Ultimate Spider-Man: Venom

Double Trouble was a nice surprise, a blast from the past that reminded me just how good Bendis really was, once upon a time. I didn’t need a reminder for the Venom arc. That was burned into my brain as a kid. Permanently. Well, at least I thought it was.

Turns out it was a hell of a lot better than I remember.

MJ’s broken up with Peter. Grieving, Peter finds childhood friend Eddie Brock… who’s working to finish their parents started: the Venom project. Peter tries to take some of “the suit”, only to find that it’s far more dangerous than could be expected. Peter wants to get rid of it. Eddie doesn’t.

Yup, that’s the seven issues. And it is beyond well done. Bendis patiently builds the slow burn, playing out Peter’s despair at MJ leaving, the heartwarming reunion with Eddie, and the inevitable whirlwind of discovery, joy, terror, betrayal, and the final awful conflict, with Peter having to confront the truth. 

There are few things I would call brilliant. This is one of those things. I hesitate to insult Bagley’s pencils by talking about them, because this is penciling about as good as it gets. I can hear the shouting, gunshots, the air pregnant with the silent screams of what could have been. It’s more than plot or art, but comics at the height of its power. 

This is seven issues of slow burn perfection. Period.