Venom Unleashed #5: The mystery deepens, the symbiotes multiply

Welcome back, symbiote sleuths to Venom Unleashed! With All-New Venom #4 now out in the wild, the ongoing mystery of who’s under the gooey hood continues to twist and turn. Fan theories are running hotter than ever, and the latest poll results show an unwavering belief in Rick Jones—despite the latest issue throwing another curveball into the mix. Meanwhile, Paul and MJ’s growing presence in the saga suggests bigger plans ahead, and we’ve got the inside scoop straight from editor Jordan D. White.

In this edition, we dive deep into All-New Venom’s evolving mythology, from the unexpected role of Madame Masque to MODOK’s devastating rooftop rampage. We also get Jordan’s thoughts on sidekick names (spoiler: “Small-New Venom” gets a chuckle), the ever-changing anatomy of Venom’s head, and the upcoming Spider-Verse vs. Venomverse showdown. Plus, if you’ve ever wondered which X-Man would make the best Venom host—Jordan has an answer, and it’s exactly as awesome as you’d hope.

So, strap in, keep your tendrils close, and let’s dig into the latest revelations, teases, and symbiotic surprises from the world of All-New Venom!

P.S.: Don’t forget to take the fan survey at the bottom and check out EXCLUSIVE art from All-New Venom #5 (out April 2nd)!

AIPT: Jordan, what a caper we have on our hands with All-New Venom #4 out (as of this article posting). Not only does this issue satiate a lot of fans who have asked about other symbiotes (like Sleeper), but it seems to have ruled out yet another suspect!

Before we dive into questions, let’s look at some data.

The last time we checked in, fans were 55% sure it was Rick Jones, so it has gone up 1% and now 56% of people think it’s Rick. Paul and MJ round out the #2 and #3 spots at 10% each. That makes me wonder: Do you have big plans for Paul and MJ in this ongoing saga?

Jordan: Of course we do–we wouldn’t bring in such big players from Spider-Man without making full use of them!

It’s just like Rick–obviously, folks were wrong about Rick being the All-New Venom, but with pretty good reason, as he WAS, in fact, up to something suspicious. We wouldn’t bring in such a great character like Rick and just have it be as simple as “Nope–he’s not Venom!”

We had to make sure Rick had something really exciting and meaty to do. I’m looking forward to the next issue when people can see the Sleeper Agent in action! 

AIPT: The last edition has another poll question: What would you name All-New Venom’s sidekick (if he had one)? Do any of these tickle your fancy?

Goo-Getter, Spite, Symboy, Spike, All-New symbrock, Fang, Codex, Rancor, Small-New Venom, The Dark Destroyer, Fred, Stripe, The Gooper Trooper, Goodrop, Malice, Howler (Symbiote wolf/animal companion, kind of like Sleeper the cat except cooler in every way), Goo Boy, Sleeper

Jordan: OK, “Small-New Venom” really gave me a chuckle, that was great. But for a serious answer, I enjoy the idea of Howler except for the fact that it needlessly insults Sleeper. Reminds me of Princess from the Deadpool book. 

AIPT: In All-New Venom #4, Venom’s head gets exploded (or embiggened for another word) AGAIN. What’s the creative team’s fascination with his head!?

Jordan: I think it’s just playing into the idea that Venom is bigger than its host, so the idea that the head is empty is just a fun toy to play with. I think the previous volume introducing the idea of Dylan being in the symbiote but still looking to be at least the size of his father really opened the door to some fun to us. He’s a goo guy, and some parts of him are–or can be–all goo! That is a fun tool in the toolbox! 

AIPT: MODOK does some serious damage on a rooftop, out of curiosity, is that a specific building in New York?

Jordan: Yeah, that’s a real place down at the Hudson Yards here in Manhattan. You can really go up to that observation deck and very safely look out over the city! When Al Ewing comes to town for Marvel summits or New York Comiccon, he likes to check out real locations to have the series take place in, so you could probably put together an All-New Venom walking tour if you ever come to town.

AIPT: I missed seeing Luke Cage in issue #4, care to tease if he’ll come back in a future issue?

Jordan: We will see him again, for sure, but it might take a beat. But he says he wants to deal with the Venom problem, and he’s gonna be as good as his word! Another character too good to just pop in for a quick cameo. 

AIPT: Richard Newby asks: Are there any big plans for Flash Thompson or Liz Allen and their respective Symbiotes?

Jordan: We definitely have plans for Flash and his deal with S.C.A.R., which is gonna be a thorn in every symbiote’s side. That said…I will be honest that right this second, we don’t have particular plans for Liz. I am sure we will get back to her, but for right now she’s off the stage. 

AIPT: Y. Lu asks: Now that we know Madame Masque isn’t Venom, what motivated making her a suspect?

Jordan: I would again refer back to Al making that spreadsheet of possible candidates where we were weighing the pros and cons of all each and she just came out looking very cool. She’s a neat villain who can introduce the idea of whether or not this New Venom is actually trustworthy, and one who the idea of her being Venom conjures interesting stories…but who ALSO works as a good antagonist once she is revealed to NOT be the host.

