THE SILVER SURFER
The Animated Series
 
by Larry Brody
 
The saga of the Silver Surfer is a modern myth that's been part of pop culture for thirty years. The most philosophical, sensitive, and idealistic of all Stan Lee's creations, the Surfer and his quest for peace, home and love in a violent and unpredictable universe have struck a chord in the hearts of generations of readers.
Once the herald of Galactus, an entity so awesome that he's more like a force of nature than a living being, the Surfer is actually NORRIN RADD, a man who traded his humanity for the cosmic power necessary to find planets suitable for Galactus' consumption. In so doing, he saved his own planet, Zenn-La, from destruction by Galactus?and lost both his place there, with his people, and his great love, SHALLA BAL.
Forced to help feed Galactus' insatiable appetite, the Silver Surfer at last rebelled, and after a bitter but successful struggle with his master, he was able to keep Galactus from wiping out the planet Earth. Victory through force would've been impossible. It was the Surfer's heart that got to Galactus. His herald's courage and audacity in fighting a battle he couldn't possibly win actually made this incredible being feel something, for the first time in millions of years.
An action series first and foremost, THE SILVER SURFER picks up the story from there, chronicling the adventures of Norrin Radd after he's been released from Galactus' service. Most of our series will take place in the depths of Space, just as the comic on which it's based does. A loner by nature, the Surfer roams the spaceways, searching among the billions of galaxies, stars, and planets for his homeworld, which Galactus has moved from its orbit and hidden from him.
Like the gods of ancient Greece and Rome, Galactus is a bad loser. Just as those ancient gods kept the hero Ulysses from getting home to his wife, Penelope, after the Trojan War, so Galactus keeps the Silver Surfer from returning to Shalla Bal. It could've gone worse for our silvery friend. It's only Galactus' grudging admiration for Norrin Radd that's enabled the Surfer to get away with his life.
In a parallel to another modern myth, the Western hero, Shane, the Silver Surfer longs to leave his "guns" behind him and settle down to a life of peace. Every time he uses his cosmic power he painfully relives the chaos and devastation in which he once took part. It's ironic that for the Surfer to have any chance at all of succeeding in his quest, he has to utilize the power to its fullest.
And what a power it is! Thanks to Galactus' genetic engineering, the Surfer can endure the great extremes of heat and cold found throughout space. He can "surf" through the vastness by riding the crest of waves of cosmic energy. Without what he wryly calls "the power cosmic," no way could the Surfer perform his signature stunts, such as "hanging ten" through a wormhole or "walking the nose" over a nebula.
The Silver Surfer's fighting skills include the ability to unleash bolts of energy from his hands and the ability to withstand all but the most incredibly powerful attacks. But he isn't invulnerable. The Surfer's power can be exhausted, and the more he uses it without time to regenerate, the weaker he gets. Also, within his silver skin he's mortal, subject to disease and bodily malfunction, which can either occur naturally or be caused by enemies.
The Surfer also has a peaceful power. He can generate rays of healing or transforming energy from his eyes, using it to save a friend who's near death, or turn one element into another. His healing power is limited to only one or two people at a time, and if he tries to push it, the Surfer will weaken, and may even black out. And, unfortunately for him, it won't work at all if he tries to use it on himself.
Since the overall arc of the series is the Surfer's attempt to get home, he'll spend most of his time going from solar system to solar system, trying to find news of Zenn-La. Along the way, he'll meet fascinating beings and civilizations, and we'll create new and exotic forms of life and society. The Surfer may, for example, end up on a planet where plants have formed an intelligent civilization; or one where creatures that look like monsters are actually peaceful and wise; or he may meet up with a civilization that's always on the move in its spaceships, with people who've never set foot on?or in?anything else.
No matter how alien any of these beings is on the outside, we'll soon find out that on the inside they're "human," with the same hopes, dreams, and desires all living, intelligent beings have?and the same jealousy, anger, and greed. These emotions motivate their conflicts, and even though all the Silver Surfer intends to do is pass through the area on the way to Zenn-La, invariably he's drawn into the dilemmas he sees.
One such problem might come up in a civilization where the leading race thrives because it has, through genetic engineering, created a whole new species to do its work for it. But those in the "under species" have gained self-awareness, and are rebelling against being bred to be slaves. Is it principle that motivates those who control them? Or is it greed? And is it principle that prods the rebels into action? Or do they just want to turn the tables on their overlords for revenge?
Another problem could involve a lifeform whose brain is also inhabited by another, alien creature. At first glance, this is no problem. After all, the being who the Surfer has befriended is a very peaceful, laid back kind of guy, always in harmony with his surroundings. But then the Surfer meets another member of his friend's race, whose brain don't have what they call a "monitor," and he realizes that the reason for all this serenity is that the monitor is literally preventing his friend from thinking his own thoughts and living his own life!
Yet another problem occurs in a civilization where everyone lives in a "dream," utterly oblivious to the real world around them. Not only is their real planet a shambles, but their sun is about to go nova. When Norrin Radd accidentally enters the dream, he forgets everything about his current situation and instead constantly relives, over and over, the most dangerous, exciting, and frightening events of his past. How will he remember where he actually is? And how will he get himself and all the others out of the dream world before it goes BLAM?
The Surfer's involvement in these and other situations is based on more than being a kind of "Henry Kissinger of Space." On Zenn-La, life was appreciated and revered, and because of this, the Silver Surfer was always very idealistic. But when Galactus first gave the Surfer super powers, he also altered the Surfer's mind, taking away his conscience. This was the only way the Surfer could bear being part of Galactus' terrible acts of destruction. One of the reasons the Surfer has left Galactus is that he overcame the mind control, but in so doing he was deluged by an overwhelming sense of guilt.
The memories of his time with Galactus will haunt the Silver Surfer forever, and we'll see them as action-filled flashbacks when he's in a situation that reminds him of the past. His soul is more tormented than the most sensitive poet's, and the Surfer has a need to help people because to him that's the only way he can try to make up for what he did. In many cases, the Silver Surfer's efforts go unappreciated even by those he has helped, and he's no stranger to the feeling of being betrayed. Still he has no real choice. When the Silver Surfer sees injustice and suffering he has to do all he can to stop it, regardless of what the consequences to him may be.
