Monthly Archives: March 2020

The DC Comics universe is home to some of the most powerful artifacts in all of fiction. The comics are populated by higher dimensional beings, gods and deities without equals, and technologicalentities so advanced they appear to be magic to most people. Naturally, the objects andartifacts used bythese beings possess power on an unimaginable scale.

RELATED: The 10 Most Influential Superheroes of the 21st Century (So Far)

These artifacts can be used to reorder reality, cause untold devastation, or fundamentally change the nature of the narrative of the comics itself. Some of these artifacts are well known to the general public, while the following 10 are more obscure and lesser-known:

Metron is a New God, and the owner of the Mobius Chair. The chair was crafted by Mobius the Anti-Monitor, and Metron uses it to travel between planets, galaxies and entire universes.While Metron is immensely powerful on his own, the chair augments his abilities even further and does the same for anyone else who sits on it, giving them access to the vast reservoirs of knowledge Metron has gathered in his travels. The chair allows its user to teleport to any location in existence, across any time stream. It also has a tractor beam powerful enough to pull an entire planet, and creates a force field that is impervious to any attack or phasing.

The Mother Box is one of the most powerful weapons of the New Godsand was even featured in the Justice League movie. It is powered by the Source Wall, said to be the energy which is granted by the creator of the multiverse itself. The Mother Box is a sentient, autonomous computer that can be used to travel to any location, alter reality, exert control over living beings, and many other applications.

The Father Box was created on Apokolips to mimic the abilities of the Mother Box, but with a negative bend that allows the device to wreak havoc on reality, especially when in the hands of Darkseid.

Also known as the Tenth Metal, Element X is the purest form of creation itself. It is capable of overcoming anything from the dark multiverse. It is the power source of most of the technology powering the New Gods, including the Mobius chair itself, and Batman's Final Suit.

RELATED: DC Comics: 10 Times Batman Fought In The Multiverse

Aside from augmenting its user's powers, Element X can also bend reality to its will, and grant cosmic awareness to its wielder allowing them to view events taking place across the multiverse.

At the beginning of creation, during the Big Bang, a shard of the energy of creation itself was crafted into the form of a sword. This sword carries immense power, and can only be wielded by Superman.

RELATED: Supermans 10 Best Origin Stories, Ranked

While using the sword, Superman's natural abilities are augmented to nearly omnipotent levels. He is also granted knowledge of anything and everything taking place in the universe at the same time. Superman eventually chose to throw the sword into space instead of keeping it to become a literal god.

The Worlogog is a part of the cosmology of the New Gods, a map of the universe set in four dimensions. Aside from granting a degree of control over reality itself, the destruction of the Worlogog was enough to allow Darkseid to conquer the universe in an alternate future. At various points, certain heroes and villains have gained access to the map's power, allowing them to travel through time, cause immense destruction, and even bring people back from the dead.

One of the most powerful magic items in the DC universe. Powered by Egyptian gods, the Ibistick uses the mystical energy of an almost unlimited power reservoir to alter reality in any way its user wishes. Think of a green lantern ring, only instead of making energy constructs, it makes actual things that can subsist interact with the rest of the world. The Ibistick is said to rival the Helmet of Fate in terms of its power and the damage it can do in the wrong hands, although the Ibistick is specially designed to only be used for good.

The pen that is in the possession of Jakeem Thunder is not a pen at all, but a portal to the fifth dimension. Ownership of the pen allows for ownership of Thunderbolt, a fifth-dimensional genie that can grant you any wish you desire. If you are familiar with Superman's enemy Mr. Mxyzptlk, youunderstand just how powerful fifth-dimensional beings can be. The pen allows for any of your wishes to be granted, but you must take care to word them exactly as you wish to see them executed, or unexpected side-effects can emerge.

The Anti-Monitor is one of the most powerful foes that the heroes of DC have ever faced. He consumes universes for nourishment and is aided in this activity with the help of his anti-matter cannon. This device is powerful enough to destroy a universe on its own, making it arguably the most powerful offensive weapon in fiction.

