Venom #34: Ghosts of Venoms Past

Artist Juan Ferreyra wastes no time building upon their fantastic groundwork from the preceding chapter of Venom, as all twenty-five pages of issue #34 ooze with an overflowing quantity of spooky aura. There is conscious decision-making behind the color palette that adorns each panel, as every environment is ablaze in gothic shades of purple, orange, and green. It’s a selection of hues that not only evokes the spirit of Halloween, but also the moody neon atmosphere found in the work of legend Dave Gibbons. And while Venom doesn’t shoot for the same narrative heights as the likes of Watchmen, it does have a similar grit in its brutality.

As a tie-in to the ongoing events of Marvel’s Blood Hunt, vampires serve as our protagonists’ main threat. The disembodied Venom symbiote finds itself being hunted by the Captive, an almost-forgotten alien parasite resurrected from the pages of 70s Captain America. Dylan Brock is at the mercy of a catholic priest-turned vampire who suffered greatly at his fathers’ hand during the events of Venom #150. Ferreyra’s approach to these creatures is anything but basic, as his designs leap beyond the standards of pale skin and elongated incisors. Both priest and Captive are ever-changing with their long spindly limbs and throats, beady bloodshot eyes and fangs descending beyond their chins like the sabretooth casts of yore. There is a bit of cartoonish squash and stretch applied to the villains bodies that only adds to their otherworldliness, and this quality benefits the action.

Being haunted by misdeeds of the past is the pervasive theme of this issue, as both heroes must confront the darker side of their shared legacy. Venom was of course a villain once upon a time, and a ruthless one at that, so the path to redemption is littered with many hurdles. Dylan and Venom’s victory against their vampiric opponents is just another battle won in the lengthy war, but it’s the long-term goal that continues to make this comic so compelling.