When it comes to the Marvel Universe, you can't get much bigger and badder than Galactus. The World Devourer has been around since the beginning of the Universe... well, this universe anyway. While he has been defeated every once in a while, either through trickery and threats of ultimate nullification by beings like Reed Richards in Fantastic Four #50 (written by Stan Lee and penciled by Jack Kirby), he has always been able to rise again to continue his consumption of life-rich worlds. Of course, there was the time Squirrel Girl took him aside and convinced him to leave Earth alone by simply talking with him -- she is unbeatable after all -- but when it comes to matching Galactus in sheer might, there aren't a lot of characters in the Marvel Universe who match up.
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When we hop on over to the DC Universe to see who can compare in power, there are a few options. Sure, Superman could probably give Galactus a black eye (or two), but when the going gets tough, we really need to consider DC's Cosmic entities against Marvel's giant, purple planet-eater. For this list, we decided to look into DC's Cosmic Gods to find out who was even capable of going toe-to-toe with the world devourer and we found more than a few who could match up. Because their power is equal to or greater than that of Galactus, they are presented in no particular order. Here are 15 of DC's Cosmic Gods who are bigger and badder than Marvel's Galactus.
15 SOLARIS THE TYRANT SUN
Galactus doesn't appear to have any problem consuming a planet, but when it comes to a star, he tends to keep his distance. Not that he couldn't fly directly into the heart of one -- he can, but for the most part, he tends to stay away. When it comes to DC, we have a whole new class of star to contend with. Solaris the Tyrant Sun is not only a star but a sentient supervillain to boot!
Solaris first appeared in Green Lantern #1,000,000, written by Ron Marz and penciled by Bryan Hitch. He is a supercomputer from the 853rd century who literally created himself via some time manipulation. While he was defeated by the JLA and Justice Legion-A, he would provide an imposing challenge to Galactus were the two to cross paths.
14 DR. MANHATTAN
Dr. Manhattan may have started out as a human being, but he has become something far greater. He is, for all intents and purposes, a god. If we were to list out all of his powers here, we would exceed the word count for this site, so let's just say he has the ability to create or end life on a mass scale. If he were to come across Galactus trying to snack on the life forms of the Earth, he would simply wave his hand and remove Galactus from reality (he doesn't really need to wave his hand; it's all for show).
If you saw the Watchmen movie or have read the comics, you know he would be more than a match for Galactus, but if the two were to engage in battle, it would certainly be something to see... so long as Manhattan drew it out for more than a few seconds.
13 PARALLAX
In the DC Universe, Parallax is the cosmic entity composed of pure fear. He is one of the seven cosmic entities that powers the spectrum of emotion, making him one of the most powerful beings in all of DC creation. Parallax first appeared in Green Lantern #50, where it was revealed that Parallax was imprisoned within the Oan Central Battery and was responsible for the infamous "yellow impurity" that rendered a Green Lantern susceptible to the color, as well as the corruption of Hal Jordan and the subsequent death of the Corps.
The biggest threat Parallax would pose to an entity like Galactus would be possession. As Parallax's primary means of power, he could possess Galactus (who has shown fear in the past, most notably at the business end of the Ultimate Nullifier) and combine his powers with the cosmic being's, making him the ultimate power in the combined DC/Marvel Universe. Were that to happen, who knows what would be unleashed.
12 MR. MXYZPTLK
An Imp from the 5th dimension, Mr. Mxyzptlk possesses reality-altering powers unlike anyone else within the DC Universe. He first appeared in Superman #30, written by Jerry Siegel and others with pencils by Joe Shuster and others. He is primarily an annoyance to Superman, but could certainly contend with the likes of Galactus should the two meet.
If he wanted to, he could simply turn Galactus into an adorable little puppy, but that's not really how Mxyzptlk operates. He prefers to mess with his prey and taunt them by screwing with their day-to-day lives. He might cause a planet Galactus wanted to consume to turn into a giant billiard ball or some other nonsense, but either way, he would be more than a match for him.