Many readers think of the Thought Robot as a human version of Superman and Ultraman fused together. But the entity is so much more than that. The Thought Robot is a 4-d body construct designed to protect the universe from the ultimate evil. The Thought Robot functions as a meta-plot device. This means it is aware it is a part of a comic book and is designed to be able to counter any threat to the multiverse, no matter how big. The construct is so ridiculously overpowered that it essentially acts as a reset button for when writers have written themselves into a corner and need to take things back to normal.

If Thought Robot is the ultimate plot device, the Miracle Machine does one better by being the ultimate Deus Ex Machina. It has a simple purpose: to turn thoughts into reality. With this single ability, the Miracle Machine can do anything its user desires. That includes things like remaking the universe from scratch, creating a pocket universe within an existing one, or simply wiping an enemy from existence by erasing their entire timeline.

NEXT: 10 DC Characters Overlooked By The Justice League

NextNaruto: Every Major Clan's Weakest Member, Ranked

Neeraj is a freelance writer with a keen interest in global technology and pop culture trends.

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10 Most Powerful Artifacts in the DC Universe (That Most Fans Forgot Exist) - CBR - Comic Book Resources

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For now, were guessing that the sequel plans on releasing on its original release date of May 7, 2021, making it the fourth movie of Phase 4.

However, with Derricksons exit, its uncertain if that will lead to delays.

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Cumberbatchs co-star Benedict Wong had earlier shared that he believes the film will start its shooting in 2020 and, as per shared byVariety, the plan is still, to begin with the production in May 2020.

Derrickson stays on board as an executive producer. Sam Raimi is reported to be taking overas the director from DerricksonforDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

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Till now, only one Benedict has been confirmed for the sequel so far (Cumberbatch, obviously). But wed be surprised if Benedict Wong werent back, especially as hes been talking about the filming.

In the most intriguing statement at Comic-Con, Elizabeth Olsen will be a part of the movie as Scarlet Witch, part of the sequels direct ties to the Disney+ show WandaVision.

The main theories are that she will either return as a reluctant ally of Doctor Strange, or shell be a secondary antagonist to Nightmare, as many superhero films have multiple baddies.

Speaking of Nightmare, there have been rumours circulating that Eva Green may cast as the villain, but the actress denied those saying: Me? No! Not that I know of. Not at all. (via Total Film).

At Comic-Con, Derrickson teased that theyre making the first scary MCU film, with Cumberbatch saying: This twist in horror will have everyone gripped Well be going back to trying to destroy him a bit.

But itll, of course, be PG-13 and contain the humour of the first outing, according to Feige, and it may have been in the tone that the creative differences took place although well never really know why Marvel and Derrickson chose to go different ways.

The events of WandaVision will lead Scarlet Witch directly to Doctor Strange for his help with something, especially now that the TV series has been moved forward to 2020, so it will mostly air before the sequel hits the theatres.

If filming takes place in May 2020, then we can see our first teaser for the sequel by the end of this year.

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Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness Release Date, Cast, Plot, And What Are The Future Plans Of Fra ... - Pop Culture Times

Barry and Iris have overcome some pretty wild obstacles on their path to happily ever after, and The Flash Season 6 has thrown even more adversity at the West-Allen relationship. In the aftermath of Crisis and amid the Mirrorverse predicament, S.T.A.R. Labs favorite couple has spent less and less time together. Because there have been fewer scenes featuring the twosome, fans are beginning to wonder if there is on-set beef between The Flash stars Candice Patton and Grant Gustin. Patton took to Twitter to set the record straight.

Inthe first episode of The Flash, Barry intended to tell Iris he hadfeelings for her. But before he could make the leap, the S.T.A.R. Labs particleaccelerator exploded, and Barry was knocked into a coma by lightning. When he wokeup, Iris was romantically involved with a police detective named Eddie Thawne,so Barry moved on and began dating as well.

Aftera few missed connections, devastating losses, and deep heartbreaks, Barry andIris realized they were meant for each other and eventually tied the knot. Unfortunately,with deadly threats continually arising, the couple could never seem to catch abreak.

Some low points the couple faced were: Flashpoint caused unfavorable ripple effects, Barry became trapped in the Speed Force, the couples future daughter perished before their eyes, and Crisis wiped out the multiverse.

