Cataclysm

Synopsis

In the aftermath of the Age of Ultron event, in which the heroes of the mainline Marvel universe broke the time space continuum,^[2] a tear in time and space transported the cosmic entity known as Galactus from the main Marvel universe into the Ultimate Universe. Galactus' Ultimate Universe counterpart, the parasitic swarm Gah Lak Tus, merged with Galactus and battled with the cosmic superheroes Nova, the Silver Surfer, and Captain Marvel. After being significantly wounded by the heroes, a weakened Galactus travelled to Earth to regenerate his energy by feeding on the planet.^[3]

The only member of Earth who detected Galactus' arrival early was the robot known as Vision, who flew into outer space to confront Galactus, but was destroyed.^[4] Galactus appeared on Earth suddenly and took the rest of the planet by surprise, arriving in the U.S. state of New Jersey and decimating it under his feet.^[5]

The heroes of Earth found that they could not defeat Galactus by force, but discovered that the being originated from an alternate universe where he had been defeated before, by an alternate universe version of the man Reed Richards. While Galactus was occupied building himself a machine with which he would consume Earth, the heroes sent their own Reed Richards (who was a villain, as opposed to the alternate universe in which he was a hero), to the alternate universe, known as Earth-616. He was accompanied by the young hero Spider-Man, who had been to Earth-616 briefly before.^[6] Richards and Spider-Man returned to their home universe, and Richards used the knowledge he gained to devise a plan to defeat Galactus.^[7]

The heroes continued to battle Galactus to try and slow his construction of the device that would help him consume the Earth. The superhero leader Captain America sacrificed his life to buy time by driving a jet into Galactus' mouth.^[8] Reed Richard's plan to stop Galactus was eventually enacted, and involved growing the mutant Kitty Pryde to the size of Galactus where she battled him. What Reed Richards did not inform Kitty was that his plan also involved opening up a portal to the antimatter universe known as the Negative Zone where Galactus would starve, and Galactus began to fall into the portal because he was busy fighting Kitty. Kitty was nearly sucked into the vortex as well but was saved at the last moment by her fellow heroes, and the Asgardian god Thor dealt the final blow to send Galactus into the Negative Zone to starve, sacrificing his own life by falling into the portal with the enemy.^[9]