Originally posted by MrMind
Ordering these Marvel cosmic realms from top to bottom, based on current interpretations, especially those heavily influenced by Al Ewing's work (e.g., Defenders Beyond), would look like this:
House of Ideas: This is the absolute apex. It's the ultimate source of all creation, concepts, and stories in the Marvel Omniverse. It's essentially the mind of the One Above All, the supreme being. All other realms and realities are born from or contained within its conceptual framework.
White Hot Room (The Mystery/The Above Place): While intricately linked to the Phoenix Force, recent revelations (again, largely from Al Ewing) place the White Hot Room as a significant part of "The Mystery" or "The Above Place." It's understood as the remnants of the very First Cosmos and a place of primal creation, representing the "idea" of creation, life, and rebirth. It sits conceptually just below the House of Ideas.
The Beyond Realm (The Beyonders' Realm / The Far Shore): This is the domain of the Beyonders, the immensely powerful extra-dimensional beings who were responsible for the destruction of previous Multiverses (specifically the Second Cosmos). It exists outside of the standard Multiverse and is a realm of immense power, but it is ultimately subordinate to the White Hot Room and the House of Ideas. It's often conceptualized as the "engine room" of creation for previous cosmos.
The Neutral Zone / Exo-Space: This is a conceptual "buffer zone" or "space between spaces" that exists within the larger Multiverse but separates individual realities. It's often depicted as a void or a realm where positive and negative matter can coexist without annihilating each other. It acts as a barrier, preventing uncontrolled interaction between universes and sometimes leading to dangerous incursions if breached.
The Superflow: The Superflow is the space between the individual universes within the Marvel Multiverse. It's a sort of psychic or informational conduit where concepts and abstract entities can manifest. It's the "stuff" that fills the gaps between the bubbles of individual universes. While vast and containing abstract concepts, it is still contained within the larger Multiversal structure.
Marvel Multiverse: This is the collection of all alternate universes that readers are familiar with, including Earth-616 (the primary Marvel Universe) and countless other realities (Earth-1610, Earth-TRNXXX, etc.). Each universe is its own self-contained reality with its own set of physics, histories, and inhabitants. The Multiverse itself is a vast, ever-expanding collection of these individual universes.
Simplified Order from Top to Bottom:
House of Ideas (Ultimate source of all)
White Hot Room (Primal creation, remnants of the First Cosmos, part of "The Mystery"
The Beyond Realm (Home of the Beyonders, tied to the Second Cosmos)
The Neutral Zone / Exo-Space (Buffer between universes within the Multiverse)
The Superflow (Space and conceptual conduit between universes)
Marvel Multiverse (The collection of all individual universes)
It's important to note that Marvel's cosmology can be incredibly complex and subject to writer interpretation, but this order reflects the most recent and comprehensive attempts to map out these high-level realms.
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Okay, let's map out the DC Comics cosmology based on your provided points, incorporating the generally accepted hierarchical structure. DC's cosmology, especially in recent years with Scott Snyder's Justice League and Grant Morrison's various works, has become incredibly intricate.
The Overvoid / The Primal Monitor: Still the absolute highest. It's the blank page, the boundless canvas upon which all of creation, including infinite multiverses, is drawn. The Primal Monitor is its self-aware aspect.
The Great Darkness: The primordial anti-creation force, often seen as emerging from the Overvoid's primal "flaw" or opposite. It's a fundamental aspect of reality's absolute deepest level.
The Presence's Creation / The Omniverse (beyond the Source Wall): This is where the crucial distinction comes in. The "Source Wall" as we knew it (which contained our 52-universe Multiverse) is now understood to be just one layer within a much, much larger construct. The true "Omniverse" contains potentially infinite Multiverses, each created by different "Super-Celestials" or similar cosmic entities, with Perpetua's creation being just one of these countless Multiverses.
Within this larger Omniverse, you would then have the various dimensional layers that apply to each individual Multiverse. The specific levels you mentioned (Sixth Dimension, Fifth Dimension, Fourth Dimension, Sphere of the Gods) primarily pertain to Perpetua's particular Multiverse.
Infinite Multiverses (e.g., Perpetua's Creation, and countless others): This is the key. The DC reality isn't just one Multiverse of 52 (or even infinitely expanding universes within that one Multiverse). Instead, there are infinite Multiverses, each a collection of universes, and each possibly governed by its own foundational principles or "creation teams" like Perpetua and her sons. The Chronicler and the Fuginauts exist at this level, traveling between these distinct Multiverses within the larger Omniverse. The Chronicler's book documenting "trillions of dead multiverses" directly supports this, indicating that Perpetua's current Multiverse is merely one iteration among an incomprehensibly vast number that have existed and perished.
The Sixth Dimension: This is the realm of Multiverse-forging (like Perpetua's workshop), but specifically for a Multiverse. It's a plane of high-level creation and design that operates on the Multiversal scale.
The Fifth Dimension: The dimension of imagination, whose influence can ripple down into the universes.
The Fourth Dimension (The Monitor Sphere / Limbo): The observational plane for a Multiverse, where the Monitors (like those who observed Perpetua's Multiverse) reside.
The Sphere of the Gods (The Bleed): The conceptual space that surrounds and connects the universes within a specific Multiverse, containing the divine realms.
The Third Dimensional Infinite Universes (The DC Multiverse - e.g., Earth-0, Earth-2, etc.): The individual universes that constitute a single Multiverse.
Revised and Expanded Order (Top to Bottom):
The Overvoid / The Primal Monitor (The ultimate void/canvas)
The Great Darkness (Primordial anti-force within the Overvoid)
The Omniverse / The Presence's Creation (containing infinite Multiverses)
Chronicler / Fuginaut's Realm (The "space" between distinct Multiverses, where entities that traverse them reside. They observe and sometimes interact with individual Multiverses.)
Infinite Multiverses (Each a distinct cosmic construct, like "Perpetua's Multiverse" or countless others, often with their own internal hierarchies below this point. This is where the Chronicler sees trillions of dead ones.)
The Sixth Dimension (e.g., Perpetua's forging realm for her Multiverse)
The Fifth Dimension (Realm of imagination for that Multiverse)
The Fourth Dimension (The Monitor Sphere / Limbo) (Observational layer for that Multiverse)
The Sphere of the Gods (The Bleed) (Higher-dimensional realms and connecting layer for that Multiverse)
The Third Dimensional Infinite Universes (The DC Multiverse) (The collection of individual universes like Earth-0, Earth-2, etc., that make up one specific Multiverse.)
This revised structure better accounts for Snyder's revelations about the scale of the Omniverse and the existence of multiple, distinct Multiverses beyond just the one we primarily follow. Perpetua's creation is a multiverse within the larger omniverse.
