Spider-Man’s 10 Best Symbiote Suits, Ranked

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The classic Amazing Spider-Man costume is undeniably one of the best superhero suits ever. It’s iconic, and everyone loves it. But an argument can be made for the symbiote suit’s superiority. Moviegoers chant for the return of a live-action symbiote Spider-Man. Gamers always request a playable black suit in every Spider-Man video game, and Marvel always makes sure readers know when the black suit will return, as they did in the previews for Amazing Spider-Man #975.

Peter Parker, Miguel O’Hara, Ben Reilly, and even Doctor Octopus have worn various versions of the Venom and Carnage symbiotes, creating unique designs based on the wearer and the bonding circumstances. Across comics, movies, and games, some symbiote suit designs stand above the rest, remaining some of the best costumes Spider-Man has ever worn, alien or not.

10

Peter Parker & Venom Bond To Fight Red Goblin

Amazing Spider-Man #800 was one of the most spectacular Spider-Man comics of all time, concluding Dan Slott’s comic run with several bangs. Norman Osborn bonded with the Carnage symbiote to become Red Goblin, forcing Peter Parker to bond again to the Venom symbiote to match his power.

Though Peter and the black symbiote have bonded before, this new symbiote Spider-Man design slightly differed from the original. Spider-Man’s white eyes flared across his temples, and the legs on the spider emblem split and went across his shoulders instead of beneath his armpits. While not as iconic as the classic symbiote suit, it was still great to see Spider-Man back in black.

9

Spider-Man 2099 Bonds With Venom

Writer Peter David returns to the world of Symbiote Spider-Man. This time, however, Miguel O’Hara is the star of the show, not Peter Parker. In Symbiote Spider-Man 2099, readers finally get to see Miguel suit up in a symbiote.

A scientist who failed to control symbiotes inadvertently unleashes one on Spider-Man 2099. Instead of killing him, the symbiote bonds with him, creating a brand-new symbiote design that essentially makes Spider-Man 2099 look like a hulking Venom, with his red spider emblem flaring off his form like alien-like tendrils.

Ahead of Spider-Man’s journey to the stars in Secret Wars, a Marvel Comics reader submitted a Spider-Man suit design unlike anything readers had ever seen. The original design was very much like the iconic symbiote suit that fans would come to know, only with red accents instead of white.

Mike Zeck ultimately changed the logos and hand pads to white. Still, the red-on-black version of the suit has reappeared thanks to some color alternatives in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, allowing fans to finally recreate the symbiote suit that might have been.

7

Ultimate Symbiote Spider-Man

While the Amazing Spider-Man wore the symbiote suit for quite a while, with Marvel expanding that period in retroactive miniseries, the Ultimate Spider-Man wore his symbiote suit very briefly––less than one full comic issue before the symbiote found its way to Eddie Brock.

Design-wise, artist Mark Bagley changed very little. Why mess with a good thing? The emblem was the same as the original symbiote suit, but the Ultimate version had one key difference: purple highlights instead of blue ones. This one change created a unique look, not just for Ultimate Spider-Man’s black suit, but for Venom’s entire Ultimate design moving forward.

6

The Venom Symbiote Fused With Spider-Man’s Corpse To Become Poison

Marvel readers can look beyond the Peter Parker of Earth-616 to find some pretty stellar symbiote designs in the multiverse. In a one-shot issue of What If…?, readers saw what might have happened had Peter Parker not awoken from his coma, instead falling prey to “The Other.”

In this universe, the symbiote bonded to the Scorpion at the time and ditched its current bond to retrieve Peter’s dying body. The symbiote fully bonded to Spider-Man with ease, completely taking over his body and mind, becoming Poison. Poison resembles a monstrous fusion of the symbiote Spider-Man and Venom, with smaller, piercing eyes and a demonic spider emblem.

5

Insomniac’s Spider-Man Bonds With The Symbiote

Gamers noticed a distinct lack of black suit options in Marvel’s Spider-Man. Insomniac saved all their symbiote variants for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, which saw the Insomniac universe debuts of the black-suited Spider-Man and Venom. Insomniac’s symbiote Spider-Man suit took classic elements of the iconic comic symbiote, using pretty much the same emblem while adding alien texture.

Insomniac’s symbiote looks more realistic and moves with tiny tendrils, something still images and comics can’t reproduce. The symbiote Spider-Man here looked like an alien but also a combat suit––like a suit of armor or carapace with a fortified helmet, shoulders and gauntlets.

4

Doctor Octopus: The Superior Venom

During the Superior Spider-Man era, Doctor Octopus successfully swapped brains with Peter Parker, taking over Spider-Man’s life. During this period, the Superior Spider-Man interacted with Mary Jane Watson, Spider-Man 2099 and even the Venom symbiote.

Believing he could conquer the symbiote when Peter Parker couldn’t, Doc Ock quickly fell to the symbiote’s control, evolving not into the Superior Symbiote Spider-Man, but the Superior Venom. This symbiote design was brilliant and detailed, taking the scattered web pattern and larger spider emblem of the Superior Spider-Man suit and making them white on a black suit.

3

Ben Reilly Became Spider-Carnage

Following the events of the Clone Saga, Ben Reilly became the Sensational Spider-Man, donning a costume that merged the looks of Peter’s Amazing Spider-Man suit and Ben’s Scarlet Spider design. After the Carnage symbiote separated from Cletus Kasady, Ben volunteered to bond to it––making sure it wouldn’t harm anyone.

The Spider-Carnage design is incredible, with red tendrils wrapping around Ben’s legs and arms and a mask that perfectly blended Carnage’s classic appearance with Ben’s new “Sensational” design. Fans will also remember Spider-Carnage from his memorable appearance in Spider-Man: The Animated Series, sporting a very similar design in the “Spider Wars” series finale.

2

Live-Action Symbiote Spider-Man

While some fans were disappointed with Spider-Man 3‘s black suit design, the symbiote Spider-Man suit that Tobey Maguire wore back in 2007 has certainly grown in popularity, becoming one of the most requested alternate outfits in any Spider-Man game since.

Thanks to its adaptive design, the Spider-Man 3 symbiote is distinct from its classic comic counterparts. It takes the silver, prominent webbing patterns from the classic Raimi suit while desaturating all the red and blue colors. Add a slightly jagged spider emblem, and the black suit in Spider-Man 3 is a stunning symbiote suit with significant detail and texture.

1

The Classic Symbiote Spider-Man

Nothing beats the classic. Fans have adored this original black suit since the symbiote’s debut in Amazing Spider-Man #252 and Secret Wars. It has become just as iconic as Spider-Man’s classic blue and red threads. Fans love it whenever this suit design comes back, whether as a symbiote or simply a common material version.

Peter first wore this symbiote suit when they fought in the Beyonder’s cosmic wars. Marvel would often return to this bond in a few flashback miniseries, such as Symbiote Spider-Man and the new anthology series Spider-Man: Black Suit & Blood.

“}]] Spider-Man has bonded with the Venom symbiote on more than one occasion, though other variants have had their own run-ins with the alien costumes.  Read More