Bleed (comics)
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The Bleed is a fictional construct that has been discovered in the Wildstorm and DC Comics multiverse. It was created by Warren Ellis and first appeared in Stormwatch Vol. 2 #7 (May 1998).
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[edit] Fictional background
[edit] Discovery
The Bleed is not a universe in itself, but it is defined as the space between parallel universes. 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. 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 the Planetary had catalogued numerous Bleed incursions.
When The Authority obtained the Carrier, a vessel capable of travelling through the Bleed, Bleed incursions became far more numerous. To oversee the negative effects of these incursions, the Monarchy was created.
In the series Majestic it has been shown that the Bleed also connects the Wildstorm multiverse to the DC Universe, an idea that was also presented in Planetary/Batman: Night on Earth, allowing for crossovers.
In the Authority/Planetary crossover, it was 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 on 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 where shown to be a hideous reptilian version of the Authority. A storyline in the Monarchy would reveal this team to be called the High Power and the world-killing force to be Chimaera, an army made up entirely of evil alternate Authorities created by the Authority's frequent travels in the Bleed.
[edit] One Year Later
After the One Year Later and the Worldstorm events the Bleed still connects the rebooted DC and Wildstorm universes and acts as the space between the restored universes. Captain Atom, after his stint in the Wildstorm Universe, and his brief return in his proper universe of birth, retreated into the Bleed, discovering that the Monitors, still aware of everything about the universe and the Multiverse, are unable to know what happens into the Bleed itself.
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.
[edit] Behind the scenes
DC Comics acquired Wildstorm in 1998. The separation of the universes remained for several years. The most notable changes since the purchase was Wildstorm talent on DC books (and vice versa), notably Batman: Hush with Wildstorm founder Jim Lee, and the use of Wildstorm's state of the art coloring on DC titles.
Mr. Majestic, a Superman-inspired character, ironically took over as Metropolis' protector for a story arc. Also, there were several minor crossovers until Captain Atom: Armageddon, in which the heroes of Wildstorm had a profound effect on Captain Atom. Although when he left, he inadvertently caused the "soft reset" of every series, storyline wise, known as "Worldstorm." In Ion #10, the Bleed appears for the first time in a mainstream DC book.
