Thanos Rising is a 5-issue comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics that debuted on April 3, 2013, as part of Marvel NOW!. The series, written by Jason Aaron with artwork by Simone Bianchi, will focus on the origins of the supervillain Thanos.
Publication history
A Thanos origin story was first announced by Marvel Comics in July 2012 under the title Thanos: Son of Titan with the creative team of writer Joe Keatinge and artist Richard Elson, but was canceled prior to its planned release in the summer of 2012 and the creative team moved over to Morbius: The Living Vampire. In January 2013 Marvel Comics released a one-word teaser image stating Birth, including the creative team of Jason Aaron and Simone Bianchi. A week later, Marvel officially announced Thanos Rising to the press with a target publication date of April 2013.
Plot summary
Thanos returns to his destroyed home on the Saturn moon Titan to visit the grave of his mother, Sui-San. The story then goes back to the birth of Thanos, where Sui-San tries to kill Thanos at first sight. The doctors then sedate his mother at Eternal Mentor's request. During his school years, Thanos has the reputation of the smartest child in school as well as a pacifist, though he kept himself isolated due to his appearance and only played with his brother Eros, though soon enough, a group of children approach him and he becomes friends with them despite his appearance. He was also a talented artist and had recurring nightmares about someone trying to kill him at birth, which is revealed to his mother who appears to be imprisoned in a mental institution. Thanos is then tasked to dissect a lizard, which he runs away from and vomits outside, where he is encountered by a girl who tells him about a cave she visits. Thanos visits the caves with his new friends, where they are trapped by collapsing rocks. After three days of digging out the rocks, Thanos sees that a group of lizards have eaten his friends right down to the bone and he flees. Upon returning to school, he is once again alone due to the circumstances surrounding him being the only survivor. Thanos' present day dialogue says the people of Titan had decided that Thanos had murdered them, starting him on the road to his present day self. The truth is, however, Thanos was convinced by the same girl who showed him the cave, to drop his overly passive nature so he could kill the lizards in revenge for his dead friends.