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Lunch » Tags » Books » Reviews » Venom - Volume One

Venom - Volume One

1 rating: 3.0

Marvel Comic

Venom, or the Venom Symbiote, is a fictional extraterrestrial life form appearing in books published by Marvel Comics, specifically those featuring Spider-Man. The creature is a sentient alien Symbiote, with a gooey, almost liquid-like form. It requires … see full wiki

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1 review about Venom - Volume One

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And we have a new host... his name is Flash.

Dec 1, 2011

by Madpenguin
posted in Speech Bubbles: Comics & Graphic Novels

Rating:

After the defeat of Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers, one of the villains taken into custody was the alien Symbiote being worn by Mac Gargan formerly Venom, aka the Scorpion. The government has been using the Symbiote for covert operations. Their newest recruit happens to be disabled veteran Flash Thompson. Thompson uses the Symbiote to serve his country, but it comes with a high price. -summary

For those who do not know, the Venom character has a rather long complicated history, so I'll try to keep it short (maybe I'll just review the character later). The skinny is that he began as a major villain for Spider-Man, and his first full appearance was in The Amazing Spider-Man #299. Venom is the combination of failed journalist Eddie Brock and the black alien costume Spider-Man use to wear. Venom was a very dangerous opponent for Spider-Man, and he appeared as his enemy at first, and then a reluctant ally. Later on, Marvel would make attempts to revamp the character to renew interest in him; one of the more interesting aspects was separating Brock from the alien Symbiote. There were at least two wearers of the costume, with the latest being one of Spider-Man's oldest friends Flash Thompson. This union was a result of the government getting their hands on the alien, and using it on operatives for covert missions. Flash Thompson, a now disabled war veteran was chosen to wear the costume for very deadly missions, and this is what begins the new saga on the costume.

Venom written by Rick Remender follows Flash as he not only battles terrorist in foreign countries, as well as other super-villains. But he must also deal with the complications in his personal life. Things really aren't good for Flash at all, because he also lost his legs in war, and the alien uses itself to regenerate them only when he's in costume. Flash is also not allowed to remain in the costume for a certain amount of time, due to his superiors being fearful on the alien taking complete control over him; and as a fail-safe, there's a bomb implanted in the costume to kill the wearer at the push of a button. Like the previous ideas put to use for the Venom character throughout the years such as asexual reproduction and switching host on its own, it's a very interesting take. However, the question is; how long can Marvel keep this interesting before it becomes silly? This has been the problem amongst some fans in regards to Venom.

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The story has a good setting in the very beginning, as it fits the violent nature of the Symbiote. Flash air drops into a vicious battle taking place in Nrosvekistan, Eastern Europe; where people are being brutally shot down. This leads him into battle with the Jack O' Lantern, and here the reader gets a taste on the mood Remender is trying to establish. He develops the character well enough, and readers will get to understand Flash and the going ons in his life. The Symbiote attempts to take control all depending on Flash's stress level, and he has a lot to be stressed out about. There are some interesting moments with him coming close to losing complete control.

The action panels have moments of sick brutality, and the book is overall action packed. Venom does battle characters from Spider-Man's rogues gallery, and he even takes on the wall-crawler himself. There are some interesting plot devices here and there, and the story manages to balance the action with the drama well enough.

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Now although I have moments where I enjoyed the story, it still feels as if something is missing. Perhaps it could be that fitting villain for such a tough lead character. No matter how vicious he's written here, I just can't buy into Jack O' Lantern as a serious threat to anyone, he'll always be a joke to me. I also have to mention that the inconsistent artwork bothers the hell out of me. At times, there are some very well drawn backgrounds and character designs, almost a likening to the flair of the 90's. There are some serious moments of gore that will take readers by surprise. On other occasions, it can look pretty bad and almost amateurish. Some of the action was hard for me to follow and I do have a keen enough eye to weave through these things.

Something else that continues to bother me is the name of the character. Marvel had long ago taken the title character's name completely out of context by calling everyone Venom. Venom is not the name of the costume, it's the name of the fusion between Eddie Brock and the alien. The name was chosen by Brock, due to considering himself poison to Spider-Man. Brock hated Spider-Man for destroying his career, and the alien hated him for being rejected, and this combined hatred greatly increased his strength. It never made sense to me for Marvel to continue using that name after the original character separated from the alien.

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Venom is a welcomed take on a character who was in dire need of another revamping. I can imagine some fans taking a liking to this character. Personally, I'm still quite unsure with putting the costume on Flash though. I always preferred Venom as a villain. The murderous anti-hero had some fun moments, but I can't see Venom as a pure hero. One thing is for sure, the future stories between him and Spider-Man have serious potential for being interesting.

I also have to say, I don't believe this is a book for fans who's been out of the loop in Spider-Man comics. It demands that you have a lot of knowledge of the character, however, I will still point folks in the right direction, by at least recommending Spectacular Spider-Man Volume One - The Hunger. This sets the stage for the turning point in Eddie Brock's life. This book collects Venom 1 -5.

Pros:
Lots of action, interesting take on the character

Cons:
-Inconsistent artwork, story feels average in areas, uninteresting villain

Other Venom stories:

Spider-Man: The Birth of Venom

Spider-Man: Venom Returns

Spider-Man: Spirits of Venom

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FM_ALEX December 03, 2011

I have actually enjoyed this series since it is kinda a new creative way to have him around.

Madpenguin December 03, 2011

Yeah I know, but it's like a said. How long can they continue being interesting with him?

FM_ALEX December 12, 2011

I hope for a while

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woopak_the_thrill December 01, 2011

I skipped this....I was never a big fan of Venom before, and I found "Lethal Protector" to be a little boring. IMHO, Venom marketability is slowly declining....Nice review! I may just borrow this from a friend one day.

Madpenguin December 01, 2011

Honestly, I never really dug any of the Venom solo stories. They had fun moments once in a while but just never truly did it for me. And if you didn't like Venom:LP, then don't even bother with this.

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woopak_the_thrill December 01, 2011

Yeah, for some reason, unlike most fans, I don't see Venom as an in-depth villian. He was too one-dimensional for my tastes.

Madpenguin December 01, 2011

I think The Hunger was the best portrayal. But I think what happened with Venom is that he had very big shoes to fill when he debut. Green Goblin was a very tough act to follow, and surprisingly, he was that true nemesis Spider-Man needed back in his life. Green Goblin is to Spider-Man what Joker is to Batman.

Count_Orlok_22 December 02, 2011

Yeah, I like the character of Venom, but I'm not sure what I think of this. Having characters battle terrorists seems so cliche and the sleeker new design lacks the physical menace of the way Venom looked originally.

Madpenguin December 02, 2011

I hear you on that part, but they need to give this character and his stories a lot more thought. I didn't mention it in the review, but there's a gigantic plot hole here though. Especially if you remember what happened between Spider-Man and the Mac Gargan Venom.

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