In this way, the Surfer is like Captain Kirk on the original Star Trek. Everything he does is emotional, coming from his keen awareness of how precious and beautiful life is. Like Captain Kirk, the Surfer is constantly faced with the fact that other beings don't appreciate this precious gift and spend much of their time squandering it. Also like Kirk, the Surfer doesn't really spend a lot of time kvetching. Instead, even though he knows it'll interfere with his journey home, he jumps right in.
In a typical story, when the Silver Surfer comes to a new planet or area of space his main interest is to find out if anyone here has any news about Zenn-La. But as he gets to know those on the planet better, and to care more about them, he inevitably bows to his idealism and does his best to help resolve their situation. His first attempt is almost always a peaceful one, but the Surfer's belief in the general goodness of living beings is often his biggest weakness, and he often will find himself pushed and pushed and pushed still harder?until, in order to save someone else (never for just himself), he unleashes the power cosmic, coming back from the brink of disaster to save the day.
Even in the heat of battle, the Surfer's past is never forgotten. Sometimes, when overmatched by a foe and teetering on the edge of defeat, he'll think of Shalla Bal and find new strength. At other times he'll think he has seen her somewhere, only to find that it was only a woman who resembled his great love.
Galactus is constantly adding to his punishment for being the only entity in the universe to ever successfully rebel against him. At times, for example, he will send visions of home across space and directly into the Surfer's mind. These visions are so powerful, so vivid, and so beautiful that they make the Surfer cry out in pain when he realizes that they're not real.
Most of the time, Galactus can't be bothered with dealing personally with the Surfer. Just as the gods sent enemies to stop Ulysses from getting home, Galactus uses "hired guns," super villains like TERRAX, with his own brand of cosmic powers and an icy ruthlessness to boot; MORG, the Surfer's replacement in Galactus' employ; NEBULA, a cunning woman space pirate; and RAZE, an alien bounty hunter with his own peculiar morality. It's like being chased by the super-posse in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The Silver Surfer can outdistance and outsmart them, but nothing he does can stop them from coming on.
One result of this is that very few beings are willing to get involved with the Silver Surfer. They're afraid to even be near him in case they become targets too. In spite of the danger, in the course of the series Norrin Radd will manage to find a few brave allies. These include other cosmic-powered former heralds of Galactus, including the often temperamental FIRELORD; the earnest AIRWALKER, and NOVA, a beautiful and irreverently witty young Earth woman.
Nova, in fact, falls in love with the Surfer, adding another dimension to his personality. The Surfer returns her feelings, and whenever they're together he's tempted to give up his search for Zenn-La?but it's a temptation to which he never succumbs. No matter how attractive Nova is, it's Shalla Bal who beckons Norrin Radd in his dreams.
Other friends include ADAM WARLOCK, an artificially created human being whose problem is that he feels things too deeply; the humorously single-minded and none-too-bright but very powerful DRAX THE DESTROYER (imagine a super-powered Lenny, in Of Mice and Me), even the wise-cracking, mystically powered PIP THE TROLL. These characters will add color, variety, and humor to the series, with one or another of them accompanying the Surfer in a kind of mini-character arc that may last for two or three stories. Still, at the end of each arc, the Silver Surfer will have to go on?alone.
In addition to battling for justice on alien worlds and fighting for his very existence against Galactus' minions, the Surfer's adventures will also involve interplanetary or space menaces. Can he save everyone when a comet is about to collide with a planet and destroy its entire civilization? How does he react when he's the victim of a space-borne plague? Will he be able to find a home for intergalactic refugees from a disaster like, say, the Kree-Skrull War? And how will he feel when he comes face to face with the WANDERERS, bitter survivors of planets destroyed by Galactus himself?
Other stories will involve individual foes much more powerful than the Surfer, including the mysterious and power-hungry TYRANT; THANOS, who virtually worships evil as though it was holy; and EGO, who is, literally, a Living Planet. Like Galactus, these enemies are almost godlike in their power, able to destroy planets on a whim, and motivated by grand schemes and cosmic considerations. They manipulate whole populations, trying to fulfill their own warped senses of destiny and fate. Ego in particular seems a natural for this series, with his ability to disguise himself as Zenn-La in an effort to end his own aching loneliness and dupe the Surfer into staying with him. And, speaking of destiny and fate, the Surfer will encounter them too, in the guise of Eternity and Infinity, metaphysical concepts given physical form.
To add to the mystique and the feeling of myth and legend, the narrative point of view of the series will change from time to time. All the stories will be "happening" as we see them, with suspense about what's to come, and most of them will be told from the Silver Surfer's point of view, with our primary focus on how what's going on effects him. Occasionally, however, we'll present a story from the point of view of one of his friends or allies, and we'll see how traveling with the Surfer changes them.
We may also present an episode or two from the point of view of one of those the Surfer helps on a new planet. Or from the vantage point of the WATCHER, a Marvel character who specializes in observing the universe's most significant events. And we may even tell a story from the point of view of the villains, so that we better understand what they're all about.
Visually, THE SILVER SURFER has the entire universe to explore, with grand intergalactic vistas waiting to be shown. Everything will be authentic, based on the latest NASA photographs and discoveries, but heightened even more. With our expertise in animation, we will portray vast panoramas that no human on Earth has yet seen, with sweeping visuals that add to both the action and the personal and philosophical nature of the stories.
In a sense, this series is almost primal. The Silver Surfer has become a pop myth because his sense of alienation is the same as that felt at some time by every man or woman, and his quest is like every human being's search for identity and meaning. He's just doing what we're all trying to do?working hard to make every place he finds himself a better one, while searching for that one spot in the universe where he truly belongs, that home where he can sit back and relax, and feel the warm, comforting embrace of love.
Watching THE SILVER SURFER will become an important part of the life of everyone in the audience, because through this series they'll get a better look into themselves?and the dreams that link all human beings together.

