How Galactus Changed Marvel Forever, and Other Essential Silver Age Moments

This is the third part of our look back at the most critical issues in the early era of Marvel. Head here for part one, which covers 1961-1963, and here for part two, which covers 1964-1965.

By the back half of the 1960s, Marvel had fully settled into a groove and introduced the majority of their key players. Long-standing flagship properties like Spider-Man, the Fantastic Four, and the Avengers were already becoming household names, allowing Marvel to make the refinements that led to some of their strongest and most famous Silver Age stories, such as the Galactus Trilogy, the Green Goblin discovering Spider-Man’s secret identity, and Doctor Doom stealing the power of the Silver Surfer.

During this time, many characters who were using the split book format were given their own series. 1968 would see the likes of Iron Man, Captain America, Doctor Strange, Nick Fury, Namor and the Silver Surfer getting their own magazines, proliferating the Marvel line and making their cultural footprint larger than before.

Today we’re looking at some of the most important story developments for Marvel Comics before they wrapped up the ’60s. Join us for our third look at the essential issues of Marvel!

If This Be My Destiny (Amazing Spider-Man #33)

If Steve Ditko has a most famous issue on Spider-Man aside from Amazing Fantasy #15, it would surely have to go to Amazing Spider-Man #33, which features one of the best known sequences in superhero comics. The “If This Be My Destiny” arc runs for three issues, but it’s the final one that cements the story as a classic. Spider-Man starts the issue trapped under heavy machinery in Doctor Octopus’ underwater lair. Aunt May is on the verge of death, her only hope being a serum that Spidey has. In a sequence that lasts for a whole five pages, determined not to fail her in the way he failed Uncle Ben, he summons the strength to lift the nearly insurmountable weight. The slow build-up, Ditko’s dramatic panel work, and key dialogue from Peter that gets to the heart of Spider-Man’s philosophy (“Anyone can win a fight – when the odds – are easy! It’s when the going’s tough – when there seems to be no chance – that’s when – it counts!”) turns what could’ve been a simple scene of Spidey using super strength to escape into a defining moment for the character. This sequence would also become a staple reference point for adaptations, with versions of it appearing in the Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon and a climactic scene in Spider-Man: Homecoming (“Come on, Spider-Man!”), and also getting a nod in the first level of Insomniac’s 2018 Spider-Man game.

The Galactus Trilogy (Fantastic Four #48-50)

Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s inaugural run on Fantastic Four lasted for 102 (!) issues, but what is commonly considered the pinnacle of their collaboration on the book came at pretty much the midpoint. Fantastic Four introduced many of Marvel’s star supporting players, but few left as immediate an impression as Galactus and the Silver Surfer. Two of Marvel’s most famous cosmic characters, the omnipotent planet devourer and his herald’s first battle with the Fantastic Four changed the rules of Marvel storytelling by permanently altering the scale of what the F4 were capable of encountering. They had faced powerful foes before, but Galactus was different for two main reasons: First, he was essentially a god, and second, he was above the morality commonly associated with superhero vs. supervillain conflicts. Galactus did not threaten the world out of some petty desire for conquest or revenge, but because he must eat planets to survive. It took the combined efforts of the F4 teaming up with the Watcher, the Silver Surfer being convinced to turn on his master, and Johnny traveling across the cosmos to retrieve the Ultimate Nullifier to finally deter Galactus. The big G would be a recurring character thereafter, but the bigger consequence was for the Surfer, who would be confined to Earth for many years as penance for his betrayal. The basic outline of this story was used as the basis for the 2007 film Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, but it didn’t exactly do the comics justice. Here’s hoping these two Marvel icons get a more faithful treatment at some point in the MCU.

The Black Panther Leaps Into Action (Fantastic Four #52)

Almost immediately after the arrival of the Silver Surfer and Galactus, the Fantastic Four book saw another mighty milestone with the introduction of Black Panther in issue #52. King T’Challa, the ruler of Wakanda, was a major turning point not just for Marvel but for comics in general, being the first African superhero in mainstream American comics, and one of the first non-caricatured Black heroes in the medium. That would be a big enough deal on its own, but T’Challa was portrayed not just as a hero, but also as the ruler of his own nation. While the issue began with T’Challa luring the F4 to Wakanda to battle them, this turned out to be a test of his own ability because he sought to defend his homeland from Ulysses Klaw, a physicist and plunderer (and also the murderer of T’Challa’s father, King T’Chaka), who wanted to steal Wakanda’s precious metal resource, vibranium, for his own devious ends. The F4 would help T’Challa battle Klaw in the following issue, establishing both the Black Panther and Wakanda as the permanent fixtures of the Marvel Universe they’ve been ever since. T’Challa paved the way for other prominent Black superheroes, such as the Falcon in 1969, Luke Cage in 1972, and Storm in 1975. The late Chadwick Boseman portrayed T’Challa in the MCU, including the Black Panther solo film of the same name, which would become the first superhero movie nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards.

