, such as Warworlders , were brief test subjects of Project Cadmus who fled to
Hypertime - Misplaced Pages Continue
4284-617: The Flash actually having museums dedicated to them—by the general public, though some individuals have decided that "the metahumans" must be dealt with less passively. Thus, an organization called "the Dome" was formed to help superheroes who needed to fight crime across international borders; the superhero group called the Global Guardians were their main agents. However the Dome eventually lost out, as its United Nations backing went to
4386-729: The Psions , the Guardians did not intervene in that system, allowing a cruel empire called "the Citadel" to govern there, until it was overthrown by the Omega Men . The Presence is the God of the DC Universe; he created all reality. He is also among the most powerful beings in Creation. There are several lesser beings in the DC universe that possess god-like powers, through energy manipulation, magic ability, or technological advancement. Magic and
4488-702: The Teen Titans ) have either belonged to the League at some point, or have connections to it. As a general rule, being a superhero does not require powers anywhere near omnipotence . Furthermore, even major heroes and cosmic entities have distinct vulnerabilities, such as: Superman 's weaknesses to magic, kryptonite, and red sunlight ; Green Lantern 's initial problems with wood or the color yellow (which have since been largely overcome); or Batman 's lack of superhuman powers, which he supplements with keen intellect, constant training, and specialized technology. Superheroes are generally accepted or even praised—Superman and
4590-478: The threeboot Legion lacks time travel technology) while Rip Hunter is the present day authority of the technology. Originally, it was impossible to change the past, or to exist in two places at the same time (a time traveler appearing in an era where they already existed would become an ineffectual, invisible phantom while there). However that was all changed after the Anti-Monitor tried to change history at
4692-535: The " Suicide Squad ") for " black ops ". Most members have been captured supervillains (and thus expendable and deniable assets), and were strongly "encouraged" to join (often with offerings of clemency if they survived their extremely dangerous missions). Outcast personalities are often relegated to the world of DCU supervillainry. They are then usually well versed in heists, kidnappings and robberies. Villains with meek powers contrive schemes of extraordinary complexity, yet—because of their simple talents—they only call
4794-611: The " metagene ", a genetic feature of unknown origin, which causes some people to develop superpowers when exposed to dangerous substances and forces. Others owe their powers to magic , genetic manipulation (or mutation) or bionics ( see below ). A large power gap resides between most superheroes and civilians. Still others owe their powers to not being human at all ( see races, below ). There are also superheroes and supervillains who possess no superhuman powers at all (for example Batman , Robin , Green Arrow or Speedy ), but rival their effectiveness with specialized equipment or "to
4896-691: The 1940s could not easily be reconciled with stories featuring a still-youthful man in the 1960s. To explain this, they introduced the idea of the Multiverse in Flash #123 (1961) where the Silver Age Flash met his Golden Age counterpart . In addition to allowing the conflicting stories to "co-exist", it allowed the differing versions of characters to meet, and even team up to combat cross-universe threats. The writers gave designations such as " Earth-One ", " Earth-Two ", and so forth, to certain universes, designations which at times were also used by
4998-462: The 25th century with no memory of the incident. Despite this, Thawne still managed to bring the remains of his older self's costume with him, cluing him further into his destiny. After the events of Zero Hour: Crisis in Time! , it is revealed that Malcolm Thawne is his ancestor and Barry's long-lost twin brother, meaning that Barry is Eobard Thawne's great-uncle. In 2009, Thawne was re-imagined as
5100-465: The Button shortly before his apparent death, and follow him in an attempt to prevent it. As he follows the traces leading to the entity, Thawne muses that he may go back in time to raise his nemesis as a "family friend" after killing Nora, but is killed by Doctor Manhattan and teleported back to the Batcave. In the immediate aftermath of The Button , Thawne's corpse is taken to S.T.A.R. Labs , but he
