Now playing in theatres, Marvel’s “Eternals” is generating a lot of discussion about a variety of subjects, from the movie’s critical reception to its revolutionary disclosures about the past of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and what they represent for the future. The main characters of the movie are the titular Olympians, a group of immortal(-ish) humanoid aliens with a variety of superpowers, including superspeed, mind control, and the capacity to project cosmic energy. The Celestials, who created the Eternals, are far more powerful than they are.
The Celestials are ancient cosmic beings with god-like abilities that have been since (almost) the beginning of time. In Marvel’s comic books, they not only assisted in the creation of other universes but also the larger multiverse. One of their number is Tiamut the Communicator, also known as the Dreaming Celestial, who is an important character in the “Eternals” tale.
So, for your convenience, here is a brief, spoiler-free introduction to Tiamut before you go see the movie.
What Is Tiamut’s Origin Story?
Tiamut originally appeared in 1977’s “Eternals” #18 and is one of the most potent Celestials, even causing Galactus, the cosmic planet-destroying entity, to fear him (who has yet to appear in the MCU). The other Celestials, according to Tiamut, banded together against him after he attacked Arishem the Judge, one of the select few Celestials who have the authority to decide whether a planet’s dominant civilisation should live or perish, for refusing to obey his command to start harvesting Earth. Tiamut’s physical form w as then imprisoned below the planet beneath the Diablo Mountain range in California after they tore his spirit from his body and placed it in a vessel known as The Vial.
The chamber where Tiamut’s body was kept was damaged by the famed San Francisco earthquake of 1906, which was the largest earthquake to ever be recorded in the city. This required the Eternals to make repairs and keep Tiamut imprisoned. Before Tiamut was ultimately reawakened with assistance from the Deviants, the evil opposites of the Eternals, there were more close calls over the years that followed. However, the Celestial decided he would decide whether people should live or die for himself rather than quickly killing Earth as he had originally intended.
What To Expect From Tiamut In Eternals
“Eternals” remixes some of Marvel’s complex comic book mythology while remaining true to other aspects, as is customary for an MCU film. In the movie, Arishem is the Celestial who created the Eternals and dispatched them to Earth in the year 5,000 BC to exterminate the Deviants—parasitic creatures that invade planets and decimate their apex predators in order to absorb their most advantageous traits and exterminate other forms of self-aware life. The Eternals disagree over whether they should continue to avoid interfering in human affairs as directed or help humanity advance after completing their purpose (or so they think) in the year 1500. As a result, they part ways.
However, everything abruptly changes in the present when the Deviants reappear, causing the Eternals to band together in the face of a much greater threat that (as you have no doubt deduced) involves Tiamut. But to find out what happens next, you’ll have to read Chloé Zhao’s millennia-spanning, contentious, and exceedingly ambitious superhero epic for yourself.
