Everything you wanted to know about Thanos but were afraid to ask...

(Panini Books)

The mad Titan. The consort of Death. Wielder of the Infinity Gauntlet. Master of the Black Order. From humble origins as a throwaway character in the pages of the Invincible Iron Man series, Thanos has grown in power, stature and reputation to become one of Marvel’s greatest villains, and was the stand-out star of the company’s biggest movie to date, the galaxy-spanning Avengers: Infinity War.

Now Thanos has become the first bad guy to be awarded his own Marvel Platinum collection, a bumper anthology bringing together his greatest hits across the decades, including his debut and early appearances at the hands of creator Jim Starlin.

Many of these stories comprise the formative steps in the evolution of Thanos as a major player in the Marvel Universe, which ultimately led to him achieving godhood in the original Infinity Gauntlet saga, and presented as a whole show how the character has developed over the years.

They include Thanos’ return in the pages of the 1990s Silver Surfer series, a brutal clash with the thunder god Thor, and stories from his own eponymous title. As with many of the Marvel Platinum collections, a lot of these issues have not been widely reprinted, and bringing them together here offers not only the perfect introduction to Thanos’ comics incarnation, but subtly highlights any differences from the movie version.

As well as Starlin, the pool of talent featured includes the likes of Steve Englehart, Dan Jurgens, Jeff Lemire, Donny Cates, Mike Friedrich, Ron Lim, John Romita Jr and Mike Deodato Jr.

Editor Brady Webb has once again put together a first-rate collection which offers a perfect insight into one of the most fascinating characters in comics.