Origin of Galactus

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Galactus, galan, Jack Kirby, John Byrne, mark gruenwald, Origin of Galactus, Stan Lee, Super Villain Classics, Thor, watcher

We posted these pages in serialized form in the early days of this blog, but that’s proven inconvenient for people searching for this entire epic. Here they are, all in one spot for those legions of internet users who want to know the answer to the most burning question in the universe: Where the heck did Galactus come from?!

Super Villain Classics #1 (1983) compiled pages from even older Thor comics by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Some supplemental art and dialogue was added to streamline the story into one coherent narrative. Are you interested in those original Thor issues? Check our archives for samples of Thor #162 here and here! Super Villain Classics #1 was reprinted in 1996 as Galactus the Origin.

Marvel Treasury Edition: Thor by Kirby

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Jack Kirby, Mangog, Marvel Comics, marvel treasury edition, ragnarok, Stan Lee, Thor

Marvel Treasury Edition #10 features the mighty Thor in a four-issue saga by Stan Lee & Jack Kirby. The original issues reprinted in this gloriously oversized edition are Thor #154, #155, #156, and #157. Considering any one of these original issues will run you from $15 in a VG condition to $200 in a CGC-graded 8.0 VF condition, a $15-$30 copy of this treasury edition will leave some cash in your pocket and deliver the goods in a superior format.

And it truly is superior. Just look at these gorgeously reproduced pages and that mind-stunning back cover! Jack Kirby’s artwork at this size never fails to crank the awesome-meter into the red.

The story itself starts off well, with a big bad monster foolishly released by some power-mad moron. Guess what? It presages the end of the universe! Oops!

The monster – called the Mangog – begins an unstoppable march towards Thor’s home in Asgard. Its ineluctable progress drives just about all the action in this story, as hero after Asgardian hero fails to stop Mangog’s tenacious travels. It’s very dramatic, true, but essentially you get one long fight scene bathed in delicious Kirby Krackle.

Normally we would hate spoiling the ending, but this story spoils it on its own. After all this cosmic-level struggle, the pay-off kind of sucks. Odin steps in at the end, waves his hand, and puts a stop to the whole thing in deus ex machina fashion. This cheapens the epic struggle that comes before it by suggesting that, well, we had nothing to really worry about the whole time.

Despite this let-down of an ending, one can have some great fun with Thor and his friends along the way, valiantly struggling to overcome their implacable foe. Readers who may have looked forward to Ragnarok (end of the universe, basically) would have to wait until Thor #200, some pages of which we have in our archives.

Whether you collect Jack Kirby art or classic Thor issues, Marvel Treasury Edition #10 probably deserves a place on your shelf. We recently sold ours on eBay, but you can usually find it in stock. It’s big, it’s bold, and the lame ending does little to detract from Kirby’s masterful visual approach leading up to it.

Readers who don’t mind black and white reprints will find this story in the Essential Thor paperback #3. Let’s have a look at some more interior pages from this titanic tome!

Dan-Thing Archives: Mighty Thor 200; Ragnarok!

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beware if this be ragnarok, end of the world, essential thor, Gerry Conway, John Buscema, Len Wein, Marvel Comics, Mighty Thor, ragnarok, Thor

Up from the primordial muck slithers… the Dan-Thing! In his oozing fist he clutches a time capsule: Marvel comic books from 1972! Our muck-stomping friend the Dan-Thing asked that we share these bronze-age beauties with you for education and inspiration.

Today we have the most awesome issue of Thor ever produced: #200, from 1972. Beware! If this Be… Ragnarok! John Buscema unleashes the full destructive power of his Jack Kirby influence to render the total end of everything. Is it madness – or prophetic vision?!

Sometimes we lack enough superlatives to describe books like this one. We had never read this story before Dan-Thing mailed it to us earlier this year. We expected another ho-hum issue of Thor: the usual confounding of science and mysticism and really big headgear. But LO! I say thee NAY, mortal! This issue doth kickest the mightiest ass there be!

