The One-Above-All

• Core Identity: The One-Above-All is the omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent supreme being and ultimate creator of the entire Marvel Omniverse, existing beyond all realities, dimensions, and timelines.
• Key Takeaways:
• Role in the Universe: As the absolute highest power, The One-Above-All is the ultimate source of all creation, life, and love in existence. It serves as the master of its primary agent, the cosmic judge known as the Living Tribunal, who carries out its will to maintain the balance of the multiverses.
• Primary Impact: The One-Above-All rarely intervenes directly, but its existence provides the ultimate metaphysical foundation for the Marvel cosmos. Its brief appearances often serve to provide comfort to heroes in their darkest moments or to restore cosmic balance after universe-shattering events, acting as a final, incontrovertible authority.
• Key Incarnations: In the Earth-616 comics, it is a confirmed, albeit mysterious, entity that has appeared in various forms, including as a representation of legendary creator Jack Kirby. In the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), The One-Above-All has never been seen or mentioned, and no equivalent supreme creator god has been established.

The concept of a supreme, monotheistic “God” in the Marvel Universe evolved gradually over decades. Early stories often used ambiguous terms like “the Creator” or “the Master,” leaving the ultimate power undefined. For many years, cosmic entities like Eternity or the Living Tribunal were presented as the highest authorities. The first explicit appearance of a being identified as the ultimate creator is widely considered to be in Doctor Strange, Sorcerer Supreme #13 (January 1990), written by Roy Thomas and Dann Thomas with art by Jackson Guice. In this story, Doctor Strange has a near-death experience and meets a being of pure light who identifies itself as the creator of Eternity and, by extension, the universe. However, the most iconic and defining appearance occurred in Fantastic Four #511 (May 2004), written by Mark Waid with art by the late, great Mike Wieringo. In this poignant story, the Fantastic Four journey to what they believe is Heaven to retrieve the soul of the recently deceased Ben Grimm, The Thing. There, they meet a being who takes the form of a humble artist at a drawing board: a clear and deliberate homage to the legendary Jack Kirby, co-creator of the Fantastic Four and much of the Marvel Universe. This entity confirms he is the prime mover of all existence, solidifying the meta-textual idea that the ultimate power in Marvel is, in a sense, its own real-world creators. Subsequent appearances have reinforced this status, often depicting The One-Above-All as a being of immense compassion and wisdom, existing beyond the comprehension of even the most powerful cosmic entities. Its identity remains shrouded in mystery, with its avatars and manifestations being the only way mortals can perceive it.

The One-Above-All is unique among all beings in that it has no origin story. It did not come into being; it has always been. As the uncreated creator, it is the alpha and omega, the source from which all realities, concepts, and beings spring forth. Its “origin” is the origin of everything else.

In the Prime Comic Universe, the nature of The One-Above-All has been revealed through its rare but profound interactions with other characters. It is not a being that partakes in cosmic wars or grand schemes; its existence is a fundamental truth of reality. Its most significant “origin” in terms of narrative function is its relationship with its dark antithesis, The One Below All, a concept explored in-depth in Al Ewing's seminal run on The Immortal Hulk. This storyline revealed that The One-Above-All, as the source of all that is good, creative, and loving, has a dark, destructive reflection. The One Below All is the source of gamma radiation's mutative, destructive power and the entity that rules the “Below-Place,” the deepest layer of Hell. It is posited that one cannot exist without the other; The One-Above-All is the hand that builds, and The One Below All is the hand that breaks. This duality provides a crucial in-universe explanation for the simultaneous existence of ultimate good and ultimate evil, both stemming from the same supreme source. Its key interactions have served to define its character:

