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Five Revelations About Pandora in JUSTICE LEAGUE #6

The mysterious pink lady in the DC "New 52" comics gets the spotlight and new details emerge.

Ever since the last issue of FLASHPOINT and all the first issues of "The New 52," we've been wondering who the mysterious glowing pink lady was. When Barry Allen was trying to sort out the Flashpoint timeline, the lady spoke to him about combining the 'history of heroes' that was shattered into three. This lead to the new DC Universe we've been reading for the past six months. Since that first appearance, we've only seen her standing around observing random events, many appearing to be of no major importance.

No Caption Provided

It was later revealed that her name was Pandora. Her role in the DC Universe was unknown but we were told big things were coming. With her appearance in the back-up story in JUSTICE LEAGUE #6, we're starting to get some answers. There are still plenty of unanswered questions but this is the start of something big.

If you haven't read JUSTICE LEAGUE #6, there will be some spoilers below. We won't reveal everything that the issue has to offer but you have been warned.

== TEASER ==

Pandora's Face

No Caption Provided

In her Flashpoint appearance, we saw a little of her face. It was under her cloak and we couldn't see full details. There were some markings but now we get a clear look at what she looks like. Her face and body was always in shadows.

Seeing her face, we're immediately reminded of Zealot. We have seen some WILDSTORM characters in the "New 52" but Zealot hasn't been seen yet.

Regardless, being Zealot wouldn't make sense. She seems older and bigger than the average character in the DC Universe. We now know she has a humanoid face.

As to why she has those markings, we'll have to wait and see.

Pandora Knows Phantom Stranger

No Caption Provided

Who is Phantom Stranger? Pandora sure knows. Phantom Stranger first appeared way back in 1952. His origin has never been told and his real name has never been revealed.

Phantom Stranger questions her actions towards messing with the universe and asks why she's observing everything. He also mentions others of higher power not being pleased with her actions. When he threatens her and asks for possession of a 'box' she has, she's quick to retaliate, showing she is capable of doing more than just stand around watching everyone.

Pandora also reveals that she knows who Phantom Stranger really is. She points out that he would have more enemies than she does if she revealed his true name.

She's Been Judged by a Higher Power

No Caption Provided

When Phantom Stranger encounters her, he points out she's lucky Spectre wasn't sent after her. This doesn't phase her and she comments that she's already been judged by a higher power. It feels as if she's working alone in realigning the universe but there appears to be others she would have to answer to. The fact that she's already been judged makes you wonder if her merging the three timelines was all her idea or if she is working under the orders or approval of others.

Her Actions Strengthened Reality

No Caption Provided

The state of the DC Universe has never fully been stable. There used to be an infinite number of parallel universes. CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS did away with all that. Eventually more worlds started popping up and there were 52 existing.

Pandora's actions appears to have merged three of those worlds (Earth-0, the regular DC world, Earth-13, the Vertigo world and Earth-50, the Wildstorm world). If there were only 52 worlds or timelines, why were these three chosen? Why did they have to be combined in order to strengthen reality? We know Earth-2 exists but we don't know if others have been created to keep the number at 52, or if we're back to an infinite number.

Pandora is Cursed and has a Mission

No Caption Provided

Pandora isn't messing with the timelines just for the heck of it. There's a reason for her actions. She doesn't seem to have a choice in the matter. She tells Phantom Stranger that she is cursed and has to continue with what she's doing. Merging the timelines in Flashpoint was apparently just the beginning. To finish her mission, she's going to need the Justice League's help. What role they'll play or when exactly we'll see their recruitment to her cause remains to be seen.

Other Points

As mentioned, this isn't everything the six pages revealed about Pandora. There is still more to see. It is worth mentioning that she has an interesting form or self-defense. Her tactics and abilities are definitely interesting. This back-up story didn't tell us everything we wanted to know about Pandora but what we do see definitely arouses our curiosity even more. There is also the question of whether or not she has anything to do with a certain development in the Justice League portion of the issue.

Now we just need to wait for her next appearance.

107 Comments

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DanialCarroll

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Edited By DanialCarroll

Someone on Twitter mentioned her similarity to Fallen Angel.

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Kal'smahboi

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Edited By Kal'smahboi

I thought this was an interesting teaser. I've always like the Phantom Stranger (especially Alan Moore's origin) so I'm excited to see where this goes.

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ChaosIsBeauty

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Edited By ChaosIsBeauty

I was just psyched to see both the new 52's Ras al Ghul (in silhouette but c'mon you can't discount the hair, plus his shadow was shaped like a jackal) AND Phantom Stranger in one issue

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NightFang3

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Edited By NightFang3

@ChaosIsBeauty: Ras al Ghul and Phantom Stranger should meet.

