Amalgam Comics

Last updated
Amalgam Comics
Amalgam Comics logo.png
Amalgam Comics logo
Parent company DC Comics
Marvel Comics
Founded1996;28 years ago (1996)
Defunct1997;27 years ago (1997)
Country of origin United States
Publication types Comic books
Fiction genres Superhero fiction

Amalgam Comics was a collaborative publishing imprint shared by DC Comics and Marvel Comics, in which the two comic book publishers merged their characters into new ones (e.g., the DC Comics character Batman and the Marvel Comics character Wolverine became the Amalgam Comics character the Dark Claw). These characters first appeared in a series of 12 one-shots which were published in April 1996 between Marvel Comics versus DC #3 and DC versus Marvel Comics #4, the last two issues of the DC vs. Marvel crossover event. A second set of 12 one-shots followed one year later in June 1997, but without the crossover event as a background. [1] All 24 of these one-shots took place between the aforementioned issues of DC vs. Marvel Comics.

Contents

Marvel Encyclopedia: Fantastic Four (2004) originally designated the Amalgam Universe as Earth-962 in the Marvel Multiverse, [2] then The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Alternate Universes 2005 re-designated it as Earth-9602. [3] [4] Page 436 of the book The Essential Wonder Woman Encyclopedia (2015) by Phil Jimenez and John Wells (under the entry "Wallis, Angelica" in the "W" section) designated the Amalgam Universe as Earth-496 in the DC Multiverse. [5] In Dark Crisis: Big Bang #1 (February 2023), it was re-designated as Earth 1996. [6]

Publication history

On two separate occasions – April 1996 and June 1997 – DC and Marvel co-published a total of 24 one-shot "first issues" (12 in April 1996 (six by DC and six by Marvel) and 12 in June 1997 (again, six by DC and six by Marvel)) under the imprint Amalgam Comics. The issues were all presented as if the "company" had existed for decades, with stories and editorial comments referring to a fictional history stretching back to the Golden Age of Comic Books, including retcons and reboots; for example, they referred to Secret Crisis of the Infinity Hour (an amalgamation of Marvel's Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars , DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths , Marvel's The Infinity Gauntlet , and DC's Zero Hour: Crisis in Time! , respectively), which featured the well-known cover of Crisis on Infinite Earths #7, but with Super-Soldier holding the dead body of his teenage sidekick the American Girl (an amalgamation of DC's Supergirl and Marvel's Carol Danvers and James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes) [7] instead of Superman holding the dead body of Supergirl. Nineteen of the 24 issues included phony letter columns to provide the illusion of background to the stories, with the fans' hometowns formed by amalgamating the names of existing American cities. [8]

The first Amalgam event occurred near the end of the four-issue DC vs. Marvel crossover event in April 1996. In Marvel Comics versus DC #3, the DC and Marvel Universes were shown being combined into one – the Amalgam Universe – and the Amalgam one-shots were presented as the result of this. The first 12 Amalgam titles were released the following week, delaying both publishers' regular releases by one week. Six of the issues in the event were published by DC and six by Marvel. In June 1997 the process was repeated, but without the crossover event as a background. [8] Later, both publishers collected their respective 12 issues into four trade paperback collections. [9] All 24 of the Amalgam one-shots took place between Marvel Comics versus DC #3 and DC versus Marvel Comics #4, the last two issues of the crossover event.

Between the two events of Amalgam Comics, the two publishers released a sequel crossover miniseries to DC vs. Marvel #1–4 primarily published by DC, DC/Marvel: All Access #1–4 (Dec. 1996–Feb. 1997 (issues #2 and 3 were both cover dated Jan. 1997)). A second sequel crossover miniseries primarily published by Marvel, Unlimited Access #1–4 (Dec. 1997–March 1998), followed the second event. Both crossover miniseries featured additional Amalgam characters.

