Anti-Life Equation

The Anti-Life Equation is the fictional equation that the DC Comics villain Darkseid is searching for in the "Jack Kirby's Fourth World" setting. It is for this reason that he sends his forces to Earth, as he believes part of the equation exists in the human subconscious. Various comics have defined the equation in different ways, but a common interpretation seems to be that the equation is a mathematical proof of the futility of living.

Fictional history

Darkseid first became aware of the equation approximately 300 years ago when he made contact with the people of Mars. Upon learning of the Martian philosophy that free will could be defined by a "Life Equation", Darkseid postulated that there must exist a negative equivalent ["Martian Manhunter" vol.2 #33] .

Jack Kirby's original comics established the Anti-Life Equation as giving the being who learns it power to dominate the will of all sentient and sapient races. It is called the Anti-Life Equation because "if someone possesses absolute control over you - you're not really alive." ["Forever People" #5] Most stories featuring the Equation use this concept. A full version of the Equation supposedly existed in the mind of the billionaire "Billion Dollar" Bates, but he took it to his death. The Forever People's Mother Box found the Anti-Life Equation in Sonny Sumo, but Darkseid, unaware of this, stranded him in ancient Japan.

In Walt Simonson's "Orion" (2001), it is revealed that Darkseid and Desaad have gained the Equation from clones of Billion Dollar Bates. In stopping them Orion learned the Equation, and tried to use it to make people happy and good, but realized that the suppression of free will is always a bad thing. It was later revealed that Mister Miracle knows the formula, but is one of the few with the willpower not to use it. During the series Young Justice it was stated that the mystical heroine Empress, holds within her a piece of an Anti-Life Equation, which allows her to control the minds of others to limited extents. Countdown to Final Crisis #10 reveals that the Pied Piper also contained the equation within his mind, as Desaad attempts to use Piper as his pawn to help him destroy Brother Eye and Darkseid, so that Desaad could rule Apokolips.

During the "Final Crisis" Darkseid's plan comes to fruition, even without Pied Piper's help. In fact, using the "spoken form" of the Anti-Life, Darkseid, reborn after his death as "Boss Dark Side" on Earth, is able to rebuild a strong power base on Earth, turning several members of Libra's Secret Society of Super Villains into his new Justifiers, and several heroines into a new cadre of Female Furies.

Interpretations of the Equation

Over the years, the Anti-Life Equation has changed as various writers over the years have offered their own definitions of the concept.

The most current incarnation was established in the 2005 "Seven Soldiers: Mister Miracle" mini-series, written by Grant Morrison, Darkseid (or Dark Side, as he now calls himself) has gained full control of the Anti-Life Equation, which is revealed to be:

loneliness + alienation + fear + despair + self-worth ÷ mockery ÷ condemnation ÷ misunderstanding x guilt x shame x failure x judgment n=y where y=hope and n=folly, love=lies, life=death, self=dark side

By speaking said equation, Darkseid can insert the full formula into people's minds, giving them the mathematical certainty that life, hope and freedom are all pointless. Shilo Norman (the current Mister Miracle) is able to break free from this with the help of Metron, gaining immunity from the Equation in the process.

More controversially is writer Jim Starlin's interpretation of the concept: in the mini-series "Cosmic Odyssey", the Anti-Life Equation is revealed as a living shadow-based deity that corrupts and destroys everything it touches, a revelation that shocks even Darkseid. Darkseid, the New Gods, and a group of super-heroes from Earth team-up to stop the Anti-Life Equation Entity, ultimately destroying it.

This interpretation would be controversial, leading to later writers retconning the story. The Anti-Life Equation Entity would be retconned as a creature who had been mislabeled as far as having anything to do with the Anti-Life Equation. When Starlin returned to the New Gods in 2007's "Death of the New Gods" mini-series, the retcon was reversed and revised, with the Anti-Life Equation Entity being revealed to be one-half of a cosmic being that was split into two by the war of the old gods (the other half of the cosmic entity being the Source).

During the "Emperor Joker" storyline, the Joker gains control of the power of Mister Mxyzptlk. Darkseid himself states about this that the Joker has stumbled onto the Anti-Life Equation, which could be referenced to a previous story ("World's Funniest"), that implied that Mister Mxyzptlk's powers make up half of the power of the "Anti-Life Equation".

The Anti-Life Equation was referenced when Dream of the Endless engages in a shape shifting duel with a Demon of hell in order to win back a portion of his power in Sandman #5 (reprinted in the "Preludes and Nocturnes" trade paperback). When the Demon turns into a Nova, Dream counters by taking the form of the entire Universe, to which the demon responds with what he thought was his trump card, and turns into Anti-Life, described as "The beast of judgment" and "The dark at the end of everything. The end of universes, gods, worlds... of everything" which Dream promptly defeats by turning into hope.

Alternate realities

*The "JLA" story "Rock of Ages" (1997), by Grant Morrison, includes a future in which Darkseid has learned the Anti-Life Equation, and taken control of both New Genesis and Earth. Earth's population is kept submissive by a constant broadcast of the Equation.
* In the Elseworlds graphic novel "Superman: The Dark Side" (1998) Darkseid raises Kal-El as his own (evil) son and later finds that Krypton had been in possession of the Anti-Life Equation before it was destroyed and Jor-El had sent it with his son so that he could use it to subjugate Earth and create a new Krypton. Naturally Darkseid finds it and builds a series of towers which broadcast "...the ANTI-LIFE EQUATION which obliterates free will and individual identity".
*In the "World's Funnest" Elseworlds one-shot (2001), created by Evan Dorkin and a variety of artists, a conflict between Bat-Mite and Mister Mxyzptlk inadvertently destroys the DCU (including many pre-crisis worlds). When they destroy Apokolips the sole survivor is Darkseid who is left floating in space with a piece of paper with the equation drawn on it; The paper has a diagram to the effect of "Mister Mxyzptlk + Bat-Mite = Anti-life". This causes Darkseid to laugh uncontrollably.

Other Media

Television

* In the "Justice League Unlimited" final episode "Destroyer", during an assault on Earth by Darkseid and the armies of Apokolips, Lex Luthor is taken into The Source by Metron. Just as Darkseid is on the verge of killing Superman, Lex Luthor returns from The Source and reveals the Anti-Life Equation, shown as a glowing, swirling light in the palm of his hand, to Darkseid. Darkseid places a hand over the glow, Lex places a hand on Darkseid's hand, both agreeing that the equation "is beautiful", and they both disappear. It is not known what happened to either Lex Luthor or Darkseid. Superman believes that they both died, but both Batman and Flash doubt it, believing instead that they will both be back.

Other uses of the term

* In "JLA Annual" #2 (1998), Felix Faust explains that an ancient sorcerer, maddened by his resurrection, plans a spell that will "remove the life frequency from the universe". Superman calls this the Anti-Life Equation.

* In the 1991 film , the film's villain Secundus is attempting to find the Anti-Life Equation as the ability to gain ultimate power.

References