STARDUST
STARDUST
Real Name: Lambda-Zero
Identity/Class: Extraterrestrial (Ethereal) mutate
Occupation: Herald of Galactus
Group Membership: Galactus' heralds (Fallen One, Silver Surfer, Air-Walker, Air-Walker android, Firelord, Destroyer, Terrax, Nova (Frankie Raye), Morg, Red Shift, Johnny Storm) - not generally a formal team, but a succession
Affiliations: Alpha Ray, Asgardians, Beta Ray Bill, Galactus, Nova (Frankie Raye), Praeter (Pastor Mike), Rider (Frank Castle) of alternate Earth, Silver Surfer, Thor (Odinson), United Front (Drax the Destroyer, Gamora, Kree, Nova (Richard Rider), Peter Quill, many others)
Enemies: Annihilation Wave (Ravenous, Centurions, etc.), Asteroth, Beta Ray Bill, Epoch, Ethereals (Hadria, J/Psi, Tau, others), Fantastic Four (Black Panther, Human Torch, Storm, Thing), Gravity (Greg Willis), I'than race, Korbinite race
Known Relatives: None
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Currently unknown;
formerly mobile throughout the known universe.
First Appearance: Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#1 (March, 2005)
Powers/Abilities: Stardust appears to be composed of cosmic energy. Though he can be struck, pained, and even torn to pieces, he can reform at will. It is unknown whether he can truly be destroyed. He sometimes focuses his energy blasts through a staff with an axe-like blade at one end and a curved spear at the other, but he can project blasts from his hands or face as well. He can open portals into other dimensions. He can survive unaided in the vacuum of space and presumably does not need air, food, water, etc. He likely is immune to aging and conventional disease.
He possesses a large dorsal fin-like mane, a long tail, a digitigrade stance (with two toes), and his arms are divided into two portions proximal to the carpus (see comments). It would seem that he has three rows of eyes.
History:
(Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus#1/2 (fb) - BTS) -
Some of the first particles in Universe-616 formed a noncorporeal
civilization, the Ethereals, into which the future Stardust was born
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#4 (fb) - BTS) - Stardust claimed to be a cosmic entity.
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#3 (fb) - BTS) - Stardust (by his own account) has "seen valleys fill with water and become rivers," "seen water wear away rocks to create valleys," "seen earth smash together with such force that it raises into the sky to become mountains," and "seen the face of god and torn away his mask."
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#1 (fb) - BTS) - Stardust became the herald of Galactus.
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#1 (fb) - BTS) - Stardust led Galactus to feed on New Korbin.
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#5 (fb)) - Stardust attacked and slaughtered Korbinites aboard a starship.
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#1) - Beta Ray Bill arrived to find New Korbin devastated and assaulted by Galactus (unaware of his true nature, as he appeared in the non-human form of Ashta to Korbinites). Galactus summoned Stardust to destroy Beta Ray Bill, and the two battled, with Bill trying to delay the pair so that the remainder of the Korbinite fleet could escape. Firing energy blasts at each other, they reached a stalemate, until Galactus swatted and incapacitated Bill.
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#2) - Stardust gained Galactus' permission to hunt down and exterminate the remainder of the Korbinite fleet to destroy all remnants of their civilization to serve as an example of those who would resist Galactus. As he easily overpowered all he found, he came across the incapacitated Alpha Ray, precursor to Beta Ray Bill. Stardust brought Alpha Ray back to Galactus to slay him in Galactus' presence, but Galactus instructed him to stay his hand as Alpha Ray had fought against Beta Ray Bill. Upon realizing that Beta Ray Bill had cracked Galactus' armor, Stardust went after Bill, intending to fill the rent with Bill's body. As he approached Bill aboard his starship, Skuttlebutt, he obtained the Meta-Orb, which contained the life forces of those not slain in the recent attacks. Stardust contacted Bill, telling him to come to him and he might spare his people. Bill confronted him as desired.
