Panini Comics publishes Agent Venom, a reimagining of Marvel’s most popular characters.
Spiderman’s gallery of villains and secondary roles is one of the most impressive in comics. People are not only familiar with characters like Jameson, Mary Jane, Harry and Norman Osborn, Doc and many others. But today we will talk about two very special characters born in the legend of the wall-crawler, Venom and Flash Thompson.
Venom (or Venom) is a character that doesn’t need much introduction. In the year In 1984, Spiderman debuted a simple black suit in Secret Wars, but it turned out that he was actually a strange symbiote that wanted to control young Peter. In the end, the superhero managed to get rid of him, but the creature was very well received and had an extra life in the publishing house, transmitting it with Eddie Brock and some other guests. Today, Venom is one of Marvel’s most popular characters with his own series away from the wall-crawler.
Flash Thompson is one of Spider-Man’s oldest supporting characters. Young Peter Parker’s typical arrogant and bullied football player, despite this, the character was a staunch Spider-Man fan. The character’s youth was not easy as he grew up with a physically abusive alcoholic father. After becoming an adult and changing his attitude, Flash and Peter became friends during their university days, but after graduating, he enlisted twice in the military. During one of his missions, after a heroic act, Flash lost his legs and was confined to a wheelchair.
In the year In 2011, Marvel decided to bring these two characters together, to recreate them in an unprecedented way, using the symbiote on special missions, turning the Flash into an army special agent. So, Rick Reminder and Tony Moore create Agent Venemo. Panini Comics, under the label Must–Have, brings us the first arc of this series.
Venom is Flash Thompson.
The comic introduces us to Agent Venom, a “weapon” in the service of the United States Army who intervenes in Eastern Europe on a special mission. In this secret and experimental project, an agent teams up with a symbiote to carry out secret and dangerous missions. Of course, for some time, the symbiote is not controlled. The man chosen to carry the symbiote, Corporal Flash Thompson, is a war hero who lost both legs in service, but thanks to his alliance with Venom, he recovers them for action.
Rick Reminder could have come up with a vitaminized version of Spiderman that wields machine guns and grenade launchers while killing enemies, surely a part of the public would enjoy something like that. But since most of the story focuses on Flash’s conflict with his secret identity and the complications that come with it, what the writer does is more interesting. In the end, the Flash can’t lose focus and has a lot of similarities with the wall crawler, except that Venemo takes control of his nerves.
Because Flash is a secret project, he can’t tell his friends, not even his girlfriend Betty. He constantly misses events, comes home late, lies about his whereabouts… and this, added to his previous problems with alcohol, creates a lot of conflict, drama and tension in his daily life. Also, the past comes back to haunt him. Although The Flash ditches his bully character, Reminder does a great job of bringing together a character widely condemned by popular culture. It’s impossible not to feel sympathy and sadness for this Flash.
However, it’s not all drama as we have quite a bit of action. The first few pages are a description of what kind of superhero we will see and, as previously stated, this superhero will carry a weapon. Agent Venom clashes with secondary Spider-Man villains like Jack O’Lantern or Kraven, showing that no matter how secondary they are, they can be a real threat and challenge. Of course, Spiderman appears and some secondary characters like Betty are well-known.
Tony Moore and Tom Fowler are in charge of the first. Although there is a difference between the drawing styles, they both do a unique job and give the comic a unique personality. The two artists use the symbiote’s powers to generate scenes where the action kicks in and there are moments that could even be described as scary. Great design of the characters and villains especially Jack O’Lantern. Great work by artists that any reader will love.
The must have version of Marvel. Venom: Agent Venom by Panini Comics
Panini brings us this comic in its usual Must-Have format. The hardcover volume, in addition to bringing the first arc of the series to five issues, brings us an introduction by David Hernandez Ortega, information about the authors and much more information about the story behind this series. It also brings a timeline to explore Venom’s history and his alliance with the Flash. A volume of 128 pages that sells for €16.00.
A must-have comic for symbiote lovers. With a great balance between drama, Flash’s past and carrying Venom, and action, the symbiote’s abilities are so cool, we’re faced with a very strong voice that will delight any superhero lover.
It should be wonderful. Poison: A poisonous agent
Autores: Rick Reminder | Tony Moore
Publisher: Panini Comics
Format: Hardcover
Dimensions: 17 x 26 cm
Pages: 128 in color
ISBN: 9788411507837
Price: 16,00 €
Synopsis: An alien symbiote known as Venom is under the control of the United States military. A familiar face from the Spider-Man universe now dons black: The government now has its own Spider-Man, who goes into action as an undercover agent in hostile territory.