Now,in the back half of The Flash Season 6, the West-Allen couple seems tobe more disconnected than ever before. The characters have spent minimal timetogether, especially since Iris has been trapped in the Mirrorverse for severalweeks. With Barry and Iris spending more time apart, the lackof shared screen time between the actors has fans speculating about theirprofessional relationship.

Viewers are tweeting about why they think Patton and Gustin spend so little time together on screen even though they play a married couple on The Flash. Fans are questioning if the actors who play Barry and Iris are getting along.

One fan tweeted, Seriously, are @candicepatton and #GrantGustin fighting? Iris and Barry have spent nearly the whole season apart. Iris has spent more time in that damn mirror than Barry spent in #Flashpoint and in the Speed Forceepisode-wise that is. #The Flash

Another fan agreed by commenting, Omg I thought so too. The tension on screen..

And yet another user questioned the on-camera chemistry of the actors by noting, they dont even kiss though. Not most of the time. Im not looking for makeout sessions, but not even a peck in moments where they should. Just hugging like buddies. I miss #WestAllen acting like a couple!

Patton addressed the question about her working relationship withGustin on Twitter. She squashed any speculation that she and her scene partnerare fighting.

LoL. Absolutely not, Patton tweeted.

The actresss answer leaves no room for conjecture. And consideringGustins statements over the years, the stars seem to have mutual respect.

In one Instagram post defending Patton against Internet trolls, Gustin says, She is Black. She is beautiful. And She is our Iris. He goes on to say this about Iris, She is Barrys end game, and Candice Patton plays her. With those words in mind, it sounds like fans can expect more West-Allen screen time in the future.

Readmore: The Flash Season 6: Showrunner Teases Tragic Consequences

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'The Flash': Why Fans Think Grant Gustin is Feuding With On-Screen Love Interest Candice Patton - Showbiz Cheat Sheet

WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #4, by James Tynion IV, Javier Fernandez, Steve Epting, Nick Filardi and Travis Lanham, on sale now.

As part of his machinations for the DC Universe, the Batman Who Laughs spread the Infection across the DC Universe, which led to numerous heroes being transformed into their darkest, Jokerized forms. Things have only gotten worse with most other heroes otherwise occupied or in some cases even becoming Infected themselves. While Apex Lex Luthor and the Batman Who Laughs have been preparing for their final drag-out battle, both of them have utilized different plans and schemes against the other for some time now.

In Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #4, those efforts crescendo with a final battle that only leaves one villain left standing. By the end of the issue, Lex Luthor has not only stopped but cured all of the Infected heroes. However, Luthor's victory is short-lived, since the Batman Who Laughs has apparently been planning for that eventuality all along.

RELATED: Batman's Army of Zombies is Taking Back the Planet

Luthor has spent much of Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen trying to figure out how to stop the Batman Who Laughs and his Infected heroes. On top of trying to figure out how to beat the Infection with his extensive knowledge, Luthor has alsorallied a number of his fellow villains to bring down his enemies. Meanwhile, it's been revealed that the twisted Bruce Wayne has used his own connection to the Dark Multiverse as the source of energy to infect numerous heroes. The assembled forces of both villains essentially fight to a stand-still, while Luthor and the Batman Who Laugh directly confront each other. Initially, the pair seem to be able to counter each other incredibly well - every one of their attacks countering another in turn.

But the Batman Who Laughs apparently gets too cocky and tries to close the distance to kill Luthor himself instead of having Supergirl use her heat vision to burn Lex to death. This gives Luthor the chance to inject the Batman Who Laughs with a serum that blocks the Dark Matter energy that wasspreading from him andinto the Infected. It takes effect immediately, ending the battle as the heroes stop attacking the villains and are restored to their true forms. Effectively, Luthor just cured all the Infected in one fell swoop. The only member of the Infected who isn't seen being transformed back to normal is Hawkman, who may be still affected by his former life-controlling him instead of just being corrupted by the Batman Who Laughs. But still, it appears that Luthor just saved the world.

RELATED:Batman Who Laughs Threatens the DC Universe With the Biggest. Crisis. Ever.

The Infection threatened the entire DC Universe, and credit where credit is due, Luthor figured it out before the heroes could create a solution. But it turns out this was part of the Batman Who Laughs' plan all along. Brought to the Godhead, Luthor presents the Batman Who Laughs to his master, Perpetua.

