The Mad Titan known as Thanos is unquestionably one of the ultimate powers in the Marvel Universe, so powerful and so dangerous that even Galactus fears the day he’s finally triumphant in snuffing out all life. However, Thanos isn’t omnipotent, and there are beings in the universe even he fears enough to keep a close watch on – in fact, there are several he keeps under surveillance at all times.
These beings range in power from fellow supervillains to forces intrinsic to reality itself, but Thanos considers each a dangerous rival who is capable of countering his plans and preventing his quest to rule all of creation and win the heart of Death – the physical embodiment of mortality in the Marvel cosmos.
Thanos: The Infinity Relativity – from Jim Starlin, Andy Smith, Frank D’Armata, Rachelle Rosenberg, and Travis Lanham – finds the Mad Titan in Death’s domain, using her godly powers to spy on his rivals in the living world. While Mistress Death disapproves of Thanos’ continued connection to the living, he reassures her that these are beings of such power, they could still scupper his plans and prevent her final dominion over reality. What’s surprising is that, for a gathering of such cosmically important beings, only two have made their way into the MCU.
The Celestials & Adam Warlock
Already present in several movies – most notably The Eternals – the Celestials are cosmic beings who go back to the First Firmament; the first iteration of what would become Marvel’s Multiverse. They spend their time spreading and experimenting on life across the galaxy, sometimes returning to judge their creations and potentially wipe planets clean of unworthy life.
Soon to join the MCU played by Will Poulter, Adam Warlock is effectively Thanos’ opposite number. Both are Universal Constants who exist outside the natural order and answer to a higher form of morality – Thanos as a destroyer who sometimes deigns to combat greater threats, and Warlock as a savior who has done the unthinkable for the greater good. While Warlock and Thanos served together on the Infinity Watch to safeguard the Infinity Stones, Adam remains dangerous because of the Magus – a future version of the cosmic being who is an evil champion of Life, and seeks to destroy both Thanos and his mistress Death.
Galactus & The Silver Surfer
Yet to grace the MCU but known to movie fans from Fox’s Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Galactus and Silver Surfer are two of the most powerful beings in creation. Galactus is the latest in a long lineage of beings who consume entire worlds, collecting energy in order to eventually birth the next iteration of reality. In order to conserve energy, Galactus empowers heralds to search out suitable planets, with the Silver Surfer being one such servant who ultimately rebelled to save Earth. The Surfer has faced Thanos many times, though the Mad Titan has a habit of tricking him into large body counts.
Annihilus & Genis-Vell
Perhaps Thanos’ most significant foe outside Adam Warlock, Annihilus is the insectoid ruler of the Negative Zone. Annihilus is the force behind the devastating Annihilation Wave – one of the most influential events to ever hit the galaxy – and once came within a hair’s breadth of joining Thanos and Adam Warlock as a Universal Constant. Annihilus is capable of reincarnating upon death, and commands an entire dimension of loyal soldiers to rival Thanos’ Chitauri army. Fans have speculated that Annihilus’ Annihilation Wave will pay off existing MCU plotlines involving the Skrull and Kree.
Also a potential movie fixture, Genis-Vell is the son of Mar-Vell, the first Captain Marvel and Carol Danvers’ mentor (who exists in the MCU, played by Annette Bening.) A wildly powerful being who held the title of Captain Marvel, Genis-Vell served with the Thunderbolts and is one of the Marvels, but his immense powers mean he’s relatively seldom seen, as it takes a major crisis to even begin to test his abilities.
Onslaught & Apocalypse
Onslaught was created when Charles Xavier’s hidden dark side merged with Magneto’s rage and hate. The resulting psionic being was an extinction-level threat who seemingly killed every major Marvel hero in a single explosion (it would later be revealed they’d actually been shunted into a pocket reality.) As the dark side of the most gifted psychic on the planet, Onslaught is unkillable as long as Charles Xavier exists, and its power was harnessed by Red Skull to elevate him to godlike power.
Apocalypse is another mutant, and has perhaps one of the convoluted backgrounds in comics. Familiar to fans of Fox’s X-Men: Apocalypse, En Sabah Nur was one of the first mutants, and has lived out a never-ending quest to hone the mutant species by weeding out the weak. Apocalypse has a habit of transforming mutants (and sometimes humans) to do his bidding, capable of enhancing even beings such as the Hulk. Though often mishandled, Apocalypse is a fascinating villain in the right hands, and was a major figure in Marvel’s recent reboot of the X-Men as functionally immortal beings.
Mephisto & D’Spayre
While many MCU fans believed Disney+’s WandaVision would introduce Mephisto into the Marvel Universe, Marvel’s stand-in for the Devil is currently absent from its cinematic offerings. Mephisto is the ruler of Hell, keeping an uneasy peace between Marvel’s various demonic beings. Recent events have revealed that every Mephisto in the Multiverse is connected as part of the Council of Red, who have plans to rule all of reality. Interestingly, Thanos has shown some affection for Mephisto in the past, accepting him as an advisor during The Infinity Gauntlet.
More obscure, D’Spayre is likewise a demonic entity who derives his power from human fear, and is a contemporary of Doctor Strange villain Nightmare. D’Spayre was originally created from the fear caused by the sinking of Atlantis. Fans of Marvel’s TV offerings met D’Spayre in Cloak & Dagger – not currently canon in the MCU, but with the potential to become such as the movies begin to integrate select series.
The Stranger & The Impossible Man
Best understood as an ‘evil’ version of the Watcher, even the Stranger isn’t sure of his origin, but he possesses staggering power and is actually the creator of Ego the Living Planet (played by Kurt Russell in the MCU.) The Stranger is prone to experimenting on superhumans, and considers himself apart from other cosmic beings. He was one of the original owners of the Infinity Stones who Thanos robbed to take possession of the full set.
Just as powerful but far less self-serious, the Impossible Man is a member of the Poppupian race, and has complete molecular control over reality, essentially making him immune to the rules of reality. Marvel and DC have hinted he exists in both of their realities, appearing as Impossible Man in the Marvel Universe and Superman villain Mister Mxyzptlk in the DC Universe. Impossible Man is generally presented as a trickster, but one who has erased entire realities as a prank.
The Beyonder & The In-Betweener
Perhaps the most powerful type of being in Marvel Lore, Beyonders are often used as metaphors for the writers and editors behind the scenes of Marvel Comics. They exist outside the Multiversal structure and actually caused it to collapse in Marvel’s 2015 Secret Wars – a story which it’s expected will be adapted in the MCU’s near future. The individual being first known as the Beyonder is a child of the species and has caused untold chaos ‘playing’ with reality, over which he appears to have total control.
Finally, the In-Betweener is a cosmic entity who represents the balance between cosmic forces such as Life and Death. It was the In-Betweener’s tampering (in response to Thanos’ misdeeds) that created Adam Warlock’s alternate form Magus, and is another being Thanos robbed to acquire the Infinity Stones. The In-Betweener is an essential enemy of Thanos, since he represents a cosmic balance that – in the comics – Thanos is eager to overthrow. If he appeared in the movies, he might actually approve of Thanos’ MCU goal of achieving cosmic balance.
Thanos’ Cosmic Rivals
It’s likely that there are other beings Thanos fears in the Marvel Universe – among them select members of the Avengers – but these are the powerful foes he states he must “carefully and continuously monitor” while in Death’s Realm, obsessing over them as rivals even beyond the mortal plane.
With only two of the names above confirmed to exist in the MCU, there’s still plenty of comic lore for the movies to draw on in future, and many beings Thanos considers rivals for him to clash with again the comics.
