The Raft

• Core Identity: The Raft is Marvel's premier, state-of-the-art island penitentiary, engineered specifically to contain the most dangerous super-powered criminals on Earth.
• Key Takeaways:
  • Role in the Universe: The Raft serves as the ultimate high-security prison for superhuman threats, functioning as a critical component of the United States' national security infrastructure and a frequent flashpoint for major conflicts. It is often administered by agencies like S.H.I.E.L.D. or its successors.
  • Primary Impact: Its most significant event was the mass “Breakout” orchestrated by electro, which directly led to the formation of the New Avengers and fundamentally reshaped the superhero landscape for years to come.
  • Key Incarnations: In the comics (Earth-616), it is an expanded, fortified facility adjacent to Ryker's Island in New York's East River. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it is a completely isolated, submersible oceanic platform designed for secrecy and containment of enhanced individuals under the Sokovia Accords.

The Raft made its first official appearance in The New Avengers #1, published in January 2005. It was created by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist David Finch. Its introduction was a cornerstone of the “Avengers Disassembled” aftermath, designed to create a cataclysmic event that would force a new, street-level team of Avengers to form. The concept of the Raft emerged in a post-9/11 comic book landscape, reflecting a heightened awareness of security, containment, and the potential for large-scale disaster. It replaced older, more specialized superhuman prisons like The Vault as the primary holding facility in the Marvel Universe, centralizing a vast array of villains into one volatile location. This narrative device provided a convenient and dramatic setting for stories involving prison breaks, villain team-ups, and moral questions about the incarceration of super-powered beings.

The Raft's origins are tied to the existing penal colony on Ryker's Island, New York City's infamous prison complex. Recognizing the escalating threat posed by super-criminals and the repeated failures of previous facilities, the United States government, in conjunction with S.H.I.E.L.D., sanctioned the construction of a new maximum-security wing. This expansion, dubbed “The Raft,” was built adjacent to and integrated with Ryker's, but was technologically and functionally a world apart. It was designed as a multi-level, semi-submersible structure, with its most secure blocks located deep beneath the waters of the East River. The project was overseen by S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top engineers and funded by the Commission on Superhuman Activities (CSA). The explicit purpose of the Raft was to create a single, supposedly inescapable prison capable of holding any type of powered threat, from technologically-enhanced masterminds like Doctor Octopus to gamma mutates and powerful mystics. It incorporated advanced power-dampening fields, psionic inhibitors, reinforced adamantium/vibranium-alloy walls in specific cells, and a heavily armed contingent of S.H.I.E.L.D. guards. Prior to the “Breakout,” the Raft was a largely unknown “black site” to the general public and even to many in the superhero community. Its population was a volatile mix of villains transferred from The Vault, the Negative Zone Prison Alpha, and other defunct facilities, creating an unprecedented concentration of evil in one location—a powder keg waiting for a spark.

In the MCU (designated as Earth-199999), the Raft is a completely different entity, both in location and purpose. Its creation is a direct consequence of the political fallout from the Battle of Sokovia and the subsequent ratification of the Sokovia Accords. Introduced in the film Civil War (2016), the Raft was established by the World Security Council under the authority of then-Secretary of State Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross. Unlike its comic counterpart, the MCU's Raft is not near any major city. It is a massive, self-contained, and submersible deep-ocean platform located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Its isolation is its primary security feature, making any unaided escape attempt a virtual death sentence. The entire facility can submerge completely, leaving only a small access tower and landing pad visible on the surface. Its primary purpose was not just to house traditional super-criminals, but to serve as an extra-judicial detention center for “enhanced individuals” who violated the Sokovia Accords. This was its first and most significant use: the imprisonment of Avengers members who sided with Captain America against the Accords. The facility was designed with modular, heavily-armored cells equipped with energy restraints and 24/7 surveillance, all controlled from a central command center. Its existence was kept highly classified, representing the government's stark new approach to managing superhuman autonomy in the wake of devastating public battles.

The Raft in the primary comics continuity is a fortress of immense scale and technological sophistication, designed to be the final stop for any captured supervillain.

• Location: Situated in New York City's East River, directly adjacent to the main Ryker's Island prison complex. This proximity allows it to utilize some of Ryker's infrastructure while maintaining operational independence.
• Multi-Level Structure: The Raft consists of multiple levels. The upper levels house administrative offices, guard barracks, and entry points. The lower levels, which extend deep underwater, contain the cellblocks.
• Cellblock Tiers: Security is tiered. Low-level enhanced criminals are housed in the upper blocks, while the most dangerous beings—Omega-level mutants, powerful sorcerers, and cosmic threats—are kept in “Block D,” the deepest and most secure section.
• Post-Siege Re-Design: After being destroyed during the Siege of Asgard, the Raft was rebuilt under the supervision of Luke Cage, incorporating even more advanced technology and design philosophies from Hank Pym and Reed Richards.

