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Eddie Brock’s reign as King in Black is going well, but the shadow cast by the symbiote god Knull is still chasing Venom’s most famous host.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Free Comic Book Day: Spider-Man/Venom #1, available now from Marvel.
Eddie Brock’s reign as the King in Black has been the most benevolent that Marvel’s symbiotes have ever known. When the symbiote god Knull sat on his throne at the center of the Hive, the creatures of living darkness under his purview were subjugated and weaponized. Once Knull was defeated, the symbiotes found themselves with a new master, one who gave them the sort of freedom they had never truly known before. Of course, not all good deeds are repaid in kind, and not all of Eddie’s subjects are happy with their latest leader. In fact, Knull’s dark legacy is still haunting the current King in Black in ways that he isn’t even aware of yet.
While Dylan and the Venom symbiote are busy dealing with their own immediate concerns back on Earth, Eddie is traversing the stars alongside three other symbiotes. He’s brought them along for the ride to save an unwitting crew from the space pirates who have boarded their ship, and with a little luck, they will be able to save more than a few lives. As Eddie gives his symbiotes their orders, his mind turns to his predecessor, Knull, and the horrors that were wrought upon the universe by him. After so many worlds were left broken and so many lives were lost in the fray, all that Eddie can do now is hope that the changes he is making will quell the fear of symbiotes that is felt throughout the cosmos. However, some of the other symbiotes don’t seem too keen on their new regent’s heroic philosophy.
When Eddie asks his fellow symbiotes to give him permission to enter their forms should things get violent, all of them respond with a “Yes, Eddie.” One of them, however, has a far different tone from that of its compatriots. With beady red eyes aglow, the symbiote’s voice croaks out its response in what can only be described as an ominous manner. These aren’t exactly the same as the red and black swirls indicative of Knull’s presence, but there’s clearly some derision in the ranks. This could even be a sign of Carnage having made his way deeper into the Hive than previously thought, if not something more horrifying altogether.
In the visions of the future which follow Eddie’s expedition into space in “Like Father, Like Son” by Ram V., Al Ewing, Bryan Hitch, Andrew Currie, Alex Sinclair and VC’s Clayton Cowles, the King in Black can be seen standing under the towering frame of none other than Big Mother, better known as Grendel’s Mother. This symbiote born of Knull’s blood became an integral part of human mythology after leaving an unshakeable impression on the people of Medieval Denmark. While Thor who stopped Big Mother centuries ago, Andi Benton, who was bonded with the Scream symbiote at the time, brought Big Mother to her end in the modern era. However, the latter defeat hardly seems to have stuck.
The fact that Big Mother is still out there somewhere waiting to find Eddie is almost as terrifying as everything else happening underneath the King in Black’s nose, and the fact that he hasn’t caught onto any of it yet is only a sign of dark tidings ahead.
Eddie’s attempts to separate his own reign from Knull’s are obviously the best he can do with his current station, even if not everyone is on board with his plans. Giving the symbiotes freedom to do what they please was the most noble move that Eddie could have made, which makes it all that much worse knowing that so many of them have already turned their backs on the new King in Black. He might not fall to the same violent patterns that his predecessor did, but it may not be long before part of him wishes he had.
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