Marvel: All 8 of the Infinity Stones, Explained (2024)

Of all the overpowered artifacts in the annals of pop culture, there is no doubt that Marvel's Infinity Gems, or Infinity Stones, are among the most powerful of them all. Capable of rewriting history, reality, and even the laws of physics, there is seemingly nothing the Infinity Stones cannot do, especially when they are brought together.

Unsurprisingly, this has prompted many Marvel heroes and villains to try claiming the Infinity Stones as their own personal prize. Over the years, all manner of monsters and machines have wielded the power of the Infinity Stones, while human heroes and divine beings have taken it upon themselves to stave off the destruction that would have been sure to ensue otherwise. Between the myriad of tales woven into their sprawling history and the Infinity Stones of today having taken living hosts, it is easy to get lost while sifting through their individual stories, each of which is more than deserving of being told.

Marvel Comics' Original Soul Gem Set the Standard for Its Infinity Stones

When the Soul Stone first appeared in the pages of 1971's Marvel Premiere #1 (by Roy Thomas, Gil Kane, and Dan Adkins), it went completely unmentioned by the characters at the heart of the story. In fact, it wasn't until almost a year later that the artifact was even referenced by name as the Soul Gem. Like the other Infinity Stones, the Soul Stone commands an entire aspect of reality and can be wielded as both a tool and a weapon by those who command it. Unlike the others, however, the Soul Sone is inherently sentient, with wants and needs all its own. Specifically, the Soul Stone has a desire to amass the souls of others, and has done so on numerous occasions.

While it was the Soul Gem that gave Adam Warlock his sentience, it has just as often been the source of far worse developments. This isn't just because of the actions of those such as Thanos who have used the Infinity Stones to wreak untold horror upon the Marvel Universe. Though a variety of villains, including Ultron, the Magus, and the In-Betweener have wielded the Soul Stone at different points in time, its influence has also driven otherwise endearing figures to make terrible decisions of their own. The most prominent of these was likely Gamora, who used the Soul Stone to remake reality entirely. Thankfully, the Soul Stone has also been used for less malevolent purposes, namely Adam Warlock harnessing its power to imbue every Infinity Stone with souls of their own. Since then, the Soul Stone has bonded to the young synth Ward, who took up the mantle of Multitude and set out to reassemble his newly sentient counterparts.

The Mind Gem Changed Everything Marvel Fans Knew About the Infinity Stones

At the time of its introduction in the pages of 1975's Captain Marvel #41 (by Steve Englehart, Al Milgrom, Phil Rachelson, Bernie Wrightson, P. Craig Russell, Bob McLeod, and Terry Austin), there was nothing separating it from the rest of the Infinity Stones, all of which were known simply and collectively as Soul Gems. Initially, its power was wielded by the Kree Supreme Intelligence, who hoped to use it to claim the latent powers within Rick Jones for itself. At a base level, the Mind Stone affords it wielder vast psionic abilities ranging from telepathy to telekinesis. When used with the Soul Stone, however, the Mind Stone imparts a whole different degree of power.

As with all Infinity Stones, the Mind Stone's powers are enhanced by being used alongside the Soul Stone, and grow exponentially greater when utilized alongside the entire set. When all six Infinity Stones come together, the Mind Stone can impart a sense of near omnipotence, connecting its controller to literally every other consciousness in the universe. This has made the Mind Stone an artifact of prime interest to many heroes and villains, including otherwise ordinary street-level threats such as Turk. Surprisingly, the Mind Stone is currently the only one of the Infinity Stones that didn't resurface bonded to a host after Adam Warlock set them free. So far, there is no sign of where or with who it ended up.

A Classic Marvel Team-Up Gave the Time Stone an Unforgettable Debut

1976's Marvel Team-Up #55 (by Bill Mantlo, John Byrne, Dave Hunt, and George Roussos) brought two new Infinity Stones into the Marvel Universe: the Time and Space Stones. It was the Elder of the Universe known as the Gardener who first commanded the Time Stone, which he used to cultivate elaborate patches of lush landscape on otherwise infertile terrain. When his fellow Elder of the Universe, the Stranger, attacked the Gardener as part of a crusade to assemble all the Infinity Gems, the latter conceded his after realizing that he had been tempted into weaponizing its power.