In one final twist that Luthor never saw coming, this is exactly what the Batman Who Laughs wanted. Given an audience with Perpetua, the Batman Who Laughs is able to convince her that he would make a far more effective servant than her "dog," Luthor. He reveals he led Luthor to her in the first place, as well as information he's gleaned from the Phantom Stranger about the survival of the Justice League, and that they could end up bringing down her entire plan if allowed.

Luthor's subsequent outbursts seemingly prove the Batman Who Laughs' point to the dark god, who strips Luthor of his Apex powers and casts him back to Earth. Meanwhile, the Batman Who Laughs takes his place beside Perpetua as her new right hand, seemingly convincing her that his intentions for the universe are far more appealing than hers.

While Luthor may have solved the crisis of the Infected heroes, he may have just doomed Earth to an even worse fate. It's also worth remembering that while Perpetua has designs to remake the multiverse in her image, the Batman Who Laughs has previously stated that his intention is to wipe out all life across both multiverses. While Perpetua seems intrigued by his plans, it's possible that this is just another attempt by the Batman Who Laughs to lull his enemies into a false sense of security before enacting his complete plan. No matter what his intentions really are, it looks like DC's heroes will have their work cut out for them in Dark Nights: Death Metal going to end well foranyone.

NEXT:Who Needs Harley Quinn? The Joker's OTHER Sidekicks, Explained

One-Punch Man: Garou Faces Off Against The BUFFEST S-Class Hero

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The Batman Who Laughs' Jokerized Heroes Have Been Defeated... But HOW? - CBR - Comic Book Resources

Since Avengers: Endgame set the stage for a whole new saga in a Marvel Cinematic Multiverse, fans have speculated that it also set up the next MCU "big bad" for Phase 4: Kang The Conqueror. More recently, speculation about Kang's debut in the MCU became full-fledged rumor; insiders have whispered that Kang will be introduced in Marvel's Loki Disney+ series. More than that, Loki has cast Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker star Richard E. Grant in an undisclosed "costumed" role, which fans speculate could be Kang. So why all the buzz about Kang in Phase 4 of the MCU? Let's break down why he's the perfect fit!

So far, it's hard to look at the series and movies coming in MCU Phase 4 and see any clear thematic arc. Some of the new saga is very out there cosmic (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Eternals), while some of it is much more grounded in crime and espionage action (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, Black Widow, Shang-Chi). Then there's WandaVision and Loki, two series that seem to be playing with the entire nature of reality in the MCU. Those are some pretty disparate pieces that Marvel Studios needs to fit together - while also starting to open gates to big things further down the pike, like the introduction of the MCU X-Men and Fantastic Four.

Here's why Kang The Conqueror can pull all of that together into one story that's full of twists and surprises - especially for all those who aren't longtime Marvel Comics fans familiar with the character.

In Marvel lore, Kang is actually a man from a distant future, who is suspected to be the descendant of the Reed Richards, leader of the Fantastic Four. Kang uses Dr. Doom's time travel tech to start hopping through time, setting himself up in several key personas through the history and future of the Marvel Universe (that a great backwards way to introduce both the Fantastic Four and Doom to the MCU canon). Kang's alter-egos include an Egyptian Pharaoh (Rama-Tut), who is key in some of the Fantastic Four's earliest stories - not to mention being the catalyst for Apocalypse to emerge from Egypt as the world's very first mutant.

The main time-hopping warlord persona, Kang The Conqueror, has influenced all sorts of events across the span of The Avengers' history, and even inspired the younger version of himself to create the Young Avengers team. With Endgame having turned Loki into one of the most wanted fugitives of the time police (the Time Variance Authority), it's only natural that other time-hopping baddies (like a time-traveling warlord named Kang) would also enter the conversation.

Finally, "Kang" isn't necessarily the final "Big Bad" alter-ego of the character - that honor could rest with Immortus, the older version of Kang. When the lust for war and conquer wears off, Kang loses himself in the study of time instead. Eventually he gains enough knowledge to attract the Time Keepers, who make Immortus a guardian of time, keeping watch over the Marvel Multiverse from Limbo, the place outside of time. If Marvel Studios goes with a slow-burn "big bad" reveal in the tradition of Thanos' three-phase arc, then Immortus being the master puppeteer in the Marvel Cinematic Multiverse would be a great one. And Immortus and Kang going to war with each other would just bend fans' minds.