Collector’s Guide: From Thor #200; Marvel, 1972. Reprinted in Essential Thor #5 in black-and-white; Marvel, 2011.

The Greatest of These is Love!

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Avengers, funeral, Hawkeye, kang, Mantis, mantis origin, Thor

We previously shared a splash panel and a Doc Ock value stamp from this issue. But, Avengers #130 has a couple other interesting pages worth salvaging from the beat up copy we found. At the Swordsman’s funeral, Thor — a Norse god — eulogizes his departed comrade with words from Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth. A few pages later, Hawkeye gives an honest reaction to the origin of Mantis. It’s more than a little like Miracleman’s wife’s reaction to his “bloody stupid” origin.

Collector’s Guide: From Avengers #130. Reprinted in Essential Avengers TPB #6 (but not with the value stamp!).

Ultimates 2 Gallery: Bryan Hitch Double Splashes!

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Avengers, Bryan Hitch, Hulk, Iron Man, Mark Millar, Thor, Ultimates, Ultimates 2

For Mark Millar‘s re-imagining of The Avengers as The Ultimates, Bryan Hitch produced some truly over-the-top battle scenes. Let’s take a look at how Hitch uses two-page spreads in Ultimates 2, #12. Here we see Thor, Hulk, Iron Man, and a whole mess of heroes kicking major butt! If you love a good superhero double-splash, this one’s for you!

Collector’s Guide: From Ultimates 2 #12; Marvel, 2006. Available in trade, single issues, or Ultimate Collection format.

Extracting the Dr. Octopus Value Stamp!

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Avengers, Avengers 130, Dr. Octopus, Iron Man, marvel value stamps, Thor

We’ve discussed Marvel Value Stamps with you before, but we recently reached a new level of geekdom with these little treasures. Our LCS (local comic shop) sold us a cheap grab bag of heavily abused Avengers comics. In that bag awaited Avengers #130. That’s the one that has Marvel Value Stamp #96, Dr. Octopus.

Now, we have a few Value Stamp issues in our collection, but we would NEVER dream of cutting up the pages of our 1970s Marvels. But in this case, the comic existed in such bad shape that we figured, well, to hell with it! (Yes, we know it’s a $100 book in CGC 9.6, but this was more like a $2 VG-/FR.) And so, with a socially inappropriate and childlike glee that only our fellow comic book fans could share, we grabbed a pair of scissors and peformed the first Value Stamp Extraction Surgery of our entire Martian life.

Later, we sacrificed Doc Ock to the gods of art in a mixed-media collage type thing for our Dream Journal series. He is either worth more now, or worth less, depending on how you value things. And just what is the value of a value stamp?

Avengers #130 also had a fun splash page we cut out to decorate our humble abode: Thor putting the smack-down on Iron Man!

It seems Iron Man had a personal grudge and wanted to beat up some characters in a foreign country. Thor told him to chill out and put his personal vendetta aside. Ol’ Shell Head wasn’t having it, though. Rule of thumb: No matter how many billions of dollars your costume cost, don’t get in a fist fight with a thunder god. CLANG!

Collector’s Guide: From Avengers #130. Reprinted in Essential Avengers TPB #6 (but not with the value stamp!).

Thor Vs. the Serpent of Midgard – To the Death!

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John Workman, Jormungand, midgard serpent, Mighty Thor, serpent of midgard, Thor, Thor Omnibus, Walt Simonson, Walter Simonson

There’s nothing that rocks harder than a good splash panel — unless it’s a double-splash! You can imagine how excited we were to crack open Thor #380 and discover Thor’s legendary battle with the serpent Jormungand rendered entirely in full page spreads. It’s like getting whacked with the Uru hammer!

In case you need a little back story: Hela, the goddess of the underworld, got mad at Thor and removed his ability to die. Sounds cool, huh? Except she also rendered his bones completely brittle. So, every time he gets hit, his bones crumble to shards. OW!!! No me gusta!

Thor gets himself some new threads that hold him together. He also realizes that the ancient prophecies indicate he will die when he faces off with Jormungand. So since he can’t die, this is the perfect time to rid the universe of this nasty critter. That’s the set up — let’s rock this thing!