Fictional origin of the Amalgam Universe

The two comic book universes came together when the two cosmic beings who were the physical incarnations of their respective universes (referred to as "the Brothers") became aware of each other after eons of slumber. To prevent the Brothers from destroying each other, characters from each universe battled to determine which universe would survive (a real world vote by readers of the series was conducted to determine the outcome of five of the in-comic battles, with three of them favoring the Marvel hero). Access, a new character created specifically for the event and co-owned by both DC and Marvel, served as a gatekeeper who became stuck while traveling between the two universes.

When the battles were finished, neither universe was willing to go. To prevent their total destruction, the Spectre and the Living Tribunal created an amalgamated universe, in which only Access and Doctor Strangefate (Charles Xavier) (an amalgamation of Doctor Fate, Doctor Strange and Professor X) knew the truth about the merge. The two characters fought against each other either to reverse the change (in the case of Access) or to preserve it (in the case of Doctor Strangefate).

Access managed to separate the Brothers with the help of the Amalgam Universe's superheroes; before the merge had taken place, he had planted shards of the two universes inside Batman and Captain America. Once he discovered the Dark Claw (an amalgamation of Batman and Wolverine) and Super-Soldier (an amalgamation of Superman and Captain America), he used those shards to give the Spectre and the Living Tribunal the power to restore the two universes. Batman, Captain America and Access were thus able to make the Brothers realize that their conflict was pointless and the two universes were separated once again. [1]

Amalgam Comics characters

During the crossover event, pairs of DC and Marvel characters were merged into single characters. The same was done with teams and fictional locations.

Amalgam Comics comic books

The 24 one-shots have been reprinted in four trade paperbacks:

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Crisis on Infinite Earths</i> Limited DC comic crossover series

Crisis on Infinite Earths is a 1985 to 1986 American comic book crossover series published by DC Comics. Written by Marv Wolfman and pencilled by George Pérez, it was first released as a 12-issue limited series from April 1985 to March 1986. As the main piece of a crossover event, some plot elements were featured in tie-in issues of other publications. Since its initial publication, the series has been reprinted in various formats and editions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Justice League</span> Comic book superhero team

The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #28. Writer Gardner Fox conceived the team as a revival of the Justice Society of America, a similar team from DC Comics from the 1940s which had been pulled out of print due to a decline in sales. The Justice League is an all-star ensemble cast of established superhero characters from DC Comics' portfolio. Diegetically, these superheroes usually operate independently but occasionally assemble as a team to tackle especially formidable villains. This is in contrast to certain other superhero teams such as the X-Men, whose characters were created specifically to be part of the team, with the team being central to their identity. The cast of the Justice League usually features a few highly popular characters who have their own solo books, such as Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, alongside several lesser-known characters who benefit from exposure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DC Universe</span> Shared universe of the comic stories published by DC Comics

The DC Universe (DCU) 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Pérez</span> American comic book artist and writer (1954-2022)

George Pérez was an American comic book artist and writer, who worked primarily as a penciller. He came to prominence in the 1970s penciling Fantastic Four and The Avengers for Marvel Comics. In the 1980s he penciled The New Teen Titans, which became one of DC Comics' top-selling series. He penciled DC's landmark limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths, followed by relaunching Wonder Woman as both writer and penciller for the rebooted series. In the meantime, he worked on other comics published by Marvel, DC, and other companies into the 2010s. He was known for his detailed and realistic rendering, and his facility with complex crowd scenes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Power Girl</span> DC Comics superheroine

Power Girl, also known as Kara Zor-L, Karen Starr, and Paige Stetler, is a superheroine appearing in American comic books by DC Comics, making her first appearance in All Star Comics #58. Power Girl is the cousin of the superhero Superman, but from an alternate universe in the fictional multiverse in which DC Comics stories are set. Originally hailing from the world of Earth-Two, first envisioned as the home of DC's wartime heroes as published in 1940s comic books, Power Girl becomes stranded in the main universe where DC stories are set, and becomes acquainted with that world's Superman and her own counterpart, Supergirl.