5202-605: The DC Universe is that it is just like the real world, but with superheroes and supervillains existing in it. However, there are other corollary differences resulting from the justifications implied by that main concept. Many fictional countries, such as Qurac , Vlatava , and Zandia , exist in it. Though stories are often set in the United States of America , they are as often as not set in fictional cities, such as Gotham City or Metropolis . These cities are effectively archetypes of cities, with Gotham City embodying more of
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#17327804508715304-451: The Flash to Iris. Thawne subsequently shows the couple's future and tricks Barry into being trapped in the Negative Speed Force, but his nemesis gets connected to it and escapes. The pleased Thawne implores Barry to "ditch the loser sidekicks" and become his friend and partner, but his nemesis refuses and strips him of his speed. Nevertheless, Thawne vows to regain his powers and keep coming back to torment Barry, before being killed by Iris with
5406-631: The Flash's life upon learning that he was destined to become his greatest enemy–the Reverse-Flash. Fueled by jealousy and hatred, Thawne travels throughout time to torment and destroy the Flash's life. He has been established as one of the fastest speedsters in the DC Universe . Thawne has frequently died , but has made multiple returns through resurrections and time travel. The character has been adapted in various media incarnations, having been portrayed in live-action by Tom Cavanagh and Matt Letscher in The CW 's Arrowverse franchise, most notably in
5508-706: The Flash's powers after replicating the electrochemical accident behind the Flash. Seeking to use the Cosmic Treadmill to travel back in time and meet his idol, Thawne arrived at the Flash Museum several years after Barry's death, discovering that he was destined to be "Professor Zoom, the Reverse-Flash" and die at his idol's hands. As a result, the unstable Thawne convinced himself that he was Barry Allen (based on his intimate knowledge of his idol's life from his reading of an as-yet-unpublished biography) and subsequently attacked Central City for "forgetting him". Wally West ultimately tricked Thawne into returning to
5610-506: The Flash. After finding a time capsule with the speedster's costume, he uses traces of the Speed Force in it to turn himself into a version of the Flash. Due to a lack of threats in the 25th century, Thawne creates his own by endangering people, before "saving" them. He is overjoyed when Barry travels to his time and teaches him new tricks, but this deceit is soon found out. After Barry defeats him and has him arrested, Thawne promises to rehabilitate himself, to that end undergoing therapy and being
5712-803: The Manhunters, the Spider Guild and the Dark Circle . Most aliens are from different planets, who have a source of origin near the Solar System and in the Milky Way Galaxy, although, unlike the Marvel Universe , alien colonies are common within the Solar System. The Dominators are an imperialistic race of terrorist aliens who control most of the unknown cosmos in order to extract genetic resources from planets. The caste
5814-480: The Pre- Crisis infinite Multiverse, the collapsed Earth, and the Pre- New 52 52 worlds Multiverse. The Infinite Crisis event (2005–2006) remade the DC Universe yet again, with new changes . The limited series 52 (2006–2007) established that a new multiverse now existed, with Earth-0 as the primary Earth. The 2011 reboot of the DC Universe coincided with DC's publishing event The New 52 , during which
5916-690: The Rebirth branding and logo from their titles in December 2017, releasing everything under a single umbrella title as the DC Universe. Coincided with the release of the New Age of Heroes imprint, DiDio explained, "We want to make it clear that this is all the DC Universe... Rebirth pretty much is the DCU now; while we're taking Rebirth off the books, we'll be following the direction that Rebirth established." Titles also received new trade dress , with those "that tie in clearly to our larger DC Universe" having
6018-400: The Reverse-Flash mantle, and is additionally a descendant of Malcolm Thawne and ancestor of Bart Allen , Thaddeus Thawne and Owen Mercer . In his comic book appearances, Professor Eobard Thawne is depicted as a scientist from the 25th century who originally idolized the Flash. He replicated the accident that gave the Flash his powers, but was driven insane and became obsessed with ruining
6120-668: The Silver Age, the Justice Society was reimagined as the Justice League of America, which was founded with Major League Baseball's National League and American League as inspiration for the name. The comic book that introduced the Justice League was titled The Brave and the Bold . However, the majority of National/DC's publications continued to be written with little regard of maintaining continuity with each other for
