Eternals #5 (February 1986)

It's that time again! It's time to join the Eternals as they engage in their greatest battle against the Deviants! Last time, the Eternals fought a fleet of Deviant ships, only to end up seemingly betrayed by their ruler Thena due to her feelings for Warlord Kro. So, what will be the fallout of this? Let's find out in Eternals #5!

The cover is a Keith Pollard piece. It's really good. It depicts Thena trying to burn Ikaris to the shock of Makkari and Margo Damien. Thena's pose really helps sell the idea that she's become some divine ruler who is making someone feel her cosmic fury. It fits, considering the Eternals can be described as "space gods". 

"The Secret Name of Pain"
Writer: Peter B. Gillis
Penciler: Sal Buscema
Inker: Sal Buscema
Colorist: George Roussos
Letterers: Jack Morelli, Rick Parker
Editor: Ralph Macchio
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

The story begins with a Deviant woman named Yrdisis. 

"I call it 'Cosmic Vomit'."

As you can see, Yrdisis is an artist. She was commissioned by Ghaur to make a painting for him. In his own way, Ghaur compliments it, saying that it reminds him of the rage that all Deviants feel for their position compared to the humans and the Eternals. Satisfied with the painting, and sensing it has left her fatigued, Ghaur grants her leave. The woman heads back to her studio, her fists clenched, and her jade-colored face flushed with anger. It appears even her artwork, as beautiful as it is, can provide no respite from the Deviants' position in the cosmos. She arrives at her studio, where she meets a friend.

"Before you ask, all I got was that Ghaur is obsessed with trinkets."

The redhead is Ahalau. She previously made a cameo appearance in issue #2, as one of the Deviants revealed to be working with Kro. Yrdisis reports that she didn't glean much out of Ghaur, but she did notice that he seemed to be preoccupied with a crystal key. Ahalau assures that Yrdisis is valuable to them, and she will be needed to help Kro stop Ghaur. Yrdisis feels all she has is her rage.

We next shift scenes to Olympia and focus on this Eternal and his love of the lute.

"🎵 And I was singing, 'Bye bye, miss American Pie'... 🎵"

Meet Khoryphos. A musician and composer, he's playing a nice little tune that he's been working on since the days of Tiberius's reign over Rome. He gets a call from Thena. She's been accused of treason by Ikaris. He finds this odd, so he goes to check it out. With his arrival, a quorum is called. Ikaris recounts the battle against the Deviant fleet in the last issue. He notes that an Alpha Ship prevented the Eternals from finishing off the fleet. Only one Eternal can launch such a ship: the current ruler. And since Thena sits on the throne...it's a pretty open and shut case here. She betrayed the Eternals. 

Ikaris calls for Karkas's testimony. The big red Deviant points out that Thena trusts him and treats him with kindness. He will not abuse that. Besides, his testimony would be considered inadmissible due to his being a Deviant, anyway.

Ikaris lets it go. After all, he has another theory. He believes that Thena committed her treasonous act for one reason: love. Love for Warlord Kro. However, Ikaris cannot provide any concrete evidence of this. 

Thena is infuriated by Ikaris's accusations (although it can be interpreted that Ikaris also struck a nerve), and angrily scatters the group with a blast of light. Phastos notes that his holographic projection has been screwed up, which means that blast was powerful enough to move Olympia itself.

She uses her cosmic powers to try and burn Ikaris. Margo Damien trying to help him manages to calm the blonde queen down. She announces that tomorrow, she will hear reasoned arguments for her trial. Meanwhile, the remnants of the Deviant fleet make their way to the North Pole. And they're not looking for Santa Claus.

"It's only a mountain." "Shhh!"

Their destination is a place called the Pyramid of the Winds. The makers of this place did plan Pyramids of the Waters, Fires, and Earths, but they couldn't get the funding. There is an object located in these mountains that Kro is after. He learned of it thanks to Deviant spies raiding the lab they encountered Phastos in issue #3. The green hooded figure gives Kro his battle armor. It's here that Kro reveals that thanks to his allies in Lemuria, Kro knows his retainer Lugnar is a spy for Ghaur...and that Lugnar's mission is to keep Kro in the dark about the mission. The green-hooded figure points out he could also be a spy for Ghaur as well. Kro does not believe that. The being does have secrets, but being one of Ghaur's spies is not one of them. So, he'll let the figure be secretive. For now.

Back on Olympia, we look in on Ikaris and Margo Damien. Margo thinks that his accusations of treason are about more than how that battle with the Deviant fleet went. There's something more going on with the powerhouse. Khoryphos pops in, pointing out that he's been a mutual friend of Thena and Ikaris for millennia. Which makes you wonder where he was during the events of Jack Kirby's  Khoryphos points out that Thena is still dealing with the death of her father Zuras in Iron Man Annual #6. Ikaris should have a bit of sympathy for Thena, considering his own losses in the past. Ikaris points out that he did lose his own father Virako thanks to the Eternal-Deviant war, which was shown in Thor Annual #6. It's why he's so angry at Thena about her actions. 

