Earth Prime
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| Earth Prime | |
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| Publication information | |
|---|---|
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Flash #179 (May, 1968) |
| In story information | |
| Type | Dimension |
Earth Prime (or Earth-Prime) is a term sometimes used in works of speculative fiction involving parallel universes or a multiverse, and refers either to the universe containing "our" Earth, or to a parallel world with a bare minimum of divergence points from Earth as we know it. (See also Pantheistic solipsism.)
[edit] DC Comics
In the original DC Multiverse, Earth-Prime was presented as the "real" Earth, the actual reality where the readers lived, DC Comics operated as a publisher and all superheroes are fictional. However, Earth Prime became an alternate reality in its first appearance in Flash #179 (May, 1968), when the Flash (Barry Allen) accidentally travels there from Earth-One. The Flash, stranded, contacts DC Comics editor Julius Schwartz, who helps him construct a cosmic treadmill to return to Earth One. Eventually it was stated that the writers of DC Comics of Earth Prime unconsciously base their stories on the adventures of the heroes on Earth-One and Earth-Two.
In Flash #228 (July/Aug 1974), Earth Prime's Cary Bates travels to Earth-One, where he discovers that the stories he writes are not only based on events on Earth-One, but can actually influence these events as well. This power turns for the worse in Justice League of America #123 (October 1975), when Bates is accidentally transported to Earth-Two. The interdimensional trip temporarily turns Bates into a supervillain, and he quickly kills the Justice Society of America. Luckily fellow DC writer Elliot S! Maggin, with the help of the Justice League and the Spectre, is able to restore matters on both Earths (in Justice League of America #124 (November, 1975).
Earth-Prime's history significantly deviated from the "real" Earth's history with the advent of two native superheroes. The first, Ultraa, was introduced in Justice League of America #153. Like Superman, Ultraa was the sole survivor of a destroyed alien world, rocketed to Earth-Prime as a baby. After his first encounter with the Justice League, Ultraa decided Earth-Prime was not ready for superheroes and relocated to Earth-One. Post-Crisis, when there was no longer an Earth Prime or greater multiverse, Ultraa was retconned into being from the planet Almerac, homeworld of Maxima.
The second superhero is Superboy-Prime, who first appeared in DC Comics Presents #87 (Nov. 1985). This Superboy's powers first manifested around the time of the passage of Halley's Comet in 1985. Just after manifesting his powers, Superboy-Prime met Earth-One's Superman. Very soon thereafter Earth-Prime was destroyed in Crisis on Infinite Earths #10. Superboy-Prime escaped his universe's destruction, and later joined Earth-Two's Superman, Lois Lane Kent, and Alexander Luthor in a "paradise dimension."
In issue #6 of the Infinite Crisis mini-series, a now villainous Superboy-Prime convinced Alexander Luthor that Earth-Prime was the ideal world and urged him to draw his inspiration for making a new Earth from Earth-Prime. Luthor began searching through the myriad Earths for Earth-Prime and, in a metatextual nod to Earth Prime's original status as the 'real' Earth, looks directly at the readers and reachs out towards them to grab our reality.
In 2004, DC revisited the Earth-Prime concept in the miniseries Superman: Secret Identity. Writer Kurt Busiek states in the introduction to the collected volume of the series that the original appearance of Superboy-Prime was the inspiration for his graphic novel.
[edit] Sliders
Earth Prime, as used in the television show Sliders, is the name of the alternate Earth where the four original sliders (Quinn Mallory, Wade Welles, Rembrandt Brown, and Maximillian Arturo) started their journey. This Earth was very similar to our Earth until 1997 or 1998, when the Kromaggs slid onto Earth Prime and took humanity hostage.
[edit] The Dark Tower
Much of the action in the last few books of Stephen King's Dark Tower series takes place in "the keystone world", essentially the Earth Prime concept under a different name, complete with appearances by King himself as a character.
