1. Marvel and DC Comics: A Representative Case Study of Metaphysics in Modern Popular Culture
As discussed in a previous article, modern popular culture is full of symbolism and ancient metaphysical doctrines. In this article, we will analyze two of the most important examples of our time: Marvel and DC comics.
They have become the de facto mythologies of children who grew up without one, especially in the nihilistic Western world, where traditional metaphysical and religious concepts were downplayed and almost erased, leaving the empty space left ready for the taking (The Books of Magic, for example, is a comic series specifically dedicated to explaining the metaphysics and cosmology of the DC Comics Universe through the eyes of a twelve-year-old boy).
Specific infographics are dedicated below to the metaphysical concepts shown in both franchises, as the current main players in popular culture and mass entertainment.
As we can see, their teachings are mostly the same. They include:
a. Metaphysics and Worldview of DC Comics
- Impersonal Monism (Pantheism/Panentheism): ultimate reality is described as the Void of Nothingness or Sea of Brahma before the Creator (also known as God´s unconscious mind [Justice League Dark Vol.1 #39] or The Overvoid, a living conscious Void of infinite abstract intelligence). The metaphor used is that of an infinite canvas of pure white (All-Possibility, pure potentiality).
o Emanationism: we are all a manifestation of the Void. Therefore, we just have to realize our intrinsic true nature as God (“each drop of water is the Ocean” metaphor).
- Personal God as derived from the Void (The Presence): the form and shape that a personal creator God takes emanates from the pre-existent Void. Often represented as the God of the Abrahamic religions and, in particular, showing Christian attributes. Yahweh is portrayed as a manifestation of the Presence, not as ultimate reality, which is the Void. However, many pantheons of gods co-exist (e.g., Greek ones) as partial personifications and manifestations of different aspects of the Void.
- Complementary Dualism and paired Male/Female Cosmic Entities (similar to, for example, Syzygies in Gnosticism):
o The Source: the energetic aspect of The Presence (similar to Shiva/Shakti or Purusha/Prakriti [Spirit/Matter] in Hinduism, or to the sexually joined deities of Tibetan tantric Buddhism). It has a complementary feminine counterpart in Mother Entity. It is the source of limitless energy and of all that exists.
o Monitor (matter) and Anti-Monitor (anti-matter): cosmic entities that promote or destroy all life in the Universe, respectively.
o “Evil” as Chaos: the necessary counterpart of Order, each one defining and implying the other.
- The Seven Forces of the Universe (similar to the seven classical alchemical planets, or the Gnostic Archons): born of The Presence through The Source. Creation comes from them.
- Cycle of Rebirths and Cyclical Existence.
b. Metaphysics and Worldview of Marvel Comics
- Monism (Pantheism/Panentheism): The One Above All is the highest creative force in the Marvel Universe, using the figure of the author as a metaphor. It is also called The Fulcrum, meaning the central point of balance between two opposites. The One Above All lives in the House of Ideas, or “Heaven,” (similar to the Neo-Platonic Nous/Intellect, which emanates from the One).
“I am the One Above All. I see through many eyes. I build with many hands. They are themselves, but they are also me. I am all-powerful. My only weapon is love. The mystery intrigues me.”
- Emanationism: we are both ourselves and direct emanations from this God.
- A Modalist Triadic God: in the figure of The Living Tribunal, which is subordinated and represents The One Above All. The Tribunal is a triadic being, with each of its three faces representing an aspect or mode of manifestation of the One (equity, vengeance and necessity; Modalism: similar to Hindu Trimurti and contrary to Trinitarian Christianity). It is a personification of the Multiverse and its laws. It may act to prevent cosmic imbalances, including that of good or evil, within a particular Universe.
- Secondary Gods as the Personification of Abstract Universal Forces.
- Complementary Dualism:
o The One Below All: The One Above All (pure love; creative Force) can also manifest as this entity (God´s shadow; pure hate; destructive Force), who serves as the necessary counterweight to the expanding life in the Multiverse.
Multiplicity as Evil. Destruction as reverting particular existences back to the homogeneity of the One: the “mystery” (of the “other”) frightens and disgusts The One Below All, while it intrigues The One Above All, its creative aspect.
o The In-Betweener: a cosmic being that exists between dichotomies. Created by Master Order and Lord Chaos to maintain a universal balance, he is the personification of the Union of Opposites such as life and death, reality and illusion, good and evil, logic and emotion, existence and nothingness, and god and man.
o The Logos: the Union of Opposites between Order, Chaos and the In-Betweener, who acts as the glue that binds them together and reconciles them (similar to the Filioque trinitarian structure added to Christianity by Roman Catholicism).
- Cyclical Cosmology.
c. Synthesis and Summary of Common Metaphysical Concepts
Condensing the overall message transmitted by both giants of the entertainment industry, we end up with this summary statement:
Ultimate reality is the One, an absolutely simple Monad that emanates all reality, including any personal god that may exist in addition to each of us. Multiplicity, therefore, is “evil” since it is the opposite of absolute unity. But this “evil”, which necessarily includes the existence of death and complementary dualities at each level of creation, is needed if we want to exist as particular individuals.
Given that the One is defined as All-Possibility, its necessary counterpart is the Multiverse (All-Actuality, the realization of all these possibilities). Since nothing is excluded from the Absolute, “evil” (understood as the egotistic individuality of Chaos, the counterpart of Order) is also a part of it. It has a role to play in allowing the multiplicity that is required for our particular existence, and it should be both understood and integrated (in a balanced way) as a legitimate aspect of both ultimate reality and ourselves.
This simplified statement could also be used verbatim to define the message of other cultural phenomena such as, for example, Neon Genesis Evangelion. Japan and the USA, East and West, are united in the message they put forth.
2. The Case of the Multiverse
In recent times, the concept of the Multiverse has become ubiquitous in popular culture. The Marvel and DC cinematic universes may have been the main culprits of this surge in popularity, but they are not the only ones.
A few of the most popular examples in recent years are: Adventure Time (2010-2018), Rick and Morty (2013-Ongoing), The Lego Movie (2014), The Man In The High Castle (2015-2019), Dragon Ball Super (2015), Dark (2017–2020), Riverdale (2017), Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), Russian Doll (2019), His Dark Materials (2019–2022), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), What If…? (2021- ), Loki (2021–2023), Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022), Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022), The Flash (2023), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) and Final Fantasy VII Remake/Rebirth (2020-2024). This tendency is set to continue (e.g., Avengers: Secret Wars [2027]).
Given the relationship between this concept and the ones reviewed above, it is not difficult to make predictions regarding what other metaphysical ideas may become popular and make an appearance on our TV screens in the future.
Notes
- https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Jesus_of_Nazareth_(Earth-616).
- https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Jesus_of_Nazareth_(New_Earth).
- https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Swamp_Thing_Vol_2_88_(Unpublished).
Recommended Reading
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- IMAGE 1. DC Comics image references: The Books of Magic, Justice League Dark, Lucifer, The Sandman, The Spectre, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Hellblazer, among others. A list of references can be found HERE.
- IMAGE 2. Marvel Comics image references: Journey into Mystery, Avengers, Doctor Strange, Immortal Hulk, Eternals, and Fantastic Four, among others. A list of references can be found HERE.
- 1https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Jesus_of_Nazareth_(Earth-616)
- 2https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Jesus_of_Nazareth_(New_Earth)
- 3https://dc.fandom.com/wiki/Swamp_Thing_Vol_2_88_(Unpublished)
- 4Silver Surfer Vol 3 17
