The Silver Surfer
Some have interpreted the Silver surfer as a conscious bid by Marvel to elevate the superhero
genre, but little discussion went into his creation before the Surfer's 1966 debut.
He appeared as a sidekick to Galactus in #48 of the Fantastic Four. As usual Stan Lee and Jack Kirby discussed the
story outline, before Kirby went off to do the drawings. When Lee saw the Silver Surfer graphics they were very
different to what he had envisaged, but they inspired him to develop the character.
The Silver Surfer gained his own comic series in 1968 with John Buscema as artist. The first series did
not sell well and only lasted 18 issues. Stan Lee however never lost faith with the silver Surfer, and he never let
anyone else write the dialogue for his favourite character. "I got more philosophy into the Silver Surfer than
anything I ever wrote," Lee said. "He was always giving his opinion about life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness. I liked him because he was so offbeat."
Lee did some of his finest work with the Silver Surfer but it was only when he finally relented and let outside
input that the character really took off. The Surfer regained his own series in 1987 which lasted until 1998 with
the final issue No.146. The third series began in 2003 but only lasted for 14 issues.
The Silver Surfer is perhaps best appreciated by older readers as his contemplative, melancholy character doesn't
always sit well with those simply seeking adrenalin pumped action. Many have drawn Christ-like parallels with the
Silver Surfer, who selflessly gave up his freedom to save his beloved universe.
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