THE UNIVERSE OF THE SILVER SURFER
by Larry Brody
In his journey to return from the planet Earth to his home world and SHALLA BAL, the woman he was forced to leave behind, the SILVER SURFER must make his way through a universe every bit as dangerous as the seas on which Ulysses sailed while trying to get home from the Trojan War. These dangers run the gamut from cosmic forces and natural disasters to vast intergalactic civilizations and exotic life forms.
The cosmic forces are personified by four beings known as ETERNITY, INFINITY, MASTER ORDER, and LADY CHAOS. Together they represent all the universal laws of physics and metaphysics, and are engaged in a never-ending struggle with each other to dominate all reality?a struggle no mere mortal may understand.
Neither the Silver Surfer nor anyone else in the sector of space in which he roams has ever encountered these beings. But the space-faring races of the sector?who refer to themselves as the "civilized universe"?accept Eternity, Infinity, Master Order, and Lady Chaos much as the ancients on Earth accepted the mythological gods.
Natural disasters such as hurricane-like space anomalies that can crush a solar system like an eggshell, torrential meteor bombardments that totally alter a planet's landscape, and vast nebulae of radiation that mutate all life for light years around are considered a direct result of the struggle of the cosmic forces. These and other disasters can occur at any time, and in our continuing saga the Surfer most likely will find himself in the middle of them all.
The various intergalactic civilizations and their exotic inhabitants also pose a threat. The two primary civilizations in this part of the universe are those of the KREE and the SKRULL, two races who have been locked in their own struggle for dominance for centuries.
The Kree are an ancient civilization. In fact, it is rumored that their practice of "seeding" the universe with viable DNA actually is responsible for most current life, including that on Earth. The Kree are human-like in appearance, and their Empire comprises thousands of solar systems. Their ruler, the SUPREMOR, is an organic computer made up of a myriad of linked brains, and their lifestyle has been dependent on their highly advanced machines for longer than anyone can remember.
As masters of technology, the Kree have a belief system based on rationality and order, and. in this way they're like the Vulcans on Star Trek. Unlike the Vulcans, the Kree are prideful and arrogant, believing it is their destiny to rule the universe because no other culture could possibly rule so well.
The Skrull are the upstart civilization. Reptilian and lizard-like in appearance, their civilization is cold-blooded and cruel. The Skrull Empire is much younger than that of the Kree, having existed for only a few thousand years, and it has grown into a threat because, the Kree's arrogance kept the older race from believing the newcomers could achieve all they have.
The Skrull are ruled by a Queen in much the same way a queen bee rules the hive. While the Skrull also have a highly developed technology, their primary interest is warfare. Most of their knowledge has been "appropriated" from other races that they have conquered. The rest of it was stolen from the Kree.
As barbaric warriors, the Skrull have a strong code of honor and a reverence for bravery, and in this way they're much like the Star Trek's Klingons. Intensely "patriotic", they too aspire to ruling the universe?as a sign of the greatness of their beloved Queen.
Although he is a non-combatant in their conflict, the Silver Surfer is the object of great interest on the part of both the Kree and the Skrull. This is because of his connection to Galactus. Both races regard the Surfer's former master, with all his great power, as a loose cannon in their struggle. A member of neither civilization, showing obedience and allegiance to no one and no thing, Galactus has such tremendous power that both races long to harness it, certain that if they did victory soon would be theirs.
To this end, the Kree and the Skrull are always on the lookout for the Surfer. Both sides hope to capture him and use his knowledge of Galactus to force the devourer of planets to ally himself with their side. Their machinations are a major stumbling block to the Surfer, who wants only to pass through this part of the universe and reach his home.
The Silver Surfer isn't the only being who has to live with one eye out for the Kree and the Skrull. Other types of life-forms with whom he will interact include the COTATI, mobile vegetative life with a belief in their destiny to, literally, spread their seed; the CHRONULE, energy beings who live simultaneously throughout time; and the WHINNYM, horselike creatures who have been so overwhelmed by the forces around them that they have forsaken reality for life in a group dream.
Although the conflict between the Kree and the Skrull goes back many, many years, its "style" has changed from time to time. Sometimes it has involved open warfare. At other times it has been a kind of Cold War of propaganda and spies. Right now, the conflict is heating up again, with battles occurring from time to time, although war has not been officially declared.
It is within this universe, against this colorful background of danger and treachery, action and intrigue, that the Silver Surfer soars, trying to find his way back to his love.
The following pages present in more detail the people and creatures he will meet along the way.