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hitechlolife

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Edited By hitechlolife

Her final design looks a bit like R'chel. of X-men fame.

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BatteredArmor

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Edited By BatteredArmor

Cool stuff, looking forward to seeing where this is going.

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TheWitchingHour

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From that close up it looks like Molecule Man got a sex change

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Saren

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Edited By Saren

Nice to have on-panel confirmation that Spectre's still around.

@TheWitchingHour said:

From that close up it looks like Molecule Man got a sex change

LOL

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Decept-O

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Edited By Decept-O

Keeping on the fence about everything pertaining to "52". Not entirely certain if I may be potentially missing something that could be great or if I am being smart by saving $ by not buying any of the books at the moment. I don't know.

Maybe DC and Marvel will end up merging. Anything's possible in the world of magic.

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joseph_singer1

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Edited By joseph_singer1

Hmm, with all the comments about "the box," curiosity, and cursing the world, I wonder if she could be the original Pandora of myth, who opened a box and let evil into the world. Could the Strange be Doctor Strange?

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Magian

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Edited By Magian

Like her design and she seems like an interesting character.

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ravisher

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Edited By ravisher

i think i made her in skyrim

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HolySerpent

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Edited By HolySerpent

Was that Ra al Gaul talking to the older guy?

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DarthShap

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Edited By DarthShap

I really would not call any of these "revelations". It is just there to remind us that she exists but we learned nothing.

And it was probably the worst dialogue ever:

-You know what happens because of what you do.

-Yes, but I do what I do because of what I am.

-They sent me to talk to you.

-Did they? Anyway, the guy I serve is above them.

Basically, six pages of padding.

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Avenging-X-Bolt

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Edited By Avenging-X-Bolt

Phantom Stranger's New Look is pretty nice

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frochez

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Edited By frochez

I find it odd that you didn't mention the original Pandora from Greek myth in the article, as there is clearly some link between the two. For those that don't know, Pandora was the first woman created by the gods (think Eve in the Bible). She was given a box (in some versions a clay jar) and told never to open it. Of course, the temptation was too great, and she opened it, releasing all of the evils- such as disease, hunger, and death- into the world. She was then cursed to wander the earth for all eternity.

In the comic, there is mentioned that Pandora is both in posession of a box, and has been cursed. These two things clearly link her to the mythological character. Of course, what was left in the box after all of the evils had escaped was Hope, the only weapon that could fight them off.

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Autopsad

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Edited By Autopsad

I think maybe she is the Daughter of Darkseid, as he was searching for her on Earth, but there's no proof

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deactivated-5d1828448d5f0

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O___O GIVE ME ANSWERS! I MUST KNOW!

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DarthShap

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@Autopsad said:

I think maybe she is the Daughter of Darkseid, as he was searching for her on Earth, but there's no proof

I thought about it for one second but I doubt it. Darkseid was never a big multiverse guy and "his daughter" is probably the rebooted version of the anti-life equation.

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HubrisRanger

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Edited By HubrisRanger

The most intriguing part of this back-up for me was the revelation that there is a cadre of supernatural entities (Pandora, Phantom Stranger, Spectre and whoever else) that remember before the merger.

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Woodclaw

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Edited By Woodclaw

@NightFang said:

@ChaosIsBeauty: Ras al Ghul and Phantom Stranger should meet.

Who said that they didn't already.

They are both immortals and with tons of untold background.

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TheHT

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Edited By TheHT

@frochez said:

I find it odd that you didn't mention the original Pandora from Greek myth in the article, as there is clearly some link between the two. For those that don't know, Pandora was the first woman created by the gods (think Eve in the Bible). She was given a box (in some versions a clay jar) and told never to open it. Of course, the temptation was too great, and she opened it, releasing all of the evils- such as disease, hunger, and death- into the world. She was then cursed to wander the earth for all eternity.

In the comic, there is mentioned that Pandora is both in posession of a box, and has been cursed. These two things clearly link her to the mythological character. Of course, what was left in the box after all of the evils had escaped was Hope, the only weapon that could fight them off.

Marvel crossover? ;P

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Mbecks14

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Edited By Mbecks14

Should be interesting!!!

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kennybaese

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I'm just hoping that they don't end up using her as an excuse to put everything back the way it was. There are some issues here and there, but I like the New 52's direction for the most part. Ultimately, she feels like an emergency reset button. It's clear they've got some story in mind though, and have for a while. I'm definitely curious to see what it is.