<i>DC vs. Marvel</i> Comic book miniseries crossover

DC vs. Marvel is a comic book miniseries intercompany crossover published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics from February to May 1996. Each company would publish two issues of the miniseries, thus the title difference between issues #1 and 4 as DC vs. Marvel Comics from DC and issues #2–3 from Marvel as Marvel Comics vs. DC. The miniseries was written by Ron Marz and Peter David, with art by Dan Jurgens and Claudio Castellini.

American comic book tropes are common elements and literary devices related to American comic books.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ron Marz</span> American comic book writer (born 1965)

Ron Marz is an American comic book writer, known for his work on titles such as Batman/Aliens, DC vs. Marvel, Green Lantern, Silver Surfer, and Witchblade.

A fifth week event is a novelty comic book promotion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">José Luis García-López</span> Spanish comic book artist (born 1948)

José Luis García-López is a Spanish-Argentine comics artist who works in the United States, particularly in a long-running relationship with DC Comics. In addition to his storytelling art, he has been responsible for producing the official reference art for characters in the DC Comics Style Guide, as used in licensed merchandise.

Valdis "Val" Semeiks is an American comic book artist who has mostly worked for DC Comics and Marvel Comics.

One of the key aspects of the Modern Age of Comic Books was that it was the beginning of big events. In 1984, Marvel Comics debuted the first large crossover, Secret Wars, a storyline featuring the company's most prolific superheroes, which overlapped into a 12-issue limited series and many monthly comic books. A year later, DC Comics introduced its first large-scale crossover, Crisis on Infinite Earths, which had long-term effects on the "DC Universe" continuity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Final Crisis</span> Limited DC Comics crossover series

"Final Crisis" is a crossover storyline that appeared in comic books published by DC Comics in 2008, primarily the seven-issue miniseries of the same name written by Grant Morrison. Originally DC announced the project as being illustrated solely by J. G. Jones; artists Carlos Pacheco, Marco Rudy and Doug Mahnke later provided art for the series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Multiverse (DC Comics)</span> Fictional multiverse used by DC Comics

In most of the DC Comics media, the Multiverse is a "cosmic construct" that is composed of the many fictional universes the stories of DC media take place in. The worlds within the multiverse share a space and fate in common, and its structure has changed several times in the history of DC Comics.

<i>The Multiversity</i> Comic book limited series

The Multiversity is a two-issue limited series combined with seven interrelated one-shots set in the DC Multiverse in The New 52, a collection of universes seen in publications by DC Comics. The one-shots in the series were written by Grant Morrison, each with a different artist. The Multiversity began in August 2014 and ran until April 2015.

Intercompany crossovers in comic books consist of comics in which characters and other elements owned by one publisher appear together and interact with ones owned by another. Such occurrences within the medium of comics as opposed to other types of media are notable, given the regularity of canonical crossovers between characters and series under a single publisher, particularly in DC Comics and Marvel Comics, where they constantly affect mainstream continuity for the parties involved. As a result, intercompany comics crossovers are less common, and usually take the form of one-shots or miniseries that are not canonical to the history of the characters that are featured.

References

  1. 1 2 DCO PattyJ. "DC vs. Marvel". Superman Homepage. Retrieved January 28, 2011.
  2. ↑ Marvel Encyclopedia: Fantastic Four (2004)
  3. ↑ Earth-Amalgam at The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
  4. ↑ "Amalgam Comics". June 20, 2008. Retrieved March 24, 2011.
  5. ↑ Jimenez, Phil; Wells, John (2015). The Essential Wonder Woman Encyclopedia. Del Rey Books/Ballantine Books. p. 436. ISBN   978-0-385-36503-1 . Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  6. ↑ Dark Crisis: Big Bang #1 (February 2023)
  7. ↑ American Girl at The Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
  8. 1 2 Radford, Bill (April 20, 1997). "New Amalgam comics bring back characters, add a few". Beaver County Times. Retrieved January 28, 2011.
  9. ↑ Weiner, Robert G. (2008). Marvel Graphic Novels and Related Publications: An Annotated Guide to Comics, Prose Novels, Children's Books, Articles, Criticism and Reference Works, 1965–2005. McFarland. p. 385. ISBN   978-0-7864-2500-6 . Retrieved January 28, 2011.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.