The Coming of Galactus
Some of my favorite stories involving the giant purple planet eater
If you’re as big of a nerd as I am, then you probably saw the teaser trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps. If not, then go ahead and watch it right now.
I’m pretty optimistic about this latest attempt at bringing Marvel’s First Family to the big screen. The previous attempts were…not great. One of the worst swings and misses was Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007). The reason that particular movie felt like such a punch in the gut for me was that it tried to adapt one of my favorite comic book characters of all time and failed spectacularly. I am of course referring to Galactus.
For those unfamiliar, Galactus is a character created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in Fantastic Four #48 in 1966. He is a gigantic cosmic god who travels throughout the universe feeding on planets. In other words, he’s metal as hell. What makes him so fascinating to me is that he is so different from the types of villains that had traditionally appeared in superhero comics prior to his arrival. He wasn’t motivated by money, power, or world domination. He was simply a force of nature filling an ecological niche in the universe. He behaved on such a cosmic level that he barely even acknowledged the heroes trying to stop him from consuming the Earth. This latest film looks to try to adapt him for the big screen once more (voiced by the fantastic Ralph Ineson), so I figured now would be as good a time as any to reflect on some of my favorite stories involving Galactus.
Fantastic Four #48-50 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
How could I start with anything other than the introduction of Galactus himself? This three issue story was truly revolutionary for superhero comics. For starters, it was unusual for a story to be told over multiple issues instead of being wrapped up in one issue. Secondly, the stakes in a superhero comic had never been higher. The fate of the entire planet was at stake. Lastly, it was the first time that a team of superheroes had come up against a being of godlike power. How do you defeat a god? You certainly don’t do it by punching him. You have to really think outside the box.
These three issues really set the table right off the bat. There is a being soaring through the galaxy on a surfboard (the appropriately named Silver Surfer) who is powerful enough to be the most dangerous villain the Fantastic Four have ever faced, and he’s merely the herald for the real big bad! If this dude can kick the collective asses of the Fantastic Four by himself, then how much of a badass is his boss?
That soon becomes clear when Galactus barely even acknowledges the Fantastic Four as they hit him with everything they have.
The heroes ultimately “defeat” Galactus (if you can even call it that) by convincing the Silver Surfer to turn on him and distract him long enough for Reed Richards to acquire and threaten him with a universal weapon of mass destruction called an Ultimate Nullifier. All it really does is convince Galactus that it’s too much of a hassle to consume Earth, and he leaves to go eat another planet instead (though not before punishing the Silver Surfer by trapping him on Earth). It’s the kind of story that really expanded the Marvel Universe into cosmic territory comic books had never really explored previously. I view it as the pinnacle of Silver Age comics, and it’s the story that really established Stan Lee and Jack Kirby as the legends they are.
Fantastic Four #242-244 by John Byrne
I have a confession to make: I’m not the biggest fan of John Byrne’s run on Fantastic Four. I know it’s frequently held up as one of the greatest runs in the book’s history, but it has never resonated with me in that way. That said, his Galactus stories are awesome. There are several from his run, but this one from 1982 is my personal favorite.
I should preface this story by explaining Galactus’ history of heralds. Galactus will periodically select a being to imbue with the Power Cosmic (an awesome force that emanates from him) to serve him by essentially being an advanced scout to find planets worth devouring. If that planet has some sort of defensive system to deter Galactus, his herald will assist in dismantling it prior to his arrival. They also have a habit of eventually betraying him.
That’s the case in this story as Terrax the Tamer (my personal favorite of his many heralds) goes to Earth and threatens to wipe out Manhattan unless the heroes of Earth agree to kill Galactus for him. He has intentionally led Galactus on a wild goose chase across the galaxy to weaken him enough so that the Fantastic Four and Avengers might be able to take him out. When Galactus finally catches up to him, he’s especially hangry and decides a quick snack is exactly what he needs. Earth’s heroes throw everything they have at this weakened Galactus, but it’s Doctor Strange who delivers the decisive blow by casting a spell to make him experience the pain of every being ever killed when he has eaten a planet.
With Galactus defeated and seemingly on the verge of death, Reed Richards decides to save him. He (correctly) reasons that removing Galactus from his ecological niche of consuming planets would have disastrous consequences for the universe. It’s a cool little coda on the story that further drives home the point that Galactus is a force of nature and beyond ideas like good and evil.
Darkseid vs. Galactus: The Hunger #1 by John Byrne
I couldn’t resist including this one from my childhood published in 1995. The premise is very simple: two of Jack Kirby’s greatest creations from his time at both Marvel and DC come to blows in a comic written and illustrated by John Byrne with the blessing of both publishers.
The story is set prior to Fantastic Four #48, so it’s at a time when Silver Surfer is still the current herald before his betrayal. Galactus and Silver Surfer arrive on Apokolips with the intention to devour it, and Darkseid and his armies attempt to repel them. It’s got everything you could want. Silver Surfer fights Parademons.
Silver Surfer fights Orion.
