A review by juushika
Venom: Dark Origin by Zeb Wells

3.0

I didn't even read the comics where Venom first appears, and I still feel that retelling his origin is tiresome. Attempting to cram everything, including backstory, into a single arc makes for bad pacing, and the intro drags while the finale rushes. That said, retelling gives the opportunity to highlight specific elements, and this has two things to say: First, that pre-Venom Eddie is awful--and while I appreciate the insistence and lack of forgiveness, it's still unpleasant to read. Second, as horrible the character is, however irrational and selfish his behavior, his bond with the symbiont is an active choice. It's informed, consenting--and complicated, and intimate, and powerfully intriguing. The art follows similar lines, from gross fisheye closeups of Eddie to the dynamic, unsettling illustrations of Venom (questionable anatomy, as always, excepted). What a mess! but upon occasion a beautiful mess: despite its own best efforts, the middle of this is some of the more rewarding Venom material.