• Meeting the Fantastic Four: As “Jack Kirby,” it expressed pride and love for its creations, explaining that it doesn't intervene because true heroism requires free will and struggle. It restored The Thing to life not as a display of power, but as an act of compassion for its beloved children.
• Consoling Peter Parker: Following the universally controversial One More Day storyline, a spiritually broken Peter Parker contemplates his life. The One-Above-All appears to him as a homeless man, reassuring him that his selfless sacrifices have immense value and that great faith is necessary to endure great suffering. This appearance highlighted its role as a source of comfort and divine grace.
• Restoring Reality with Thanos: In the Infinity Finale graphic novel, a cosmically-empowered Thanos absorbs the entire multiverse and confronts The One-Above-All. The entity convinces Thanos that his nihilistic quest is ultimately self-defeating and that his true purpose is to be an instrument of cosmic balance, not its destroyer. In a rare act of direct intervention, it works with Thanos to restore all of reality, demonstrating its ultimate authority over all existence.

Within the continuity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Earth-199999), The One-Above-All does not exist. It has never been named, referenced, or alluded to in any film, television series, or supplementary material. The cosmic hierarchy of the MCU is structured very differently from the comics. The highest powers depicted so far are the great cosmic entities and forces:

• The Celestials: Beings like Arishem the Judge are presented as creators of galaxies, stars, and sentient life, including the Eternals and Deviants. However, they are shown to be fallible and destructible, not truly supreme.
• Eternity: Introduced in Thor: Love and Thunder, Eternity is a cosmic entity at the center of the universe that can grant any wish to the first being who reaches it. While immensely powerful and seemingly a fundamental aspect of reality, it is portrayed as a passive force rather than a conscious, supreme creator.
• The Infinity Stones: These six singularities were the remnants of creation, governing the fundamental aspects of existence (Space, Mind, Reality, Power, Soul, Time). However, they are tools, not a being, and their creators were never identified.
• He Who Remains / The Time Variance Authority (TVA): In the Loki series, He Who Remains established the TVA to manage the “Sacred Timeline” and prevent multiversal war. While he held god-like power over the flow of time, he was ultimately just a mortal man (a variant of Kang the Conqueror) who had mastered science far beyond anyone else. His power was technological, not divine, and limited to a single timeline cluster.

The MCU deliberately avoids the concept of a singular, monotheistic God. This is likely a creative choice to:

• Maintain Stakes: Introducing an omnipotent, benevolent being would lower the stakes of any cosmic threat. Why fear Thanos if a supreme God could simply snap him out of existence?
• Avoid Religious Parallels: Directly adapting The One-Above-All could be seen as aligning the MCU with specific real-world religious beliefs, something the franchise has carefully avoided in favor of a mythology based on science fiction and fantasy.
• Focus on Character-Driven Stories: The MCU's success is built on the relatable struggles of its heroes. A being like The One-Above-All operates on a scale so far beyond mortal concerns that it would be difficult to integrate into the narrative without fundamentally changing its nature.

Therefore, any discussion of The One-Above-All in the MCU is purely theoretical, exploring where such a being would fit into the established cosmic order, likely above even the Celestials and Eternity.

The One-Above-All's attributes are, by definition, absolute and without limit. It is not merely powerful; it is the source of the very concept of power.

• Omnipotence: The ability to do anything and everything, without any limitations. The One-Above-All can create, destroy, or alter any reality, timeline, or being with a mere thought. Its power is infinite and absolute, dwarfing that of all other cosmic entities combined, including the Living Tribunal, the Beyonders, and the Phoenix Force.
• Omniscience: The ability to know everything that is, was, or ever will be across all of existence. It is aware of every thought, action, and possibility within the Omniverse.
• Omnipresence: The ability to be everywhere in the Omniverse at once. It does not travel; it simply is. It exists within every living being, every molecule, and every dimension simultaneously.
• Supreme Authority: As the ultimate creator and sustainer, its will is the final law of the cosmos. It is the master of the Living Tribunal, who acts as its judge to enforce cosmic law across the multiverse. When the Tribunal was killed by the Beyonders during the Secret Wars event, it was because The One-Above-All allowed it to happen as part of a larger cosmic cycle.
• Acausality: It exists outside of time and space and is not bound by the laws of cause and effect. It is the uncreated creator, the First Cause from which all else proceeds.