6222-453: The Speed Force, enabling him to create a negative version, with which he escaped prison. He was unable to alter Barry's transformation into a speedster, however, as that would effectively erase himself from existence. Instead, Thawne decides to ruin his nemesis's life during Barry's childhood, killing Nora Allen . Thawne later reveals that the Flashpoint timeline was created when Barry went back in time to stop him from killing Nora. After Thawne
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#17327804508716324-454: The Temporal Courts and formed the Renegades, but eventually had a falling out over a difference in motives, culminating in Thawne returning to the past. Thawne's repeated deaths infuriated Zolomon, triggering a change in his own motives. Zolomon eventually discovers that Thawne himself was responsible for his transformation into his successor Zoom, with Thawne having given the Clown the gun with which he killed Zolomon's father-in-law and changed
6426-404: The Underworld below Metropolis. There is also a tribe of highly intelligent, telepathic gorillas living in Gorilla City, an invisible city hidden in Africa; this is the home of Gorilla Grodd . Certain creatures created such as angelic beings, timeline driven entities, experimental deformities and dimension creatures are not considered hidden races because it is simply not included. However, it
6528-535: The United States in 2000, and entire cities and countries being destroyed. There are other minor variations, such as the Earth being slightly larger than ours (to accommodate the extra countries), and the planet Saturn having 18 moons rather than 19 because Superman destroyed one. "New Earth" is the Earth-like home planet to the main storybook characters of the DC Universe - the one with Smallville where Superman grows up, and Gotham City where Bruce Wayne avenges his parents by becoming Batman . This New Earth
6630-431: The absolute limit of human potential" training in special skills, such as martial arts. The humans first began using costumed identities to fight or commit crime during the 1930s. The first superheroes included characters like the Crimson Avenger and The Sandman . In November 1940, the first superhero team, the Justice Society of America , was formed. During World War II , all of America's heroes were banded together as
6732-401: The absorption into the DC continuity of the original Captain Marvel , Plastic Man and Captain Atom . In this way, heroes originally published by different companies are now part of the same fictional universe, and interactions between such characters are no longer considered intercompany crossovers. Additionally, the Marvel Comics Universe is also said to exist in the DC Universe as one of
6834-440: The attention of powerless superheroes like Batman , or lesser superheroes like Booster Gold . When caught, any prison sufficient to contain these villains is suitable. More powerful villains strive to contest for greater goals like world domination and/or universal acclaim (from the public and their villainous peers). Usually more powerful enemies are imprisoned in maximum-level facilities—such as Belle Reve Penitentiary (which also
6936-449: The beginning of time during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Also, a number of alternate realities -known as Hypertime -now exist. A group calling itself the Linear Men formed to prevent anyone from changing history. In addition, an enormously powerful being called the Time Trapper , an enemy of the Legion, has been known to manipulate the timestream, even creating " pocket universes ". Eobard Thawne Eobard Thawne , also known as
7038-478: The belief of comical parodies; e.g. the story-line of the alien, Monstergirl, and her affluent life-style as a teenage recluse who turns into a monster or the purpose of Asmodel, an angelic inter-dimensional being from a conceptual Heaven who comes to Earth. Therefore, these particular races are not considered hidden but alien and extra-dimensional (see the following sections below for reference). There are many intelligent extraterrestrial races as well. Curiously,
7140-480: The characters themselves. Earth-One was the primary world of this publication era, as established in " Flash of Two Worlds " and "Crisis on Earth-One!". Over the years, as the number of titles published increased and the volume of past stories accumulated, it became increasingly difficult to maintain internal consistency. In the face of diminishing sales, maintaining the status quo of their most popular characters became attractive. Although retcons were used as
7242-480: The complex continuity through streamlined storylines and events. The fact that DC Comics characters coexisted in the same world was first established in All Star Comics #3 (1940) where several superheroes (who starred in separate stories in the series up to that point) met each other in a group dubbed the Justice Society of America . Earth-Two was the primary world of this publication era, as established in " Flash of Two Worlds " and "Crisis on Earth-Two!". In
