Galactus is a hard character to write.
For those who are not aware, Galactus is a Marvel comics character that debuted in Fantastic Four issue 48 (March 1966). He was created by writer Stan Lee and artist jack Kirby as a way for the superhero team to confront a different kind of villain. He is a cosmic being who consumes the planet’s essence to survive. Without it, he goes hungry and will perish. Galactus uses a herald to scout for planets, surveying the area for any hostility and to announce his master’s arrival.
Writers today seems to not fully understand the character of Galactus. He is always being written as a side character to advance a plot or a character. Recently writer Donny Cates just killed him off on 2 (yes, I said 2) different timelines (2018’s Thanos Wins mini-series and 2020’s Thor Vol. 1)
But really, can you blame him? Galactus has few character traits that are relatable to readers. He doesn’t have a love interest (except when his other herald Nova is infatuated with him) and conflict that readers can connect to in the same way as Spider-Man does.
Usually, Galactus would interact with a character and to have him fully understand the nature of life and mortality, would turn that character into his new herald. A good plot point, but I feel that has been used too many times now (most recently on 2011’s Mighty Thor) that it already feels lazy.
One of the best people that were able to write great Galactus stories was John Byrne. One that stood out was from 1983’s Fantastic Four issue 257. In that issue Galactus feels guilty on eating an inhabited planet, passing off a lot of them to the point that he is so hungry that he already accepts his fate and would wish to be gone from the universe. He was intervened by his “sibling” Death and tells him that he is still needed in the universe (despite his genocidal nature) and that his time is yet to come. Galactus is snapped back to his senses and attacks and consumes a nearby planet, showing a detailed look at how he destroys it and feeds off of it for his survival.
Despite the dated dialogue on the that story, (Galactus refers to himself in first person a lot and is too wordy) this is one of the best stories of Galactus that I have read, showing the readers a human side to him: mercy and doubt.
Perhaps the best way to write Galactus is to explore his past. He was a space explorer from an advanced civilization a couple of millennia ago. Have him remember it from time to time, give him someone that he remembers fondly (a loved one or a family member, perhaps) and build off that. Have him communicate with other Marvel Superheroes other than the tired “I’m hungry, help me; make that person his new herald, etc” story element.
The character needs an exposure. Perhaps his apparent appearance on the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) will help him as much as Thanos became a household name (where even your clueless officemate knows the character). I hope that the writers (comic or MCU) can give the character justice and not just have him be killed off in one movie (or worse, make him a cloud like what they did on the 2007 Fantastic Four movie sequel)
Here’s hoping.