The Raft employs a multi-layered defense system to counter the vast spectrum of powers possessed by its inmates.

• Power Dampening: The entire facility is saturated with a field that inhibits or completely neutralizes most superhuman abilities. This is the primary line of defense.
• Psionic Shields: Telepaths and mentalists are contained in cells lined with psionically-dampening alloys to prevent them from influencing guards or other prisoners.
• Mystical Wards: Cells designed for magical beings like Baron Mordo are inscribed with powerful wards and enchantments, often maintained with the consultation of magical experts like Doctor Strange.
• Advanced Materials: Critical areas and high-security cells are constructed from or reinforced with materials like secondary adamantium, vibranium alloys, and carbonadium.
• Automated Defenses: The prison is outfitted with automated gun turrets, energy-field projectors, and combat drones that can be activated to quell riots or repel intruders.
• Guard Force: The Raft is staffed by a highly-trained and heavily-armed guard force, often comprised of former S.H.I.E.L.D. or military personnel equipped with advanced armor and weaponry. During certain periods, it was staffed by the Thunderbolts program.

The Raft has housed a veritable “who's who” of the Marvel villain community. A partial list includes:

The MCU's Raft is a more focused and streamlined concept, designed for a specific cinematic purpose and visual aesthetic.

• Location: An undisclosed point in the mid-Atlantic Ocean, emphasizing total isolation.
• Submersible Platform: The Raft's defining feature is its ability to submerge almost entirely, making it nearly impossible to locate or assault by conventional means. Only a single, fortified tower remains above the waterline for air traffic.
• Modular Containment: The interior is stark and utilitarian. The primary cellblock seen in Civil War is a large, circular chamber with individual cells arranged around a central guard tower. Each cell is a self-contained unit.
• Automated Systems: The prison appears to be heavily automated, requiring a relatively small staff to operate. Cell doors, restraints, and security protocols are all managed from the central command hub.

Security is based on physical restraint, surveillance, and the facility's inescapable location.

• Isolation: The primary defense. Escaping a cell only leaves a prisoner stranded in the middle of a vast ocean.
• Heavy Fortification: Cells are made of thick, reinforced steel with transparent, seemingly unbreakable walls, allowing for constant observation.
• Energy Restraints: Inmates are fitted with restraining collars and are often confined within energy fields inside their cells.
• Constant Surveillance: High-resolution cameras monitor every inch of the cells, with audio feeds piping sound directly to the guards. This was demonstrated with Clint Barton tapping on the glass to antagonize the guards.
• Specialized Cells: The cell holding Wanda Maximoff was specifically designed to counter her abilities, featuring a straitjacket and a collar that appeared to inhibit her powers.

The known population of the MCU's Raft is much smaller but includes several high-profile individuals.

• Team Captain America:
  • Sam Wilson (Falcon)
  • Clint Barton (Hawkeye)
  • Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch)
  • Scott Lang (Ant-Man)
• Other Inmates:
  • Helmut Zemo: Imprisoned here following the events of Civil War. He was later broken out by Bucky Barnes in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.
  • Associates of the Power Broker: Several unnamed individuals connected to Sharon Carter's criminal empire in Madripoor were implied to be imprisoned here.
  • Valerie Cooper: Implied to have been imprisoned here after being revealed as a Skrull in Secret Invasion, though this is not explicitly confirmed.

The leadership of the Raft has changed hands multiple times, often reflecting the current political climate of the Marvel Universe.

• S.H.I.E.L.D. Administration (Pre-Breakout): Initially, the Raft was a S.H.I.E.L.D. black site, with its warden and staff reporting directly to Nick Fury or his deputies. The administration was secretive and focused purely on containment.
• Luke Cage (Heroic Age): Following the Siege of Asgard, Steve Rogers, then America's top cop, appointed Luke Cage to oversee the Raft and the new Thunderbolts program based there. Cage's philosophy was focused on rehabilitation and redemption, a stark contrast to previous wardens.
• Norman Osborn (Dark Reign): During his time as head of H.A.M.M.E.R., Norman Osborn took control of the Raft, using it as a holding pen for his enemies and a recruitment ground for his own twisted version of the Avengers.
• Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (MCU): In the MCU, General Ross is the face of the Raft. As Secretary of State, he oversaw its operation and personally confronted its prisoners, embodying the government's hardline stance on superhuman accountability.

The Raft does not operate in a vacuum; its jurisdiction and funding are a matter of governmental and international oversight.

