But the Surfer is still gripped with doubt - just how many planets did he provide for the Devourer of Worlds? Galactus freed the Surfer but forbade him from ever leaving Earth, though this restriction was later lifted.

The Silver Surfer was freed from his burden at the end of the famous Galactus Trilogy, in which Alicia Masters - girlfriend and later wife of the Fantastic Four's Thing - convinced him that human life has value, and thus must be defended against his master.

The Surfer eventually freed himself from Galactus' hold and began life again as a free man - but in Silver Surfer #48, written by Jim Starlin with art by Ron Lim Tom and colors by Ken Bruzenak, the Surfer discovers the horrible price he must pay for aiding in the murder of millions of lives. It's the duty of the Surfer to scout out worlds for Galactus to consume - and Galactus does not care if those worlds are inhabited or not, so long as he consumes them in the end.

The Silver Surfer is perhaps the best-known herald of the mighty Galactus, who is known throughout the universe as the Devourer of Worlds.