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Eternals #5 brings back Gilgamesh the forgotten one in a new role as “the Frank Castle of the Eternals.”
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Eternals #5, by Kieron Gillen, Esad Ribic, Matthew Wilson and VC’s Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
The latest issue of Kieron Gillen and Esad Ribic’s Eternals follows the celestial heroes’ efforts to repair the Great Machine that allows them to be resurrected over and over again and avoid the murderous wrath of Thanos. Two stars of the upcoming MCU film, Sersi and Ikaris, suspect that one of their old brethren may be behind their recent troubles and hatch a plan to bring him out of the shadows.
When Gilgamesh, the Forgotten One arrives, the one-time Avenger is playing the most brutal role of his career in the Marvel Universe.
Gilgamesh first appeared in Jack Kirby and Mike Royer’s Eternals #13 in 1977. He was the king of Uruk until he began to travel the globe using his super-strength and control over cosmic energy to protect the people of Earth from tyrannical dictators. Zuras, the leader of the Eternals, didn’t approve of Gilgamesh’s methods or his priorities. He criticized the hero for meddling in human affairs and putting the well-being of mortals above the goals of the Eternals. He banished Gilgamesh to the far corners of Olympia, but he was welcomed back into the fold after defending the Earth from the evil aliens the Deviants.
Gilgamesh went on to join the Avengers in Walt Simonson and John Buscema’s Avengers #300 in 1989, when he left Olympia to help Earth’s Mightiest Heroes protect New York from an alien invasion. The Forgotten One fought all manner of villains alongside the Avengers. He was a gallant and noble hero who contributed a great deal of moral fortitude to the team in addition to his considerable powers. But in a battle against the Lava Men in 1989’s Avengers #307 by John Byrne, Paul Ryan and Tom Palmer – he was severely burned and had to return to Olympia to recover.
In Gillen and Ribic’s series, Gilgamesh’s respect for humanity remains as stubborn as ever, but his methods are far more brutal than before. Sersi and Ikaris set a trap for him by pretending to paralyze and kidnap Tony Stark. Gilgamesh leaps out of a portal and comes to Stark’s rescue, only to be ambushed by Ikaris and restrained. As the Eternals interrogate their comrade, it is revealed that he is the leader of a faction of Eternals called The Forgotten who have taken it upon themselves to punish other Eternals for abusing their powers or putting humans at risk. At one point, he even went so far as to breifly tamper with the Great Machine and kill some of his fellow celestial demi-gods, which is why Sersi and the others are suspicious of him now. He is able to prove that he has nothing to do with Thanos’s attacks, but it is clear that the Forgotten One is capable of the violence he’s being accused of.
The Eternals compare Gilgamesh to the Punisher. A parallel that highlights just how ruthlessly pragmatic the Forgotten One has become since his time in the Avengers. The Gilgamesh who graced the pages of Kirby’s Eternals certainly knew how to handle himself in a fight, but it’s difficult to imagine him doling out vigilante-style justice on his fellow Eternals. But Gillen’s version of the character is totally unashamed when he describes his rationale and method for killing Eternals who “needed to be punished.”
Eternals #5 totally redefines Gilgamesh the Forgotten One as a brutal killing machine who will stop at nothing to protect humanity from his immortal brethren. The only thing he seems to share with the Forgotten One who once joined the Avengers is a respect for human life, but the comparisons end there.
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