With the Time Stone, an individual can easily manipulate the flow of time. Stopping and rewinding time in an instant seems to come naturally to those who have commanded the Time Stone, while others have been able to traverse the ages entirely. So far, the current host of the Time Stone, Hector Bautista (aka Overtime), has only managed to turn the clock back by a few seconds — though that is all he needed to escape a death sentence for a crime he didn't commit. Unfortunately for him, even making minor changes to the timeline has been enough to put him on the radar of Marvel's Time Variance Authority which, coupled with the relatively harsh treatment he received at the hands of Wolverine, was enough to send Hector into hiding.

Marvel's Power Stone has Made Some of the Biggest Heroes and Villains Even Bigger

When the Stranger began his quest to steal away the other Infinity Gems from his fellow Elders of the Universe, it was the Power Gem he wielded in battle against them. As with every other being to command the Power Stone, its presence alone provided an exponential boon to the strengths and abilities the Stranger already possessed. However, that isn't the only way one can use the Power Stone. Its namesake power has also been harnessed and channeled as a means of drawing infinite energy with which to power various machinations. This is especially true when paired with the Mind Stone, whose abilities both enhance and are enhanced by the Power Stone due to the natural circuit their properties developed after being recreated in 2018's Infinity Wars (by Gerry Duggan, Mike Deodato Jr., and Frank Martin Jr.).

Currently, the Power Stone remains the most underutilized of the Infinity Stones, thanks to (though not for the fault of) its host Prince Otherone, better known as the Prince of Power. Literally born as the spare son of Regalia, a reigning regent from the planet Muscula, Otherone was neither expected of nor provided for in the ways his brother, Majestar. After absent-mindedly consuming the Power Stone, the meek and awkward Otherone transformed into the strong, brawny, still hopelessly ignorant Prince of Power. Since then, Otherone has done his best to become a hero, an endeavor the Guardians of the Galaxy's very own Hercules has been more than happy to help along however he can.

Marvel's Space Stone Has the Power to Move the Entire Universe Around It

1977's Avengers Annual #7 (by Jim Starlin, Josef Rubinstein, and Petra Goldberg) marked the debut of both the Space Gem and Reality Gem, the final two Infinity Stone of the main set. When the Elders of the Universe came into possession of the Infinity Stones, it was the Runner Gilpetperdon who claimed the Space Stone. This enhanced his already unfathomable Absolute Speed, allowing him to escape any encounter by simply stepping through space itself rather than relying on his own cosmic abilities. The Space Stone has also manipulated universal forces such as gravity, so much so that it can craft black holes from total nothingness.

This has proven to be at least somewhat problematic for the Space Stone's current host known only as Quantum. Early on, Quantum was working for the Assessor, a malevolent hivemind artificial intelligence who forced Quantum to kidnap various test subjects in exchange for purportedly extracting the Space Stone from his body. While that clearly hasn't happened for Quantum so far, the lack of attaining the freedom he seeks hasn't kept him from continuing to work for the Assessor. What did get Quantum to leave was Miles Morales convincing him that the option was always on the table, proving that hope isn't nearly as lost for the Space Stone's host as it once seemed.

Marvel's Reality Stone Has Given Rise to Some Truly Terrifying Threats

Arguably the most powerful of the Infinity Stones, the Reality Stone affords whoever commands it near absolute control over reality itself. This includes the obvious ability to bend and break natural laws like physics or chemistry, as well as more esoteric uses from resurrecting the dead to crafting entirely new worlds in their own image. Though those powers are still within the wider scope of its powers, the reformation of the Infinity Stones following their destruction in Infinity Wars toned down what the Reality Stone can do at a base level. It also introduced a Multiversal aspect to its power set.

