A Fan-Favorite Former Host Deserves to be All-New Venom

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In the past several years, Marvel Comics has been retooling the lore behind Venom. Taking him from a mere Lethal Protector to an antihero with cosmic ties, the former Spider-Man foe has changed a lot recently. Now, Marvel is set to reveal the secret host of “All-New Venom,” but an obvious choice would also have been better.

Flash Thompson is a character who’s been tied to Spider-Man since the beginning, and at one point, he was the host for Venom. This resulted in a fan-favorite series and a classic interpretation of the character, and bringing him back in a similar role would have worked just as well. It would also have taken the antihero back to his roots, where he belongs now more than ever.

No One Knows Who All-New Venom Is

Debut: All-New Venom #1 by Al Ewing and Carlos Gomez

Spinning off the previous series, All-New Venom is a recently launched Marvel Comics title showcasing a new take on the character. Venom’s large, tongue-wagging design is mostly the same as usual, albeit with his white chest symbol replaced by a gold one.

It’s not Eddie Brock, as he’ll actually become Carnage soon. Likewise, it’s now been ruled out as potentially being Dylan Brock, the son of Eddie and a former Venom host himself. Strangely enough, the yellow/gold coloring even had some suspecting that the identity of All-New Venom might be Luke Cage, though he’s also now been ruled out as the host is not bulletproof.

Other potential candidates include stalwart Spider-Man comic book supporting cast member Robbie Robertson. This would be completely out of left field, but it would match the mystery that Marvel is building up. Another candidate is potentially far more controversial, with some fans thinking that Mary Jane’s current love interest, Paul, is actually the All-New Venom. Given how contentious the stories in modern Spider-Man comic books have become, this would sadly fit all too well.

For this reason, more fans than not believe that Paul has a great chance of being the new host for the Venom symbiote. Strangely enough, however, a perfect candidate for the job is being ignored despite his history with the alien being. If anything, putting him back inside the symbiote would elevate the book and turn it into a must-read title.

Flash Thompson Was One of the Best Versions of Venom

First Appearance: The Amazing Spider-Man #654 by Dan Slott, Fred Van Lente, Stefano Caselli, Ronan Cliquet and Paulo Siqueira

Flash Thompson has existed since the beginning of Spider-Man’s publication history, debuting back in Amazing Fantasy #15. He was originally portrayed as a snobbish bully who picked on “Puny Parker,” and he enjoyed these malicious acts more than anything else.

This saw him enlist in the military, and after he came back from overseas and settled back into civilian life for a bit, he and Peter patched things up and developed a friendship as adults. Unfortunately, a later injury in the line of duty cost him his legs, but this wasn’t the end for the loyal soldier. Volunteering to be part of an experiment involving the Venom symbiote, Flash Thompson was bonded to it while the alien was weakened. This allowed him to control it more than Eddie Brock, turning Flash into “Agent Venom.”

Agent Venom was a true halfway point between Spider-Man and Venom, namely by having the more lithe form of the former. At the same time, he wielded firearms and was a military asset, keeping him in the antihero scope. While he usually stuck to web-slinging through the symbiote (imitating his hero), he also had to combat and control its darker impulses. Though his adventures and scope were very different from the “Lethal Protector” days of Eddie Brock, Flash Thompson’s Agent Venom comics were seen as a high point for both him and the Venom symbiote.

Along with intense action, there were also incredible character moments that dealt with grief, trauma and loss. Flash had to come to grips with his injuries without the symbiote, all while his relationships crumbled under suspicion that he had relapsed into addiction. Since then, the Brock family has been the main home of the Venom symbiote, with Flash becoming Agent Anti-Venom (using a symbiote that Brock had briefly bonded with). This hasn’t been taken advantage of, however, and it showcases why bringing Flash “back home” would be such a good idea.

Flash Thompson Can Save the Venom Mythos From Itself

The Spinoff Character’s Mythology Has Gotten Out of Control

As noted, a big part of the Agent Venom comic books was how they developed Flash Thompson’s personal relationships and the relationships of those around him. This gave it a very low-key and grounded quality that fit the gritty nature of the antihero himself. It was a dark reflection of Spider-Man’s usual tone, and in being that way, it was a full-circle moment for the Venom symbiote (Spider-Man’s old black suit) and an ironic wish fulfillment for Flash Thompson.

There was always hope amid the darkness, but that darkness was weighted so it could be felt. The fact that his power wasn’t innate and that he was disabled without the symbiote made this even more palpable. In many ways, this made him far more down on his luck than Peter Parker ever was, and it served as a sharp contrast with Venom’s more over-the-top and bombastic moments in the grim and gritty 1990s.

Now, Venom has seen a similarly excessive development, albeit in a much different way. Donny Cates’ run on Venom revitalized the character and put him on the map again by bonding the symbiote back to Eddie Brock. There was also a massive expansion of the symbiote lore, and it was revealed that the species was created by a cosmic god named Knull. Upon defeating him, Venom/Eddie became the new “King in Black,” forever changing the scope of the character.

The subsequent Venom run had all manner of cosmic concepts that ultimately didn’t feel at home with the symbiote or his host. It was all too grandiose, and given how some of the elements were revealed and introduced, it came off as a collection of the most uninteresting parts of cosmic Marvel books. At this point, the entire King in Black affair feels almost played out, likely due to how ill-fitting it was. More than ever, the character needs to return to his roots and get back down to Earth again, and there’s an excellent way to do it.

Agent Anti-Venom Hasn’t Captured Audiences’ Attention

Flash Thompson Deserves More After His Time as Agent Venom

As the All-New Venom, Flash Thompson could put the character and the book back on track like it was when he was Agent Venom. Marvel hasn’t done much with Flash as Agent Anti-Venom beyond random appearances here and there, and the idea of him being Venom while Eddie Brock is Carnage is interesting. Likewise, the revelation would be a successful version of “mantle reversion,” given how popular Agent Venom was, not to mention how Marvel has mostly thrown fans off the scent of such a development.

This would make him everything that Spider-Man isn’t without completely removing his ties to him. At this point, Flash Thompson is the only truly successful host for Venom besides Eddie Brock, and if the latter is gone from the role (after being built back into it over several years), it makes sense to stick with what otherwise works.

It will create the sense that there’s still some familiarity to the character, ensuring that the status quo for Venom isn’t constantly thrown out. Again, this has been needed after several years of Venom comics. While it did something new, the King in Black status quo was too far removed from what made Venom work beforehand. Likewise, a more grounded Venom book can see Flash Thompson evolving and growing in his personal life, perhaps seeing the positive adult changes that Marvel refuses to allow Peter Parker to have.

Along with the success of the current Ultimate Spider-Man title, it can be a message that fans want to see these characters grow up and mature while still being familiar. The cosmic aspects of recent Venom comics were the opposite extreme of the infantilization of Peter Parker, and having Flash Thompson back as Venom with the accompanying types of stories will help to give at least one book a strong middle ground. Most importantly, it can keep Paul from being All-New Venom, which is a nightmare worse than even Knull himself could conceive.

All-New Venom #2 is now available from Marvel Comics.

“}]] Fans are still wondering who All-New Venom is, but the best candidate for the role is a Spider-Man supporting cast member who already bonded to Venom.  Read More