Comic Info
Comic Name: Venom: Space Knight
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Writer: Robbie Thompson
Artist: Ariel Olivetti/Kim Jacino/R.B. Silva/Ario Anindito/Gerardo Sandoval
# of Issues: 7
Release Date: 2016
Venom: Space Knight #7
Reprints Venom: Space Knight #7-13 (July 2016-December 2016). When the Klyntar symbiote Venom learns it is going to be terminated due to erratic behavior, Venom goes rogue and it is up to his host Flash to reclaim Venom and find out what is causing the behavior. Meanwhile on Earth, something Venom left behind has become a threat and only Flash and his allies can stop it…but Spider-Man might have something to say about Venom coming back to Earth.
Written by Robbie Thompson, Venom: Space Knight Volume 2: Enemies and Allies is the second and final collection of the Venom: Space Knight series. Following Venom: Space Knight Volume 1: Agent of the Cosmos, the collection features the art of Ariel Olivetti, Kim Jacino, R.B. Silva, Ario Anindito, and Gerardo Sandoval.
I didn’t read much of the Flash Thompson-Venom series, but saw him “kick-off” in Spider-Man. Without much of an understanding of the backstory, it took a bit to get into this volume since it dealt more with previous storylines in Venom as opposed to the first volume of the series. Though it wasn’t the best series ever, Venom: Space Knight also isn’t the worst.
Venom: Space Knight #12
The first part of the story has the Venom symbiote going rogue. It has it returning to being a killer, and Flash hunting it to help it. This makes a rather abrupt turn when the symbiote is captured and “passes” the test of the Agents of the Cosmos, it quickly turns to “Venom is ok” again…it felt a bit jarring between the arena issue and the Venom is a killer issue. It is turns like this that make me think that the writers knew the fate of Venom: Space Knight was already cemented.
The series also sets out to quickly wrap-up Venom’s adventures at home. With Venom being a “good guy” again, he heads home to Civil War II (which I wasn’t familiar with) and tries to help his spawn Mania (who I didn’t know). It tied into the purification of Venom, but it was a bit jumpy despite having read the first volume…it didn’t feel like it set it up enough for a reader of just this series.
Venom: Space Knight is a bit jarring, but it does flow a bit better than some of the comics I’ve entered into blindly. If you have a basic understanding of Venom (and Flash Thompson Venom), it is a quick “ok” read. It was nice to bring Spider-Man back into the mix in later issues of this collection and it helped to clear up why Venom didn’t know Spider-Man’s identity (and Flash as a result). Venom was relaunched in 2017 with the first collection Venom: Homecoming.
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