The Watcher
The Watcher, known to Marvel Maniacs by his proper name, Uatu, comes from a race of beings who have dedicated their entire civilization to observing and recording all the great events in the universe. The births and death of stars, grand intergalactic conflicts, the creation of a new super-being…these are the kinds of events the Watcher attends.
The Watcher seems to have great power, but no one knows its true extent. This is because the primary rule of his race is, "No Involvement." As a result, Uatu simply appears at various sites of great importance, absorbing all he sees, hears, and otherwise senses into his massive brain. Does he use teleportation to get there? Does he have some kind of transporter technology? What happens to the information after the Watcher gets it? No one can say.
The Watcher tries to stay unseen by those he observes, but sometimes he’s discovered. For the most part, those who know who he is keep their distance from him—usually because they have their hands full trying to deal with the situation at hand. Occasionally, someone will attack the Watcher, and his usual response is to gently repel them with a forcefield and vanish from harm’s way. Never has he been physically injured in any way.
Mentally, however, the Watcher suffers a great deal of anguish. Although he tries to be objective at all times, the plain truth is that he feels great empathy for all those he Watches. Constantly, the Watcher is torn between his oath of non-involvement and his desire to help those he sees as victims. Will he ever cross the line and come to the aid of a someone in great need? And if he does, what terrible price will the Watcher pay? One thing’s for certain: If either of these things ever happen, it will happen at the Silver Surfer’s side.
 
Infinity and Eternity
Infinity and Eternity are such basic beings that they actually precede the Big Bang and are part and parcel of the very nature of reality. In fact, they’re personifications of all space and all time.
Infinity is a woman. While she can appear as a human-sized creature, she really exists everywhere, because her entire reason for being is to control space and keep that element of reality intact.
Eternity is a man. While he too can appear human-sized, he really exists throughout all time, because his entire reason for being is to control time and keep that element of reality intact.
What this translate to in the universe of SILVER SURFER is that Infinity and Eternity have the job of keeping everything in the universe in balance, and to maintain the existence of the universe in the form in which we know it. When anything—or anyone—threatens to change this basic reality, or destroy it, Infinity and Eternity are immediately alerted, reacting as would anyone who’s been attacked, and we see them as injured beings.
Although on a kind of metaphysical level they’re all-encompassing, practically speaking Infinity and Eternity have no fighting power at all. Instead, they have to work through other agents, summoning the Silver Surfer and other heroes to help them save the universe. When such an occasion arises, speed obviously is of the essence, and the Surfer and his companions are transported to the necessary place and time by literally stepping into the bodies of these two beings.
 
Master Order and Lady Chaos
Master Order and Lady Chaos also precede the Big Bang, but unlike Infinity and Eternity, who exist in complete harmony with each other, Order and Chaos engage in eternal conflict.
In the SILVER SURFER universe, everything that happens is a direct result of that conflict. Some people are agents of Order, others of Chaos. Some act knowingly, others unknowingly. But the purpose of all actions is either to make things more orderly, more peaceful, and more manageable, or to make them more wild, more frenzied, and more violent.
Order by itself isn’t always good. Chaos by itself isn’t always evil. It’s the balance between those two that’s important in the cosmic scheme of things. Both Master Order and Lady Chaos are compelled by their very natures to always try to gain the upper hand. But both of these beings know that if one of them ever won their contest it would alter reality so much that Infinity and Eternity be mortally wounded—and the universe would cease to exist!
Still, their battle goes on, and when one gains the upper hand, that’s when Infinity or Eternity calls in the Silver Surfer, to right the wrong and make things even again.
 