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Jorgevy

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Edited By Jorgevy

I read this today and immediatly connected her to the mythology

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Eyz

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Can't wait to know more!

But WAIT! If this has been a "New 52" all along, does that mean that like the original 52 before, it's gonna end in a year, this September? Did they plan a year long arc, and re-reboot the DCU after that?!

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deactivated-5a4e0e8ea3dfb

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: I'm coming to a different interpretation of these pages. I don't think Pandora is answering to anybody and that's one of the problems. When she talks about being judged by a greater power than the Spectre that to me points more in the direction of the Source/Presence.

This conclusion seems to fit more with the way the dialog pushes the fact that Pandora is doing all of this for her own reasons. Sure she may know of some threat that messing with reality will help defeat but in the end she's definitely in it for herself and everyone else is just a pawn for her to use.The curse isn't to mess with the timelines. Messing with the timelines is to lift the curse.

But that's just my interpretation of it.

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cobra88king8

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Edited By cobra88king8

@HubrisRanger: that's what I found most interesting as well. I always loved that moment in Kingdom Come where it showed a meeting between the Phantom Stranger, the Spectre, The Wizard Shazam, Highfather, and Ganthet. I really liked the idea and thought that these cosmic entities should cooperate more. I hope we don't have to wait until the end of the next arc of Justice League to learn more about what's going on here

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GothamRed

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Edited By GothamRed

so her face, I guess pandora is rachel summers

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talkrongaltos

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Edited By talkrongaltos

About this issue I think is a step down to Darkseid. He is shown as a physical level character. Before he was at Highfather level and Highfather was part of the Quintessence, a group of entities that directed the course of events in Kingdom Come. So probably Highfather has been demoted also (and Zeus, Guardians of the Universe and the Wizard Shazam).

I concurr with HubrisRanger, who are these new group of entities that are above The Spectre but, I presume, below The presence?

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pspin

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Edited By pspin

This was really interesting. I kind of hope she ends up becoming a member of the league. Having a cosmic level person on the team (and not an overpowered Superman) regularly would be cool

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BatBen9135

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@DarthShap:

I really would not call any of these "revelations". It is just there to remind us that she exists but we learned nothing.
And it was probably the worst dialogue ever:
-You know what happens because of what you do.
-Yes, but I do what I do because of what I am.
-They sent me to talk to you.
-Did they? Anyway, the guy I serve is above them.
Basically, six pages of padding.

Agreed, yet it was still better than the JL story. Gosh, was that thing a mess! A fun mess, but a mess still the same.

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talkrongaltos

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Edited By talkrongaltos

@DarthShap: Darkseid was never a big multiverse guy

As I remember, in Crisis in Infinite Universe, there were only one Apokolips, One Darkseid , and he was Cloaking his planet from the Antimonitor until he was ready to retaliate.

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talkrongaltos

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Edited By talkrongaltos

OH, I forget... Heil Darkseid!

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Deranged Midget

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Edited By Deranged Midget

@Avenging-X-Bolt said:

Phantom Stranger's New Look is pretty nice

Indeed, especially when coupled with Jim Lee's amazing art.

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xkoenig

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Edited By xkoenig

Earth-2 'exists', sure, but it's now a different Earth-2 than the one before Flashpoint though, right? She merged 0, 13 and 50, but Earth-2 is now a nu-Earth-2!

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PhoenixoftheTides

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@Jorgevy said:

I read this today and immediatly connected her to the mythology

Me too. I am guessing that her box contains an infinite number of alternate reality or alternate versions of the heroes. It's strange to hear the Phantom Stranger call her a girl when she could conceivably be so old that the term isn't correct. I'd better pick up this issue.

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Trodorne

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Edited By Trodorne

@frochez said:

I find it odd that you didn't mention the original Pandora from Greek myth in the article, as there is clearly some link between the two. For those that don't know, Pandora was the first woman created by the gods (think Eve in the Bible). She was given a box (in some versions a clay jar) and told never to open it. Of course, the temptation was too great, and she opened it, releasing all of the evils- such as disease, hunger, and death- into the world. She was then cursed to wander the earth for all eternity.

In the comic, there is mentioned that Pandora is both in possession of a box, and has been cursed. These two things clearly link her to the mythological character. Of course, what was left in the box after all of the evils had escaped was Hope, the only weapon that could fight them off.

I was hoping someone was going to point it out before I was.

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Hawk80

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Edited By Hawk80

There really could be a link between darkseid and pandora? (i think she is the original Pandora, at this point. Don't want to conjecture about "Darkseid's daughter", for now...)

