Silver Surfer #6
Silver Surfer #6 (Vol. 3, December 1987), titled 'Seeds of War!', caps the opening arc of the landmark Englehart/Rogers run — the first sustained Silver Surfer solo series not written by Stan Lee — by pulling all of its cosmic plot threads together: the full Elders of the Universe conspiracy to destroy Galactus is finally laid bare, and the renewed Kree–Skrull War moves from backdrop to foreground in a single issue. The debut of Nenora, a Skrull spy embedded at the highest level of Kree command, planted a long-running political intrigue that Englehart would mine for years and that influenced every subsequent writer who touched the cosmic corner of the Marvel Universe. Together with the introduction of Aptak, Emperor Yorak, and Tus-Katt, the issue built out the Kree–Skrull conflict with a depth of alien court politics rarely attempted in mainstream superhero comics of the era. As the narrative hinge on which the entire opening run pivots — forcing Norrin Radd to choose between stopping a universe-ending plot and honoring his duty to Zenn-La — it crystallizes the central tension Englehart and Rogers established for the character: freedom claimed but never fully possessed.
In "War," the Silver Surfer finds himself caught between two warring empires as the Kree and Skrull conflict spirals toward a catastrophic turning point. With the Elders convening on Earth to test a weapon meant to destroy Galactus, and a traitor among the Kree proving harder to uncover than expected, the Surfer must navigate deception and shifting allegiances. As he prepares to confront the threat, a desperate call from Shalla-Bal pulls him in another direction—splitting him from Mantis just as the stakes reach their peak. Written by Englehart and illustrated with striking precision by Marshall Rogers, this issue blends cosmic tension with intimate stakes, all rendered in bold colors and dynamic inks. The cover by Rogers and Rubinstein captures the gravity of the moment with a haunting, otherworldly presence.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The 1987 Silver Surfer ongoing (Vol. 3) was the product of an unusual editorial history: the series was initially conceived with the Surfer still imprisoned on Earth, and one full issue was completed under that premise before Marvel agreed to let Englehart write the character's escape, necessitating a brand-new first issue; the original was eventually reprinted in Marvel Fanfare #51. The Englehart/Rogers pairing was a reunion of collaborators who had already made history together at DC, where their Detective Comics run had redefined Batman — a pedigree that gave the new Silver Surfer launch considerable anticipation. By issue #6, Rogers was handling not only pencils but also the book's coloring, giving the cosmic sequences a distinctive, high-key palette that was his alone. Stan Lee was openly uncomfortable with other writers on the character, but editorial proceeded, and the Englehart run ultimately became the foundation on which Jim Starlin's subsequent Thanos-centric stories — including the road to the Infinity Gauntlet — were built.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Story title: 'Seeds of War!' — written by Steve Englehart, penciled and colored by Marshall Rogers, inked by Joe Rubinstein, lettered by Ken Bruzenak; cover date December 1987.
- First appearances of Nenora (the Skrull spy embedded in the Kree hierarchy as Chief Coordinator), Aptak, Emperor Yorak, and Tus-Katt — all pivotal figures in the extended Kree–Skrull War subplot.
- The issue provides the first full origin/backstory of the Obliterator, revealing he is approximately 5.5 billion years old and that his singular obsession with destruction allowed him to become an Elder of the Universe after exterminating his own entire species and homeworld.
- The Elders' complete plan is exposed for the first time: by killing Galactus — the sole survivor of the previous universe — they would collapse the current reality, and as immortals they would survive to become the new Galactuses of the next universe.
- Norrin Radd is forced to abandon the mission to stop the Elders when Shalla-Bal calls for his protection of Zenn-La against an approaching Kree fleet, leaving Mantis to pursue the Elders alone — the dramatic split that drives the next phase of the arc.
- The issue appeared as part of the first ongoing Silver Surfer series not written by Stan Lee; Lee publicly expressed disappointment that another writer had taken the character.
- Englehart and Rogers had previously collaborated on a celebrated run of Detective Comics at DC, making their Silver Surfer reunion a noteworthy event in late-1980s comics.
- The issue has been collected in the Silver Surfer Epic Collection Vol. 3: Freedom (Marvel), which covers Silver Surfer (1987) #1–14.
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Reprints
Reprinted in Nova #125 (1988), Marvel-Comic-Sonderheft #38 (1989), Silver Surfer #6 (1990), Essential Silver Surfer #2 (2007), Silver Surfer Epic Collection #3 (2015), Silver Surfer: Return to the Spaceways Omnibus #[nn] (2024), Silver Surfer Classic Collection - Freiheit #[nn] (2024), Estela Plateada #5
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