Comics Cornerstone: Venom’s New Host Has Some Serious Anger Issues
Image Courtesy of Marvel Comics
Hello again, everybody! I hope all has been well and I’m glad you’ve decided to come back! On this fine October day, it’s time for a review of the penultimate issue of “Absolute Carnage”. This series has been fire so far and this issue is no exception. I can’t wait to give you my thoughts! Without further ado, let’s get started!
As stated above, today’s focus is issue #4 of “Absolute Carnage”. To say the least, this was a hefty issue. Not necessarily in pages, but in the content within. I’ll start off with the resolution to the last issue’s cliffhanger, which I teased briefly in that review. So, if the title of this review wasn’t a dead giveaway, Venom has bonded to Bruce Banner, aka The Hulk. Why? Well, the symbiote sees Eddie as too weak to do what is necessary to end this. Therefore, the simplest solution is to bond to the strongest being in the room—that being The Hulk.
That sounds like the setup for an epic throwdown, right?! Not so much. We only get “Venom-Hulk” for a page or two at the beginning and then right at the end. A bit of a letdown for those who wanted to see “Venom-Hulk” wreck shop and beat the crud out of Carnage. And, sadly, he’s barely an even match for Carnage. No spoilers in case you haven’t read it yet.
Thankfully, what we don’t get of “Venom-Hulk” is well made up for in character moments. Eddie, in particular, gets a nice arc this issue when he must come to terms with the fact that he’s not a hero because of the symbiote and the powers it gave him. He’s a hero because he’s a good person who’s willing to do what must be done, even when the odds are against him. And believe me—the odds are heavily against him! So, what’s an average guy supposed to do against an army of Carnage’s minions? Well, the obvious answer is to use the weapons of currently sleeping Avengers. Duh! And what better weapons are there than Captain America’s shield and an electrified gauntlet?! Yeah! Eddie’s totally got this! At least, that’s what Eddie is telling himself.
Now, for those of you wondering, we do get a little bit of Spider-Man here. Though most of it just leads into his side story in “Amazing Spider-Man” issues #30 and #31. There will be a review up of those in the next couple of days. But this particular issue is just about Eddie and how he comes to terms with his own inherent heroism and how he learns to have hope in this dire situation. It honestly baffles me that Donny Cates is able to cram a character-focused issue in a five-issue miniseries and do it so well! Give him all the awards!
At this point, I think I’ve pretty much given all my thoughts and criticisms of this issue. There isn’t much more I can say other than it’s absolutely brilliant! If you’re a comic fan and you haven’t been reading this book, then I don’t know what your hesitation is. You’ve got to jump on board! Or, just wait until it concludes and then you can buy it all in one volume. Either way, this should be a part of your collection. So, I think I can wrap it up here. As I said before, more Spidey is coming soon as well as Guardians, Iron Man, and X-Men. Look forward to that! And, who knows? I might have some surprises in store. You’ll just have to wait and see! Until next time, stay comical!