Because its true form is incomprehensible to mortal minds, The One-Above-All interacts with creation through various avatars.

• The Creator (“Jack Kirby”): In its most famous appearance, it took the form of a kindly, human artist to speak with the Fantastic Four. This form was chosen to be relatable and to communicate its role as the ultimate “storyteller” of the universe.
• The Voice: When communicating with the Living Tribunal or other high-level cosmic beings, it is often perceived only as a disembodied voice from a blinding light.
• The Homeless Man: When appearing to Peter Parker, it chose a humble disguise to offer comfort and guidance without overwhelming him with its true nature. This form emphasizes its compassion and connection to the most vulnerable of its creations.
• The One Below All: Its dark, destructive aspect. While a separate entity, it is intrinsically linked to The One-Above-All, representing the “breaking” to its “making.” This manifestation is perceived as a monstrous, demonic form by those who encounter it in the Below-Place.

As this entity does not exist in the MCU, it has no powers or manifestations. However, we can analyze the conceptual space it would occupy. If the MCU were to introduce a supreme being, its powers would have to be established as qualitatively superior to anything seen before. It would need to be:

• Superior to the Infinity Stones: The Stones can alter reality, but this being would be the source of reality itself. It could create or destroy Stones at will.
• Superior to the Celestials: Arishem can create and judge galaxies, but this being would have created the universe in which Arishem operates.
• Superior to Eternity: Eternity grants wishes, but this being would be the granter of Eternity's very existence.

A potential MCU introduction would likely be as a 'deus ex machina' to resolve a threat of truly omniversal scale, perhaps a threat greater than even a multiversal Kang army or a rogue Beyonder. It would likely appear in a form that is meta-textual, similar to the Jack Kirby avatar, perhaps as a representation of Stan Lee or an unnamed, benevolent creator figure, to honor the franchise's real-world origins without delving into complex theology.

Even for a being that is effectively alone at the top, The One-Above-All has defined relationships that structure the cosmic hierarchy.

The most critical relationship is between The One-Above-All and the Living Tribunal. The Tribunal is a nigh-omnipotent cosmic being whose sole function is to safeguard the Multiverse from an imbalance of mystical forces. It acts as the supreme judge, with the authority to pass sentence on entire universes. However, the Tribunal is explicitly a servant. It carries out the will of its unseen master, The One-Above-All. This hierarchy was confirmed when the Tribunal told Doctor Strange that it was but a “mere servant” of a higher power. The One-Above-All is the legislature that creates cosmic law; the Living Tribunal is the judiciary that enforces it. This prevents The One-Above-All from needing to engage in the day-to-day management of the cosmos, delegating that monumental task to its most powerful subordinate.

Introduced in The Immortal Hulk, The One Below All is the cosmic entity that serves as the polar opposite to The One-Above-All. It is the source of destruction, rage, and entropy. While The One-Above-All is associated with the creative “metaphorical” Heaven, The One Below All rules the deepest layer of Hell. The relationship is one of perfect, terrible symmetry. They are two sides of the same coin:

• One is the source of creation; the other, destruction.
• One represents love and order; the other, hate and chaos.
• One is seen as a benevolent God; the other, a malevolent Devil.

Al Ewing's run strongly implies that The One-Above-All is The One Below All, or rather, that they are two aspects of the same supreme being, representing the duality inherent in all of creation. This complex, paradoxical relationship adds immense philosophical depth to Marvel's cosmology.

The One-Above-All does not have “allies” in the traditional sense. All beings are its creations. However, it has shown special interest in certain mortals who embody the universe's greatest potential for heroism and compassion.

• Fantastic Four: It views them as its family, expressing a fatherly pride in their explorations and their unwavering commitment to one another. Its interaction with them was one of guidance and love.
• Spider-Man: It sees in Peter Parker the embodiment of selfless sacrifice. Its appearance to Peter was an act of grace, meant to reaffirm the meaning in his suffering and encourage him to keep his faith, both in himself and in a higher purpose.
• Thanos: Its relationship with Thanos is more complex. It recognizes Thanos's crucial role as a cosmic force of death and destruction, a necessary counterpart to creation and life. It intervened not to punish Thanos, but to guide him back to his proper function after he overstepped his role by attempting to become the new supreme being.

