Marvel Just Made Its Most Terrifying Villain the New Leader of the Eternals

Marvel just gave the Eternals a new leader in the comics, and it’s not Salma Hayek’s Ajak. One of the Marvel Universe’s most terrifying villains steps into a leadership role in the latest issue of Eternals, winning a vote among the members of the centuries-old characters. The villain elected to lead the Eternals will be familiar to fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the comics, and will no doubt transition to a turning point for not only the superhero team, but for the larger Marvel Universe as a whole.

WARNING: Spoilers below for Eternals #7 by Kieron Gillen, Esad Ribic, Matthew Wilson and VC’s Clayton Cowles. The new story arc beginning in Eternals #7 concludes with Thanos taking control of the immortal group. Of course, he has some help along the way in the form of Druig, who is being a master manipulator behind the scenes. Druig recognizes the Eternals are fractured after learning the dark secret surrounding their resurrection process. As their name references, the Eternals literally have eternal life. Once they die, they’re brought back to life. Unfortunately, it’s never been that simple. Every time an Eternal is resurrected, a human dies. When Ikaris is revived in the previous arc, a young boy he grew close to named Toby Robson turns up dead.

When it comes time for the Eternals to form the Uni-Mind, Druig rigs the voting so Thanos wins over Zuras. He tells Thanos the reason he’s helping the Mad Titan is that he wants to stand beside “the shoulder of the greatest of great men,” as he puts it. Of course, being a conniving snake, Druig was able to make a copy of Phastos’ self-destruct instructions for Thanos, meaning he can kill Thanos anytime he chooses. The Mad Titan wins the Eternals vote, presumably kills Zuras and stands victorious.

Next, Thanos proves himself not to be a fool, as he turns around and also murders Druig. Thanos deduced Druig kept a copy of his self-destruct instead of just destroying what he stole from Phastos’ mind. Phastos was originally working with Thanos after discovering how Eternals are resurrected, but his plan went south since it is nearly impossible to keep Thanos on a leash.

As Eternals #7 ends, Thanos declares he will do whatever he desires as their new leader. Luckily, a band of Eternals are now living with the Deviants in seclusion once they came to terms with their new secret. Thena, Ikaris, Sprite, Phastos, Sersi, and Kingo are all that stand between Thanos and total control of the Eternals. But will they be enough to stop him?

Let us know your thoughts on the Eternals comic in the comments, as well as the feature film that’s now in theaters.