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Venom. Stegron. A crapload of dinosaurs.
Let’s do this.
First Read Reactions
- …but first, a flashback to Eddie Brock’s childhood featuring a toy dinosaur and bullying.
- Venom Suit POV > Iron Man Suit POV.
- “Big fight with dinosaurs!”
- Never a good sign when you’re on the ropes and a crowd of bloodthirsty dinosaurs begin chanting “MEAT! MEAT! MEAT!”
- No matter how cool Stegron looks, he’s still laughably oblivious.
- As we’ve already seen before, telling the symbiote to not make you puke is a surefire way to begin spewing chunks.
- Seriously? Who turns down helps from Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur (ESPECIALLY IN THIS CIRCUMSTANCE)?
- I’m not sure who scares me more: Liz Allan or the symbiote.
- YEAH DEVIL DINOSAUR! SHOW THOSE MONSTERS WHO’S…oh…oh no…
The Verdict
Good lord, the art in this issue is good.
Of course, my love of dinosaurs makes me biased, but Gerardo Sandoval really does knock it out of the park, particularly the way he draws Devil Dinosaur.
On the writing side of things, it’s great to see that Mike Costa has gotten his groove back. You could chalk up the series’ previous lackluster issues to a lame main character, but Costa is doing much more now than writing one of my favorite versions of Eddie Brock I’ve ever read–he’s also building a supporting cast that I’m actually invested in. Instead of inept/unlikable agents and goons, we get characters like Liz Allan, who is basically Cersei Lannister with better hair. I’m also not terribly familiar with Moon Girl, but I really like her so far—which made the issue’s cliffhanger ending even more difficult to bear.
Costa also throws in a nice bit of symbiote mythos for us longtime fans while also making it comprehendible for newcomers…AND he works it into the plot in a truly ingenious way.
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About the only problem I had with this one was Stegron himself. I know it’s part of his shtick, but the dude’s villainy comes dangerously close to crossing the line from old school into parody. Also, I have a hard time believing Eddie Brock would turn down help from a super smart girl and her massive dinosaur friend in this fight. I know it needed to happen to move the plot forward, but the moment felt contrived.
Other than that, though, Venom #152 is not only an incredibly fun issue, but also a strong indicator that the book is finally on the right track. Even if you don’t enjoy symbiote related stories (good luck with that this year), this is still a title worth reading if you like fun, no holds barred adventure with just the right dash of horror and gore.
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