What Comics Fans Know About Adam Warlock That You Don't

Adam Warlock is one of the more enigmatic figures in Marvel Comics. One of the heroes of Marvel's cosmic pantheon, Warlock sometimes skirts moral lines. If he's working towards an objective, then you can rest assured the stakes are something along the lines of the universe or reality itself, and from the gold-skinned wanderer's point of view, those stakes sometimes make just about any method or sacrifice justifiable. 

Warlock has yet to appear in the MCU, and that's surprised a lot of comic fans. With Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame giving us a conclusion to the Thanos story that's been building since 2012's Avengers, many Marvel readers just assumed Warlock would show up. Not only has he been teased in the movies, but in the comics, Warlock is the foil to the Mad Titan. Seeing Thanos finally gather all six Infinity Stones and fight Marvel's heroes without Warlock being a part of it, to an old-school Marvel fan, is kind of like seeing the Avengers fight Green Goblin without Spider-Man. 

When he finally does appear on the big screen, Adam Warlock may be new to you, but he's been wandering the spaceways of the Marvel Universe since the '60s. Here's a crash course for the uninitiated.

The one called "Him" got a new lease on life in the '70s. The character returned to the Marvel Universe in 1972's Marvel Premiere #1, this time as a fairly blatant messiah allegory. It's here that he encounters the High Evolutionary, who gives him the name "Warlock." The High Evolutionary creates a Counter-Earth spinning on the opposite side of the Sun from our Earth. Along with a planet, High Evolutionary creates a race of "New-Men," and the issue ends with him sending Warlock to Counter-Earth as his emissary and making Warlock part mortal. In case the hints are too subtle, early in the story High Evolutionary describes Warlock as "the one I would have made the son I never had."

The creative team heading Marvel Premiere #1 was made up of writer Roy Thomas and artist Gil Kane. In a 2009 interview in Back Issue!, Thomas admitted that his Warlock stories were largely inspired by the soundtrack to Jesus Christ Superstar. It's a surprising well to draw from, particularly considering the potential backlash. But Thomas said he was hopeful there would be no "outcry" because he "was not really making any serious statement on religion."

Considering the series Marvel Spotlight would suffer few protests the following year when its lead character became the Son of Satan, Thomas probably never had much to worry about.

Marvel released the Infinity War mini-series in 1992, but it bears little resemblance to the movie Avengers: Infinity War. More than any other comic, the 1991 mini-series Infinity Gauntlet provided the inspiration for the 2018 film. The comic begins with Thanos having already gathered the six Infinity Stones, and the first issue ends with his infamous snap and the resulting universal purge. Like in the movie, the surviving heroes of Earth gather to fight a godlike Thanos to disastrous consequences. 

The most conspicuous omission in the film is Adam Warlock. In Infinity Gauntlet, it's Warlock who gathers Earth's heroes at Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum, and it's Warlock who formulates the plan to defeat Thanos. He steps into darker moral shadows than most of the heroes, having a brief aside on the roof of the Sanctum with Hulk and Wolverine to make sure both are willing to kill Thanos if the chance arises. Warlock knows almost every last hero he recruits is destined to die. His plan is for the heroes to sacrifice their lives as a distraction, so that at just the right moment, Silver Surfer can snatch away the Titan's Gauntlet. 

Warlock's plan fails, but luckily all the heroes are resurrected when Nebula seizes the Infinity Gauntlet from Thanos and uses it to reverse his deeds. By the end of the mini-series, Warlock holds the Gauntlet and all six Stones, and he doesn't care very much about whether or not Earth's heroes are okay with that. 

Earth's heroes aren't thrilled when Adam Warlock claims possession of the Infinity Gems at the end of Infinity Gauntlet, and they aren't the only ones with a bone to pick. In 1992's Warlock & The Infinity Watch #1, Warlock is called to a gathering of Marvel's most powerful beings — characters like Eternity, the Living Tribunal, the Celestials, and more. These space gods aren't happy with Warlock's new omnipotence. He is initially resistant to their concerns, but eventually he agrees that he should not be the only being to wield all six Gems. Warlock forms the Infinity Watch — a team made up of cosmic heroes, each of whom would claim responsibility for one of the Gems. His first teammates include Moondragon, Gamora, Pip the Troll, and Drax the Destroyer. Warlock keeps the Soul Stone for himself and secretly gives the final stone to Thanos. Later in the series, Warlock admits to himself that his choices weren't the best, and that likely the Gauntlet's corrupting influence had more to do with the selections than his own will.

Warlock & The Infinity Watch ended after 42 issues in 1995, but the idea never died. Recently, the name "Infinity Watch" has popped up here and there in Marvel's comics, including in 2018's Infinity Countdown and again in its sequel, Infinity Wars, which sees an Infinity Watch led by Loki. Most recently, 2019's mini-series Wolverine: Infinity Watch has the freshly-resurrected Wolverine team up with Loki to protect the Stones' current owners. 

By the end of Infinity War, it's clear that Warlock's evil half isn't the only problem. In the 1993 sequel Infinity Crusade, the Goddess — the personification of Warlock's goodness — makes herself known by taking over the hearts and minds of half of Earth's heroes. The question of whether or not certain heroes are susceptible to the Goddess' control seems to be governed by their faith. Heroes with any kind of strong spiritual belief like Daredevil, Doctor Strange, and Storm fall under the Goddess' spell. Those heroes lacking such beliefs — particularly the more science-minded heroes like Mister Fantastic and Iron Man — are unmoved by her crusade.

