The Pitt (Marvel Comics)
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- This article is about a Marvel Comics event. For other uses, see Pitt disambiguation pages
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The Pitt is a 1987 one-shot comic book written by John Byrne and Mark Gruenwald, and illustrated by Sal Buscema. It was published by Marvel Comics under its New Universe imprint. The event deals with the accidental total destruction of the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania at the hands of the wielder of the Star Brand, and the immediate 12-hour aftermath.
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[edit] Major characters
- The Witness (Nelson Kohler) - A man who died when the White Event hit, he became a ghost, unable to be seen or heard, but driven by a strange pull towards people who are about to manifest paranormal abilities.
- MacIntyre (Mac) Browning - Colonel in the Army's Defense Intelligence Agency called in to assess and handle the situation.
- Jenny Swensen (Spitfire) - Government agent and operator of the M.A.X. Armor, which is used to investigate the scene and try and rescue survivors.
[edit] Synopsis
The destruction occurred at exactly 6:06 pm Eastern Standard Time on December 22, 1987, and killed nearly half a million people, carving out a huge crater. The crater is also referred to as The Pitt. The event itself, within the fictional universe, is occasionally referred to as The Black Event, but is more commonly known as The Pitt. The Witness feels a strange but irresistible pull towards Pittsburgh, and gets there just in time to see Ken Connell transfer the Star Brand into an inanimate object, unwittingly creating the Pitt. He later wanders through the destruction, and eventually hallucinates ghosts of those killed in the event, blaming him for being unable to stop it. When the military learns of the event, they send in Colonel Browning to assess the situation, which is a total disaster. Jenny Swensen goes to investigate and map the scope of the crater, but is distracted when she detects a carful of survivors who were near the edge of the event and were blown in by the sudden inrush of air to fill the void. She rescues the family, but some of the mutagenic residue called Pitt Juice seeps through her armor and impairs her systems. When she returns, Jenny learns that Browning has sealed up the area, and refuses her permission to search for more survivors. Jenny goes AWOL in order to try and help as many people as she can.
Within the fictional universe, the destruction of Pittsburgh led to an increase in military control over the people, including the suspension of some civil rights. The city of New York and surrounding areas suffered a severe economic downturn as many of those who could afford to, started to move out, fearing the environmental impact of all the volcanic ash.
Most notably, The Pitt lead into The Draft which later led to The War.
[edit] Pitt stats
- Volume of sphere of effect: 65,313 cubic miles
- Area of land eradicated at ground level: 1,590 square miles
- Volume of earth eradicated: 14,888 cubic miles.
- Population of Greater Pittsburgh Region: 430,000
[edit] Pitt timeline
- December 22, 1987:
- 6:06 pm: Pitt created, as all matter within a sphere of approximately 25 miles radius, centered approximately 10 miles above the city is annihilated or converted into a strange form of matter at the bottom. A vortex of air begins to rush in from all directions.
- 6:17pm: Griffis Air Force Base in New York detects the Pitt.
- 10:00pm (approximately): Tornado force winds begin to subside.
- December 23, 1987:
- 1:43 am: The president authorizes a complete lockdown of the area.
- 4:27 am: News airs the first images of the Pitt to the nation.
- April 1988 (approximately): volcanic deposit begins forming a mound.
- July 1988 (approximately): "Mt. Pittsburgh" volcano in the Pitt's center reaches 7 miles from the bottom, and approximately 1 mile below the top. Volcanic ash begins to blanket the region.
[edit] Pitt juice
The sludge at the bottom of the Pitt had notable mutagenic properties to those it came in contact with. In particular, the effect often seemed to be to bind those exposed to the materials they were physically closest to at the time of exposure.
In particular, the following characters were exposed:
- A family of four was huddled together in a car while exposed, and eventually merged into a collective monster that hungered for new flesh.
- Jenny Swensen was exposed inside her armor, and later her skin grew as living metal.
- Randy O'Brien (DP7) was exposed while inside the "skin" of his antibodies and was later unable to absorb the antibody inside himself and look normal.
