Remember when comics were fun to read? This may be a very specific problem me, a person who reads upwards of 30-40 comics a week plus graphic novels has, but a lot of times it can feel like you’re checking out the superhero news, rather than having a good time at the ol’ comic book shop. Thankfully, there are still books like All-New Venom #4 from Marvel that remember: oh right, we’re supposed to be having fun here.
Written by Al Ewing with art by Carlos Gómez, the title has been making a lot of hay with the mystery of “who is the new Venom?” We started with four suspects — Madame Masque, Luke Cage, Robbie Robertson, and Rick Jones — and by this week’s issue have whittled it down to just the latter two. The popular theory online is that it’s neither of them, though we’ll find out who is in the goop suit next issue.
But the mystery is just the hook for the book. The fun is in the wild situations Ewing is thrusting these characters into while they try to figure out the “who’s who” of it all. And this issue is a wild delight with twists and turns ranging from Madame Masque on a rampage, to a tiny M.O.D.O.K., to a reveal at the end of the issue that ramps up the stakes significantly.
Ewing is ably aided by Gómez, who draws the heck out of this title. The pacing of a sequence where M.O.D.O.K. goes hog wild blasting a balcony is expertly rendered. And throughout, the often amorphous symbiotes have clear form and direction. It’s hard to make multiple goopy aliens feel like they’re distinct, but Gómez does that and then some.
My only hesitation with this issue is that it starts to veer away from the refreshing focus of the first three to start adding in organizations hunting down symbiotes, and multiple other characters. There’s a utility there, but after years of insanely complicated Venom storylines, it’s been a pleasure to have one focused on a new mystery, rather than the spiraling insanity of the symbiote side of the universe.
Regardless of how things turn out next issue, this has been a successful, delightful, and twisty run for Venom so far. Here’s hoping they stick the landing. And if not? We still did have fun along the way.
All-New Venom #4 Rating:
All-New Venom #4 Official Synopsis:
M.O.D.O.K. MADNESS! M.O.D.O.K. gets inside the All-New Venom’s head…and you won’t believe how! But whose side is Madame Masque on? One thing’s for sure – by the time you finish this issue, you’ll be one step closer to knowing who’s under the goo…Meanwhile, take a visit to S.C.A.R. HQ –and find out what happened to Flash Thompson, Agent Anti-Venom!
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