Galactus is one of the most well-known villains in the history of Marvel Comics as he is a huge cosmic being that lives to feed on the energy of planets so that he can continue to live. He is a destroyer of worlds and entire galaxies due to his insatiable need to eat planets. In most cases, he is depicted as a huge being that is so huge that he can actually eat an entire planet and can even fight a Celestial on par. So, does that mean that Galactus is also a Celestial?
While he may resemble one, Galactus is not a Celestial. He has been around since before the Celestials were even created, as he is the only survivor of the universe that existed before the current Marvel universe. In that regard, he is an entirely different entity compared to the Celestials.
Even though he may look like the Celestials and is just as strong or even more powerful than they are, Galactus isn’t one. Of course, there’s also the fact that Galactus isn’t as big as a Celestial in his true form but can appear to be as big as them. So, with that said, let’s look at Galactus and the Celestials so that you would understand what makes them different from each other.
What Are Celestials?
The Celestials have already been featured in the MCU and are some of the most powerful entities in the world of Marvel Comics. These are godlike cosmic beings that exist in different parts of the universe and are gigantic creatures, the oldest races in the Marvel universe. They were the first form of existence created in the current Marvel universe, meaning they existed even before the Big Bang and the other races.
The First Firmament was responsible for creating the Celestials, as this being was the living embodiment of the universe itself. With its power, the First Firmament created the Celestials and the Aspirants, which ended up as its toys. However, while the Aspirants wanted to please the First Firmament, the Celestials wanted to be the ones to control their fate, and that was what prompted them to rebel against the First Firmament.
Due to the rebellion of the Celestials, the First Firmament was destroyed. Now free, the Celestials went from planet to planet to look for species they were interested in. They experimented on different creatures they created, as that was how the Eternals, Deviants, and Mutants were created.
The fact that Celestials are godlike creatures is why they are so big and powerful, and they are almost the size of an entire planet and can destroy planets and galaxies.
What Is Galactus?
Galactus has always been a mainstay in Marvel as one of the biggest and baddest villains in this comic book universe. Of course, while we have yet to see Galactus in the MCU, we can expect him to be just as big and bad as his comic book counterpart. In most cases, he is depicted as a gigantic creature that can be the size of an entire planet.
The fact that he is so big and strong is why Galactus is so feared. He is a cosmic entity that uses a powerful source of power called the Power Cosmic, which grants him nearly omnipotent abilities. However, Galactus has to feed on the life energy of different planets to sustain his power. But what exactly is Galactus?
Galactus is a being not from this universe but from the universe before the current Marvel universe. Back then, he was but a simple mortal named Galan as he explored different planets. However, he ended up discovering a radiation plague that was the product of the Big Crunch.
As there was no cure to this plague, Galan led a suicidal mission so that he could die a glorious death before the end of the universe. However, he didn’t die from the radiation. Instead, he fused with the Sentience of the Cosmos and survived the Big Crunch. That was how Galactus went on to exist in the next universe and became who he was.
Is Galactus A Celestial?
Based on what we already know about the Celestials and Galactus, it is safe to say that Galactus is not a Celestial, and that’s because he wasn’t even created in this universe. While the Celestials were the first race to exist in the Marvel universe, Galactus pre-dated them because he lived in the universe before the universe of the Celestials.
In that regard, Galactus wasn’t created by the First Firmament but was a product of the destruction of his universe. He fused with an incredible cosmic power source to become the big planet-eating entity he is today.
Of course, it’s difficult not to compare Galactus to the Celestials. That’s because Galactus is often portrayed as just as big as a planet, similar to how the Celestials are described. However, Galactus’s true form isn’t planet-sized, as he is just about as big as a skyscraper.
Although he isn’t a Celestial, Galactus actually has enough power to defeat Celestials, although he is often portrayed as just as strong as they are. However, there have been occasions where he could take on numerous Celestials all on his own, although he isn’t always shown to be stronger than a Celestial.
There is also the fact that Galactus is not like the Celestials in terms of the purpose of his existence. While Celestials are beings that act as gods and are responsible for creating other forms of life, Galactus destroy entire planets and feed on the life energy of these planets.
As such, he cannot be any more different from a Celestial. The only thing about Galactus that’s similar to a Celestial is his appearance. Besides that, he is simply different from a Celestial as he has other powers and comes from a time before the Celestials even existed.