Collector’s Guide: From The Mighty Thor #380. Reprinted in the Thor Omnibus featuring the complete Walter Simonson stories.

Story, Art, and creative remaking of Norse legend by Walter Simonson. Completely over-blown sound effects lettered by John Workman!

Longbox Graveyard dug this one, too, and shared some of the crisp, re-colored panels from Marvel’s digital archives. Dig it at Stash My Comics!

Thor 162: Origin of Galactus – Part 1

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Galactus, Jack Kirby, Origin of Galactus, Stan Lee, Super Villain Classics, Thor, Thor 162

We looked at the Origin of Galactus in Super Villain Classics #1 from May 1983. The credits list supplemental artwork. Just what was it they needed to supplement? It all becomes clear when you realize the material from SVC#1 compiles material that was spread throughout several issues of Thor in 1969, courtesy of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee.

Here is a look at the original material from Thor #162. Odin tells Thor about the first world Galactus ever devoured. There’s so much cortex-catalyzing Jack Kirby artwork that we’re breaking it into two parts: Part One. Part Two. Compare it to Super Villain Classics and see how they changed text and modified artwork.

Thor featured a major Galactus/cosmic peril storyline beginning in #160. Fans of Adam Warlock know that #165-166 were among Warlock’s first appearances. Thor #162, 168, and #169 revealed the Origin of Galactus — just in case you want a truly complete collection!

Thor 162: Origin of Galactus – Part 2

Tags

Galactus, Jack Kirby, Origin of Galactus, Stan Lee, Super Villain Classics, Thor, Thor 162

We looked at the Origin of Galactus in Super Villain Classics #1 from May 1983. The credits list supplemental artwork. Just what was it they needed to supplement? It all becomes clear when you realize the material from SVC#1 compiles material that was spread throughout several issues of Thor in 1969, courtesy of Jack Kirby and Stan Lee.

Here is a look at the original material from Thor #162. Odin tells Thor about the first world Galactus ever devoured. There’s so much cortex-catalyzing Jack Kirby artwork that we’re breaking it into two parts: Part One. Part Two. Compare it to the origin of Galactus in Super Villain Classics and see how they changed text and modified artwork.

Thor featured a major Galactus/cosmic peril storyline beginning in #160. Fans of Adam Warlock know that #165-166 were among Warlock’s first appearances. Thor #162, 168, and #169 revealed the Origin of Galactus — just in case you want a truly complete collection!

The Living Embodiment of Victory! Unstoppable! Unbeatable!

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Destroyer, Jack Kirby, Sentry, Thor

The Destroyer appeared in a couple issues of The Mighty Thor. We would like to see The Destroyer go up against Jack Kirby‘s Sentry sometime.

Yet Another Vile Tentacle Hath Encircled Me!

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John Buscema, Thor

John Buscema draws the God of Thunder and some blue Mongolians battling an alien serpent monster inside of a… a… a… Man, this is so far out there, we don’t even know what the hell is going on! SKKAR-KOOM!!!

Collector’s Guide:
– From The Mighty Thor #256

By the way, if you’re geeked about Thor and you like Jack Kirby, visit Diversions of the Groovy Kind for THOR WEEK. It rocks hard, and there’s headgear like there’s no tomorrow. See you there!

Release the Enchantment Now!

Tags

alien, Beta Ray Bill, Thor, Walt Simonson, Walter Simonson

In 1983, Walter Simonson decided to spice up a boring old title called Thor by going in a radically new direction. Thor’s dad – Odin – gave the magical Thor powers to Beta Ray Bill, a bionic alien. That’s right, a BIONIC ALIEN with the power of the Thunder God. Walt, you’re blowing our minds here!

Walter Simonson’s writing run lasted from isse #337-382. He handled the interior art until about #367 when Sal Buscema took over. Enjoy this excerpt where Beta Ray Bill gets his god power!

Collector’s Guide:
– From The Mighty Thor #339.
– Reprinted in the Thor Omnibus featuring the complete Walter Simonson stories.