11 ECLIPSO
The original incarnation of Eclipso first appeared in House of Secrets #61, written by Arnold Drake and penciled by Henry Boltinoff and others. Eclipso was presented as the first incarnation of the Spirit of Wrath whose soul was sealed inside the Heart of Darkness. He was able to possess anyone who came in contact with the Heart, most notably Bruce Gordon. Eclipso has been revamped in the New 52, but we are focusing on the original version for this list.
Originally, Eclipso was a divine being whose magical powers granted him the ability to alter his size and possess anyone who comes into contact with the Heart of Darkness. He is immortal and incredibly powerful, making him a perfect contender in a Galactus/Eclipso battle royale.
10 NEKRON
In the DC Universe, Nekron is the physical embodiment of death and darkness. He has the power to not only take life but also to restore it and reanimate the dead. Nekron created and led the Black Lantern Corps, which is comprised of the reanimated dead heroes and villains of the DC Universe. He was also the harbinger of the Blackest Night and could easily hold his own against the likes of Galactus.
Nekron first appeared in Justice League of America #128, written by Martin Pasko and penciled by Dick Dillin back in 1976. In addition to his reanimation abilities, he can hurl Dark Lightning from his hands powerful enough to inflict damage or even kill other cosmic beings like the Guardians of the Universe. He is also immortal and can alter reality on a planetary scale, meaning that Nekron -- the lord of the dead -- would definitely give Galactus pause, be it in his World Devourer or Lifebringer versions.
9 KRONA
Krona was first introduced in Green Lantern #40, written by John Broome and penciled by Gil Kane back in 1965. He is a Maltusian -- the race of the Guardians of the Universe -- which affords him immortality and virtual invulnerability as well as various cosmic manipulation powers. He was responsible for creating the technology that led to the development of the Green Lantern Rings, but his obsession with finding the origin of the universe, something prohibited by the Maltusians, has made him a primary antagonist of the Guardians and their servants.
Krona was also found to be the primary antagonist of the Brightest Day event and is responsible for the release of the orange power of Avarice, as well as the multiverse itself. His powers are vast and nearly divine in origin after transcending into a cosmic being. Any battle between Galactus and Krona would not end well for the World Devourer.
8 STARRO THE CONQUEROR
Starro is a being who comes from a race known as the Star Conquerors. He is able to use his psychic powers to conquer whole planets, making him a menace on a multi-planetary scale. He is also able to create psychic-parasitic clones he attaches to people's faces to control them in his conquest of worlds.
Starro first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #28 as the first official foe of the then-untested Justice League, written by Gardner Fox and penciled by Mike Sekowsky. Starro's primary power is the ability to control anyone's mind, which allowed him to conquer nine galaxies. It's likely he would have no problem controlling Galactus, which would afford him an even greater weapon in his quest to destroy or conquer whole worlds, but presumably without the whole "eating" thing.
7 THE ENDLESS
In the DC/Vertigo imprint, The Endless are cosmic beings who are representations of Death, Dream, Destiny, Destruction, Desire, Despair and Delerium, who was once Delight. They are not gods because gods only exist when people believe in them. The Endless exist regardless of belief or worship and are omnipotent and immortal beings. They can be killed, but they are always reborn because the universe could not exist without them.
The Endless are more of a concept than they are true beings, but their powers far outweigh those of Galactus or any physical being. A fight between Galactus and any of them would not necessarily be something conceivable because it would not even take place in a realm we could understand. How does one even battle Death when it is inevitable?
6 THE DECREATOR
The Decreator has the power to... well, decreate the universe. It isn't really a being at all, but rather, a shadow of God who has no morals and is neither good nor evil. In the Cult of the Unwritten Book, it was written that when God said "Let there be light," a shadow was subsequently cast, which manifests itself as the Decreator, an entity of annihilation who is antithetical to all of creation.
