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Negative Zone

Fictitious dimension From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Negative Zone
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The Negative Zone is a fictional setting, an antimatter universe appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The location is depicted in various publications from Marvel, most frequently in Fantastic Four and Captain Marvel. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, it first appeared in Fantastic Four #51 (June 1966).

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Fictional description

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The Negative Zone in the Marvel Universe is a universe parallel to Earth's. While the universes are similar in many respects they are different in that: all matter in the Negative Zone is negatively charged; the Negative Zone is entirely filled with a pressurized, breathable atmosphere; and near the center of the Negative Zone is a deadly vortex of unspeakable power. Since the Negative Zone is largely uninhabited, several would-be conquerors have attempted to bridge the gap to Earth and take over its population. Notable residents of the Negative Zone include Blastaar and Annihilus.

The Negative Zone is often visited by the Fantastic Four as Mister Fantastic discovered it, and has mapped portions of it extensively. The Age of Apocalypse version of Blink also visited it once, proving that there is only one Negative Zone that does not change with the multiverse.[1]

For a number of years, Mar-Vell and Rick Jones were bonded to each other, causing one of them to exist in the Negative Zone while the other would exist in the regular universe. They exchanged places by clasping the special bracelets each wore or automatically after a few hours.

Spider-Man has also visited the Negative Zone, and acquired a costume that allowed him to merge with shadows and become practically invisible.[volume & issue needed] When he was framed by Norman Osborn a few weeks later, he used the costume to become the dark, mysterious Dusk (one of his four new superhero identities during the Identity Crisis story arc).[volume & issue needed] A few months later after Spider-Man's name was cleared, Cassie St. Commons was given the guise of Dusk and joined the Slingers.[volume & issue needed] Cletus Kasady also visited the Negative Zone, finding and bonding with a symbiote there, as he had lost the original Carnage symbiote when Venom absorbed it into his own symbiote.[volume & issue needed]

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History

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The Negative Zone 1.5 million years ago, nearly coinciding with the rise of the Skrull and Kree races. It is believed that around that time the Negative Zone ceased expanding and began its "Big Crunch", contracting toward a central nexus. Some of the most powerful and influential races thereby faced destruction and sought to preserve their lives, including the Tyannans. During this time, Blastaar and Annihilus rise to power.

While searching for a way to travel through sub-space, Reed Richards discovers a gateway to the Negative Zone.[2] After studying the Negative Zone using drones, Reed concludes that it is largely unpopulated. He—and others—use the Negative Zone on several occasions to get rid of difficult enemies, such as the Super-Adaptoid and Galactus.[3][4] In Civil War, Iron Man, Mister Fantastic and Yellowjacket create a massive prison in the Negative Zone to house captured non-registered heroes as they await trial. It is designated Negative Zone Prison Alpha and also known as "Project 42", as it had been the 42nd idea out of a hundred that the three created.

In Secret Invasion: Fantastic Four, the Skrull warrior Lyja (posing as Susan Richards) sends the Baxter Building into the Negative Zone. She reveals herself to Johnny Storm (her former spouse) and attacks him, feeling angry that he had forgotten her. Johnny saves Lyja from being hit by a police car, but they are both pulled in through a portal. The two reconcile and fend off a Negative Zone creature that attacks them. Lyja refuses to leave the Negative Zone, intending to find out who she is.[5]

The Negative Zone is used to dispose of Earth-616's Galactus when he is accidentally transferred to the Ultimate Marvel universe due to the temporal distortions caused by the events of Age of Ultron. The heroes of the Ultimate Marvel universe reason that Galactus will starve to death in the Negative Zone without sustenance, as the Zone is composed of inedible antimatter.[3]

In Annihilation: Scourge, the Sentry visits the Negative Zone, struggling to understand his new state of self and attempting to separate himself from the Void, his malevolent alternate personality.[6] After absorbing negative cosmic rays, the Sentry separates himself from the Void, but is left powerless.[7] The Void invades the Negative Zone, but is defeated by Beta Ray Bill and Lockjaw.[8]

Squirrel Girl later banishes her clone Allene and her squirrels to the Negative Zone. They settle on one of the planets, which they establish as Squirreltopia 5000.[9]

Silk visited the Negative Zone with Fact Channel News members Lola and Rafferty to find her parents Albert Moon Sr. and Nari Moon. They befriend a dragon named David and learn that Nari has been operating as the Red King, who leads the Knights Gheva, and that Albert is a prisoner of Ash King. Silk rescues her parents and returns with them to Earth.[10]

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Unique features

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The Crossroads of Infinity

The Crossroads of Infinity is a vortex at the center of the Negative Zone that serves as a nexus to other universes. However, travel through it is dangerous and runs the risk of the traveler imploding.[volume & issue needed]

The Distortion Area

The Distortion Area is an invisible sphere of energy that links other dimensions.

Life

The Negative Zone is capable of supporting life, but is largely uninhabited. Most of the encounters heroes have had with the Negative Zone involve Annihilus or Blastaar.

Time

Being a different dimension with different laws of physics, time flows slower in the Negative Zone than it does on Earth. This ratio decreases the closer one is to the Negative Zone's center and eventually becomes a 1:1 ratio.

Planets

The Negative Zone includes the following planets:

  • Argor – A planet that is home to the Argorans.
  • Arthros – A planet that is home to Annihilus and the Arthosians (a race of insectoids).
  • Baluur – A planet that is home to Blastaar.
  • Kestor – A planet that was destroyed causing the Kestorians to become nomads.
  • Squirreltopia 5000 - A planet that is settled on by Allene Green (a clone of Squirrel Girl) and her loyal squirrels.[9]
  • Tarsuu –
  • Tyanna – A planet that is home to the Tyannans (a race of lion-like aliens). Tyanna is located at the Crossroads of Infinity. The Tyannan scientists genetically engineered a spore that could be scattered over an uninhabited planet's surface and grow into new plants and animals, rendering the plant habitable.

Other versions

In the Blink miniseries, it is established that there is only one Negative Zone in the multiverse, with exit points to different realities and timelines, as the Blink from the Age of Apocalypse found herself in a Negative Zone that still remembered the Fantastic Four's role in defeating Annihilus despite the fact that the team never existed in her world.[1] During the Cataclysm event, it is established that there is only one Negative Zone in the multiverse, with the Zone containing exit points to different realities and timelines.[11]

Ultimate Marvel (The N-Zone)

The Ultimate Marvel equivalent of the Negative Zone is the N-Zone, a zone that exists directly below the Ultimate Marvel universe. It is a universe in the later stages of entropic heat death, which will destroy it in less than a million years. The N-Zone has an atmosphere that is lethally acidic to humans.[12]

Heroes Reborn (2021)

In an alternate reality depicted in the 2021 "Heroes Reborn" miniseries, the Squadron Supreme of America utilizes the Negative Zone to imprison Earth's most dangerous villains.[13][full citation needed]

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In other media

Television

Film

The Negative Zone appears in the original script for Fantastic Four (2015) before it was reworked into Planet Zero, a planet with unstable energy that causes the titular characters and Victor von Doom's mutations.[14][15]

Video games

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See also

References

External links

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