The Infinity Gauntlet

Thanos' first appearance was in Iron Man #55 a few months earlier, but he was more in robot form and it seemed to be a one off issue. There are many arguments out there that has challenged many people with Thanos' first real appearance. Yes, he appeared as robot in Iron Man 55. Technically, that is his birth and first appearance as a character, regardless of whether he was an organic being or a robot being. 

It wasn't until Jim Starlin took over the plot duties along with the art in Captain Marvel #26 where he fully reveals the villain is his organic form as we know him today. Here the magic really happens and is considered by many historians as the Apex of the Marvel cosmos for both writing and art....

As you can see from the cover, Thanos is in the shadows in the building above, as he is off and on much of this issue. He's not truly shown until the end scene of this issue where he declares himself "Thanos, King of Titan-- and shortly, Emperor of the Universe!" 

The Thing has an interesting role, though I suspect he was added for sales reasons being one of the most popular characters at that time. This is truly where it all began...

Captain Mar-vell dies in what's perhaps the most poignant book in comic history, Marvel's first graphic novel, The Death of Captain Marvel. Sadly enough Mar-vell is not killed in battle by Thanos, but from cancer. There was however a silver lining to the end of the story, Mar-vell's nemesis Thanos, now dead (as mentioned above) shows up at the end, battles him for old time sake and welcomes him to the after-life. Since then, Marvel has kept Captain Mar-vell dead now for over 40+ years and it was unheard of for a cosmic super-hero like Mar-vell to die, especially from something so relatable to us as human beings, a disease like cancer. Starlin's own story hits home for the title as he wrote the novel based on the loss of his own father from cancer pouring everything he had into the art and story. It still remains one of the all time classic stories of our time, and Starlin's both writing and drawing Marv-vell at the end was only fitting. 

The roots of the "Death of Captain Marvel" began two decades before Jim Starlin produced this cover. In Captain Marvel #34 (1974), Starlin ended his brief but highly memorable run on the title that began with #25 by exposing Mar-Vell to a nerve gas called Compound 13 while fighting the villain Nitro. The nerve gas initially caused Mar-Vell to collapse. While he appeared to recover, we learn in "The Death of Captain Marvel" that the nerve gas gave Mar-Vell cancer, which eight years later led to his tragic demise.

(Image left, is the TPB "1st Edition" cover to The Death of Captain Marvel pencils and inks by Jim Starlin, a true masterpiece of original art. The original cover, which was an homage to Michaelangelo's "Pietra", (also a masterpiece of art), depicted Death holding Mar-vell, but the 10 heroes shown in the background are in their mightiest form; Thor's hammer out, Hulk's ready to smash, Cap's shield out, etc. It's said that Starlin created this alternate cover (image left) to show the same A-List heroes, with the exception of swapping Colassus for his creation Drax (more fitting), for us to witness an entirely different scene, and feel each hero's heartache and their grief by his side as he passes to the afterlife. 

Other than the original cover image and a reprint of Captain Marvel #34, which we mentioned above, this art was the only original alternate cover used for the title. SInce then, this alternate cover has been used in nearly every reprint for the title, whether it was The Life & Death of Captain Marvel Ultimate Edition as the cover in 2019 or the "End Page" to the most recent Death of Captain Marvel HC Gallery Edition, in what we've counted it's been used in at least 6 different editions over the last 30 years. In a lot of ways it's now a cover that's almost synonymous with the original cover from 1982. A truly stunning cover that is held dearly in our personal collection.    

It wouldn't be until 1990 that Thanos was brought back to life, as first seen in the pages of Silver Surfer #34 (2/90, below) written by Starlin but this time illustrated by Ron Lim... 

Now to our original art page 21- He believes this was all a dream, and talks to himself about what dreams mean and his existence. He hears a voice suggesting that his dream was a premonition. The nightmare has just begun…  In this key page by Ron Lim with Surfer in every panel, and great dialogue by Starlin, he questions whether this was all a dream or something more? He begins to reflect on his life and existence as a human underneath the silver shell. “So The question still remains… What was that dream all about?” Surfer says. The last panel a voice says “Perhaps it was a Premonition.” Surfer responds “Who?” And looks to see who it is. The last panel of this page is the first dialogue of Thanos in physical form to Surfer, and this premonition would start his quest for the infinity stones and wiping out half the population of the universe.  When looking for a Lim / Starlin Surfer page, there are so few pages from this key issue #34, so much so I’ve literally counted the number on my hand in CAF galleries and auction results. Lim’s page layout and surfer images are great, especially of him in the middle on his board. Not to mention Starlin’s dialogue and Surfer’s reflection of himself, and the bottom panel importance of Thanos’ first dialogue in physical form. A Truly historic grail page reintroducing Thanos and the start of the Infinity Gauntlet Starlin/Lim story arc! 

In the movie, Thanos obtains the stones throughout the Infinity War movie, but in the comic series, he actually obtains them in a mini series called Thanos Quest. Thanos Quest was a 2 issue mini-series in which Thanos goes on his quest to obtain the 6 soul gems. Though Silver Surfer #44 is considered the first appearance of the Infinity Gauntlet, as its the first time we see the gauntlet with the gems, but I would advocate Thanos Quest is equally important, if not more important in Thanos acquiring the gems themselves. And though the Gauntlet is the vessel to the gems, the gems themselves power the gauntlet. Essentially without these 6 gems, there is no power, thus there is no Infinity Gauntlet. Below, you'll see one of our original art pages from Thanos Quest, which happens to be the origin page of the gems! Below is a better sinopsys of the series...

