Single universe or multiverse

[Riv86672]

I think DC is at its best when it's about the one-offs, the one time stories and minies. While Marvel has that continued story which has made it so appealing for those of us who want to keep up with it.

Great point(s)!

[Lonewolf36]

Multiverse.

[Zero Hunter]

That’s the main difference between Marvel and DC’s use of the multiverse concept.
At Marvel a reader doesn’t really have to think about the multiverse nearly as often, and it doesn’t drive the company’s direction for years at a time.
Not throwing shade at DC, but they’ve come to depend on the multiverse, and constant reboots where their entire line is just written out of existence/made into yet another reality in a huge, often confusing and sometimes off putting way.

You don’t see that at Marvel, and they’re better for it imho.

If you look at it though it is not that much different. DC changes a lot at once while Marvel changes things little by little. If you compare the Marvel U of today to the one of 50 years ago it has been pretty much all been rebooted a little at a time with the constant retcons, and reimaginings.

[Snoop Dogg]

If you look at it though it is not that much different. DC changes a lot at once while Marvel changes things little by little. If you compare the Marvel U of today to the one of 50 years ago it has been pretty much all been rebooted a little at a time with the constant retcons, and reimaginings.

Doing the former over and over has created a mess while doing the latter has created a fluid but still ultimately linear universe.

[jackolover]

Multiverse, all the way. I've always loved 'what ifs' and 'imaginary stories' and alternate histories. I also find it fun to see what a writer can do with a character that they are not allowed to really change (or kill!) in canon, if they've got complete freedom to follow their story, even if it results in significant change to the character, or to the world in which they reside, which, by editorial mandate, can't be changed noticeably for the long-term (as that would affect the long term of the IP, and impact all the other titles in that shared world setting).

And then there are fun stories like Exiles, where the multiverse is completely the point, and the setting, and the raison d'etre of the team, and it's just a fun ride.

I have to admit Ultimate Spider-Man had a lot of legs as a run time. But I don’t follow it now in Miles’ book anymore. It’s not the real a Spider-Man I have so much invested in. But that’s a complicated issue.

[The_Last_Czarnian]

I'd say multiverse, using the Exiles example.

But.

I hate when they cross universes and the 616 guys are always better. When King Hyperion dropped by he was immediately fed to Blue Marvel for a Heroic Age short.

[Odd Rödney]

I want the focus to be on the 616 or Prime (or whatever it is these days) but I still want it to be part of a multiverse. Some of my favorite stories have spawned or been impacted by another universe and that can be a lot of fun. However, I am getting tired of the trend of characters from alternate universes becoming mainstays in the 616. It is sort of complicated. I want writers to have the option of playing with the multiverse, but not to go overboard, or depend on it.

[CentralPower]

At Marvel a reader doesn’t really have to think about the multiverse nearly as often, and it doesn’t drive the company’s direction for years at a time.

DC's alternates are usually more high concept, or simply gimmick, based. ("A world where genders are reversed....") Marvel's alternates tend to be more plot based. ("What if....?") Both models have been used well, and poorly. (For every "Red Son" that DC publishes, there is a "Red Rain" or 3. For every "What if the Vision Conquered the World?", there is a "What if" where Peter Parker is the Punisher.)

Not throwing shade at DC, but they’ve come to depend on the multiverse, and constant reboots where their entire line is just written out of existence/made into yet another reality in a huge, often confusing and sometimes off putting way.

The frequent reboots worked pretty well, until 10-15 years ago. The problem is that after "Infinite Crisis", DC started seeing reboots and a multiverse as a goal unto itself, rather than as the editorial tools they are supposed to be. The result is an obligation to use those things, but no real plan.

Marvel, to its credit, has consistently used a multiverse as a cover for feckless writing and editing. While the feckless writing/editing is a problem, the multiverse serves a purpose by covering those problems.

Doing the former over and over has created a mess while doing the latter has created a fluid but still ultimately linear universe.

It is hard to say that Marvel is linear, when characters tend to stay more or less the same over decades.