@@TheComicBookReport I couldn't get enough. So I bought the Absolute Carnage Omnibus just for the tie-ins and I'm thinking on getting the King in Black Omnibus as well.
@@TheComicBookReport half of it is a double dip with the Venom Omnibus. The tie-ins aren't necessary, and don't add much... But as a completest and because of my love for the story, I gave it a go.
If other opinions are welcome I would say you're in for a huge treat. The Hellboy universe is one of my absolute favorites. I would highly recommend you get the short stories (two volumes) and look at a reading guide. Having said that, it's not necessary for understanding--it only adds depth to the characters. IMO the Hellboy universe is fairly new reader friendly. Enjoy the stories and appreciate some of the most gorgeous art in comics history. (And you fall in love it's time to look at BPRD! ;) )
Awesome. This has been waiting for me on my shelf. I think I'm going to move it up to next, I just started Busiek/Perez Avengers v1 and finished Black Cat Omnibus. What a pleasant surprise the latter was! It was the perfect palate cleanser as I made my way through the wonderful--though still mind-bending even my second time through--Morrison Batman run. The Black Cat omnibus was funny, clever and engaging. Anyway, good video. Though I already own the book, you got me to bump it up.
Really appreciate the feedback on Black Cat. I have certainly heard good things about that run as well. 🐈⬛ And yeah, this Venom Omni has been one I’ve seen almost universally adored. I had read King in Black before but wanted to read the actual run and Wow I was not disappointed. For such a large book it reads fast in a good way. Art is gorgeous. It has definitely made its way into my listings of great modern Marvel runs 👏 You’ll have to let me know what you think when you give it a read! 📚
@@TheComicBookReportNGL, I actually bought Remender’s Venom: The Complete Collection, Vol. 1 about two years ago. It had the first 12-15 issues, I think? It’s a good series. Each issue feels standalone but still continues the ongoing arc, which I thought was impressive.
LISTEN, this run deserves an A grade. It’s one of my favorite runs in recent years. It was so dark and deep and it was so heartbreaking to see what Eddie went through in his past. Donny added so much depth to the character and I loved it so much. Well done review bro.
Glad you enjoyed it. The art is the best part in this run, it's just so good. I hope we get Mike Costa's venom run in an omnibus soon, I really loved that one. Same thing for an Agent Venomnibus. The current Venom run should get the omni treatment soon after it's over. Currently I would probably rank the modern Venom runs like this: -Mike Costa (Return of Eddie Brock) -Ram V, Al Ewing, torunn Gronbekk, Bryan Hitch & Cafu -Remender (Agent venom part 1) -Cullen Bunn (Agent Venom Part 2) -Cates & Stegman -Robbie Thompson (Space Knight) -Daniel Way (early 2000s run, the first arc had inspirations from The Thing) Overall they are all good, besides the last one it is the only one I hate. The current run is really good imo. Ewing takes care of the Eddie part of the book and Ram V followed by Torunn Gronbekk take care of Dylan. The parts focusing on Eddie are the best, but the Dylan issues are still entertaining. For a basic summary: Eddie is traveling through time in order to defeat other king in blacks (no spoiler) and Dylan is running around trying to escape from the Life Foundation guy's army. The different Carnage books after Cates & Stegman run are pretty entertaining as well.
I really have a lot of venom to educate myself on! I really appreciate you taking the time to write this out. In particular I’m happy to have the breakdown of post-Cates symbiote books to look out for 🕷️👏 Thanks again!
This is very well put together omnibus. This sereies was my first experience with Donny Cates as a writer, and the first time I ever picked up a Venom solo comic. I was aware that the character had made face-turn, at some point, but never having liked him much as a villain, I just didn't care. I missed Remender's run, and I think Agent Venom deserves his own omnibus. Cates did something that I would have called impossible, he made me give a #@$% about Eddie Brock. Stegman's art was always above-average to excellent. My main issue with this series is that it destroyed Eddie Brock as a character. He's so overpowered at the end of this arc, that his returning as the protagonist of a Venom series is just not viable (witness the current Venom series - I find Ewing's storyline featuring Eddie is consistently weaker than Ram V's or Torun Grunnbok's storylines featuring Dylan). As I said, this was my frist expreince with Cates, and I didn't realize he consistently falls back on amping his protagonist in the "God of [ fill in blank ] !" . Null as an antagonist had a great build-up, but was a bit of a let down in the end. I think Donny wiffed the ending. That said, the character work in this series is top noch. The art is really good. The presentation in omnibus form is above average. The "A" rating is entirly warrented.
I really appreciate you writing this all out! While I did enjoy Venom as a villain as well I agree with a lot of what you’re saying here. I haven’t read the post-Cates venom but I am interested to see how they take the narrative from here. I didn’t love Eddie’s status by the end of the book but wow did it surprise me I really need to read Agent Venom at some point. I know it got some modern epic collections recently 🕷️
Is it okay to just throw myself into Cates Venom? I don’t know if I should start with something else. I don’t think I’ve read a Venom run, the only thing I’ve read is from the pages of my Venom: Separation Anxiety TPB. Should I just jump in?
I think Cates did an amazing job at honoring the legacy of the character and expanding its core mythology and lore, while also being totally accessible to new readers. Personally I think you can jump in knowing little about the character and still enjoy. It helps if you have a functional understanding of character and his history but I still think fine for new readers overall 👍
Good review 👍 I couldn't watch all of it because of spoilers. I have heard only good things about this series. I heard the original Ultimate Universe and the Maker made an appearance before his return in Ultimate Invasion. I will have to buy this eventually. 👍👌