So there you have it: Kang The Conqueror (in all his many personas) is the perfect figure to pull all these loose strands of the MCU back together, while also opening the doors to everything fans want next (Young Avengers, X-Men, Fantastic Four).

Do you agree? Let us know in the comments!

Did you know ComicBook.com has a podcast? That's right folks, ComicBook Nation is available every Wednesday and Friday bringing you the best breakdowns of the week's biggest news from Kofi Outlaw, Matt Aguilar, Janell Wheeler & the rest of the staff at the site. Catch the newest episode right here or subscribe on iTunes today!

Disclosure: ComicBook is owned by CBS Interactive, a division of ViacomCBS.

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Why Kang The Conqueror is the Best Marvel Villain for MCU Phase 4 - ComicBook.com

Twitter CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey gestures while interacting with students at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in New Delhi on November 12, 2018.

Prakash Singh | AFP | Getty Images

Twitter on Monday pulled its first quarter guidance due to the growing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, blaming the virus for causing a slowdown in advertising in recent weeks.

The company said its first quarter will be down versus the year-ago quarter and it expects a GAAP operating loss. But on the brighter side, the company said users are still growing as people tune into the site for the latest updates on the coronavirus.

"While the near-term financial impact of this pandemic is rapidly evolving and difficult to measure, based on current visibility, the company expects Q1 revenue to be down slightly on a year-over-year basis," the company said in a press release. "Twitter also expects to incur a GAAP operating loss, as reduced expenses resulting from COVID-19 disruption are unlikely to fully offset the revenue impact of the pandemic in Q1."

The company hadpredicted between $825 million and $885 million for its first quarter revenue.Twitter said Monday it will provide an update on its first quarter 2020 earnings call onApril 30.

Shares of Twitter fell more than 2% in after hours trading following the announcement.

Twitter's Chief Financial Officer Ned Segal said the coronavirus has impacted Twitter's advertising revenue globally "more significantly in the last few weeks" as it spread into a pandemic.

"We have made solid progress on our consumer and revenue product priorities and we remain confident in our opportunity and strategy. We hope everyone stays healthy and safe," Segal said in a statement.

Twitter added that the company has seen an increase in total monetizable daily active users, which is the company's key metric. The company said its quarter-to-date average of monetizable daily active users has reached 164 million, up 23% from its fiscal first quarter in 2019 and up 8% from its fourth quarter in 2019.

Several companies have warned about the financial impacts of COVID-19. Microsoft lowered its guidancefor the segment that includes Windows on Feb. 26, just after Apple said it did not expect to reach its own quarterly revenue guidance due to the fast-spreading virus. PayPal also warned in late February that the virus will have a negative impact on first quarter revenue expectations.

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Twitter pulls first quarter guidance due to coronavirus - CNBC

(Inside Science) The picture at the top of this story is not a blurry image of two colliding galaxies or a splitting cell viewed through a microscope. It is a snapshot of todays divided America.

On the left is a blob representing Twitters liberal echo chamber, and on the right, a blob for the conservative one. The brightness of the blob represents the concentration of tweets that echo other tweets with similar opinions. The researchers who generated the plot described their method in a paper published in Physical Review Letters in January.

You may have heard of the terms echo chamber and filter bubble. While they are sometimes used interchangeably, they mainly refer to two different features in online discussions. The term echo chamber describes a phenomenon where people tend to interact with those whose opinions are similar to their own, and filter bubble describes the phenomenon of people not interacting with opinions different from their own.

In our model, we looked at homophily, which refers to how people with the same opinion or similar opinions are more likely to interact with each other, said Fabian Baumann, a physicist from Humboldt University of Berlin in Germany and an author of the paper.

Using the visualization protocol they developed, Baumann and his colleagues mapped thousands of tweets over several days around topics such as Obamacare, gun control and abortion. After weeding out the suspected bot accounts, the tweets were placed according to their political lean along the horizontal axis. Next, tweets from accounts that the tweeters frequently interacted with were placed according to their political lean along the vertical axis.