The Green Goblin Discovers Spider-Man’s Identity (Amazing Spider-Man #39-40)

In Spider-Man’s early years, it felt like he had a new iconic nemesis debuting in almost every issue. However, for as great as Spidey’s rogues gallery is, the Green Goblin broke ahead of the pack to become his top archenemy in the legendary duology of issues #39 and #40. Using a gas that dulls Peter’s Spider-Sense, the Goblin follows Peter home and confronts him while he’s unmasked. The following battle also leads to the Goblin revealing his own identity as Norman Osborn, the father of Peter’s friend Harry. While #40 would end with Norman losing his memories in an explosion, the looming threat of him relearning his identity as the Goblin would be a recurring subplot thereafter, with the two biggest developments in the aftermath being Norman battling Spidey again in Spectacular Spider-Man #2 in 1968, and killing Peter’s girlfriend Gwen Stacy in the landmark 1973 ASM #121-122. The other reason #39-40 is such a milestone is that they mark the first change in Spidey’s regular artist, with John Romita Sr. taking over penciling duties and becoming one of the character’s signature artists. The story of the Goblin discovering Peter’s identity and messing with his life would be adapted in both the 1990s Spider-Man cartoon and in Sam Raimi’s first Spider-Man film in 2002.

Thor and the Troll-Asgard War (Thor #136-139)

Thor may be associated with fantastical adventures nowadays, but the early years of his run in Journey Into Mystery were quite different. Asgard and the other Norse Gods were certainly part of the stories (Loki in particular was popping up every other issue) but Thor’s tales were largely relegated to the realm of Earth. This was partly because he was also a regular member of the Avengers at the time, but there was a nagging feeling in his early days that his stories weren’t capitalizing on the full potential of Thor’s mythos. This started to change with Jack Kirby’s passion project Tales of Asgard, a back-up series based on Norse myths that started in Journey Into Mystery #97. However, Thor’s book saw a major shift in status quo in the Troll-Asgard War arc that began in #136. Odin challenges Jane Foster (Thor’s human love interest at the time) with godhood so she can have the chance to prove she is worthy of being Thor’s wife. She fails the test, and is pretty much summarily written out of the series for a while afterwards. Thor was then paired with Lady Sif in the same issue and they work together to protect Asgard from an invasion of Rock Trolls in a four-issue epic. Thor’s stories had left Earth before (the previous arc involved Ego the Living Planet), but these issues marked an important departure where Thor’s solo book became much more about mythological figures, otherworldly realms, and high fantasy than him hanging out in New York.

“Face It Tiger… You Just Hit the Jackpot!” (Amazing Spider-Man #42)

Mary Jane Watson may be Peter Parker’s most prolific love interest, but she certainly wasn’t the first. While he was trying to figure out a dating life that still involved Betty Brant, there was a recurring subplot that started in ASM #15 about Aunt May trying to arrange a meeting between Peter and May’s friend Anna Watson’s unseen niece, Mary Jane. MJ would make an on-panel appearance in #25 with her face covered by a plant, dangling the mystery of what she looked like even further. It wasn’t until the final panel of #42 that MJ was finally revealed in all her glory, creating one of the most famous images and introductory lines in comic book history. Mary Jane would become the superhero genre’s most famous love interest (the only other contender is likely Superman’s Lois Lane), not just because of her design but because she broke the mold at the time by having an outgoing, fun-loving personality and a clear sense that she had a life outside of her relationship with Peter. They alternated between being friends and a couple several times over the years, but finally married in 1987’s Amazing Spider-Man Annual #21. This status quo would later be upended with the infamous 2007 story One More Day, which is way too complicated to delve into now. Mary Jane Watson would be adapted into almost every version of the Spider-Man mythology after her debut, and remains his most prominent love interest in most incarnations.

Doctor Doom Steals the Silver Surfer’s Powers (Fantastic Four #57-60)

Doctor Doom may have sat out the Galactus Trilogy, but he wasn’t going to rest on his laurels for long. The monarch of Latveria showed up only a few issues later to pull off one of his most dastardly schemes yet: tricking the Silver Surfer into coming to his homeland so he could drain him of the Power Cosmic. To add insult to injury, he even stole his surfboard! With a power level far beyond anything he had before, Doom then embarks on another bid for world domination. The F4 would not manage to defeat him until #60, where Reed tricks Doom into flying into the invisible barrier Galactus left behind to confine the Surfer on Earth. Doom attempting to steal the power of cosmic beings would become a recurring staple, with him trying the same gambit again on the Beyonders in both the 1984 and 2015 versions of Secret Wars, and on Galactus himself in the 2001 mini-series Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Comic Magazine. Given that he loses the power every time, you’d think he would learn at some point! Doom stealing the Surfer’s powers would be adapted in the 1990s Fantastic Four cartoon (twice!) and was also a plot point in the 2007 film Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.

