By [ad_1]
Both Marvel and Star Wars have their own fearsome planet killers, but which of them has destroyed the most planets and their long storied histories.
In Star Wars, the Death Star is the Empire’s greatest super-weapon, capable of obliterating planets in an instant and spreading fear across the galaxy. Marvel’s Galactus has a similar reputation, with the hungry cosmic entity an almost unstoppable entropic force in the Marvel Universe. The question is, amongst these two planet killers, which has destroyed more?
The origins of each hint at the answer. The Death Star began construction shortly after the Clone Wars ended. It was completed 19 years later, shortly before the events of A New Hope. After Luke Skywalker blew that one up, a second version of the space station neared completion, as seen in Return of the Jedi, before its inevitable destruction at the hands of the Rebel Alliance. Galactus, on the other hand, has existed for billions of years. He was a space explorer imbued with the power cosmic and turned into a universal force of insatiable hunger. Though they’re both very different, each has the same potential for destruction.
HOW MANY PLANETS DID THE DEATH STAR DESTROY?
The only planet that the First Death Star destroyed was Alderaan, the home planet of Princess Leia. Two less powerful shots were also fired at Jedha City and Scarif base during the events of 2016 film Rogue One. The initial impression in the film is that, while still devastating blasts, they did little lasting damage beyond their targets. Marvel’s Star Wars comic showed otherwise. Star Wars #38, by Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larocca, showed the full extent of what that one small blast did to Jedha, with the moon broken apart, crumbling right to its very core. Whilst unconfirmed, it’s likely the same fate befell the tropical planet Scarif.
The Empire wanted to keep the Death Star’s existence a secret from the Imperial Senate and since the Senate was only dissolved shortly before the opening of A New Hope, it’s unlikely any other planets fell victim to it before its destruction. No others have been confirmed so far. As for the Second Death Star, it only destroyed a handful of ships in the Battle of Endor before its end there. Seeing how it was only operational for the duration of that battle, its kill planetary kill count is zero.
HOW MANY PLANETS HAS GALACTUS EATEN?
Galactus, having been around for billions of years, has eaten numerous planets. Initially, it was centuries between Galactus’ feedings but, over time, the duration between these feasts has grown shorter and shorter. Galactus moved from feeding only on uninhabited worlds to any world he could find, regardless of whether it contained intelligent life or not. This was why he employed the Silver Surfer as his Herald, to seek out the most appropriate worlds so Galactus didn’t have to think about it, just eat.
It’s unknown exactly how many worlds Galactus has destroyed but it’s definitely more than the Death Star. It only has one planet annihilated, with one other and a moon ripped apart too. Even without an exact number, the known examples prove Galactus has destroyed more. These include Sakaar, the planet seen in Thor: Ragnarok, (though it would eventually be brought back by the Time Stone) and New Korbin, the world Beta Ray Bill set up for his people. Galactus also destroyed Tarna IV, the Skrull Homeworld, which was one of the reasons Secret Invasion happened.
THE WINNER IS…
Even if non-canon Legends material were to be included, the Death Star’s kill count would still be lower. Two prototype versions of the super-weapon were responsible for the prison planet Despair’s destruction and that of an Imperial Garrison moon. Mentioning other named victims of Galactus such as Archeopia, Poppup and Saiph are enough to show that the Empire has nothing compared to the scourge of the Marvel Universe.
Counting both canon and Legends material, the Death Star has three planets and two moons to its name. Thus far only six of Galactus’s innumerable feasts have been mentioned, enough to declare him the winner of this fight. Having been around for billions of years, the Death Star, not even a year old, never stood a chance.
About The Author
[ad_2]
