Redrawing “The Galactus Trilogy” in “Silver Surfer: Parable”

“Silver Surfer: Parable” (1988), by Stan Lee & celebrated French creator Mœbius, imagines #Galactus returning to Earth, where he’s opposed by the Surfer. Mœbius’ visualization of these iconic characters both extends & reinterprets themes from previous stories. 1/14 #FantasticFour

Jack Kirby, artist of the original Galactus Trilogy, is known for his exaggerated, dynamic bodies, which Charles Hatfield describes as “vectors of force.” Hatfield also observes the “breakneck pace” of Kirby’s storytelling as perhaps its defining feature. 2/14

Mœbius’ action scenes are similarly but differently forceful. For instance, to emphasize Galactus’ divine threat and his thematic contrast with the Silver Surfer, he incorporates manipulations of size and scale that could be seen as broadly referencing Kirby. 3/14

Eliot Borenstein argues that in the original Galactus story, “the cosmic scale of godlike beings threatens to completely eclipse our own ordinary world (indeed, to swallow it whole).” The Fantastic Four often share the reader’s perspective, gazing skyward in helpless awe. 4/14

Yet Borenstein also emphasizes Kirby’s careful contrasting of the cosmic with the mundane, as on this page, which includes Reed and Sue tenderly comforting Johnny Storm amid the teen’s existential crisis, contrasted with a dramatic tableau of the Surfer battling Galactus. 5/14

As in the original Kirby-drawn story, Mœbius’ Galactus towers over the city and its denizens. His size is monumental, his body seemingly indestructible as he effortlessly tramples cars and carelessly topples skyscrapers. 6/14

Galactus also towers over the Silver Surfer, emphasizing a “David vs Goliath” dynamic that helps humanize the Surfer and underscore his role as humanity’s champion. At times, the tiny Surfer’s cosmic blasts appear hopelessly futile, like an insect biting an elephant. 7/14

In a contextualizing essay, Mœbius says he didn’t maintain a specific size for Galactus, but rather “modified Galactus’ proportions throughout the story… These changes do not bother me because they’re part of the mythical nature of the character.” 8/14

But Moebius’ approach to action is also dramatically different. Where Kirby’s Surfer attacks Galactus directly, Moebius’ surfer dodges & weaves. And Moebius eschews breakneck action in favour framing & whitespace that evokes contemplative stillness within active tableaus. 9/14

Yet through his contemplative grace, Mœbius’ Surfer speaks to what Alicia Masters, in the original story, calls the character’s defining “nobility” and “loneliness.” Indeed, while Moebius’ humanizes the Surfer, he also clearly distinguishes him from the masses of humanity. 10/14

But Moebius’ delicate linework also, at times, makes both the Surfer and Galactus seem unusually vulnerable. As contrasted with the thick, bold lines of Kirby, Mœbius’ even, detailed linework can make Galactus feel weighty and weary. 11/14

Mœbius’ visualizations of Galactus and the Silver Surfer capture the sense of wonder and sublimity associated with these characters’ first appearances while indulging in a more contemplative iconicity–like a vivid, subjective memory of a memorable event. 12/14

Alternatively, Mœbius’ visualizations bear the scars of past stories, just as the Surfer finds himself slipping between his present (our future) and his real (imaginary) past). The weight of history clings to him like the rags that initially conceal his glittering form. 13/14

But ultimately, the debt to past tales endures. Mœbius’ visualizations of Galactus and the Silver Surfer take different paths to similar conclusions, wherein surviving a confrontation with the cosmic divine leads to both affirmation and isolation. 14/14