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Bleed (Wildstorm)
Encyclopedia
The Bleed is a fictional interdimensional realm, a comic book
construct that appears in books published by DC Comics
. It first appeared in Stormwatch
(vol. 2) #7 (May 1998), and was created by Warren Ellis
and Bryan Hitch
.
book Stormwatch
(vol. 2) #7 (May 1998), which was written by Warren Ellis
, and illustrated by Bryan Hitch
. The Bleed was depicted as a realm through which characters such as the Authority could travel between any two distant points much faster than in normal space.
After DC Comics
acquired Wildstorm in 1998
, the Bleed was explained as the space between the fictional DC Universe
and Wildstorm Universe
, across which characters could travel
, which first occurred when the Wildstorm character Mr. Majestic was transported to the DC Universe in his self-titled 1999 miniseries, with which the integration of the Wildstorm Universe
as one of many among the DC Multiverse
was established.
There were several minor crossovers until Captain Atom: Armageddon, in which Captain Atom
nearly inadvertently destroyed the Wildstorm Universe. Void
saved him but decided the Wildstorm Universe was not worth saving in its current form, triggering the "soft reset" of every series, known as "WorldStorm". In Ion #10, the Bleed appears for the first time in a mainstream DC book.
s. In the Wildstorm Universe, the most advanced beings can travel between parallel universes through the Bleed, or, simply, an arterial duct connecting to universes. Travelling through the Bleed is not without danger though and sometimes objects or beings get lost, appearing in times and places they were never meant to go. In addition, the Bleed has mutagenic properties that alter the make-up of any sentient being that enters it directly. The effects can be beneficial or detrimental, depending on the circumstances of the exposure.
The Bleed was officially discovered by a group of scientists working for Stormwatch
. They managed to look through the Bleed at a parallel universe using an opening several atoms thick. This universe featured a Jack Hawksmoor in charge of Stormwatch and he observes the scientists. Later it would be revealed that the Bleed had been discovered before; Jenny Sparks
had had contact with the Bleed-travellers from Sliding Albion in the early 20th century and Planetary
had catalogued numerous Bleed incursions. In Planetary
, Elijah Snow claimed that extraterrestrials have so much interest in Earth because they accessed The Bleed "too early." The Bleed would be used for less drastic purposes, such as bringing in new episodes of the television series The Prisoner
.
When The Authority obtained the Carrier, a vessel capable of traveling through the Bleed, Bleed incursions became far more numerous. To oversee the negative effects of these incursions, the Monarchy
was created.
The series Majestic
has shown that the Bleed also connects the Wildstorm multiverse to the DC Universe
, an idea that Planetary/Batman: Night on Earth presented, as well as Captain Atom
: Armageddon, which thus makes the Bleed perfect for contriving crossovers
.
The Authority/Planetary crossover, All Over the World, revealed that there is a hostile force operating within the Bleed that seeks out and exterminates Earths. Its first known attack on the Wildstorm Earth was in 1931 in Rhode Island, involving eggs specifically designed to spawn Lovecraftian
monsters when touched by humans; a second incursion occurred in 1999 involving killer robots that could self-replicate. The leaders of this force were a hideous reptilian version of the Authority. A storyline in the Monarchy reveals that this team is called the High Power and the world-killing force are Chimaera, an army made entirely of evil alternate Authorities created by the Authority's frequent travels in the Bleed.
Bleed-spawned alternate Authorities would show up multiple times in the realm of the Easter Bunny. This realm was inadverently created by the powerful Authority member Jenny Quantum
after she reads a violent comic book. Most of these doubles were killed.
(DC
) and the Worldstorm (Wildstorm) events the Bleed is still connected to the rebooted universes and acts as the space between them. Captain Atom
, after his stint in the Wildstorm Universe and brief return to the mainstream DC Universe, retreated into the Bleed. Upon this he discovered that the Monitors
(still aware of everything about the universes and the Multiverse itself), are unable to know what happens in the Bleed.
In Ion
#10, Kyle Rayner
makes his way into the Bleed with the help of the Tangent Comics
Green Lantern's lantern. From there he meets Captain Atom who sends him back to his Earth.
In Sinestro Corps
Special #1, we learn the Bleed is the space between Earths of the new Multiverse
, with the Source Wall
separating the various Earths from the Bleed itself.
