Countown to BOOM

You know, I'm not completely certain that this whole "multiverse" thing isn't a complete fakeout. In fact, I'm starting to believe that that's exactly what it is.

When they brought the stupid thing back they talked a lot about the infinite possibilities inherent in the concept. That may be so. But what have we really seen happen with the multiverse?

Well, we've got Monarch scouring worlds and slaying dopplegangers left and right. He's conscripting all the rest into his wacky army. And on the other side of things you got Superboy -- excuse me, Superman Prime -- destroying Earths wholesale.

So here's the question I've got... How exactly can you have a multiverse if everybody who lives there has been killed or drafted into a conquering army? How can you have a multiverse if the fifty-two Earths are being destroyed by a maniac one at a time?

No, my friends. I fear that this multiverse we have been granted is merely a stopgap. It is a temporary measure. When the last page turns on Final Crisis there will be one Earth again.

It Begins

Regular posting resumes tomorrow. Be here.

Attention Monarch

To Monarch:

If you're reading this, I would like to offer you my services. As the Batman of Earth-8, I feel that I can be of great use to you in your attempts to conquer the Multiverse.

I know that you probably don't think much of me. But I have many admirable qualities! I'm very good at taking orders from self-proclaimed messiahs. And I can see that you certainly fit that bill. I'm also very good at setting things on fire. Surely you have things that need to be set on fire...

If you do decide to take me on, can you put me somewhere where I don't have to kill anybody? I don't do that anymore. I'd be happy to beat anybody you'd like to a bloody pulp. Just no killing.

Please. I really need the work.

Recruitment

So, Monarch wishes to start a war, does he? And the Monitors wish to join in? Well, what if they threw a war and Polaris came?

I say this now: if these two powers wish to war then I, Doctor Polaris, shall join them. Whose side am I on, you may ask? Why, that is a simple matter: I am on the winner's side. Whosoever shall emerge victorious I shall assist!

What, you say? That makes no sense? Perhaps you wonder how I can choose my side based on which will be victorious. Based on a future event. The answer is simple: the side that wins is the side with Doctor Polaris.

In this, I have have choices. Shall I throw my lot in with the Monitors, a group of fifty-one beetle-browed simians with tremendous cosmic power? They have tried to kill me before. Or shall I join with the Monarch formerly known as Captain Atom. He was a superhero. But then, he also has a massive army of masked foot soldiers. That's incredibly appealing.

So I ask you, loyal readers: whose side should I join? Should I stand with the Monitors and try to hold the Multiverse together (a few of those Earths are mine, after all)? Or should I join with Monarch, and destroy the Multiverse?

I'm With Monarch

Big things are afoot in the DC Universe. I don't have to tell you that. And they are all laid out in Countdown to Final Crisis #26 -- the issue which I believe signals the beginning of the end. There are many, many important things that happen in that issue. But I'm only going to talk about one of them: Monarch's plans for the Multiverse.

In Countdown #26 (I'm not writing the whole name every time) the lead Monitor (which Earth is he from, anyway?) declares that Monarch plans to precipitate a Multiversewide war with the goal of collapsing the Multiverse back into one universe. That's some pretty heady stuff. It takes some serious stones to attempt something like that. And you know what? I hope he does it.

I've made no secret of my dislike of the Multiverse concept. I never liked the first one, and I've been ambivalent about the new one since its introduction. I've mostly managed to make my peace with its existence, but that doesn't mean I ever liked it.

And now I don't have to. Because there's someone out there who's trying to destroy it! Now don't get me wrong; I don't think the Multiverse will actually be destroyed. I don't think Monarch will win. And I'm not sure it would be a good thing if he did. But until this war is over, I'm with Monarch.

Let the Multiverse burn.

More Monarch

Yeah, I'm back with another post about Monarch. But it's important. Plus, I got so caught up with the history of Monarch yesterday that I couldn't go into some of my theories about the character. So here goes...

I was reading a few of those weekly Countdown columns you see on websites like Newsarama earlier today. I found myself coming away unimpressed. They need to check their facts (Grayle Gardner? Puh-leeze). But the thing I noticed is that they all made the assumption that Monarch is a villain.

This isn't necessarily untrue, of course. Monarch may very well turn out to be a villain. He does act quite ominously, after all. But consider this: Monarch is a character assumed to be a villain who is sending his Forerunner through the Multiverse to collect people from various worlds to fight for him in a coming war.

