How to deal with the issue of the Multiverse

[The Starchild]

So the concept exist. I'll bet my right eye the term multiverse is used in the sources at least once, but who knows if we'll ever find it.

I'll take that bet.

In any event the concept exists in the sources. Perhaps there's a more canonical name for it, but "myriad earths" doesn't have the same ring to it.

The concept may exist, but so does the concept of "air" - that doesn't mean it should get an entry.  My point is that we shouldn't be defining Superman's 1938-1986 reality using terms that where created specifically for Crisis - an event designed to destroy that reality.  The reality should define itself, not be defined by it's destroyer.  I agree with Telle, that we can get by with the occasional mention of a parallel universe or parallel world, and maybe Earth-1 and Earth-2.

We seem to just be going back and forth on this, and I think that if we can't reach common ground we should ask the Great Rao to step in.

[Klar Ken T5477]

Parallel- worlds were explpored frequently during the Silver Age in other stories such as "Supeman Meets the Goliath-Hercules".  I just dont think they were ever referred to as "multi-verse" a much later concept.

[Admiral Chew]

In any event the concept exists in the sources. Perhaps there's a more canonical name for it, but "myriad earths" doesn't have the same ring to it.

The concept may exist, but so does the concept of "air" - that doesn't mean it should get an entry.  

As far as I know. No one's objecting to mentioning air in the database. And it doesn't need an entry because when it's mentioned everyone know what it is. This is not the case with the multiverse. Whether or not we call it the multiverse or the myriad earths or whatever the concept is going to come up in the entries and will likely need some explination given that not everyone will know what it is.

It seems to me that the easiest way to do this is to have and entry that a reader can be directed to whenever the concept comes up.

Otherwise, it has to be explained in every entry that the concept arises in.

[Admiral Chew]

Parallel- worlds were explpored frequently during the Silver Age in other stories such as "Supeman Meets the Goliath-Hercules".  I just dont think they were ever referred to as "multi-verse" a much later concept.

It is a much later concept than that story, but it was definately a pre-crisis concept. Now it's hypertime!!

It's also a concept that comes up a lot in the Bronze Age. It was easy for TGSB to avoid it as a concept but by time of the crisis the parallel earth's concept was so common that the issue came up all the time.

In canonical sources Superman has met Captain Thunder, Ultra-man, Captain Marvel, his earth-2 self, the earth-2 Solomon Grundy, Superboy of earth-prime, and I believe the Freedom Fighters and He-Man all of whom are from alternate earths and that's just off the top of my head.

[ShinDangaioh]

Parallel- worlds were explpored frequently during the Silver Age in other stories such as "Supeman Meets the Goliath-Hercules".  I just dont think they were ever referred to as "multi-verse" a much later concept.

No.  Not 'multiverse' until Crisis.

In the stories before Crisis it was called 'The Infinite Earths'

[Admiral Chew]

In the stories before Crisis or even lead up to the Crisis, it was called 'The Infinite Earths'

That's pretty catchy name.

Should the title for Multiverse entry be changed to "The Infinite Earths"?

I could live with that.

If so I'd still include Multiverse with a redirect since that's the name a lot of users would be familiar with. At a ceratin point we have to worry about making this thing easy to use for the user.

[ShinDangaioh]

I went back through some of my old comics.  In Wonder Woman: Day of Judgement the DC Multiverse is called Infinite Earths(Earth-1, Earth-2, Earth-X, and Earth-I were the Earths used in that story arc)

I can't even find the term multiverse until Crisis(doesn't mean it's not there, it just means I haven't encountered it)  All I can find is the term Infinite Earths.

BTW the Anti-Monitor only destroyed a little over a thousand universes.  He did not touch Earth C or C-1 because they were too far away(via letters colum answer).

[TELLE]

Ditto the use of the phrase "some historians believe..."  --can a statement like this be backed with a reference to canonical sources?  If not, it doesn't belong in Supermanica.

At a ceratin point this nit-picking becomes ridiculous and counter productive.

Fleisher often uses the phrase, "this story is in many respects similar to...." Is that phrase found in the canonical sources?

My point was that the reference to "historians" seems to refer to comic book fans and comic book writers who have commented on Superman comics in some other forum.  Your reference to Fleisher reinforces my point:  what he is doing is making a statement based on his own observations and readings of Superman comics, without reference to what other people have written about them.  Not nit-picking, just a simple plea for originality and clarity.