It has been 58 years since Marvel brought the devil to comic books, and they did so by creating a new character without offending too many people in the process. The year was 1968, and Marvel had started a new series for the Silver Surfer, a character who made his debut three years earlier in Fantastic Four #48 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. He became a quick fan favorite after betraying Galactus and helping save Earth, and after several appearances in Fantastic Four comics and two appearances in Tales to Astonish, he got his own series from the creative team of Stan Lee and John Buscema.
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Marvel Comics released Silver Surfer #3 on September 17, 1968, and introduced a new villain to face the Surfer. This bad guy ended up as one of the most iconic and dangerous villains in Marvel history. This was the first appearance of Mephisto.
Marvel Comics Introduced Mephisto As a Silver Surfer Villain in 1968
The new Silver Surfer series allowed Marvel to do a deep dive into the alien hero who was stranded on Earth after betraying Galactus. The first issue showed how the Surfer was struggling on Earth, being attacked even after saving people’s lives, and this allowed Marvel to reveal his origin story and his life on Zenn-La before becoming Galactus’s herald. It also caught readers up on what he had done so far in his Marvel appearances, opening the door for new adventures.
The main themes of the series were that everyone feared the Silver Surfer because of his powers and how he looked, and even when he helped people, they attacked him. Despite this, he chose to help the people of Earth, even as they showed him hatred in response. This all led to the third issue, where the Surfer fought a being from another dimension. However, before this, the Surfer sought vengeance against the police, the military, and all the people of Earth who tormented him. The Silver Surfer shut down everything on Earth, and this got Mephisto’s attention.
From his intro, it was shown how powerful Mephisto was, as one of his minions called him the “Lord of Evil.” Mephisto then makes it clear that he wants to stop the Surfer because he needs humans to remain hostile and consumed with greed and hatred to ensure that Armageddon will happen one day. It was clear from the start that this was Marvel’s version of the devil, and not only because of his appearance. He used talk of Armageddon and revealed that he is responsible for the hatred humans show even to heroes like the Silver Surfer and the X-Men. The book was a perfect first appearance for Mephisto, second possibly only to the X-Men, as human bigotry is essential to the demon’s power.
This led Mephisto to figure out that the Silver Surfer was responsible, and that is when he saw something he wanted above all else. Mephisto said that he rarely sees someone “of such awesome goodness.” Mephisto was astonished at the idea that the Surfer would act as a martyr even to men who forsake him. He also knew that the Surfer would soon relent, and he refused to allow the hero to walk among humans, saying that the Surfer had to die. This led to the Silver Surfer and Mephisto’s first battle.
Mephisto Has Always Coveted the Silver Surfer’s Soul
Mephisto then showed how powerful he really was, and how his power extended beyond just Earth. He teleported across the universe to Zenn-La and approached Shalla Bal, knowing everything about her and the Silver Surfer’s relationship. He then claimed her and went to find the Silver Surfer. Mephisto then attacked and admitted that as long as the Silver Surfer exists, his plans will always be in jeopardy. Mephisto returned to his domain with Shalla Bal, but the Surfer ended up finding his way there as well, with the hero explaining that the Power Cosmic gives him powers Mephisto doesn’t even understand.
This entire encounter made Mephisto obsessed with the Silver Surfer. The demon has made deals with everyone from Captain America to Spider-Man, but he has never been able to get the Surfer to sign on for one of his temptations. In this issue, Mephisto said, “I must have you in bondage for all eternity! Before we are done, you will serve me! You will call Mephisto master.” Mephisto offered the Surfer treasures, women, and even empires to rule over, but the hero rejected everything. Mephisto couldn’t do anything to capture the Surfer’s soul, so the demon sent Shalla Bal back to Zenn-La, leaving the Surfer alone again.
The entire dynamic here is straight from the Bible. Mephisto is Marvel’s version of the devil, and the Silver Surfer is a stand-in for Jesus Christ, the one man the devil could never successfully tempt. Mephisto was unable to break the Surfer’s will in this debut issue, and it never happened after this either. With the Silver Surfer sent to Earth to protect sinners and people who hate him, Marvel created the devil to tempt him. It was a perfect match, and while Mephisto became better known fighting other characters over the years, he was never better than when he faced the Silver Surfer.
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