7344-588: The concept of Hypertime. Hypertime is used to explain the formation and alteration of the 52 universes formed at the end of 52 . Hypertime has been mentioned several times in the Prime Earth continuity. Hypertime is presented as one of two halves of “the Divine Continuum”, the other half being the Omniverse. The Omniverse represents Space, while Hypertime represents Time. Where the Omniverse
7446-462: The course of Zolomon's history. It is later revealed that Thawne pulled Thomas out of the Flashpoint timeline just as Manhattan erased it, to torment Thomas with the reality where Bruce is Batman. Thawne is briefly resurrected again in the 2022 storyline Flashpoint Beyond , when Bruce restores the Flashpoint timeline. Thawne seeks out Thomas, who had also been sent back to that timeline, but
7548-549: The device, severing his connection to the negative Speed Force. As the Flashes tie him up to stop him from running, Iris discovers Thawne's weapon back in the past, which Iris keeps. In the present, he is imprisoned in Iron Heights . Hunter Zolomon speaks to him, saying they can help each other be better. In Gorilla City , one of the apes warns that he has done something horrible to their jungles, but just what he has done
7650-591: The effects of time travel, altered into an atomic bomb . To prevent its detonation, Barry Allen pursued and defeated Zoom, hoping he knew where the clock was. He did not, but Barry later found the clock, detonated it safely, and destroyed Thawne's costume. Blaming the Flash for his defeat, Thawne became obsessed with "replacing" Barry and traveled back in time to exact his revenge. Iris West rejected his romantic pursuits, so Thawne killed Iris. After Barry had found love again, Thawne threatened to kill Fiona Webb (Barry's fiancée) on their wedding day. Fearful that history
7752-408: The fictional world is similar to the real one (for instance, there was a Roman Empire , and World War II and 9/11 both occurred), but many fantastic additions exist, such as the known existence of Atlantis . In recent years, stories have increasingly described events which bring the DC Universe farther away from reality, such as World War III occurring, Lex Luthor being elected as President of
7854-451: The first few decades. In the 1950s and 1960s, DC has introduced different versions of its characters, sometimes presenting them as if the earlier version had never existed, including: Flash ( Barry Allen ), Green Lantern ( Hal Jordan ), and Hawkman ( Katar Hol ). These new versions of the characters had similar powers but different names and personal histories. Similarly, they had characters such as Batman whose early adventures set in
7956-412: The first to inadvertently fulfill his mission, which occurred in the events of The Flash: Rebirth when he freed Allen from the Speed Force following the resurrection. The Entity proclaims Thawne has completed his task and his life is restored to him, later revealing that Thawne (having fulfilled his task) is now fully purged of all trace remnants of his Black Lantern ties – both present and future. Thawne
8058-674: The follow-up " Brightest Day " storyline, the present Professor Zoom is still imprisoned in Iron Heights. When Deadman activates the White Power Battery, the Entity speaks to the 12 heroes and villains resurrected at the climax of the "Blackest Night" and tells each of them of their mission that must be accomplished to restore 'life' to the universe and prevent the Blackest Night from ever reoccurring. Thawne becomes
8160-729: The idea as an explanation for earlier continuity errors while others criticized it for being a license to create more narrative problems. The Hypertime concept was first introduced in The Kingdom , Mark Waid's sequel to Kingdom Come , and exists within the larger multiverse used within DC Comics publications. Writer Mark Waid stated that "the possibilities are endless. Hypertime is an unashamed reaction to nearly 15 years of comics being made 'more realistic', less 'larger than life'. As far as we’re concerned, DC Comics shouldn't be about rules and regulations and ‘can’t happen’s and ‘shouldn’t be’s; they should be about anything and everything that tells
8262-479: The lightning bolt that turns Barry into a speedster as they are able to stop Thawne from killing Iris. The two Flashes push Thawne back through time, showing his past and future while the two return to the present, where the Justice League, the Justice Society, and the Outsiders have built a device originally intended to disconnect Barry from the Speed Force as the Black Flash. Barry tosses Thawne in and Jay activates