Galactus
Created eons ago, by the same Big Bang that created the universe, Galactus is a being of incalculable power. His body itself the size of the mother ship in INDEPENDENCE DAY, Galactus commands an enormous intergalactic spaceship, using technology so advanced no other being could ever even dream of it.
Although he can, quite simply, do almost anything by either mental, physical, or technological power, Galactus is "human" in the sense that he feels—with great reluctance—human emotions. Primary among these are pride and anger. In this Galactus is like the Greek god Zeus, who was always demanding homage and punishing those who refused to obey. Or like Jehovah in the Old Testament, who destroyed cities like Sodom and Gomorra because their citizens violated his laws, and who made the Israelites wander in the desert for forty years because they dared worship another god.
Unlike Zeus and Jehovah, however, Galactus has one major weakness. He can, literally, be starved to death. The only place he can get the energy he needs to survive is from the core of a planet that has produced and is still sustaining organic life. Because of this, Galactus is doomed to roam the universe in search of suitable sources.
In order to make the search easier, Galactus has employed various "heralds," to act as scouts and notify him when a life-sustaining planet has been found. Although each of the heralds began life as a "normal" man or woman of his or her race and civilization, Galactus has given each "the power cosmic," super powers that enable the herald to fly through space and fight off would-be attackers.
Galactus makes use of only one herald at a time, and none of the heralds stays on the job very long. This is because there is more to the job than simply finding new sources of energy. Although he would never speak of it, or admit it to himself, Galactus has a psychological need for companionship, and for validation of his greatness. He needs to have someone around who gives him the approval he craves. When a herald stops approving—or stops finding the right kind of world—Galactus no longer has any use for him. And when Galactus "terminates" an "employee" not only isn’t there any severance pay—the former herald often is lucky to be allowed to stay alive.
Like a shark endlessly trolling the sea, Galactus strikes at every target his herald can find. Using his technology, Galactus transfers the planet’s energy to himself and his ship. Often, the planet Galactus "consumes" is the home of intelligent life, but Galactus is never deterred. Throughout his long life, he has destroyed thousands of civilizations without even blinking an eye, giving the entire situation less thought than a human being on Earth would give stepping on an ant!
Gifted with boundless power, motivated by the primal need to survive, Galactus sees both the Kree and the Skrull as powerless upstarts. Not only does he have no interest in joining either side, he also has no compunctions about preying on them both. Truly a fantastic entity, he inspires awe and terror in all those who either encounter him or know of him. To the space-traveling civilizations of the universe in which the Silver Surfer soars, Galactus is the equivalent of an Earthly hurricane…a fearsome, unstoppable force of nature. And, like a hurricane, he’s something to be avoided at all costs.
THE SURFER'S FOES
Thanos
Thanos is the ultimate evil in the universe of the SILVER SURFER. Born a prince of the dominant race on Titan, one of the moons of Saturn, right in our own solar system, Thanos at an early age had a dream in which he witnessed the never-ending battle between Master Order and Lady Chaos. Young Thanos found the experience overwhelming. Not only did he now understand the "true" nature of the universe, but he also fell totally in love with the wild, fearsome beauty of Lady Chaos.
From that time on Thanos’ life has been dedicated to earning the admiration and love of Chaos. To this end he has developed all his native talents to their utmost. He has one of the most brilliant minds in the universe, and there’s nothing about science and technology that he doesn’t know. A master of all natural laws, Thanos often appears to be performing miracles because he can use his knowledge to create weapons and means of transportation that no other being could ever imagine.
In addition, Thanos has totally perfected the psychic side of his mind, especially telepathy, teleportation, and mind control of others. Crafty and manipulative, he has created a powerful, organic space station that can go anywhere, and from it Thanos sets in motion grand designs. Although he is physically prepossessing, Thanos is not a skilled fighter, so rather than confronting any situation directly he uses other beings as pawns. These people have no idea that they’re acting out someone else’s ambition, thinking instead that the ideas—even though they may be strangely out of character for them—are their own.
In order to achieve his purposes, Thanos has remained an enigma to the Kree and the Skrull. At times he has acted as an agent for each civilization, and he seems to acknowledge the greatness of both. In reality, however, he is simply keeping them off balance and unsuspicious, and is using them as his tools. In fact, Thanos himself claims that much of the Kree-Skrull rivalry has been caused by him.
Like the Kree and the Skrull, Thanos would like to make use of Galactus as well. But a mere alliance isn’t enough. When Thanos learns of the existence of the Silver Surfer, he tries to get control of the Surfer so he can learn all there is to know about Galactus. Thanos believes that armed with that knowledge he can at last achieve his great purpose: The complete destruction of the universe.
In this way, Thanos is the ultimate Nihilist, because he believes that only by destroying all reality can he create the total chaos Lady Chaos craves. By annihilating everyone and everything, Thanos reasons, he will finally deserve and earn Lady Chaos’ unending love.
The tragedy of Thanos’ existence is the fact that matter how much he makes the citizens of the various galaxies suffer, Lady Chaos has never appeared to him again. Does she disdain him? Does she fear him? Or is the answer more ironic than that? Can it be that all of Thanos’ unspeakable horrors have been for nothing—because they are intended to honor a being that doesn’t even exist?
 