In Countdown
it is shown that Monarch
(Nathaniel Adam
) is building an army in the Bleed for the upcoming Final Crisis
.
In Blue Beetle
#23, Jaime Reyes
learns to shift into the Bleed using his Blue Beetle Scarab, and observing that time moves differently there uses this to his advantage, so he can be in several places at the same time.
In Death of the New Gods
#5, Metron
and Source
discuss that the Source Wall actually separates the New Earth universe from the Bleed instead of holding the source.
In Final Crisis
: Superman Beyond #1, it is revealed that the multiversal Monitors
refer to the Bleed as the Ultramenstruum, and that the Authority's Carrier is a piece of Monitor technology. The void is later described as the "blood of life itself", that cannot be bottled or contained by anyone else but the Monitors, and that Mandrakk the Dark Monitor strives to consume, ending life in the whole Multiverse. There, the Captain Marvel
of Earth-5 is granted the personal Carrier of Zillo Valla, named the Ultima Thule, to warn the 52 Universes in the DC Multiverse of the upcoming invasion.
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
construct that appears in books published by DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
. It first appeared in Stormwatch
Stormwatch (comics)
Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team that originated in the Wildstorm Universe and has since been revived as part of the DC Universe. The original version of Stormwatch first appeared in Stormwatch Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team that...
(vol. 2) #7 (May 1998), and was created by Warren Ellis
Warren Ellis
Warren Girard Ellis is an English author of comics, novels, and television, who is well-known for sociocultural commentary, both through his online presence and through his writing, which covers transhumanist themes...
and Bryan Hitch
Bryan Hitch
Bryan Hitch is a British comic book artist. Hitch began his career in the United Kingdom for Marvel UK, working on titles such as Action Force and Death's Head, before gaining prominence on American titles such as Wildstorm's Stormwatch and The Authority, DC Comics titles such as JLA, and Marvel...
.
Publication history
The Bleed is an interdimensional realm that first appeared in the WildstormWildstorm
WildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, published American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
book Stormwatch
Stormwatch (comics)
Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team that originated in the Wildstorm Universe and has since been revived as part of the DC Universe. The original version of Stormwatch first appeared in Stormwatch Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team that...
(vol. 2) #7 (May 1998), which was written by Warren Ellis
Warren Ellis
Warren Girard Ellis is an English author of comics, novels, and television, who is well-known for sociocultural commentary, both through his online presence and through his writing, which covers transhumanist themes...
, and illustrated by Bryan Hitch
Bryan Hitch
Bryan Hitch is a British comic book artist. Hitch began his career in the United Kingdom for Marvel UK, working on titles such as Action Force and Death's Head, before gaining prominence on American titles such as Wildstorm's Stormwatch and The Authority, DC Comics titles such as JLA, and Marvel...
. The Bleed was depicted as a realm through which characters such as the Authority could travel between any two distant points much faster than in normal space.
After DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
acquired Wildstorm in 1998
1998 in comics
-Spring:* Gay Comix , with issue #25, publishes its final issue -October:* Toy Biz buys Marvel Comics* Excalibur is canceled by Marvel with issue #125.-November:...
, the Bleed was explained as the space between the fictional DC Universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
and Wildstorm Universe
Wildstorm Universe
The Wildstorm Universe is a fictional shared universe where the comic books published by Wildstorm take place. It represents an alternate history of the real world where ideas such as interstellar travel and superhuman abilities are commonplace...
, across which characters could travel
Multiverse (DC Comics)
The DC Multiverse is a fictional continuity construct that exists in stories published by comic book company DC Comics. The DC Multiverse consists of numerous worlds, most of them outside DC's main continuity, allowing writers the creative freedom to explore alternative versions of characters and...
, which first occurred when the Wildstorm character Mr. Majestic was transported to the DC Universe in his self-titled 1999 miniseries, with which the integration of the Wildstorm Universe
Wildstorm Universe
The Wildstorm Universe is a fictional shared universe where the comic books published by Wildstorm take place. It represents an alternate history of the real world where ideas such as interstellar travel and superhuman abilities are commonplace...
as one of many among the DC Multiverse
Multiverse (DC Comics)
The DC Multiverse is a fictional continuity construct that exists in stories published by comic book company DC Comics. The DC Multiverse consists of numerous worlds, most of them outside DC's main continuity, allowing writers the creative freedom to explore alternative versions of characters and...
was established.
