Silver Surfer #1

Norrin Radd, who becomes the Silver Surfer, is a noble heroic human-like extraterrestrial being who is troubled by how his people go on their every day lives. He complains, among other things, for their continuos search for pleasure. Nevertheless, Radd basically gives it all to save them when an invincible menace, the supreme being Galactus, threatens to destroy them.

Galactus turns Radd into a bright, shinning super human capable of amazing wonders. And he also locks him on Earth when the Surfer turns against his master due to yet another noble cause: Save humankind. 

Creator Stan Lee hints as how he might have borrowed ideas from the Bible, a book he was delighted with, when conceiving the Surfer's story. The Surfer could be linked to two opposite characters, which is very interesting: The savior hero Surfer to Jesus, and the bright flying locked in Earth Surfer, to Lucifer (Satan).

Prior to Radd reaching out to Galactus, the Zenn-La people used their most wondrous weapon to stop the god-like creature. That weapon was so powerful that Galactus had to hid in another dimension to stay safe. The weapon retaliated, leaving the once-perfect world, devastated. Was not by Radd's intervention that Galactus spared his world. That is a clear message by Stan Lee that DIPLOMACY and not VIOLENCE is the best way to prevent death and destruction when two powerful forces should face each other.

As per the ARTWORK, John Buscema lays a great foundation for the masterpiece artwork he will be do later on in the Surfer book.

By Peter Silvestro on February 10, 2010
The encounter with the Hulk is a flashback to Tales To Astonish #93. The meeting with Doctor Doom is from Fantastic Four #57 and the tale of the Surfer and Galactus coming to Earth is, of course, from the classic Fantastic Four #48-50.