8364-551: The main continuity, the DC Multiverse encompasses all alternate realities within DC Comics. The primary universe has been known by various names over time, with recent designations including "Prime Earth" or "Earth 0" (distinct from " Earth Prime "). The DC Universe and its alternate realities have been adapted across multiple media, including film serials , radio dramas , and modern films, with ongoing efforts to address
8466-621: The many alternative universes. The reverse may also be said with respect to the Marvel Universe. This is one method of explaining the various crossover stories co-published by the two companies. Heaven and Hell exist in the DC Universe but may not exist in the same continuum. Versions vary from the Vertigo and DC Universe series with writers of the Vertigo Universe depicting them in relation to religion and mythology while
8568-530: The metahuman potential; this means that a species that was meant to have a wide range of powers, like Tamaranians or Kryptonians, ended up "just...human". However, there are also plenty of nonhumanoid races. The DC Universe has had many natural and cosmic disasters happen to their alien civilizations. The Martians were destroyed by war, the Kryptonians by a dying planet that exploded, and the Czarnians by
8670-597: The moment. When the Black Lantern Rogues attack Iron Heights, the living Thawne is encountered and the Black Lanterns' rings strangely malfunction, displaying a strange symbol . When Thawne's corpse approaches his living counterpart, he stops moving and is then frozen by Captain Cold 's "cold grenade". Thawne's corpse is brought back to life by the white light of creation, and manages to escape. In
8772-655: The more famous Justice League. In general, DC Comics has led a parody of its own teams and organizations after the Watchmen storyline and the Batman run from a dark humor style which began during the 1980s and ended in the early 90s. Superhero teams such as the Doom Patrol and Justice League International led the writers to have a more subtle approach of semiotic dark humor with its own version of over-powered egos dominating personalities. The American government has had
8874-662: The negative aspects of life in a large city, and Metropolis reflecting more of the positive aspects. Sentient alien species (such as Kryptonians and Thanagarians) and even functioning interstellar societies are generally known to exist, and the arrival of alien spacecraft is not uncommon. Technologies which are only theoretical in the real world, such as artificial intelligence or are outright impossible according to modern science, such as faster-than-light travel, are functional and reproducible, though they are often portrayed as highly experimental and difficult to achieve. Demonstrable magic exists and can be learned. The general history of
8976-451: The past without dramatic consequences). Thawne developed numerous new powers in the events leading up to Flashpoint , including the ability to cross over to other dimensions, create shock waves across time and space at the snap of his fingers, absorb another's memories via physical contact, and alter the age of anyone or anything. Thawne has also displayed superhuman strength, as well as electrokinetic abilities. The presence of his lightning
9078-524: The public's knowledge. Technology can also come from outer space or different timelines. Apokolips weaponry is often sold in Metropolis to the criminal organization known as Intergang . Robots and similar creations, including cyborgs, can have superior intelligence when they are created as sentient beings. The Manhunters , the Metal Men , Red Tornado , Robotman , Hourman , and Metallo are but
9180-689: The publisher cancelled its ongoing titles and relaunched 52 new books, including a number of new books, set within a revised continuity. This follows the conclusion of the Flashpoint crossover storyline, which provided a jumping-off point for the existing continuity. A number of in-universe changes are intended to make characters more modern and accessible, though the scope of the changes varies from character to character. Some like Batman have their histories left largely intact, though compressed, while others were given wildly different histories and looks. DC stopped putting 'The New 52' logo on its publications in
9282-404: The revived Johnny Quick , before proceeding to trap Barry and the revived Max Mercury inside the negative Speed Force. Thawne then attempts to kill Wally's children through their Speed Force connection in front of Linda Park-West , only to be stopped by Jay Garrick and Bart Allen . Thawne defeats Jay and prepares to kill Bart, but Barry, Max, Wally, Jesse Quick and Impulse arrive to prevent
9384-524: The story of Bruce Wayne as a Green Lantern. In another tale, Superman: Speeding Bullets , the rocket ship that brought the infant Superman to Earth was discovered by the Wayne family of Gotham City rather than the Kents. In 1999, The Kingdom reintroduced a variant of the old Multiverse concept called Hypertime which essentially allows for alternate versions of characters and worlds again. The entire process