The Goddess, like so many, proves her own worst enemy in the end. In her crusade to rid the universe of evil, she eventually decides the only way to make sure evil is snuffed out is to eradicate all sentient life. She uses a cosmic egg she's created to remake the universe in a new image, free of sentient life... or so she thinks. Foreseeing her plan, Warlock creates the illusion of the the Goddess' ideal existence. Not expecting this or a combined assault by Professor X, Warlock, and Thanos, the Goddess is defeated and sent to the world inside the Soul Stone. 

Of the many easter eggs to be found in the Collector's (Benicio Del Toro) Knowhere showroom, one of the most oft-spotted is a large cocoon-like object first seen behind glass in 2013's Thor: The Dark World. This is meant to reference Adam Warlock. The character's weathered numerous rebirths through the years, and most end with him emerging from a cocoon very much like the one kept by the Collector. However, it seems like that reference is more or less retconned in 2017's Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. 

One of Vol. 2's mid-credits scenes begins with a defeated Ayesha (Elizabeth Debicki) staring at what looks to be a mechanical cocoon, or even a sarcophagus. As just about any Marvel Comics fan could have guessed upon seeing the thing, Ayesha tells us a creature is gestating in the cocoon, and the short scene ends with her naming the being inside "Adam." More than likely, Ayesha and her people, the Sovereign, already remind fans of Adam, because the golden skin looks exactly like Warlock's. But if there are any doubts, this scene eradicates them. 

Unfortunately, we can't say Warlock is a lock for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. It's clear writer/director James Gunn wants to use him, but nothing has been confirmed. That Vol. 2 tease may never be more than a tease.

It would be a shame to discuss Adam Warlock without bringing up his sidekick and best friend, Pip the Troll. Fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe may recognize Pip from his film debut in "Eternals." During a mid-credit scene of the 2021 film, the troll, voiced by Patton Oswalt, magically appears to properly introduce the arrival of Starfox (Harry Styles). However, Pip's presence as the companion to Starfox is a bit of a misrepresentation of his comic book history. Although sharing the odd team-up with Thanos's brother Starfox, traditionally Pip the Troll is the companion of Adam Warlock.

Pip first appeared in "Strange Tales" Vol.1 #179 in 1975, where he meets Warlock and joins in the ongoing battle with Magus. The troll continued to be a loyal ally to Adam through many adventures, including after his death, when Pip's soul was captured within the Soul Gem. Residing in the Soulworld, Pip joined the Infinity Watch alongside Warlock and Gamora. And after Thanos was defeated in the "Infinity Gauntlet" event, Adam entrusted his trollish friend with the powerful Space Gem. With the power of teleportation stashed between his toes, Pip has joined many factions, including X-Factor, Ravagers, and was at one point employed by Thanos.

Adam Warlock is set to make his official MCU movie debut, portrayed by Will Poulter in "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3." While speculation builds around Warlock's impact during the film, the comic book source material may have given clues to an integral plot point. Audiences are already prepared for much of the upcoming feature to center around Peter Quill's search for Gamora. After the events of "Avengers: Endgame," a time-displaced Gamora abandoned the Guardians, ignorant of her future self's connection to the group. Equally unconnected to her romantic feelings for Quill, Gamora is left without her team, family, or purpose — leaving her open to new relationships in the universe.

In the comic books, Gamora spent much time in the Soul World after her death in "Avengers Annual" #7. There she teamed up with unlikely allies Pip the Troll and Adam Warlock. Forming the bones for the original Infinity Watch supergroup, Gamora spent years at Adam's side, developing an unrequited crush on the Jesus-like cosmic powerhouse. Whether a similar story plays out in the MCU is still unknown. However, when Will Poulter was questioned about the theory regarding the potential on-screen romance and their comic connection, he told The Movie Dweeb, "I didn't even know this. This is breaking news to me. Is that the expectation for Vol. 3?"

An ongoing theme of Adam Warlock is that the character has progressively become more powerful. With each death and subsequent incarnation, Adam gains new abilities, including becoming a more magic-centered Warlock. In recent years, a version of Adam Warlock has become one of the most powerful forms in the entire universe: the Living Tribunal.

Essentially the judge of the most significant cosmic events of Marvel Comics, the Living Tribunal is considered the "highest authority in the Multiverse." He sits at the center of a court that features the most powerful entities in the known reality, such as Eternity, Infinity, Death, and The Celestials. Surprisingly, the Living Tribunal and much of his court were destroyed in "New Avengers" Vol.3 #30, when The Beyonders attempted to destroy the Multiverse in their perverse experiment.

At that time, in another part of the multiverse, Earth-616 and Earth-19141 were beginning to merge due to a battle between alternate versions of Thanos and Adam Warlock. The Adam of Earth-19141 was forced to absorb his own universe and replace the Warlock from 616. However, with too much power to control, this Warlock destroyed the 616 universe, leading him to request that the One-Above-All revive the reality. As part of their agreement, Adam Warlock-19141 became the new Living Tribunal for the reinstated universe, where he has remained since "Thanos: The Infinity Finale" in 2016.