In 1985 a character called the Monitor was widely assumed to be a villain. He sent his Harbinger through the Multiverse to collect people from various worlds to fight for him in a coming war.

So I think it's a mistake to assume that this Monarch is a villain just because the first one was. Just like it's a mistake to assume that the new Monitors are virtuous just because the original one was...

Trial of the Monarch

More happened this past week than the Sinestro Corps Special. In fact, I think that something with huge ramifications occured this week in Countdown. There were a lot of characters with a lot of stories, but the one that stands out is the tale of Forerunner... And her meeting of the Monarch.

For those of you out there who lack my nearly encyclopedic knowledge of the Post-Crisis DC Universe, I'll do a quick rundown of who the Monarch is (he is many) and why he is important.

Monarch's story begins in the early 90's with DC's Armageddon 2001 event. Running through DC's annuals in 1991, the core of the story was simple: by the year 2001 one of the heroes of the DCU will turned against the other heroes and made himself undisputed ruler of the world. He would become the Monarch.

The gimmick of the event was one of the most famous parts of Armageddon 2001. Throughout the story there were various clues left that were meant to help the reader guess for themselves which hero would become the Monarch. But when the identity of Monarch was leaked -- it was supposed to be Captain Atom -- DC presumably went into a panic.

Rather than simply continue the story as planned, DC decided to try and pull a fast one. Rather than have Captain Atom turn out to be the villainous Monarch, DC instead changed the ending so that it was Hank Hall -- Hawk of Hawk and Dove -- who would become the Monarch.

It could charitably be said that this was not a good idea. Largely because it made very little sense. For example, during the Hawk and Dove annual that was a part of the Armageddon 2001 crossover, Hawk and Dove were shown fighting the Monarch in the future. Additionally, one of the key clues to the Monarch's identity was the color of his eyes. Monarch's eyes were blue, like Captain Atom. Hawk's eyes were brown.

Nonetheless, Hawk became Monarch, killed dove, tried to take over the world, and then eventually became the time traveling Extant. As Extant, he played a role in another DC crossover, Zero Hour. He was later killed during a story arc in JSA. He's been safely dead ever since.

But the Monarch would not die. A version of Monarch claiming to be the real Nathanial Adam (Captain Atom's secret identity) made an appearance in Extreme Justice in 1995. This was likely a nod to the Armageddon 2001 controversy. But like everything else connected with Extreme Justice, that version of Monarch hasn't been seen or heard from since.

It would be a decade before the next appearance of the Monarch. The events leading up to his appearance begin with the curiously named Captain Atom: Armageddon miniseries. In that series, Captain Atom is transported to the Wildstorm Universe (now known to some as Earth-50). After a series of adventures, he is flung back into the DC Universe in the ruins of Bludhaven.

The unconscious Captain Atom -- whose containment suit has been ruptured and is leaking radiation -- is held captive by SHADE. He is then rescued by the Atomic Knights, who supply him with a suit of very familiar armor to contain his leaking radiation. No dressed in the Monarch armor, Captain Atom escapes from the Atomic Knights' facility, seemingly kills Major Force, and obliterates the city of Bludhaven.

Captain Atom -- as the Monarch -- is next seen in Ion. After doing battle with the Tangent Universe characters, Kyle Rayner is thrown into the Bleed, a space between dimensions. There he is rescued from ferocious monsters by a super-powered being in the Monarch armor. This Monarch reveals himself to be Captain Atom, and explains that he has been "traveling" (presumably the Multiverse) and avoiding the gaze of the Monitors.

Which brings us full circle to this week's Countdown, the first appearance of the Monarch since Ion. Monarch recruits Forerunner to his cause -- whatever it may be -- and ominously tells her that he will show her a war "the likes of which no god or man has ever seen." And then, with Forerunner at his side, the Monarch disappears into the darkness.

The mystery of this Monarch has just begun, but it it is clear that his goals -- whatever they are -- will play a big part of Countdown and whatever it leads to. All that we know is that Monarch (presumably Captain Atom, though not explicitly stated) is gathering an army. Forerunner's backups in the upcoming Countdown to Adventure feature her traveling the Multiverse recruiting beings for something. It is very likely she is doing this at the behest of the Monarch.

Monarch has made it clear that he is no friend of the Monitors. And it seems that he is now taking steps to strike out at them. His travels through the Multiverse seem to have made him aware of the nature of whatever is coming. And he wants to be prepared. The only question really remaining is this: is this Monarch virtuous like Captain Atom? Or is he a villain, like the original Monarch?

Time will tell...