Maybe this version of the Pandora's Box was the original Mother Box (or something like that) and she was tricked into open a boom-tube, unleashing evil = Apokolips.

Am I delirious?

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the_fallen11

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Edited By the_fallen11

Oh and don't forget she is Darkseid's daughter....they made that pretty clear.

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jsphsmth

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Edited By jsphsmth

Knew she was a power player when she was involved in merging the universes, but it is great to see her talking smack to the Stranger and blowing off an overt threat of the Spectre. My kinda girl.

Puzzled by her likeness to Zealot also. Cannot be a coincidence. Wonder if she will be the new founder of the Coda.

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talkrongaltos

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Edited By talkrongaltos

And those guns? Not as powerful as Saint of Killers guns' (Didn't killed Phantom Stranger, and SoK did killed God). Who build Pandora's guns? Dwarfs? Hefestos? Oans? Controllers? Angels? ...and on and on...

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AskaniSon295

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Edited By AskaniSon295

it's interesting that the Vertigo World was combined as well a world that has a very powerful group of gods 'The Endless' Something about these two remind me of Death and Destiny. When The scourge of worlds attacked in Stormwatch #1 he also talked about strengthening the world. Maybe she has a connection to it. Her face does look similar to coda markings could she a Kherabuim we have yet see any of them in the new 52. Her hair reminds me of Freefall from Gen13 another character that hasn't appeared since new52.

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Miss_Garrick

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Edited By Miss_Garrick

I still liked my idea that she was Harbinger. That would explain how she could be in all 52 debut issues at the same time, but it sounds like she THE Pandora fromthe myths.

She knows the Phantom Stranger's name. Sounds a little barely like almost maybe ripping off Doctor Who. kinda.

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DEGRAAF

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Edited By DEGRAAF

@G-Man said:

There is also the question of whether or not she has anything to do with a certain development in the Justice League portion of the issue.

I must have missed something. I didnt see where she would have had anything to do with "a certain development"

@ChaosIsBeauty said:

I was just psyched to see both the new 52's Ras al Ghul (in silhouette but c'mon you can't discount the hair, plus his shadow was shaped like a jackal) AND Phantom Stranger in one issue

I never saw him? Which page?

@joseph_singer1 said:

Hmm, with all the comments about "the box," curiosity, and cursing the world, I wonder if she could be the original Pandora of myth, who opened a box and let evil into the world. Could the Strange be Doctor Strange?

I was thinking more along the lines that the box in question contains the anti-life Equation

@Avenging-X-Bolt said:

Phantom Stranger's New Look is pretty nice

Thats a new look? lol i thought that he looked exactly the same

@Autopsad said:

I think maybe she is the Daughter of Darkseid, as he was searching for her on Earth, but there's no proof

I thought that too but just her being on the same plane of existence and power of the Phantom Stranger makes me think she is above Darkseid (although a good side note is that it sounds like Darkseid is the only one of himself in the entire multiverse.

@DarthShap said:

@Autopsad said:

I think maybe she is the Daughter of Darkseid, as he was searching for her on Earth, but there's no proof

I thought about it for one second but I doubt it. Darkseid was never a big multiverse guy and "his daughter" is probably the rebooted version of the anti-life equation.

He sounds like he is more a part of the multiverse this time around. Interesting thought about his daughter. I thought that, also thought:

- maybe his daughter is dead and using the anti-life equation could bring her back

If his daughter is the anit-life equation and she is in the box it reminds me of the boy in the case in Aeon Flux

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the_tree

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Edited By the_tree

This has me pumped, especially if it means fixing the continuity errors left by the relaunch and merging the DCU with the DCnU, thus fixing some of the terrible messes left by the relaunch. *cough*suchasGreenArrow*cough*

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Mercy_

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Edited By Mercy_

I kind of love Pandora.

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MonkeyToe

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@the_fallen11 said:

Oh and don't forget she is Darkseid's daughter....they made that pretty clear.

How was that 'made clear'?

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JonesDeini

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Edited By JonesDeini

If Johns (Mis)handling of the Specter is any indication of his (in)ability to properly write Marvel's more esoteric/existential characters then I must say now I want him as far, far, far, far away from Phantom Stranger as possible. Also I really, really hope he doesn't kill the mystery of the stranger by giving him a concrete background. That'd be like creating a definitive joker origin story.

@DarthShap:

Such is the sad present state of Geoff Johns' writing.

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tensor

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Edited By tensor

ALL I CAN SAY ,I LOVE ME SOME PANDORA.