The Decreator first appeared in Doom Patrol #32, written by Grant Morrison with pencils and cover art by Simon Bisley and Richard Case. It was first summoned by the Cult of the Unwritten Book to unmake the world. Given the Decreator's ability to annihilate anything, it's safe to say any confrontation between it and Galactus would not turn out well for the Marvel character.
5 SPECTRE
Spectre is often more than he seems when represented in the comics. He is the physical embodiment of the Wrath of God whose responsibility is to unleash his fury on the souls of evil men. He exists while bound to the soul of a dead human, which makes him somewhat less of a cosmic being than others on this list, as he is grounded by humanity, though it has happened where he has been freed... to disastrous results. Even so, his powers are vast and nearly without limit.
Spectre has been around since 1940, having first appeared in More Fun Comics #52, written by Jerry Siegel and penciled by Bernard Baily and several others. He has been tied to four deceased humans since his inception, having even been tied to Hal Jordan at one time. Considering the Spectre is the manifestation of the Wrath of God, he could probably take Galactus down a peg or two should they ever come to blows.
4 THE GUARDIANS OF THE UNIVERSE
The Guardians of the Universe are, by far, some of the most powerful beings in all of the DC Universe. They are immortal and nearly invulnerable beings more than 10 billion years old, making them some of the oldest beings in the universe. They are responsible for the creation of the Manhunters and then the Green Lantern Corps, which is only a small approximation of their power.
They first appeared in the Silver Age Green Lantern #1, written by John Broome and penciled by Gil Kane back in 1960. Their abilities make them ridiculously overpowered, which is one of the reasons they created the Corps and the Manhunters to police the universe. Krona, a fellow Maltusian, was responsible for the creation of the Multiverse, which goes to show how powerful a single one of these beings can be.
3 DARKSEID
Darkseid is the ruler of the planet Apokolips and an adversary of Superman as well as the Justice League. He is often considered to be one of the most powerful beings in the DC Universe whose ultimate goal is to locate the Anti-Life Equation. Darkseid first appeared in Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #134, written and illustrated by Neal Adams and Jack Kirby back in 1970.
Darkseid is essentially a god who is certainly immortal but also possesses the powers of astral projection, dimensional manipulation and numerous offensive powers, making him an easy adversary of the Man of Steel. He was once destroyed by Spectre, but was able to reform his body in short order. He is often found to be at the center of large-scale crossover events in the DC Universe and is easily as powerful, if not much more so than Galactus.
2 IMPERIEX
Galactus may have been the lone survivor of the universe that came before bestowed with incredible powers and technology, but Imperiex possesses within himself the literal power of the Big Bang. He has the power to destroy and create entire universes, which makes him an easy contender for a fight against a being like Galactus.
Imperiex first appeared in the "Our Worlds at War" storyline in Superman #153, written by Jeph Loeb and penciled by Mike McKone in 2000. It would be impossible to list all of Imperiex's powers here, but minimally, he could blast Galactus to atoms with a single attack were he so inclined. His nickname is The Destroyer of Galaxies, which makes the Devourer of Worlds seem like child's play in comparison.
1 THE ANTI-MONITOR
The Anti-Monitor is a being of ridiculously immense power. He is the counterpart to the Monitor from the Anti-matter Universe, who was responsible for the original Crisis on Infinite Earths. It took the combined might of the DC Universe to stop the Anti-Monitor when he flooded antimatter into the positive matter universe during the Crisis and the multiverse was torn apart as a result.
It is difficult to describe the entirety of his powers, but he is responsible for more deaths in the DC Universe than any other villain since the company began printing comics. He has destroyed and absorbed the energy of thousands of universes, each time becoming more powerful than before. At one point, he became more powerful than the Monitor, making him the most formidable foe in the universe. Galactus doesn't even register on his power-scale.
Which of your favorite DC Cosmic Gods did we miss? Sound off in the comments and let us know who you think is bigger and badder than Galactus in the DC Universe!