Spider-Man No More (Amazing Spider-Man #50)

They really were just knocking Spider-Man stories out of the park in this era, weren’t they? ASM #50 was another major moment in Spidey’s history for two reasons: The first is that it was the first appearance of the Kingpin, the most notable of Marvel’s crime lord antagonists and a key enemy of both Spider-Man and Daredevil. The second is that it involves Peter deciding that he’s had enough of his personal life being ruined by super-heroics, only to be repeatedly vilified and slandered by J. Jonah Jameson. This leads to the famous image of Peter dumping his costume in a trash can and walking away from his life as a superhero. It’s only later when he hears a night watchman getting attacked that he instinctively jumps in to help, and finds that the man he saved reminds him of Uncle Ben. Reminded of his origin story where his failure to act led to his uncle’s death, Peter recommits to his life as Spider-Man. It’s only a single-issue story, but it’s definitely one of the more emotionally involving ones of this period because of how it connects to the character’s beginnings. This story would be partially adapted in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2, with the trash can panel recreated in the film’s dramatic midpoint.

Jim Steranko’s Run on Nick Fury (Strange Tales #155-168, Nick Fury #1-3 & 5)

Nick Fury is rarely thought of as a solo lead nowadays, but back in the 1960s no comic coming out of Marvel was as much of a trailblazer from an artistic perspective as Jim Steranko’s run on the Nick Fury, Agent of SHIELD feature from Strange Tales. The spy thriller series first picked up Steranko as a penciler on #151, but with #155 he took over writing and full art duties. It might not be immediately apparent to a modern reader looking back without the historical context, but Steranko’s artwork on Nick Fury was boundary-pushing in several respects, playing with the medium’s traditional conceptions of layout design and using surreal montage and expressive pencil work inspired by psychedelic art, while also infusing the stories with greater levels of violence and sex appeal than was typical of mainstream American comics of the era. He also pioneered the first-ever four-page spread, which required lining up two copies (!) of the book side-by-side to fully appreciate it. Reading each issue is to witness a visionary experimenting with the very nature of the form, which makes it all the more tragic that his run isn’t longer than it is. Even still, Steranko’s Nick Fury (and a brief follow-up run on the Captain America book in #110, #111 and #113 where he co-created Madame Hydra) are some of the finest pure pieces of artistic expression that Marvel’s Silver Age ever produced, and his experimental style was a precursor to later Marvel artists who used similar techniques like John Byrne, George Pérez, and Jim Starlin.

The Introduction of Vision (Avengers #57-58)

As discussed in Part 2 of this series, Avengers #16 started the team’s tradition of offering membership to former supervillains and regularly rotating in new members. This idea was used again with the Vision, an android created by Ultron, the villainous artificial intelligence originally designed by Henry Pym. Ultron made his own debut in issue #54, where the rogue synthetic led an incarnation of the Masters of Evil while disguised as the Crimson Cowl. But that first scheme usually gets forgotten. Ultron creating Vision is a far more notable plot development because his creation winds up turning on him and helping the Avengers defeat him. Vision would then ask for membership, which is approved in #58. From then on Vision would be one of the most stalwart members of the Avengers, participating in many of their most famous stories, and eventually even married his teammate Scarlet Witch. It was later revealed that Vision’s body was constructed out of the original android Human Torch from the Timely Comics era. Ultron never quite got over his creation’s betrayal, and kept making more androids like Jocasta and Alkhema (they turned on him too). Vision is the most famous of Ultron’s creations, and was adapted into both the animated series Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and the MCU, where he was played by Paul Bettany.

Neal Adams Injects New Life Into the X-Men (X-Men #57-63)

As discussed in Part 1 of this series, the X-Men were not exactly the pinnacle of Marvel’s line in the 1960s. In fact, the book was canceled with issue #66 and transitioned to reprints for five years. However, before the book was retired, Neal Adams took over penciling duties with #56, helping to tie off a story involving Havok and the Living Pharaoh. After that, he and writer Roy Thomas attempted to give the book a second wind with a string of high-quality issues built around two primary story arcs, the first involving the return of the Sentinels under the command of Bolivar Trask’s son Larry, and the second introducing the pterodactyl-like villain Sauron, who has to drain mutant energy to survive. The battle with Sauron leads the X-Men back to the Savage Land, where they discover that Magneto (thought dead at the time) was still alive and kicking. Adams’ tenure on the title didn’t last long (he skipped #64 and came back for #65, the issue that reveals Professor X wasn’t dead either), but it was the first time in ages that the X-Men book had a pulse. It wasn’t enough to save the book from cancellation, but Adams’ fresh ideas and striking but realistic approach to the artwork feels like a precursor to the direction that Chris Claremont and his primary artistic collaborators Dave Cockrum and John Byrne would take the title in the mid-1970s. The X-Men may already have been on the way out the door, but Neal Adams still managed to squeeze into the pantheon of artists that left a definitive mark on the property.