There were several minor crossovers until Captain Atom: Armageddon, in which Captain Atom
Captain Atom
Captain Atom is a fictional comic book superhero that has existed in three basic incarnations. Created by writer Joe Gill and artist/co-writer Steve Ditko, he first appeared in Space Adventures #33 . Captain Atom was created for Charlton Comics but was later acquired by DC Comics and revised for...
nearly inadvertently destroyed the Wildstorm Universe. Void
Void (comics)
Void is a fictional character in the Wildstorm Universe.-Fictional character biography:Adrianna was born in Arkhangelsk, Russia. Adrianna and her sister Svetlana were raised by their father after the death of their mother. Her father loved Adrianna and her ambition to become a cosmonaut and...
saved him but decided the Wildstorm Universe was not worth saving in its current form, triggering the "soft reset" of every series, known as "WorldStorm". In Ion #10, the Bleed appears for the first time in a mainstream DC book.
Discovery
The Bleed is not a universe in itself, but it is defined as the space between parallel universeParallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...
s. In the Wildstorm Universe, the most advanced beings can travel between parallel universes through the Bleed, or, simply, an arterial duct connecting to universes. Travelling through the Bleed is not without danger though and sometimes objects or beings get lost, appearing in times and places they were never meant to go. In addition, the Bleed has mutagenic properties that alter the make-up of any sentient being that enters it directly. The effects can be beneficial or detrimental, depending on the circumstances of the exposure.
The Bleed was officially discovered by a group of scientists working for Stormwatch
Stormwatch (comics)
Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team that originated in the Wildstorm Universe and has since been revived as part of the DC Universe. The original version of Stormwatch first appeared in Stormwatch Stormwatch is a fictional United Nations-sponsored superhero team that...
. They managed to look through the Bleed at a parallel universe using an opening several atoms thick. This universe featured a Jack Hawksmoor in charge of Stormwatch and he observes the scientists. Later it would be revealed that the Bleed had been discovered before; Jenny Sparks
Jenny Sparks
Jenny Sparks, also known as "The Spirit of the 20th century", is a fictional character in the Wildstorm comic book universe created by Warren Ellis during his 1997 revamp of the dwindling Stormwatch series...
had had contact with the Bleed-travellers from Sliding Albion in the early 20th century and Planetary
Planetary (comics)
Planetary is an American comic book limited series created by writer Warren Ellis and artist John Cassaday published by the Wildstorm imprint of DC Comics...
had catalogued numerous Bleed incursions. In Planetary
Planetary (comics)
Planetary is an American comic book limited series created by writer Warren Ellis and artist John Cassaday published by the Wildstorm imprint of DC Comics...
, Elijah Snow claimed that extraterrestrials have so much interest in Earth because they accessed The Bleed "too early." The Bleed would be used for less drastic purposes, such as bringing in new episodes of the television series The Prisoner
The Prisoner
The Prisoner is a 17-episode British television series first broadcast in the UK from 29 September 1967 to 1 February 1968. Starring and co-created by Patrick McGoohan, it combined spy fiction with elements of science fiction, allegory and psychological drama.The series follows a British former...
.
When The Authority obtained the Carrier, a vessel capable of traveling through the Bleed, Bleed incursions became far more numerous. To oversee the negative effects of these incursions, the Monarchy
Monarchy (comic book)
The Monarchy was an American comic book series written by Doselle Young with art by John McCrea. It was published by Wildstorm. The Monarchy lasted 12 issues and had an intro-issue in The Authority #21....
was created.
The series Majestic
Mister Majestic
Mister Majestic is a fictional character, a Wildstorm Productions superhero created by H.K. Proger and Jim Lee. He first appears in a backup story within WildC.A.T.s #11. One of the most powerful heroes in the WildStorm universe, he bears a strong, deliberate resemblance to DC Comics's...
has shown that the Bleed also connects the Wildstorm multiverse to the DC Universe
DC Universe
The DC Universe is the shared universe where most of the comic stories published by DC Comics take place. The fictional characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are well-known superheroes from this universe. Note that in context, "DC Universe" is usually used to refer to the main DC continuity...
