The King of Monsters, Godzilla is staggeringly powerful, always evolving its abilities to compete with the greatest kaiju on the face of the Earth - and from beyond the stars. Now, in an epic battle against King Ghidorah, Godzilla has unlocked its unprecedented "Cosmic Godzilla" form, unleashing the power to slay literal gods.

Godzilla has always been able to absorb radiation, often unlocking new abilities and new vistas of power with the right energy source. However, there's one primordial force of power that Godzilla has never had access to before - one that it must turn to in desperation in order to beat a King Ghidorah which has ascended to near-godhood.

The change comes as part of Godzilla's unfolding crossover with Marvel Comics, taking place in Ryan North, John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna and Marcio Menyz's Godzilla vs. Fantastic Four #1. In the issue, the Silver Surfer turns over his Power Cosmic, transforming Godzilla into "Cosmic Godzilla."

By merging the Power Cosmic with its own heat ray, Godzilla creates "a weapon with power enough to kill the gods."

Silver Surfer Turns Godzilla into "Cosmic Godzilla"

Marvel's Power Cosmic Is the Ultimate Power Source

In the issue, Godzilla runs wild in New York, but is eventually brought down by the Fantastic Four. That's when King Ghidorah appears, enhanced beyond belief by the patronage of the FF's old nemesis Galactus. The Fantastic Four realize their error, having brought down the one ally who might have saved them. Thankfully, Silver Surfer is on hand, donating his Power Cosmic to Godzilla and reawakening the King of Monsters as "Cosmic Godzilla."

The Power Cosmic is a primordial force of creation in Marvel lore, allowing Galactus and his heralds to warp reality and even travel through time. There are few things the Power Cosmic can't do, from transmuting any form of matter into any other to gaining awareness of all events in the galaxy simultaneously. Of course, Godzilla is only interested in raw power, fusing the Power Cosmic with its own heat ray - the narration notes that in doing so, Godzilla is "forging a weapon with power enough to kill the gods."

That's no idle boast in the Marvel Universe, where Thor, Zeus and the Egyptian Moon God Khonshu don't just exist, they frequently interfere in the human world. Indeed, this is something Godzilla is about to find out, as Marvel's Godzilla vs Thor (from Jason Aaron and Aaron Kuder) is coming this July. Thankfully, Godzilla won't be in his Cosmic Godzilla form for the fight... but he will be in possession of the satanic energy of the Beast - the patron deity of the ninja death cult known as the Hand.

This epic crossover is exactly what fans were looking for from a Godzilla/Fantastic Four crossover - the King of Monsters being transformed in unique ways that are only possible by combining the lore of both franchises.

This epic crossover is exactly what fans were looking for from a Godzilla/Fantastic Four crossover - not just Godzilla stomping around Marvel's world, but being transformed in unique ways that are only possible by combining the lore of both franchises. Godzilla's epic transformation is just the start of his invasion of the Marvel Universe, and it's an incredible statement about how far Marvel is willing to push this project.

Godzilla vs. Fantastic Four #1 is available now from Marvel Comics.