Silver Surfer meets the Black Racer.
Oh. Also, Galactus completely humiliates Darkseid.
This is not one of those comics that ends in a draw because neither publisher wants their characters to lose. Galactus wins decisively. Darkseid does get a bit of a last laugh when Galactus realizes Apokolips is already completely drained of the energies he needs to consume. He ultimately leaves the planet annoyed that he wasted his time.
Annihilation #1-6 by Keith Giffen and Andrea DiVito
Huge cosmic events were very popular at Marvel during the 1980s and the first half of the 1990s, but they kind of faded out as that decade came to an end. That changed in 2006 with Keith Giffen and Andrea DiVito’s Annihilation event comic. And folks, it’s a certified banger.
The premise of this comic is that Annihilus (the Fantastic Four villain who hails from the Negative Zone) has entered our universe with a massive army of awful bug monsters known as the Annihilation Wave with the intent of exterminating all life in the universe so he can have some peace and quiet. Very reasonable. As if that wasn’t bad enough, he has enlisted the aid of Thanos and a pair of cosmic gods previously imprisoned by Galactus to help him achieve his objectives. Annihilus intends to capture Galactus to steal his Power Cosmic and use it to fuel his doomsday weapon to annihilate all life in the universe.
Standing in his way are the various former heralds of Galactus and a loose alliance of heroes composed of Nova, Star-Lord, Drax, Gamora, and Ronan the Accuser. It’s an uphill battle to say the least.
Galactus is taken off the board very early to really raise the stakes, but his presence is always felt. There are some truly phenomenal action set pieces as the heroes and villains go to war with one another. Highlights include Firelord (a former herald) taking out one of Annihilus’s queens, Ronan bringing the hammer down (literally) on Ravenous (one of the lieutenants of Annihilus), Drax ripping Thanos’s heart out with his bare hand, and Nova sticking his hand down Annihilus’s throat and ripping out his entrails.
Despite these many cool moments, nothing beats the rage of Galactus once he is finally freed.
Galactus essentially unleashes an explosion of the Power Cosmic so devastating that it not only kills the majority of the Annihilation Wave, but it also vaporizes three entire solar systems and kills a Watcher that was unfortunate enough to be in the blast radius. It is so devastating that it is simply referred to as the “Galactus Event” in future comics as one of the most destructive events in the history of the galaxy. So metal.
Fantastic Four #600-604 by Jonathan Hickman, Steve Epting, and Gary Kitson
You had to know this one was coming. This is the climax to Jonathan Hickman’s legendary run on Fantastic Four, and you would be hard pressed to find a more epic story in the pages of Marvel’s original flagship title. Hickman had been writing the book (and the companion FF series) for four years, and it all led to this. I highly recommend reading his entire run, but let’s set the stage for these five specific issues. The Fantastic Four and the Avengers have assembled to deal with a full blown invasion of Earth by the Kree Empire. Not great.
As they are fighting off the Kree invasion force, a cult loyal to Annihilus is attempting to open up a gateway to the Negative Zone so he can once again unleash his Annihilation Wave. Not ideal.
On top of that, a group of Mad Celestials (cosmic gods responsible for all life on Earth) are en route to Earth to completely destroy it. What hope do our heroes have?
Fortunately, it is quickly revealed that Johnny Storm (thought dead at this point) is alive and has gained control of the Annihilation Wave himself. He uses it to attack the invading Kree forces. Also, the Inhumans arrive to settle old scores with the Kree. Things are still looking pretty hairy until our favorite purple planet eater shows up out of nowhere to lay waste to the Kree forces without even breaking a sweat.
Unfortunately, he didn’t show up because of the Kree. He showed up because the Mad Celestials have arrived, and only a cosmic god like himself can hope to stand up to these other deranged cosmic gods.
It seems like he might be able to handle all four of them by himself until the four merge into one gigantic (or even more gigantic) Celestial and seemingly kill him as his lifeless body crashed into the Earth (and presumably kills millions from the impact, but that never comes up).
I want to be clear that this is some of the coolest shit I have ever seen in my life. We just had one of the most epic battles I’ve ever seen in a comic book between the Kree, Inhumans, Annihilation Wave, Fantastic Four, and Avengers, and then it’s immediately trumped by a battle between cosmic gods just outside of Earth. And guess what? It gets even cooler! When all hope seems lost, adult versions of Franklin and Valeria Richards from the future show up. Franklin (who is essentially a god in his own right) uses his universal reality altering powers to resurrect Galactus, make him his own herald, and then team up to kick some Celestial ass.
There will never be a cooler Galactus moment than this. It’s undefeated. Seriously, this is peak nerdery. I try to reread Hickman’s entire Fantastic Four run every couple years, but I always make sure to read these five issues on a yearly basis no matter what. It rules, and I make no apologies.
There are plenty of other Galactus stories out there, but these are my personal favorites. Do yourself a favor and search out the ones that resonate most with you. Now let’s hope that the story we get on the big screen this year will live up to the ones on the printed page.