If people interact constructively, I would give you my opinion, and you would give me yours, then we would meet in the middle, said Baumann.

Instead, their data shows the extent to which people choose to echo only the tweets of those who share similar beliefs with them. In other words, liberals (toward the left side of the graph) tend to interact mostly with liberal neighbors (toward the lower end of the graph), and conservatives with conservatives.

The researchers found that while an overall consensus is possible, echo chambers could cause the discussion to destabilize and become polarized if the topic meets a certain level of controversy. Once a discussion is polarized, subsequent exchange of information would strengthen the echo chambers and drive the two groups further apart.

The visualization of echo chambers in the liberal and conservative Twitter spheres surrounding Obamacare, abortion and gun control. Readers can refer to Baumann et al. for more detailed definitions of the axes and parameters. (Credit: Baumann et al., Physical Review Letters)

Their data also showed that because more active Twitter users tend to have more extreme opinions, they play a significant role in the polarization of online discussions, especially for politically controversial issues. This may help amplify extremist ideas otherwise limited to a smaller population.

In addition to analyzing real-life data, Baumanns paper also provides a mathematical model for predicting if a discussion online would become polarized based on the strength of the echo and what they dubbed as the controversialness of a topic, and proposes ways for quantifying these parameters. It may provide a starting point for studying the polarizing effect of echo chambers for different social and political issues.

Baumann acknowledges the need to also consider the filter bubble side of the equation explicitly, which they did not include in their model, and how online users may be repulsed from opinions different from their own due to personal preferences or algorithmic filters -- or a coevolution of the two.

There have been studies that tried modeling constructive interaction as well as repulsive interaction, but most of the time it has been difficult to compare them to real data, said Baumann. Ultimately, we should combine all these effects, but right now, to quantify which one is more dominant, it's really hard to say.

Among all the popular social media platforms, Twitter is perhaps the favorite choice for academic researchers to study because it is easy to access and because their users interact with each other in ways that are easy to quantify in mathematical models.

How Twitter works naturally makes it really easy to be studied. There are basically just tweets and retweets, and these interactions are very easy to quantify, said Baumann. As soon as you have an account, you can pretty much read everything on Twitter. For Facebook, its a lot more difficult.

Facebook, by far the most popular social media platform in terms of number of active users, has privacy options that make the platform more difficult to study compared to Twitter, which in essence is an open forum where every user can interact with each other in view of everyone else.

A series of scandals, most notably the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal, where Cambridge Analytica used Facebook data to influence the Brexit campaign and the 2016 U.S. presidential election, has prompted Facebook to restrict access to its data.

Academics have, in a sense, been our own worst enemy as far as access to Facebooks data goes, said Joe Walther, a social scientist from University of California, Santa Barbara, referring to the Cambridge Analytica scandal that originated as a research project by a data scientist at Cambridge University in the U.K. It's hard to blame Facebook for shutting off outside access to their data.

The tendency of researchers to focus on Twitter may lead to results with underlying biases and blind spots. Still, the results provide at least one lens on the polarization that many perceive as widespread in American society today.

Echo chambers may be harmful from a societal perspective, because they drive polarization, said Walther. But as long as they also drive user engagement, they allow tech companies to sell more advertising or charge more for their advertising, which is attractive from a corporate perspective.

Since user engagement is a crucial part of the business model of companies like Twitter or Facebook, there is little financial incentive for them to rein in echo chambers as long as they help generate revenue.

But before we reach for our virtual pitchforks and demand action from Twitter and Facebook that may limit online speech, Walther urged that we need to better understand echo chambers first. While the internet has provided a platform for niche groups with insular perspectives, such as people opposed to vaccination or people who think the Earth is flat, Walther said the accumulated research is unclear how much of an effect echo chambers have on broader social and political issues.

I don't want to advocate censorship, but sometimes having absolutely no limits can lead to some not-so-good things, said Walther. And in order to think about policies and how we should adjust these platforms, we need an intellectual foundation before we can take that next step.

[This story originally appeared on Inside Science.]

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Researchers Use Math Model to Map Echo Chambers on Twitter - Discover Magazine