Fortunately, Ripley Ryan, better known as Star and the current host to the Reality Stone, hasn't figured out how to tap into its full potential. Ripley has mastered making light alterations to the world around her, including bestowing herself with a variety of superpowers she wields as Star. What she hasn't done is figure out how to free herself of the strain that using her powers puts on her, nor how to break through her own reality's bounds and step into those beyond them. Assuming that day never comes, there is plenty of time for someone less prone to violence to save Star from herself. Should Star embrace her full and terrifying potential, it might take more than one universe worth of heroes to stop her.

The Ego Gem Nearly Destroyed Two Entire Comic Book Universes

Most fans could be forgiven if they missed the introduction of the Ego Gem back in the pages of 1995's Eliminator #3 (by Hank Kanalz, Roland Mann, Mike Zeck, Denis Rodier, and Shannon Blanchard), especially because the book itself was a Malibu Comics production. Despite being relatively unknown, the events of this issue would kick off much wider adventures that embroiled nearly the entirety of both Malibu's Ultraverse and the primary Marvel Universe, and all of it hinged on the Ego Gem.

As the crossover event laid out, the Infinity Gems were originally created when an ancient, cosmic deity took its own life, splitting its divine self into seven distinct shards. These would become the Infinity Gems as fans knew them. The seventh became the Ego Gem, which was lost somewhere within the Ultraverse. Over the years, the Ego Gem would gather and store the minds of its hosts, all of which eventually merged with the Stone's primary consciousness. When the Ego Gem subsequently merged with its counterparts, the being that was Nemesis returned with a vengeance, forcing the heroes of two realities to come together and quell the threat.

Marvel's Latest Infinity Stone is More Dangerous Than Any Other — And Thanos Has Already Claimed It

2024's Thanos #4 (by Christopher Cantwell, Luca Pizzari, Germán Peralta, Ruth Redmond, and VC's Cory Petit) closes out the titular Mad Titan's hunt for Death. Recently, Death had taken on the mortal form of Marie Collins, a young woman whose life was tragically cut down too soon. Instead of being able to reconcile their differences, Thanos and Death engaged in a vicious battle with one another, all thanks to the former pushing his beloved away out of his own twisted sense of duty. Worse still, Thanos is actually able to overcome Death, trapping one of the most powerful Abstract Entities of all time within what looks like the Black Infinity Stone he has spent so much time searching for.

As astonishing as the appearance of this new artifact may be, this is hardly the first that fans have seen or heard of the Black Infinity Stone. First glimpsed all the way back in 2020's Thor #6 (by Donny Cates and Nic Klein) by the universe-devouring Black Winter, the Black Infinity Stone was seen being wielded by Thanos in a vision. In said vision, Thanos not only commanded an army of undead heroes with its power, but carried the rest of the Infinity Stones embedded within the faces of Mjolnir. Since then, the hunt for the truth and whereabouts of the Black Infinity Stone have brought Thor face-to-face with both terrifying prospects for the future and mortifying revelations about Asgard's ancient past. Worse still, it's hard to imagine that any of it has prepared him for whatever Thanos has planned now that the Black Infinity Stone is well within his grasp.

Marvel

Marvel is a multimedia powerhouse encompassing comic books, movies, TV shows, and more, captivating audiences with its iconic characters, thrilling narratives, and diverse worlds. From the legendary Avengers to the street-level heroes like Daredevil, Marvel's universe is vast and ever-expanding.

Created by

Stan Lee

First Film

Captain America

Latest Film

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Upcoming Films

Madame Web

First TV Show

the incredible hulk

Latest TV Show

Secret Invasion

Upcoming TV Shows

ironheart

First Episode Air Date

November 15, 1966

Cast

Robert Downey Jr. , Chris Evans , Scarlett Johansson , Tom Holland , Brie Larson

Where to watch

Disney Channel

Spin-offs

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Spin-offs (Movies)

Marvel One-Shot: Agent Carter

Character(s)

Thor , Iron Man , Spider-Man (Characters)

Video Game(s)

Marvel's Spider-Man , Marvel SNAP , Marvel's Avengers , Marvel's Spider-Man 2