Tyrant and Nebula
Tyrant is the son of Thanos, and Nebula is Thanos’ granddaughter. But that’s where the resemblance between these two stops.
Tyrant is a chip off the old block. His abilities are essentially the same as those of his father, but with one crucial difference: Tyrant nourishes himself by feeding off the powers and abilities of others. Not only does this invigorate him, giving Tyrant an intense feeling of well-being, but he also is able to use the powers for a limited time. In the process, he leaves them as empty, helpless shells. Being his father’s son, he, of course, just plain doesn’t care.
Unlike his father, Tyrant sees no need to keep up any charade of being subservient to the Kree or the Skrull, and not only does he fight against them, he actually taunts them with their failure to stop him. Tyrant is also intrigued with the Silver Surfer. He simply can’t understand the Surfer’s idealism and nobility, and feels a need to squash it, to force the Surfer to acknowledge the existence of what Star Wars calls "the dark side. In addition to this, he would love to absorb the Surfer’s power…although the ultimate achievement would be to absorb the power of Galactus himself, and this is the task to which he applies most of his energy, talent, and time.
As for why Tyrant wants Galactus’ power, well, it’s a personal thing. Like many sons of "great" or powerful men, Tyrant despises his father, who always made him feel ineffectual and weak. For Tyrant, using the power of Galactus to destroy Thanos, the "arch-destroyer," would prove, once and for all, that Tyrant is the "better" man.
Nebula has a different set of needs. Brilliant and beautiful, she wants only to live a normal life. "Normal," that is, by her standards. Through a genetic fluke, she has no super powers of her own, and she has totally rejected the values—and certainly the company—of Thanos and Tyrant. Her lineage, in fact, is a secret guarded from all but those closest to her.
Nebula has honed her athletic skill and agility to the utmost, combining it with an expertise in all weapons. A brilliant tactician in the fine art of space warfare, she is the Captain of a group of space pirates, and finds joy is embarrassing the leaders of both the Kree and the Skrull by preying on their vessels. When she encounters the Silver Surfer, her reaction is the opposite of Tyrant’s. She is intrigued by the Surfer’s view of life. In fact, she falls in love with him, and it’s only the fact that the Surfer rejects her that makes Nebula his enemy.
Nebula’s great weakness is her often unreasoning anger, a feeling that probably comes from feelings of inadequacy, but which she directs outward, at whoever happens to be nearby. Nebula’s anger is often followed by a fit of depression. At these times, she sees only the dark side of life, and is liable to do anything, just to make others share her despair.
 
Ego
Ego is a living planet…the only one of his kind. Like our legends of Mother Earth, Ego is a creator, making himself into whatever he wants. His every thought, dream, or whim becomes real, a growing part of him. If Ego is unhappy, he will create deserts. If he’s angry, volcanoes will erupt. If he’s pleased, grass will grow tall over his surface, and animals will romp and play.
No matter what Ego does, everything he creates is still only a reflection of himself. For this reason, He is incredibly lonely, and filled with a desire for companionship and love. Self-propelling, Ego never stays in one place very long, always hoping that if he keeps searching the various galaxies she’ll find another being like herself.
Ego’s desperate loneliness can cause him to be "attracted" to other species as well, like a lonely Earth bachelor forever attracted to the wrong women. Both the Kree and the Skrull try to lure Ego into their conflict, hoping to make use of his powers, but it’s the Silver Surfer who seems noble and generous enough to become Ego’s first real friend. Because of this, Ego reaches into the Surfer’s mind and tries to trick him into staying with him by making himself into a copy of the Surfer’s home planet, Zenn-La.
 
Terrax and Morg
Like the Silver Surfer, both Terrax and Morg are possessors of the "power cosmic," and for the same reason: Member of different races from far corners of the universe, Terrax was once a herald of Galactus, and Morg is Galactus’ current scout.
Now a ruthless mercenary working for the Kree, Terrax’ greed kept him from being the kind of selfless, dedicated scout that Galactus needed. In other words, Galactus fired his butt, and the only reason Terrax still has his powers is that it was part of his original agreement with his former employer…and Galactus always keeps his word. Still, Terrax is bitter about his failure, blaming it on everyone but himself—including the Surfer.
Morg too hates the Surfer. A member of the time-traveling race known as the Chronule, he has always been a lover of destruction, and as a punishment was forced by his people to live in a physical body. The ultimate sociopath and a lover of destruction, Morg has found his true calling as Galactus’ herald and is damn good at finding new planets and preparing them for Galactus’ arrival. The way he sees it, the only reward he has gotten for this has been to have to endure Galactus constantly comparing him to the Silver Surfer…and finding Morg wanting as a man.
Morg’s hidden agenda is to find a way to leave Galactus and go to work for Thanos, where he feels his talent for destruction would be appreciated. In the meantime, should his path ever cross that of the Surfer, Morg will be happy indeed to demonstrate that while Galactus may not consider Morg the better man, he certain is the stronger, tougher, and just plain meaner of the two.
 