, an idea that Planetary/Batman: Night on Earth presented, as well as Captain Atom
Captain Atom
Captain Atom is a fictional comic book superhero that has existed in three basic incarnations. Created by writer Joe Gill and artist/co-writer Steve Ditko, he first appeared in Space Adventures #33 . Captain Atom was created for Charlton Comics but was later acquired by DC Comics and revised for...
: Armageddon, which thus makes the Bleed perfect for contriving crossovers
Fictional crossover
A fictional crossover is the placement of two or more otherwise discrete fictional characters, settings, or universes into the context of a single story. They can arise from legal agreements between the relevant copyright holders, or because of unauthorized efforts by fans, or even amid common...
.
The Authority/Planetary crossover, All Over the World, revealed that there is a hostile force operating within the Bleed that seeks out and exterminates Earths. Its first known attack on the Wildstorm Earth was in 1931 in Rhode Island, involving eggs specifically designed to spawn Lovecraftian
Cthulhu Mythos
The Cthulhu Mythos is a shared fictional universe, based on the work of American horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.The term was first coined by August Derleth, a contemporary correspondent of Lovecraft, who used the name of the creature Cthulhu - a central figure in Lovecraft literature and the focus...
monsters when touched by humans; a second incursion occurred in 1999 involving killer robots that could self-replicate. The leaders of this force were a hideous reptilian version of the Authority. A storyline in the Monarchy reveals that this team is called the High Power and the world-killing force are Chimaera, an army made entirely of evil alternate Authorities created by the Authority's frequent travels in the Bleed.
Bleed-spawned alternate Authorities would show up multiple times in the realm of the Easter Bunny. This realm was inadverently created by the powerful Authority member Jenny Quantum
Jenny Quantum
Jenny Quantum is a fictional comic book superhero in the Wildstorm Universe published by DC Comics. She first appeared as a child in The Authority #13 , and was created by Mark Millar and Frank Quitely...
after she reads a violent comic book. Most of these doubles were killed.
After the reboot
After the Infinite CrisisInfinite Crisis
Infinite Crisis is a 2005 - 2006 comic book storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of an eponymous, seven-issue comic book limited series written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway, and a number of tie-in books...
(DC
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
) and the Worldstorm (Wildstorm) events the Bleed is still connected to the rebooted universes and acts as the space between them. Captain Atom
Captain Atom
Captain Atom is a fictional comic book superhero that has existed in three basic incarnations. Created by writer Joe Gill and artist/co-writer Steve Ditko, he first appeared in Space Adventures #33 . Captain Atom was created for Charlton Comics but was later acquired by DC Comics and revised for...
, after his stint in the Wildstorm Universe and brief return to the mainstream DC Universe, retreated into the Bleed. Upon this he discovered that the Monitors
Monitors (comics)
The Monitors are a group of fictional comic book characters, who appear in books published by DC Comics.They are based on The Monitor, a character created by comic book writer Marv Wolfman and comic artist George Pérez as one of the main characters of DC Comics' Crisis on Infinite Earths limited...
(still aware of everything about the universes and the Multiverse itself), are unable to know what happens in the Bleed.
In Ion
Ion (comics)
Ion is a fictional character, a DC Comics superhero. Created by writer Judd Winick and artist Dale Eaglesham for Green Lantern vol. 3 #142, Ion was devised as the new superhero identity for Green Lantern protagonist Kyle Rayner. It was later revealed to be able to form mutualism with a host,...
#10, Kyle Rayner
Kyle Rayner
Kyle Rayner is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in books published by DC Comics, usually in those starring the Green Lantern Corps, an extraterrestrial police force of which Rayner is a member. Created by writer Ron Marz and artist Darryl Banks, Rayner first appeared in Green Lantern vol...
makes his way into the Bleed with the help of the Tangent Comics
Tangent Comics
Tangent Comics was a DC Comics imprint created in 1997–1998, developed from ideas created by Dan Jurgens. The line, formed from various one-shots, focused on creating all-new characters using established DC names, such as the Joker, Superman, and the Flash...
Green Lantern's lantern. From there he meets Captain Atom who sends him back to his Earth.
