Eddie Brock has almost always been the host of the Carnage. While Eddie began his tenure as Venom as a villain, he has had one of Marvel's greatest redemption arcs in the decades since, becoming a firmly heroic character, but what will happen when he becomes Carnage is anyone's guess.

Marvel has announced Eddie Brock: Carnage – written by Charles Soule, with art by Jesus Saiz – which will bring together the oddest couple in Marvel's ever-expanding symbiote lore yet.

Comic book cover: Brock being consumed by the Carnage symbiote as its tendrils shoot in every direction.

The series is set to have gamechanging implications not just for Eddie and the Carnage symbiote, but for Marvel's current Venom War crossover event as well. Fans still don't know who the final host of Venom will be, but now it seems it will not be Eddie Brock, forcing him into a surprising new paradigm in the character's history.

Eddie Brock Is Marvel's New Carnage, In A Major Surprise To Longtime Venom Fans

Eddie Brock: Carnage #1 – Written by Charles Soule; Art By Jesus Saiz; Available February 12, 2025 From Marvel Comics

Comic book art: Eddie as an imposingly large Carnage, with sharp claws

The Carnage symbiote is the his familiar symbiote, Venom, and its vicious "offspring." While making Eddie Brock Carnage seems like a simple move, it is one that hasn't been done before, and it provides a wealth of new story possibilities for both Eddie and the Carnage symbiote, as Eddie will have to learn to deal with Carnage's homicidal cravings.

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Bonding with a symbiote is often not easy. During their early time together, the Venom symbiote craved brains, and often Eddie would oblige by slaughtering criminals and allowing Venom to eat them. Eventually, as Eddie tried to move away from using lethal force, he found he could placate the Venom symbiote's desires with chocolate. Unfortunately, that's not going to work with Carnage. Carnage is one of Marvel's biggest serial killers, and if Eddie wants to get along with his new symbiote, he's going to be forced to indulge in Carnage's urges.

If Eddie Brock Can't Control Carnage, Their Bond Might Turn Him Back Into A Killer

Eddie Brock: Carnage #1 – Main Cover By Iban Coello; Variant Cover By Mark Bagley & Richard Isanove (Color)

Carnage loves to kill people. That's why Cletus Kasady was its perfect host, but now that Eddie Brock will be bonded to Carnage, he's going to have to sate Carnage's bloodlust without harming innocents. The only way to do that is for Venom to fully re-embrace his Lethal Protector identity, and begin feeding Carnage the wicked, such as serial killers. Bonding with Carnage presents a fascinating new angle for Eddie, a character who has been trying to find redemption as a hero for so long, and is now having to embrace murder to keept Carnage in check.

Eddie Brock is someone who has been trying to become a hero for years, but it seems that this is the darkest turn his story could possibly take.

It's currently unclear exactly how Eddie and Carnage become bonded, but at its very premise the story promises a great deal of excitement and tension. Eddie Brock is someone who has been trying to become a hero for years, but it seems that this is the darkest turn his story could possibly take. After years of trying to redeem himself, he's now the host to the worst serial killer Marvel has ever seen. Eddie Brock has been many things over the years; he's been Anti-Venom, The King in Black, Venom, and now he's the new Carnage.

Eddie Brock: Carnage #1 will be available February 12, 2025 from Marvel Comics.

Venom in David Baldeon Comic Cover Art
NAME
Venom (Symbiote), Eddie Brock (most prominent host)
Alias
Eddie Brock
Created By
David Michelinie, Todd McFarlane
POWERS
Superhuman strength, speed, agility, and endurance, Ability to cling to surfaces, Shape-shifting abilities (forming weapons, shields), Regeneration and healing factor, Immunity to Spider-Man's spider-sense, Enhanced senses, Able to produce webbing, Bonding with a host to share or amplify powers, Immunity to all Earthly diseases
RELATIONSHIPS
Eddie Brock (primary host and ally), Peter Parker/Spider-Man (initial enemy, later uneasy ally), Anne Weying (former wife of Eddie Brock and occasional host), Cletus Kasady/Carnage (offspring of the Venom symbiote and a deadly enemy)
HISTORY
The Venom symbiote is an alien organism that first bonded with Peter Parker (Spider-Man) during the "Secret Wars" storyline. After Parker rejected the symbiote, it found a new host in Eddie Brock, a disgraced journalist. The symbiote and Brock bonded over their mutual hatred for Spider-Man, becoming the anti-hero known as Venom. Over time, Venom has evolved from a villain to an anti-hero, often fighting alongside other heroes to protect innocents, though his methods remain brutal.

Venom is a symbiotic alien entity bonded with various human hosts, notably Eddie Brock and later Flash Thompson. It grants superhuman strength, agility, and a shape-shifting black costume. Initially a Spider-Man villain due to its origins, Venom evolved into an antihero, battling both villains and his own dark impulses. The character embodies themes of duality and redemption within the Marvel Universe.