Raze
Raze is a Skrull bounty hunter, a shape shifter with great strength, skilled in all the ways of war. Once an officer in the Skrull army, Raze was forced to resign when he demonstrated what his superiors thought of as too much compassion for the members of a defeated civilization.
Determined not to make that "mistake" again, Raze hangs out on a wild and woolly outlaw planet, drowning his sorrows in exotic drink at a bar that has become a gathering place for beings who earn their livelihood by skirting the edge of the law. Among those Raze encounters there are Nebula and her band of pirates, and the two of them swiftly become both occasional lovers and frequent rivals, especially when they both head out after the greatest prize of all, certain that Galactus will pay royally for proof of his fall. That’s right: Raze is after the Silver Surfer, and will let nothing stand in his way!
 
The Wanderers
The Wanderers are a sorry lot, the flotsam and jetsam of space. Members of the Kree, the Skrull, and more races and cultures than you can count, from the Cotati (think mobile, talking trees) to space-suited armadillos, they have banded together in a convoy endlessly traveling through space. Their ships are ancient, patched-together hodgepodges. No two of the vehicles are alike. Very few are even intact. But onward they go, ever onward…
What do all these strange beings have in common? Calamity. The greatest of misfortune. All are from worlds destroyed by Galactus. Almost all are the sole survivors of their kind. Totally paranoid, so fearful of Galactus that they don’t even dare celebrate the fact that they survived, the Wanderers travel with no special destination in mind. All they want to do is keep moving, so that Galactus will never find them again.
As they move, the Wanders find their paths crossing that of the Silver Surfer. Remembering him as an ally of their arch enemy, they set a trap for the Surfer and capture him, putting him on trial for crimes against humanity. In a modern morality tale, it takes all of the Surfer’s heroic power to survive this encounter, because he feels so badly about what the Wanders have been through that he half believes he, as well as Galactus, should be made to pay the ultimate price.

THE SURFER'S FRIENDS
Pip the Troll
Pip the Troll is the Falstaff of the SILVER SURFER universe. He’s a loud, lusty, robust little being with hearty appetites. Pip just can’t help himself: Everything he does, he does to excess. He eats too much, drinks too much, loves too much. He plays too many pranks, gets too angry, and in times of danger just plain fights ‘til he drops. In short, he’s the perfect buddy for a quiet, modest guy like the Surfer.
A being with no super powers to speak of, Pip thinks the Silver Surfer is the greatest thing since the last greatest thing…mainly because the Surfer saved Pip’s life, and freed him and his people from bondage. Raised on a planet in the Kree civilization where genetic engineered critters are as common as mechanically engineered things like cars are on earth, Pip was one of the "under-people," a race bred to selflessly—and slavishly—serve the dominant beings.
Pip and the others, however, developed self-awareness…and resentment over the unjustness of their situation. When the Silver Surfer first encounters him, Pip and others like him are leading a rebellion that’s likely to have disastrous consequences for both sides. The Surfer steps in just in time to save not only Pip but also his former masters from certain destruction, and as a result the eternally grateful little "troll" vows to follow his savior to the ends of the universe.
For the Surfer’s part, he finds Pip amusing, but has no intention of taking Pip with him anywhere. The Silver Surfer’s life is too dangerous for him to let anyone without great power into it…and besides, as lovable as Pip is, he’s still a royal pain in even the silver-coated one’s butt.
 
Nova
Nova’s real name is Frankie Raye, and she was born on Earth, eighteen years before Galactus and the Silver Surfer arrived there. When Galactus was left without a herald after the Surfer’s revolt, Frankie volunteered for the job…and got it.
What impressed Galactus was the fact that the adventurous Frankie was actually able to board his enormous ship and find her way through its maze-like interior, reaching the control center itself. No other being had ever been able to do this, and Frankie soon learned that, although she had never known it, she was in fact a mutant, and had been born with the innate ability to track anything, anywhere. What could be more useful to a herald, whose job is to find energy for Galactus to consume?
Young, headstrong, and impetuous, Nova is in many ways the archetypal teenage girl, and she’s filled with strong emotions. Too naïve to understand what working for Galactus would really be like, Nova found out quickly that it wasn’t for her. Just as quickly, Galactus realized that in spite of her great gift Frankie was too young and immature to adequately perform her task of finding new worlds for him to consume.
By mutual agreement, Nova left Galactus and went out on her own. Armed with the "power cosmic," and streaking across the heavens like a beautifully feminine miniature sun, Nova lives like a college girl on permanent summer vacation. To her, life is one big party, or a never-ending trip to Europe—except that Nova’s version of Europe is the entire universe!
Nova’s having a ball, wise-cracking her way across the galaxies, running Skrull blockades, and teaching Earth slang to the natives, when she encounters the Silver Surfer once more. For the first time in her life, she feels deeply about someone…the man she refers to as "Silverado." His gentleness, nobility, and heroism make her see how shallow and rash she has been, and Nova tries to attach herself to him.
She tells the Surfer she needs him to teach her how to better use her cosmic power, but while that’s true, it’s just a convenient excuse. Overwhelmed by Nova’s enthusiasm, the Surfer finds himself responding to her in a way he has responded to no one except his beloved Shalla Bal, and he is tempted indeed by Nova’s charms.
Although the Surfer rejects Nova this time, they are fated to meet again and again. Will her mutant talent enable her to guide the Surfer home to Zenn-La? Or has Galactus put the planet beyond even Nova’s reach? All we know for certain is that with all his power and idealism, if the Silver Surfer doesn’t make it back to Shalla Bal the reason won’t be any villain or space disaster—the reason will be the woman known as Nova.
 
