As “Carnage Reigns” continues slashing its way through the extended Spider-books, Carnage #14 opens with a helpful recap, done in a way that perfectly suits the character. Cletus and the Extrembiote got a serious upgrade in the last issue of this series, leading an enraged populace into battle against Miles and the Cape-Killers. Each of these skirmishes has ended in both sides licking their wounds, which is where we find Cletus this time around. This recap is framed as a conversation that Cletus is having, in essence, with himself. It’s a good bit of dark comedy to kick off the issue, seeing Cletus essentially forming a second self in order to hear himself think, but it also works as a brilliant bit of character insight.
In so many of Cletus’ starring storylines, he’s been obsessed with creating a cult of personality around himself. Carnage has always been positioned as sort of a Manson figure among Spider-Man’s enemies, inspiring regular people to do terrible things in service of some greater goal he’s purposefully obfuscated. So who could possibly be a better confidant for Cletus than himself? He doesn’t want conversation or debate; he wants to exist in a wind tunnel where he’s all there is. We certainly get that confirmation later in the issue, in a chilling segment wherein Red Goblin accidentally gets a glimpse of Cletus’ mind.
Aside from these interesting character beats, however, most of this issue from Alex Paknadel, Fran Galan, and Federico Sabbatini is all-out action. Not that this is a bad thing, mind you. We’re still getting some nice moments developing the growing bond between Red Goblin, Spider-Man, and Scorpion, which has been one of the more exciting developments in this crossover. One can’t help but feel like Mac Gargan is being set up for quite a fall at the end of this crossover event, but it’s so great to see him making a heroic turn in this storyline.
Where the issue has a bit of trouble in balancing things is during the constant cutbacks to the folks pulling the strings on the Stark Sentinels and the Cape-Killers. The back-and-forth can be a bit disorienting, and keeping track of the non-costumed characters (including Carnage’s new cult, who are just waiting in the wings) can slow some of the momentum of the main event.
Still, this is another solid middle chapter for “Carnage Reigns.” It works as a nice recap and punch-em-up, while also reminding us of the danger that still awaits the universe, even after all of this is wrapped up. Because hey, isn’t there still an all-powerful Carnage, just rampaging through the cosmos somewhere?
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