Khoryphos plays a tune for Ikaris. The tune brings the powerhouse to tears. Khoryphos explains that this tune was a eulogy...for the first Ikaris. Khoryphos encourages Ikaris to tell Margo about it. And he does.

Once upon a time, in Crete, Ikaris had a wife and a son. He was happy. He also had a mission there: to deal with some Deviants in tunnels they had dug underneath the Aegean Sea.

Yup, nothing bad is going to happen here...

This implies the legend of the Minotaur and the Labyrinth was basically inspired by the Deviants. Despite his mission, Ikaris was a dedicated family man, spending time with them whenever he could. He loved flying with his son. Phastos and Makkari helped him fashion a pair of wings so Ikaris's son could fly with him. One day, Ikaris had a mission, and he promised that he'd teach his son how to use the wings when he got back. After all, he would only be gone a short time, right?

Ikaris was away for longer than expected. The boy grew impatient. He wanted to fly. So, he took the wings, and took off after Ikaris. However, the boy did not know how to properly control the device. He also loved to fly, so he flew. Higher and higher...until the air grew thin, causing the boy to faint, and the rays of the sun damaged the wings' controls. He would fall like a stone, and crash into the sea. When Ikaris returned, he found his son's body and buried it. In honor of his son, he took the boy's name as his own: Ikaris. So, was Ikaris's original name something like "Dadaelis"? 

Khoryphos asks Ikaris to remember his own grief, and that he should be more empathetic towards Thena, as her father Zuras's death is still rather fresh. This seems to have an effect on the powerhouse, and he agrees to do so. 

Meanwhile, at the Pyramid of the Winds, Lugnar leads Kro to a chamber. One of the doors has a symbol on it.

"...is this one of those unisex bathrooms?"

Does this symbol look familiar to you? It should, because that emblem appears on Ikaris's costume. The Deviants bring up the machine they used on Ikaris back in issue #1. Back in Olympia, Thena and Ikaris talk some things out. Thena believes the Deviants have to have a purpose on Earth. Ikaris points out the Celestials themselves warred with them, leading to the destruction of Old Lemuria. Thena points out that the Celestials could have easily exterminated all of the Deviants, yet they chose not to. She won't act until the Deviants actually threaten the world, but Ikaris fears they already are. 

Back to the Pyramid! Kro's men use the device. You see, the symbol on the wall is not just there to look pretty, it's a lock. It's a lock that needs a special key to open, in particular the emblems on Ikaris's costume. The emblems have a unique molecular structure, which the machine duplicated, and uses to not only open the door, but blow the sucker open!

In Olympia, the chest symbols on Ikaris's chest start glowing. 

"Aww, that's just my pager shirt."

It's an alert!

Ikaris tells Thena about the fight he had with the Deviants in issue #1, and now he knows why. As we saw, they wanted what's in the Pyramid of the Winds. Thena doesn't believe it.

She forbids Ikaris to go after the Deviants, or he'll be labeled an outlaw. But Ikaris doesn't care. The Deviants can't get what is in the Pyramid. Back at the Pyramid, Lugnar pleads with Kro to let him in first, to make sure it's safe. Kro reveals he's aware Lugnar is one of the Priesthood's spies. 

He orders his men to detain Lugnar. Kro then goes in and looks over the treasure in the room. 

"Wait, I went through all this just for a bottle of LIQUOR?!"

Ah yes, the Ancient Alcohol of Andelusia! Time to get drunk and party like it's 1899!

I liked this comic, and I do feel there was plenty to praise. Like the scenes with Yrdisis, for example. It helps show that the Deviants aren't quite all warmongering monsters. I think it would be funny if she ended up becoming a famous artist in the human world somehow. I can see her showing off her works in a gallery in New York City. 

I also liked the scene where we learned a bit about Ikaris's past. It helps humanize him a bit and show there's more to the powerhouse than just being a fighter. It also helps show why he's more gung-ho about fighting the Deviants than Thena is. It can be implied that he's fighting harder because he doesn't want the Deviants to cause any more tragedies like he suffered. I also liked that it's being shown that Thena's rule is being affected by her mental state. It's clear that her grief over Zuras's death and her feelings for Kro are causing problems for the Eternals. 

I do wish we got to learn a bit more about Kharyphos himself, though. He doesn't really do much here, just is an excuse for Ikaris to open up to his past about Margo. 

If you want to read this blog for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2020 trade paperback The Eternals: The Dreaming Celestial Saga. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other! Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, wear a mask, and get your vaccine/booster! See you next time!