Most stories in the Marvel Universe focus on the struggles of individuals characters or teams. While the stories might be epics in their own rights, they are ultimately small events in the larger scope of the cosmos, especially next to cosmic figures like Galactus and the Celestials.
The Marvel Multiverse is vast, and some of the cosmic entities that reside within it are truly colossal. Some are so big that they cannot even fit inside of the main Marvel Universe. WIth so many larger-than-life beings, it’s easy to overlook them, but now, we’re taking a closer look at some of the biggest characters in the Marvel Universe.
Ego The Living Planet
Ego the Living Planet has a name that speaks for itself. A version of him appeared in the MCU’s Guardians of the Galaxy 2, played by Kurt Russell. However, the comics version of the character is far more callous and less charismatic being who debuted in Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Thor #132 in 1966.
As a literal living planet, Ego can fly through space, devouring starlight or even whole stars for nutrients. He is also capable of moving every part of his surface independently, and he has frequently been at odds with various Marvel heroes.
Galactus
Before the Big Bang created the main Marvel Universe, previous universes existed. Galactus is the last survivor of the universe that existed before the modern universe was created. He is a colossal god-like humanoid imbued with a force known as the Power Cosmic.
Galactus has a wide range of abilities, including cosmic awareness, telepathy, transmutation of matter, and the ability to create life and manipulate souls. In order to sustain himself, Galactus must consume the life force of entire planets, a defining feature of the character singe he debuted in 1966’s Fantastic Four #48, by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. He uses the Power Cosmic to create heralds who soar through space, finding new planets to sate his appetite.
Celestials
Created by Jack Kirby in 1976’s Eternals #1, the Celestials are ancient godlike beings who visited earth millions of years ago, creating the first humans and meddling in the development of human evolution. Their exact origin is unknown, as the comics have presented a few possible origin stories for them, but the Celestials seem to serve the will of the One-Above-All.
The purpose of the Celestials is to shape life, which includes creating monsters to spread death, as death is a necessary aspect of life. Their experiments on Earth’s prehistoric humans led to the creation of the Inhumans, Mutants, Eternals, and Deviants.
The Black Winter
Galactus may devour planets, but the Black Winter consumes entire universes. In fact, it devoured the previous incarnation of the universe, sparing Galactus’s life, before turning the World-Eater into its own personal herald.
The Black Winter is a relatively new character who first debuted in 2019’s Thor #4 by Donny Cates and Nic Klein, and as such, little is known about it. The full scope of its size and powers are yet to be realized, but it can read minds and manifest constructs of primordial eldritch darkness.
Cancerverse
The Cancerverse is an alternate reality where life finally defeated death, becoming an ever-expanding universe ruled over by the Great Old Ones. All of the beings within it were forced to serve these Lovecraftian elder gods, perverting the very essence of life.
Since its 2009 debut in Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Leonardo Manco and Mahmud Asrar’s Realm of Kings #1. heroes who have entered the Cancerverse from other realities frequently become trapped. The Cancerverse gained sentience when it merged with the Xandarian Worldmind.
Living Tribunal
Since Stan lee and Marie Severin created them in 1967’s Strange Tales #157, the Living Tribunal has been one of the most powerful entities in the multiverse. In fact, it is a manifestation of the multiverse that is in charge of maintaining cosmic balance. The Living Tribunal has three separate heads, each tasked with overseeing a different value. One stands for Vengeance, a second values Necessity, and a third maintains Equity.
The three faces of the Living Tribunal must be in agreement before this powerful being can commit to any particular action. There is also a fourth hidden face with its own unrevealed purpose. Even other powerful cosmic beings like Eternity are in awe of the Living Tribunal’s power, as it is more or less omnipotent.
Who Is The Largest?
To be clear, the Living Tribunal is the most powerful of the beings presented here and it has the most wide-reaching influence, as its essence permeates the very multiverse. However, if one uses the conventional definition of size to refer to the amount of space taken up by physical matter, then the Cancerverse is clearly Marvel’s largest being most of the time.
Even with all that is known about these characters, it is difficult to determine which of these is physically the largest, as many can alter their size at will. Also, many beings are smaller than they would seem. For example, the Black Winter can fit inside of the universes that it devours, while the Living Tribunal is contained within the multiverse, despite being a manifestation of said multiverse.
About The Author