• S.H.I.E.L.D.: The original creator and administrator of the Raft in Earth-616. It lost control after the “Breakout” and later after its own internal collapse.
• The Commission on Superhuman Activities (CSA): A U.S. government body that often has oversight on facilities like the Raft, involved in funding and policy-making regarding super-powered individuals.
• H.A.M.M.E.R.: Norman Osborn's replacement for S.H.I.E.L.D. during the Dark Reign storyline. H.A.M.M.E.R. used the Raft as its primary base of operations and prison.
• World Security Council (MCU): The international body that authorized the Sokovia Accords and, by extension, the creation and use of the Raft to enforce them.

• New Avengers: The Raft is intrinsically linked to the New Avengers, as their formation was a direct result of the “Breakout.” Heroes like Captain America, Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Luke Cage first united while trying to contain the chaos.
• Thunderbolts: Under Luke Cage's leadership, the Raft became the base for a government-sanctioned team of Thunderbolts, comprised of villains seeking redemption by undertaking dangerous missions.

This is the single most important event in the Raft's history. Masterminded by the Skrull Queen Veranke impersonating S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Elektra, and executed by a powered-up Electro, the event involved a systematic shutdown of all the Raft's security systems. A massive power surge disabled the dampening fields, unlocked all the cells, and plunged the facility into chaos. Dozens of the world's most dangerous villains were simultaneously freed. A collection of heroes who happened to be on-site for unrelated reasons—Captain America, Iron Man, Luke Cage, and Spider-Man—were joined by Spider-Woman and the mentally unstable Sentry. They fought side-by-side to contain the riot. Despite their efforts, 42 inmates escaped. The incident exposed the catastrophic vulnerability of concentrating so many threats in one place and served as the catalyst for Captain America to form a new, unsanctioned team of Avengers to hunt down the escapees.

During Norman Osborn's Dark Reign, the Raft was a key asset for H.A.M.M.E.R. When Osborn decided to lay siege to Asgard (which was then floating over Broxton, Oklahoma), he used the Raft's inmate population as a source of cannon fodder for his army. The facility was also the location where Volstagg was goaded into a fight that gave Osborn the public pretext he needed to launch his invasion. The final battle of the Siege saw the Raft heavily damaged as the Avengers and their allies finally brought down Osborn's regime.

In this major crossover event, one of the Serpent's “Worthy,” Kuurth, Breaker of Stone, possessed the Juggernaut. Seeking to sow chaos, Kuurth launched a direct assault on the Raft. He tore through the prison's defenses with ease, breaching the underwater sections and causing a massive flood and another major breakout. The event highlighted that even the rebuilt, more advanced Raft was vulnerable to a being of sufficient power.

The Raft's cinematic debut was a pivotal moment in the MCU. After being captured in Leipzig, Germany, Sam Wilson, Clint Barton, Wanda Maximoff, and Scott Lang were imprisoned in the Raft without trial. The scene where Tony Stark visits them is a powerful emotional turning point, showcasing the deep personal cost of the ideological conflict. It established the Raft as a symbol of government overreach in the eyes of Team Cap. The facility's role concluded when Steve Rogers infiltrated it at the end of the film, single-handedly defeating the guards and freeing his teammates, turning them into international fugitives.

The Raft plays a major role in the 2018 video game Marvel's Spider-Man for the PlayStation 4. In this continuity, the Raft is an offshore, high-security prison similar in concept to its MCU counterpart. The game's second act culminates in a massive riot at the Raft, orchestrated by Doctor Octopus to free the other members of his Sinister Six—Electro, Rhino, Scorpion, and Vulture. Spider-Man must navigate the burning, collapsed facility, fighting hordes of escaped convicts while trying to prevent his greatest foes from escaping. The “Raft” mission is one of the game's most cinematic and challenging sequences.

This acclaimed animated series features multiple superhuman prisons, including the Raft. Like in the comics, it is a high-tech facility located near Ryker's Island. The series pilot, “Breakout,” is a direct adaptation of the New Avengers storyline. A mysterious, facility-wide technological failure leads to a mass breakout of villains, including Graviton, Baron Zemo, and the Wrecking Crew. This event is the direct impetus for the formation of the Avengers in this continuity.

In the Ultimate Universe, the primary superhuman holding facility is located within the Triskelion, the headquarters of the Ultimates (this universe's version of the Avengers). The Triskelion's detention block serves the same function as the Raft, housing dangerous individuals like Norman Osborn (the Ultimate Green Goblin) and Doctor Octopus in energy-shielded cells. It is not a separate, named facility but rather an integrated part of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s main base, reflecting the more centralized and militaristic nature of the Ultimate Universe.

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