The One-Above-All's appearances are rare and always momentous, serving as the capstone to deeply philosophical or cosmically grand storylines.

In this story by Mark Waid and Mike Wieringo, Ben Grimm is killed in action. A devastated Reed Richards uses a machine of his own design to breach the walls of reality and journey into the afterlife itself. After passing through surreal landscapes and overcoming cosmic guardians, the team arrives in a simple office where a man is busy at a drawing board. This man, an avatar of Jack Kirby, reveals himself to be God. He engages the team in a heartfelt conversation, explaining the nature of creation, heroism, and his love for them. He ultimately resurrects Ben Grimm, not because Reed's science forced his hand, but because it was the right thing to do. This story is considered one of the most touching and meta-textually brilliant in Marvel history, cementing The One-Above-All's benevolent, creator-god nature.

This is a supplemental story to the “One Moment in Time” arc, which itself was an epilogue to the controversial “One More Day” event where Peter Parker made a deal with Mephisto to save Aunt May's life in exchange for his marriage to Mary Jane Watson. In the aftermath, a deeply tormented and spiritually lost Peter is visited by an avatar of The One-Above-All, disguised as a homeless man. The being doesn't offer easy answers or reverse the deal. Instead, it listens to Peter and offers simple, profound wisdom: that a life of sacrifice has inherent meaning and that faith is most important when it is most difficult to have. It's a quiet, character-focused moment that defines The One-Above-All's role as a source of divine comfort.

Written and drawn by Jim Starlin, this graphic novel sees Thanos, with the help of his future self, manage to absorb the power of the Heart of the Universe, making him omnipotent and one with all of reality. He un-makes and re-makes existence, but is left feeling empty. He is then confronted by The One-Above-All and Adam Warlock, who has also achieved a higher state of being. The One-Above-All doesn't fight Thanos; it reasons with him. It shows him the flaw in his nihilistic logic and convinces him to restore the universe to its previous state. In doing so, it demonstrates that its power is not merely physical but also philosophical and moral. It restores the cosmic order by appealing to reason and purpose, not through a brawl of cosmic proportions.

By its very definition as the supreme being of the Omniverse (the collection of all multiverses), The One-Above-All has no variants. It is a singular entity that exists above and outside of all alternate realities. A “variant” of The One-Above-All is a logical impossibility, as it is the absolute, singular source of all things. However, the concept can be explored in a few ways:

• Real-World Avatars: The most common “alternate versions” are its different manifestations, which are less variants and more symbolic representations. Its appearance as Jack Kirby is the most famous, but many fans have a long-running and affectionate theory that it has also appeared as an avatar of Stan Lee, particularly in Lee's many real-world and cameo appearances where he seems to be a wise, omnipresent observer of the universe he helped create.
• The Fulcrum: In some comic storylines, particularly those involving the Celestials and the Horde, a being known as The Fulcrum is mentioned. The Fulcrum is described as the all-powerful entity that the Celestials serve, and its characteristics are virtually identical to The One-Above-All (omnipotence, omniscience). It is widely accepted by fans and implied by writers that The Fulcrum and The One-Above-All are one and the same being, with “The Fulcrum” being the name used when interacting with cosmic entities like the Celestials and the Watchers.
• Distinction from the Celestial “One Above All”: A point of frequent confusion is the Celestial leader named One Above All (note the lack of hyphenation). This is a completely separate and vastly less powerful character. The Celestial One Above All is simply the leader of the Fourth Host of Celestials on Earth and should never be conflated with the true supreme being of the Omniverse.

• Living Tribunal
• The One Below All
• Eternity
• Thanos
• Fantastic Four
• The Immortal Hulk
• Cosmic Entities (Marvel)

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