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#3) - Bill snatched the Orb from Stardusts hands, sending it aboard Skuttlebutt, whom he instructed to escape. Stardust admitted to having underestimated Bill, but then bragged of his own experiences and attacked Bill with great power. Remarking on his own experience and the Odinpower, Bill blasted Stardust, tackled him into a planetoid which was destroyed by the impact, and then seemingly dispersed his energy form with a blow from his hammer, Stormbreaker. Stardust reformed, admitted to being impressed, and vowed to crush Bill. The two fought savagely, but as Bill withstood the assaults and hurt Stardust again with Stormbreaker, Stardust opened a dimensional warp into a cosmic Hell into which he intended to cast Bill. A massive tendril lashed out of the portal and latched onto Bill, who severed it from its attachment. Realizing that something from the Hell had now escaped the portal, Stardust closed the portal and the blasted the severed dark matter as it began to coalesce into human form. Unharmed, it blasted Stardust and Bill into submission, took a feminine semi-humanoid form, and named itself Asteroth.
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#4) - Stardust recovered from the blast and revived Bill, hoping to join forces with him against Asteroth, but Bill attacked him savagely, tearing off Stardust's hand with his teeth. Stardust finally managed to convince Bill that Asteroth was the greater danger and must be stopped before she could acclimate to the physical universe and become too powerful. Stardust and Bill slammed into Asteroth, smashing her into the core of a planet, but she then obliterated the entire planet, emerging unharmed. Feeling he had no choice, Stardust opened a black hole behind Asteroth, but she resisted its gravity well and instead redirected it at Stardust and Bill, who were pulled into the event horizon towards certain death.
(Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#5) - Stardust and Bill drifted into Asteroth, who attacked them both. They fought her, trying to trap her in the event horizon, at which point she sensed the approach of Alpha Ray, empowered by Galactus to oppose her. Stardust blasted Asteroth, distracting her, and then Alpha Ray slammed into her, knocking her close enough to the black hole that they were both pulled into it. Stardust was apparently pulled into the black hole as well, while Bill had been knocked away from it by Alpha Ray's impact. The Black Hole then closed.
(Annihilation: Silver Surfer#2 (fb) - BTS) - Stardust escaped the black hole and returned to Galactus' service.
(Annihilation: Silver Surfer#2) - Galactus summoned Stardust, notifying him that the balance had been undone.
(Annihilation: Silver Surfer#3 (fb) - BTS) - Galactus dispatched Stardust to summon the Silver Surfer to his side.
(Annihilation: Silver Surfer#3) - Stardust appeared before Firelord, Red Shift, and the Silver Surfer, taking the Surfer's place alongside the others in exchange for the Surfer heeding the summons. As soon as the Surfer departed, several ships of the Annihilation Wave arrived to attack them. The three heralds fought back fiercely
(Annihilation#1) - Red Shift, Stardust and Firelord fought in the orbit of Daedalus 5 the forces of the Annihilation Wave.
(Annihilation#2) - Red Shift and Stardust were called by Peter Quill down to the surface of Daedalus 5 to help against the Annihilation Wave forces led by Ravenous.
(Annihilation#3) - Stardust and Red Shift cleared a path to the emergency ships to give their allies the chance to escape. When Annihilus activated Galactus, who Thanos had turned into a weapon for him, Red Shift and Stardust bought their allies enough time to escape by blocking the attack for a few seconds.
(Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus#1/2) - Stardust rebuilt himself and was drawn to the Andromeda Galaxy by the Power Cosmic. He encountered members of his race and learned that they were the last survivors after the Annihilation Wave's attack. They accused Stardust of being a traitor because he fought along the corporeals and attacked him. Stardust destroyed the group and absorbed what was left of them. After that he returned to his master Galactus, who wasn't surprised to see Stardust alive. Stardust asked to be Galactus' herald again, but Galactus denied his wish because the Silver Surfer was now his herald again. Stardust then proofed his loyalty by giving Galactus the energies of the last Ethereals and Galactus decided that it was time for him to have two heralds at once. Stardust then began to search for worlds Galactus could devour, noting that she loved Galactus.
(Fantastic Four I#544) - Somewhere in deep space Stardust sensed a great power that could sate Galactus, but when he arrived there was nothing there. He contacted the Silver Surfer, who assumed that whatever Stardust had sensed was cloaking itself.
(Fantastic Four I#545-546) - Stardust aided the Silver Surfer against the Fantastic Four and Gravity, but was overpowered by Gravity (briefly empowered as the Protector of the Universe) and the Human Torch (who had received the power cosmic, stolen from the Surfer by the Black Panther via Doom-derived technology). Gravity eventually sacrificed his own cosmic power to temporarily sate Galactus so that he did not have to feed on Epoch, after which Galactus restored the Surfer and Stardust's power and then left in peace.
(Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter#1) - Stardust attacked the last I'than ship fleeing I'than IX for their defiance against being consumed by Galactus. Beta Ray Bill intervened and the I'than ship escaped back to their homeworld I'than Prime. The battle between Stardust and Beta Ray Bill continued until Beta Ray Bill had I'than IX destroyed by his ship Skuttlebutt as part of his plan to starve Galactus to death.
(Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter#2) - Stardust appeared on I'than Prime to tell everyone that their planet was chosen as the next meal for Galactus. He threatened the I'than to pursue and kill everyone that fled the planet before Galactus feasted on it. Beta Ray Bill intervened once again and tricked the I'than to flee their world before Bill destroyed it to once again prevent Galactus' feast.
(Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter#3) - Stardust informed Galactus that Beta Ray Bill continued his heresy against Galactus and that he would strike at whatever world Galactus' heralds had chosen for their master. The Silver Surfer eventually convinced Beta Ray Bill to aid Galactus against the I'than fleet because Galactus' death would kill all life within 42 light-years. Beta Ray Bill, Stardust and the Silver Surfer worked held off the I'than fleet until Galactus could regain his strength by feeding on a world. After the battle Galactus had to stop Stardust from killing Beta Ray Bill for his heresy. After learning why Beta Ray Bill was after him, Galactus created a Korbinite female to appease Beta Ray Bill. Stardust and Silver Surfer took off to find more worlds to feast on for Galactus.
(Deadpool Team-Up#883) - Stardust appeared at a Herald of Galactus meeting. (see comments)
SECRET WARS III HAPPENED
(Thor X#1 (fb) - BTS) - After Galactus fell on Asgard to ask for help against the Black Winter (the end of the universe), Thor sent out his ravens to gather Galactus' heralds.
(Thor X#1) - Thor gathered Galactus' currently active heralds (Alpha Ray, Nova, Praeter, Rider/Frank Castle, Stardust), in Asgard to ask them what they knew about this star plague known as Black Winter. Silver Surfer arrived late to reveal all he knew and how he could lead Galactus to five planets that would give him enough power to face the Black Winter. He later accompanied Thor, the other herald and an army of Asgardians to offer Galactus an alliance. Silver Surfer offered Galactus to become his herald again, but Galactus instead chose Thor.
Comments: Created by Michael Avon Oeming, Dan Berman, and Andrea Divito.
I'm not sure Stardust actually is a "he," but I used "he" and
"him" in the profile for ease of description.
More recent stories are referring to Stardust as a female.
I THOUGHT that division of the limb into two parts starting proximal to the carpus (wrist) was syndactyly, but that is actually fusion of the digits into a lesser number of separate digits. I can't remember the real name for it.
Stardust's appearance in Deadpool Team-Up#883 (MAy, 2011) was likely just a hallucination of Deadpool.
Profile by Snood. Update by Markus Raymond (FF#544, Godhunter, etc.)
CLARIFICATIONS:
No KNOWN connections to:
images: (without ads)
Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#1, p18, panel 1 (full body, golden form)
#2, p21, (face)
#3, p15 (full body, silver/blue form)
Appearances:
Stormbreaker: The Saga of Beta Ray Bill#1-5 (March-July 2005) - Michael Avon Oeming & Dan
Berman (writers), Andrea Divito (artist), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Annihilation: Silver Surfer#2-3 (July-August 2006) - Keith Giffen (writer),
Renato Arlem (artist), Andy Schmidt (editor)
Annihilation#1-3 (October-December, 2006) - Keith Giffen (writer), Andrea Divito (artist), Andy Schmidt (editor)
Annihilation: Heralds of Galactus#1 (April, 2007) - Stuart Moore (writer), Mike McKone (artist), Andy Schmidt (editor)
Fantastic Four I#544-546 (May-July, 2007) - Dwayne McDuffie (writer), Paul Pelletier (penciler), Rick Magyar (inker), Molly Lazer (assistant editors), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter#1-3 (August-October, 2009) - Kieron Gillen (writer), Kano (pencils), Álvaro López & Kano (inks), Warren Simons (editor)
Deadpool Team-Up#883 (May, 2011) - Skottie Young (writer), Ramon Perez (artist), Jeanine Schaefer (editor)
Thor X#1 (March, 2020) - Donny Cates (writer), Nic Klein (artist), Wil Moss (editor)
First Posted: 04/13/2006
Last updated: 11/23/2021
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
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