Drax the Destroyer
Created by Tyrant to destroy Thanos, Drax the Destroyer is a super-powered android of biological origin who thinks of nothing but his programmed mission. Drax is a touching character because underlying his rigid programming are genuine human emotions, all of them warm and kind, so that he is constantly at war with himself.
Making life even more difficult for Drax is the fact that past encounters with Thanos have left him intelligence impaired, and he’s like the character of Lenny in Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men—good-natured but dangerous because he’s unaware of his own strength.
Drax has no understanding of his impairment, and means only to do the right thing. But he wreaks havoc wherever he goes, and even though they’re on the same side, the Silver Surfer ends up having to fight him just as though he was an enemy. When the pummeling starts, Drax has with a very big advantage: He would never think of pulling a punch, but the noble Surfer will do just about anything to keep from seriously hurting this foe.
 
Adam Warlock
Adam Warlock takes his name from the fact that he was the first warrior in the history of his far-away world. Where he comes from, that’s no great claim to fame, since his people had lived in peace and harmony for millennia. In fact, no one on Adam’s homeworld was capable of even raising his voice in anger, let alone fighting or killing.
When a Kree task force invaded Adam’s homeworld, all appeared lost. There was no one who had the slightest idea of how to fight back. Adam volunteered to be programmed in the arts of war, and to wear the Soul Gem that would give him great physical and mental power. Adam’s sacrifice paid off, and he managed to beat off the Kree and send them packing from the whole sector.
With the battle over, Adam assumed he could rejoin his society, but his people had other ideas. So horrified were they by his ability to do everything they had been conditioned against for so long, everything they considered morally reprehensible, that they could never allow him to live in their midst again. The relationship of Adam Warlock with his people became that of a ‘50s high school girl with her boyfriend after the girl has given in and let him have sex with her. Adam’s people, the "boyfriend," felt that he was no longer good enough for them!
Adam Warlock was banned from the planet of his birth and exiled to a time warp where he was doomed to fight his battle with the Kree over and over again until the end of time. Compounding this tragic situation was the fact that Adam’s people were so overwhelmed by all that had transpired that they fell into decay and, ultimately, vanished from the universe forever.
While trying to find Zenn-La, the Silver Surfer discovers Adam Warlock fighting his endless battle, and frees him from the time warp. But, as so often happens when the Surfer does what’s in his heart, he finds himself facing not Adam’s gratitude but his wrath. The situation parallels not only that in which Adam Warlock found himself centuries ago, but also the Surfer’s own life, and when the two heroes finally reconcile and go their separate ways, both have learned a great deal.
 
Beta Ray Bill
Beta Ray Bill is a dreamer—literally. He comes from the planet of the Whinnym, where the entire civilization takes part in a group dream, living lives of total wish fulfillment while the planet around them goes—also literally—to waste. In Beta Ray Bill’s dream, he’s the greatest hero he can imagine, a mighty thunder god who protects his realm. In reality, of course, Bill is quite different. Since his race most closely resembles the animal people on Earth know as the horse, Bill is, simply, a broken-down nag.
All this changes when the Silver Surfer comes to warn the planet of an impending cataclysm, engineered by Thanos. At first, the Surfer finds himself trapped in the communal dream—but for him it’s his worst nightmare, as he relives the time he spent with Galactus. When he finally pulls himself out, he takes Beta Ray Bill with him—and the power of the group mind is so strong that Bill becomes the hero he always imagined himself to be.
Together, they defeat Thanos’ scheme, but Bill isn’t done. He likes this hero business, and he’s in it to stay!
 
Shalla Bal
Shalla Bal is an inhabitant of Zenn-La, the woman the Silver Surfer was forced to leave behind. Just as Zenn-La was almost perfect, a Utopian society of freedom, justice, and compassion, so Shalla Bal is the perfect woman, the standard against which the Surfer compares all others.
When Galactus took the Surfer as his herald, he used his power to cause all memory of the Surfer’s existence as Norrin Radd of Zenn-La to be erased from the planet’s history. So in spite of all the passion she and Norrin Radd shared, Shalla Bal doesn’t even remember him now. The great love of her life is lost, perhaps forever, because to her, the Silver Surfer’s former persona seems like nothing but a vaguely hope, or a fever dream.
To the Surfer, however, Shalla Bal is very, very real. Although they are no longer together, this beautiful woman lives in the Surfer’s heart, and he thinks of her every day. We see her as he remembers her, noble and kind, and as he wants her to be, chaste and true. In the Silver Surfer’s mind, Shalla Bal urges him on in his quest, and gives him the strength to triumph over all who stand in his way.
If ever there were a woman who deserved to be cherished, that woman is the wonderful and tragic Shalla Bal.
THE END