CTG Villains Month: Part 1 Thanos

Thanos is a character that has gone through so much pain and misery. He is a charismatic brute that ruins almost everything that he touches. The Mad Titan does not rest until he gets exactly what he wants. He is a character that was created via Jim Starlin, the writer revealed that he was a different take on the popular DC rogue known as Darkseid. It is remarkable that at this moment in popular culture, Thanos is much more relevant to fans than the character that inspired him. He made his debut in an issue of Iron Man, and attempted to steal one of the most important artifacts contained in the Marvel Universe. I am of course talking about the legendary Cosmic Cube, eventually the anti-hero was foiled to his dismay. It is also worth noting that the baddy was created in 1973.

Starlin saw Thanos as the devil and created a character similar to jesus in the form of Adam Warlock. Darkness and light go hand in hand, and Warlock embodied all that was good in humanity. The cosmic deity known as Warlock was originally known as Him, but began to spin off on a story and adventures all his own. Both Warlock and the Mad Titan have died countless times, but like the devil and god himself they always seem to rise again. Many know the two characters based around the seminal storyline surrounding the duo called the Infinity Gauntlet.

The story was centered around the villain gaining control of the item on which the tale is named, The Infinity Gauntlet. Six gems are hidden around the earth one for the soul, mind, time, power, reality, and space. The gems are aggregated by the character in the Thanos Quest tale, written and drawn by Starlin and Ron Lim, who would go on to collaborate with the writer on future Infinity stories. The Infinity Gauntlet was the first of many Infinity based event narratives featuring the respective characters. The purple alien continued to plague humanity again and again, until the finale of Marvel Universe: The End where Adam finally got through to the Titan. He ended up sacrificing himself for the good of humanity, and the seminal creator bid farewell to the heroes.

Unfortunately comics never end, and the character was brought back to life without the Warlock in Annihilation. This is the point where the villain begins to tie into more of the cosmic characters like The Guardians Of The Galaxy and Ultron. After having some poignant moments he is of course dead, yet again. Thanos has always sought to please his mistress Death with the amount of dead bodies he leaves across the universe. Unfortunately for the anti-hero, he serves someone who never seems to be pleased from the amount of bodies dropped.

The Thanos Rising mini-series has been exploring where the two characters come from, and how the twisted relationship started to blossom. Recently in Avengers Assemble, the character has had his sights set back on earth. He has now assembled a new team of villains to take the planet out from under the Marvel Heroes. These generals of the antagonist are Proxima Midnight, Supergiant, Ebony Maw, Black Dwarf, and the right hand of Thanos, Corvus Glaive. Little is known about the intentions of the team, but it seems that they are also working with the evil alien race known as the Outriders. Readers will have to follow Infinity further to figure out what happens next, and how deep the plans may stem.  

It is a shame that creator Jim Starlin is no longer attached to the landmark villain that he created. Thankfully the purple maestro is in the very capable hands of Jonathan Hickman who will steer the property in a good direction. Infinity never ends, nor will the wrath of The Mad Titan Thanos.