After appearing in Silver Surfer #34-#38, Thanos received his self-titled two-issue mini-series entitled Thanos Quest, published from 8/90 through 11/90. Thanos was resurrected by the entity known as Death, who he loves but has spurned his affections. To prove his loyalty to Death, Thanos is given a dark mission to kill 50% of all living creatures in the Universe. In order to accomplish this mission, Thanos must go on a quest throughout the Universe to seek ultimate power - the six 'Infinity Gems'. Individually, they contain power beyond comprehension. Together, they could destroy the universe. The story of how Thanos used the Infinity Gauntlet to achieve his morbid goal was told in the classic six-part Infinity Gauntlet maxi-series published in 1991.   

Thanos Quest #1 - "Schemes and Dreams!" (Cover right) Written by Jim Starlin. Art by Ron Lim John Beatty. Six Soul Gems. NOTE: This tale picks up after the events of Silver Surfer (1987 2nd Series) #38. Thanos the Mad Titan has been resurrected by the entity known as Death. Resurrected and given a dark mission. In order to accomplish this mission, Thanos will seek ultimate power - the Soul Gems! Individually, they contain power beyond comprehension. Together, they could destroy a universe. And Thanos must have them all.… Featuring the Elders of the Universe Champion and Gardiner, and the nefarious In-Betweener.

This leads us to our Thanos Quest #1 original art page...

Ron Lim (pencils) and John Beatty (inks) collaborated on this incredibly important 'Twice-up' page from 1990s's Thanos Quest #2. Thanos has gone on a quest to obtain six Infinity Gems that together will give him the power to impress his beloved personification of Death by murdering 50% of all living beings in the universe. On this page, Thanos has used his technology to locate the Runner, an Elder who possesses the Space Gem and demands that he turn it over to the Mad Titan. The Runner demands to know why Thanos seeks the Infinity Gems, and Thanos reveals the origin of the gems for the first time...

Prior to this page, we saw but knew little about the origin of the gems and for the first time on this very page we learn about their origin. The gems were once part of an omniscient being who existed before all time and space. This being "was all that was and all that was, was it."  says Thanos. As Ron Lim notates on the right side, to fade "God" into space, which is why there is only a pencil outline of the sentient being (see bottom panel darkened to show the pencil better than original lightened scan). This being, however, was lonely, and ended its own existence. Its limitless power was reincarnated in the six Infinity Gems. This being we later find out is Nemesis, but here is referred to as "God". The published page has a painted space background over the middle and lower panel by Tom Vincent (see top right image). 

When acquiring this page, the content and context of the page outweighed the art or lack thereof. From the art perspective, I should add you still get a great Thanos image, a great Runner image with the space gem, and the two of them floating in space on the larger middle panel. Not to mention the pencil outline of the sentient being referred to as "God", later recognized as Nemesis! Overall, An incredibly important page to the Infinity Gauntlet saga, as we learn for the first time of the gems origin! 

This large art has an image area of approximately 11.75" x 17.75", light smudges and artist notes along the border. 

In the first of these four pages we see the iconic scarecrow armor image, signifying Thanos’ retiring from his old Mad Titan life to being a simple farmer, which was always his end goal once he completed his task at hand. But in this case, different from the movie, he fails the task at hand to wipe out half of existence. The scarecrow image may also have other deeper meanings.  

From Jesse Schnedeen Blog Discussing Avengers 4 Thanos’ Scarecrow Image- The Thanos-crow Symbolism 

“The shot of Thanos' armor forming a bizarre scarecrow may well be the most striking image in the Avengers Endgame trailer. On the surface, this "Thanos-crow" symbolizes the fact that the Mad Titan has left his old life behind. He no longer wants to be the feared tyrant who traveled from world to world and murdered billions. He craves whatever sort of peace and contentment he can find after having sacrificed his own children for his cause.  

That said, it's interesting to think about what this Thanos-crow might symbolize on a deeper level. Scarecrows are tools used to ward off birds and prevent crops from being devoured. Basically, Thanos is cultivating life on his farm and doing what he can to protect it from predators. That's the exact opposite of what he was attempting to do in Infinity War. Is the Thanos-crow a sign that Thanos has a newfound respect for the preciousness and fragility of life? Is the scourge of the MCU evolving into a defender instead? 

Thanos the Hero- Few would attempt to describe the Thanos of the comics as a hero, but he has experienced some pretty dramatic moral shifts over the decades. Going back to Infinity Gauntlet, that story marked a major shift for the character as he stepped away from villainy and became a more benevolent force in the universe (for a while, anyway). Thanos even allied himself with Adam Warlock and the Infinity Watch, helping them safeguard the Infinity Stones and ensure that no one else could assemble the Infinity Gauntlet and wield unchecked power.”  

This opening “Farmer Thanos” half splash infamous “Scarecrow” page is not only an iconic image from Avengers Endgame opening scene in which Thor beheads Thanos, but also has much deeper meanings behind the image, which makes this original art page by Lim extra special.  

Another magnificent page with Pip The Troll and Gamora questioning Warlock why they’re leaving the Mad Titan on this remote planet without being punished. Warlock explains essentially this is how the universe is to be “...Without Thanos, the picture is incomplete.” In the last panel, Thanos looks out to the sky seeing his visitors leave and reflects on his past follys... 

“Power. Such an ephemeral commodity, hard to gain, easy to lose. And I once thought I understood it. What vanity.” These are remarkable reflective words coming from the former Mad Titan, as he questions his life work, accomplishments and failures.