9486-712: The summer of 2015, coinciding with the Convergence anniversary crossover event which celebrated the history of the DC Multiverse and its various incarnations. In February 2016, DC announced its DC Rebirth initiative, a line-wide relaunch of its titles, to begin in June 2016. Beginning with an 80-page one-shot which was released on May 25, 2016, DC Rebirth also sees Action Comics and Detective Comics return to their previous numbering (#957 and #934 respectively), all books releasing at US$ 2.99 , multiple books shifting to
9588-491: The supernatural are often depicted as being real in the DC Universe, though some skeptics, such as Mister Terrific , maintain that there are scientific explanations to all such events. The narration of the mystic and harsh dark reality is more common in DC's Vertigo Comics because its stories lurk outside of superhero fantasy; the Vertigo series have beings that relate better to civilian life, although both universes are subject to fantastical realms and unworldly dimensions. Magic
9690-452: The television series The Flash . Eobard Thawne was born in 2151. Eobard Thawne found a time capsule in the 25th century containing a costume of the Flash and with a Tachyon device amplified the suit's speed energy, giving himself speedster abilities. Reversing the costume's colors, he adopted the moniker of "Professor Zoom the Reverse-Flash" and went on a crime spree. However, the time capsule also contained an atomic clock which, due to
9792-455: The villain from doing so. In the ensuing fight, Thawne reveals that he is responsible for every tragedy that has occurred in Barry's life, including Nora Allen 's death. Thawne then decides to destroy everything Barry holds dear by killing Iris before the two even met. As Barry chases after Thawne, Wally joins Barry in the time barrier. The two Flashes reach Thawne and in doing so, they become
9894-633: The war, under pressure from the paranoid Committee on Un-American Activities , the JSA disbanded. While many types of heroes were active afterwards (mainly non-costumed, such as the Challengers of the Unknown or Detective Chimp ), it was not until Superman's public debut that a new generation of costumed heroes became active. Soon after, the Justice League of America was formed, and they have remained Earth's preeminent superhero team; most DC heroes (such as
9996-435: The writers in the DCU have a tendency to narrate fantasy. The Speed Force is an extradimensional energy source which provides the speedsters of the DC Universe with their powers. Accessing the Speed Force makes it possible to run at incredible speeds, even faster than light, and even to jump in and out of the timestream, thereby travelling - albeit with a limited degree of control - through time. The Speed Force also acts as
10098-956: Was altered by the Anti-Monitor (although stories featuring parallel Earths have continued to crop up with various rationalizations in the following years). Other types of dimensions still exist, however, including the Antimatter Universe of Qward , the Pax dimension , the Fifth Dimension and the Bleed . Prison dimensions, such as the Phantom Zone , are meant to house superpowered criminals who are too powerful for any conventional means of containment. Dimensions make up many universes, of which some are created and destroyed with help from supernatural forces and elements from which power
10200-536: Was possibly inspired by Alan Moore 's meta-comic, Supreme: Story of the Year (1997). The Convergence (2015) crossover officially retconned the events of Crisis after heroes in that series went back in time to prevent the collapse of the Multiverse. However, Brainiac states "Each world has evolved but they all still exist". It has been confirmed that all previous worlds and timelines now exist, and that there are even multiple Multiverses now in existence, such as
10302-466: Was repeating itself, Barry killed Thawne by breaking his neck. Prior to discovering the time capsule containing the Flash's costume, the Post- Crisis extended origin storyline "The Return of Barry Allen" revealed that Thawne was once a scientist obsessed with his idol, even undergoing cosmetic surgery to resemble his hero. Obtaining the Cosmic Treadmill from an antique shop, Thawne gained all of
10404-419: Was secretly Task Force X's headquarters) and even alternate dimensions or outer space —because they cannot simply be killed by a bullet, electricity, or poison. Supervillains sometimes also form their own groups, but these tend to be short-lived because most villains simply do not trust each other. Most such teams are formed by a charismatic and/or fearsome criminal mastermind for specific purposes; an example
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