In Sinestro Corps
Sinestro Corps
The Sinestro Corps is a group of fictional characters, a villainous analogue to the Green Lantern Corps in the DC Universe. It is led by the supervillain Thaal Sinestro.-Before the Corps:...
Special #1, we learn the Bleed is the space between Earths of the new Multiverse
Multiverse (DC Comics)
The DC Multiverse is a fictional continuity construct that exists in stories published by comic book company DC Comics. The DC Multiverse consists of numerous worlds, most of them outside DC's main continuity, allowing writers the creative freedom to explore alternative versions of characters and...
, with the Source Wall
Source Wall
The Source Wall is a fictional structure in the . The wall lies on the edge of the known universe, in the Promethean Galaxy. Beyond the wall lies what is known as the Source, a cosmic essence or being that is the "source" of all that exists. The wall is theoretically passable. However, all those...
separating the various Earths from the Bleed itself.
In Countdown
Countdown to Final Crisis
Countdown, known as Countdown to Final Crisis for its last 24 issues based on the cover, was a comic book limited series published by DC Comics. It debuted on May 9, 2007, directly following the conclusion of the last issue of 52...
it is shown that Monarch
Monarch (comics)
Monarch is the name of three fictional DC Comics supervillains. The first Monarch is Hank Hall, formerly Hawk, who later renames himself Extant for the Zero Hour crossover. The second Monarch is Nathaniel Adam, a U.S. Army Captain. The third Monarch is Captain Atom, a former superhero...
(Nathaniel Adam
Captain Atom
Captain Atom is a fictional comic book superhero that has existed in three basic incarnations. Created by writer Joe Gill and artist/co-writer Steve Ditko, he first appeared in Space Adventures #33 . Captain Atom was created for Charlton Comics but was later acquired by DC Comics and revised for...
) is building an army in the Bleed for the upcoming Final Crisis
Final Crisis
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...
.
In Blue Beetle
Blue Beetle
Blue Beetle is the name of three fictional superheroes that appear in American comic books published by a variety of companies since 1939.-Publication history:...
#23, Jaime Reyes
Jaime Reyes
Blue Beetle is a fictional character who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appears in Infinite Crisis #3 Blue Beetle (Jaime Reyes) is a fictional character who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appears in Infinite Crisis #3 Blue...
learns to shift into the Bleed using his Blue Beetle Scarab, and observing that time moves differently there uses this to his advantage, so he can be in several places at the same time.
In Death of the New Gods
Death of the New Gods
Death of the New Gods was an eight-issue comic book limited series published in 2007 and 2008 by DC Comics. It was written and pencilled by Jim Starlin.The series follows the final days of the New Gods as they are stalked by a mysterious killer....
#5, Metron
Metron (comics)
Metron is a character created by Jack Kirby for his Fourth World series in DC Comics. He was "based on Leonard Nimoy as Spock", and designed as a character who "would frequently change sides [between New Genesis and Apokolips]"...
and Source
Source (comics)
The Source was a metaphysical concept created by writer/artist Jack Kirby for his Fourth World series of comic books. It first appeared in New Gods #1, .-History:...
discuss that the Source Wall actually separates the New Earth universe from the Bleed instead of holding the source.
In Final Crisis
Final Crisis
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...
: Superman Beyond #1, it is revealed that the multiversal Monitors
Monitors (comics)
The Monitors are a group of fictional comic book characters, who appear in books published by DC Comics.They are based on The Monitor, a character created by comic book writer Marv Wolfman and comic artist George Pérez as one of the main characters of DC Comics' Crisis on Infinite Earths limited...
refer to the Bleed as the Ultramenstruum, and that the Authority's Carrier is a piece of Monitor technology. The void is later described as the "blood of life itself", that cannot be bottled or contained by anyone else but the Monitors, and that Mandrakk the Dark Monitor strives to consume, ending life in the whole Multiverse. There, the Captain Marvel
Captain Marvel (DC Comics)
Captain Marvel is a fictional comic book superhero, originally published by Fawcett Comics and later by DC Comics. Created in 1939 by artist C. C. Beck and writer Bill Parker, the character first appeared in Whiz Comics #2...
of Earth-5 is granted the personal Carrier of Zillo Valla, named the Ultima Thule, to warn the 52 Universes in the DC Multiverse of the upcoming invasion.