Act Two, Chapter 1: Pages 6 – 13Ħ-7: Eddie Brock senses that they’re being followed in Times Square. (The cult name is so metal, SO Cates!) With a new purpose, Carnage is trying to collect all these pieces of Symbiotes. He was resurrected by Church of the New Darkness, a cult that worships Knull. The disorienting downpour creates reflections in the pavement that establish a hazy, ominous atmosphere.Ĥ-5: Cletus Kasady was the world’s most notorious serial killer who rose from the dead to become Carnage. The way Stegman renders rain is better than life. Eddie Brock tells Dylan that whomever controls all the codices can talk to Knull.Īs we get all this critical backstory, rain falls from the sky as Eddie and Dylan move through the streets of New York. Symbiotes use it to communicate with each other about their host and reconnect to the hive, which is controlled by Knull. Before the beginning of life, he controlled symbiotes with his mind to kill encroaching life - until the symbiotes rose up against him and imprisoned him.Ģ-3: When symbiotes bond with their host, they leave behind a little piece of themselves in their host’ DNA.

Knull is the god of Symbiotes and ruler of the abyss.

This provides a seamless backstory for Knull’s history and plan to doom all things “living and bright.” This is really just Cates talking to his readers, catching them up on what’s happened, and telling them what’s to come. Eddie Brock is going to need to become Venom, and ask for Spider-Man’s help, if he wants to survive this.ġ: Eddie is talking to Dylan, his nine-year-old “half brother”…who is actually his son. SUMMARY: Carnage is back, and he is on a mission to communicate directly with Knull, the god of darkness, death, and Symbiotes. But if you’re picking up a book with Carnage in it, can you really be THAT afraid of anything, especially spoilers…? Chapter One “The Bleeding King” (And JP Mayer’s substantial inks are a huge part of that success.)Īnd there’s actually one last thing I want to tell you. The other thing? This is the coolest Spider-Man since Todd McFarlane, hands down. If you don’t make it past this introduction, there are two things I want you to know about this landmark piece of comics literature: Cates’ words and Stegman’s expressions set up really moving moments that tell you exactly who Eddie Brock is. All he needs to do is track down anyone who has ever worn a symbiote and steal the latent Knull codex from their bodies.” The thing is, a LOT of A-list characters in the Marvel universe have bonded with a Symbiote. Marvel’s blogger minions wrote this helpful primer to prepare you: “As Carnage, Cletus’ new goal is to set free Knull, the God of Symbiotes. If you haven’t read all of Stegman’s and Cates’ VENOM run, and are also unfamiliar with the million crossovers that give context to this story, don’t worry.

King of Carnage by R.E. Bond