Venom #13 – Review

By: Rick Remender (writer), Tony Moore (art), Val Staples (color)

The Story: Venom, Red Hulk, X-23 and Ghost Rider team up to make sure that what happens in Hell, stays in Hell.

The Review: This should be, by all rights, a terrible comic. The concept, “the new New Fantastic Four,” is hardly something fans are clamoring for. The lineup includes two characters whose series are being canceled, and none of these characters have actually met before this event. On top of that, the story takes place in Las Vegas, a location none of the protagonists operate out of. In short, it looks like an event that’s more about boosting sales than good storytelling, and that came out of a ’90s brainstorming session where the word “extreme” was tossed around more than once. So why then, friends, is Venom #13, the first issue of the Circle of Four event, so awesome?

Well, it doesn’t hurt that it’s written by Rick Remender, who just about single-handedly made Venom awesome again. I was expecting that Remender would try making this book classier than its premise suggests, perhaps lending some gravitas to the assembled heroes, or giving emotional significance to the central dilemma. He doesn’t. Instead, Remender sees the inherent schlock, and raises it. By mid issue, we have clone/mutant/symbiote minions, a gigantic Satanic roulette wheel, and Hell being sucked into Las Vegas. If this book had a score, it would all be ’80s hard rock.

This isn’t to say that Circle of Four is just mindless camp. Remender begins the issue with an introduction to each character, and they all have logical and personally motivated reasons for being in Vegas. Laura is searching for a man who has, for some reason, stolen a sample of her blood. Rulk has been dispatched to recover the AWOL Agent Venom, while Flash has, understandably, relapsed back to drinking after his road trip with Jack O’Lantern. I won’t get into why Ghost Rider winds up with the rest, but it deals with her need to prove herself to the Spirit of Vengeance Emeritus. Even our antagonist, Mr. Degli, is given more motivation than “he’s evil.” He is driven by father issues, and they actually reflect Flash’s troubled paternal relations. I’ll admit that the actual moment the foursome finally come together feels about as organic as a Big Mac, but it still is so Metal that I’m almost tempted to put my hat on backwards and throw up some horns. Almost.