Recaps

Apocalypse confronted Paul, the bartender who had given him his system, and learned that Paul was a remnant of the dead OAA. Paul explained that OAA encompassed both sides of every paradox, leaving Iron Man unable to name anything beyond OAA’s omniscience and omnipotence.

• Apocalypse brought the superheroes and Celestials to a New York bar and asked the bartender to explain his system and identity.
• Paul revealed that he had created systems across many worlds and that Earth-616 had become a center because he carried OAA’s energy.
• Paul said that OAA had died and described himself as an introduction, unsettling the Celestials, Watchers, and superheroes.
• Paul explained that OAA could know and alter every part of the universe’s history, then asked whether that truly meant omniscience and omnipotence.
• Iron Man raised the unliftable-stone paradox, and Paul answered that OAA encompassed both sides of every paradox.
• Iron Man admitted that he could not think of anything OAA was not omniscient and omnipotent about.

Paul explained that OAA escaped the curse of omniscience by destroying himself and leaving behind the worlds and life, while Apocalypse learned that Paul could begin the cycle again. Offered the final step, Apocalypse chose not to become OAA and instead opened the way to the Creator Dimension, where he reunited with his former life and invited Natasha and Tony to play a game.

• Paul explained that omniscience and omnipotence could be escaped only through death, and Apocalypse concluded that OAA had condensed the previous era into himself and exploded, leaving all worlds as remnants.
• Paul revealed that he was the trigger who could collapse the worlds and return to being OAA, and that true death would occur only if someone replaced or killed him.
• Paul offered Uatu the key to transcendence, but Uatu could not touch it; Apocalypse picked it up and hesitated over whether to take the final step.
• Apocalypse put down the key and opened a door to the Creator Dimension, bringing the group to the real Earth among the Celestials.
• Apocalypse merged with his sleeping former-life body, then called out to Natasha and Tony to ask if they wanted to play a game.