New Treasures: The Fantastic Four: Behold… Galactus! by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby, John Byrne and John Buscema
Just how big is the monster-sized Fantastic Four: Behold… Galactus! from Marvel Comics?
HUGE. Several comparison shots have popped up (including Charles R Rutledge’s side-by-side with a Robert Parker hardcover), but my favorite is the one above, borrowed from Bobby Nash’s Patreon page, which shows the book alongside a regulation-size graphic novel. Behold… Galactus! is an impressive 13.5 x 21.2 inches; big enough to double as a kitchen table.
Any way you slice it, this book is a beast. Its massive 312 pages contain virtually all of the early tales of Galactus from Fantastic Four, including Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s beloved 60s classic “The Coming of Galactus” (from Fantastic Four #48-50) and its sequel “When Calls Galactus” (FF #74-77), plus the Lee-Buscema tale “Galactus Unleashed” (FF #120-123), and John Byrne’s 80s take on the Big G, from FF #242-244 (which includes the famous free-for-all “Everyone Versus Galactus,” from FF 243.)
Monster format aside, these classic stories still make terrific reading, especially the Lee-Kirby tales. The Fantastic Four remains my favorite Marvel Comic, and this book will help you understand why. It was published by Marvel on September 11, 2018. It is 312 pages, priced at $50 in hardcover and $24.99 for the digital version. The cover is by Alex Ross. See all our recent Comics coverage here.
This thing is impressive but the $50 price tag throws me off. How can the paper quality and binding be decent at that price point.
I mean, an epic collection retails at $40.
I believe the print run on this book is quite high. Perhaps that’s how they kept the cost down?
Yet…$50 strikes me as “so much?”. I’ll check the library in the unlikely chance they will obtain a copy. Might be fun for a one time read through, but too much to stick on the shelf and gather dust after that.
I’m tempted, but would be more tempted if it wasn’t such an unwieldy size. I have enough trouble already with those giant Marvel omnibus hardcovers.