Plus, we were bringing Venom back into a closer, more ground-level orbit around Spider-Man, and she was coming off her really great use in the Gang War storyline over there. I was a little skeptical when her name first came up, but I ended up really glad that we chose her–starting the book with her trial turned out to be such a great way to set up our mystery. 

AIPT: With Spider-Boy now on the scene, Joslin asks: Will there be a hero who is extremely desperate to become All-New Venom’s sidekick?

Jordan: I think Venom has a bit of a hill to get over before that–you and I both know that he’s a hero, but the world in general, I think, still knows Venom overall as a much more frightening entity. The last time most people saw or heard of him, they saw Eddie violently showboating on a live wrestling match, which was followed very shortly by a zombiote outbreak. I think he’s gonna have to overcome that perception before a lot of kids start auditioning to be “Small-New Venom.” Heh, heh–it is a fun title.

Oh–I did a story recently with Gerry Duggan involving a kid who was a big Venom fan in VENOMVERSE REBORN last year! Check that out.

AIPT: Alan Smithee asks: Are you going to do more books like the “Foes” series? I feel a lot of interest in villains in how they operate outside the law and need to plan around superheroes, end up on the path of villainy instead of heroism, various motivations from vengeance against others to mental health issues to self-interest, and how job security is horrible since your teammates are dangerous. I guess you could call Carnage that, but Carnage feels rather one-dimensional. 

Jordan: Well, I don’t think our EDDIE BROCK: CARNAGE book is going to be one-dimensional at all–Eddie is going to be really wrestling with Carnage and vice versa. There is gonna be a lot of push and pull and a fair share of mind games. That said, it won’t be much like the SUPERIOR FOES book, for sure. Speaking of the VENOM WAR books, I hope you checked out the VENOM WAR: ZOMBIOTES series by Cavan Scott and Juan Jose Ryp as that featured a good portion of the Superior Foes and was a really fun series.

I actually pitched doing a book called THE DOOMED FOES OF SPIDER-MAN during ONE WORLD UNDER DOOM, but it didn’t get greenlit, unfortunately. 

AIPT: Let’s reach back to your days editing X-Men, Jordan. Harry G asks: Which X-Man would bond best with Venom?

Jordan: Nightcrawler, duh. Who doesn’t want a swashbuckling Venom? Plus, Kurt could use the symbiote to go undercover in places where he didn’t want to be recognized. In my time on X-Men, we had fun making Kurt a little more Spider-Man-y, most prominently in the UNCANNY SPIDER-MAN book, but also a bit in the AMAZING NIGHTCRAWER miniseries–making him the new Venom would be fab, and a nice way to teach the symbiote that sometimes protecting needs to be non-lethal. 

AIPT: GrimoireRiley asks: I think my favorite part of All-New Venom is the drama between Dylan and his new family. As someone who already found Paul compelling in Zeb Wells’ run on Amazing Spider-Man, I was surprised to see him here in a more substantial role. How did the decision to put Dylan in MJ and Paul’s care come to be?

Jordan: There were a lot of factors, but knowing that MJ and Paul were not going to be regular cast members in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN and were out there for us to snag was a huge opportunity that we did not want to let go by. They were a couple who had just lost the children they had been taking care of, and Dylan was a kid who had never really had a solid home life. It seemed like a natural fit and a great way to put together some chocolate and peanut butter.

AIPT: Hank Orbin asks: Is the gold the remainder of the Eganrac symbiote from Venom War #5, or just a stylistic choice?

Jordan: The gold is for sure an element that came from the Eganrac. When that all became part of the ending of VENOM WAR, it was definitely a multi-stage idea that in VENOM WAR, he would appear all gold, and then when he got to ALL-NEW VENOM, we would be black and gold. So–I mean–all of that was, in part, a stylistic choice… but it was one we couched in story. So yeah, the Eganrac got into Venom and made a change in him, and that is still ongoing. 

AIPT: Mustafa Lodhi asks: Will All New Venom interact with other former hosts aside from Dylan over time? Thinking Eddie/Carnage, Parker, Gargan, Thompson, Deadpool. Lots of possibilities.

Jordan: Thank you for recognizing that Deadpool was a former host. Anyway–yes, for sure the All-New Venom will interact with the bulk of those people. Most of them we already have very real, solid plans to do.The others I think it’s likely we will get to. 

AIPT: And final questions, Jordan. With Spider-Verse vs. Venomverse #1 having an FOC of March 31st (out May 14) I wanted to get in a question about this one. I recently spoke to Kyle Higgens and he said we are not ready. Is there anything you’d like to tease? 

Jordan: It’s such a fun series. It is a blast to dig into the multiverse and come up with new crazy versions of the characters. I mentioned the VENOMVERSE REBORN just a bit earlier, and the WEB OF SPIDER-VERSE: NEW BLOOD one-shot is already out with the WEB OF VENOMVERSE: FRESH BRAINS one-shot following shortly behind–both of those introduce fun new Spiders and Symbiotes from across the great web, and ALSO lead into the SPIDER-VERSE VS. VENOMVERSE series!

Kyle, Mat and Luciano are all kicking ass on the series, and have taken it in a really great, exciting direction that I think folks are really going to enjoy a lot. A lot of great surprises to come there! 

AIPT: I know from Kyle that Luciano is crushing on character design (we here on the AIPT Discord LOVE “Tongue Beard,” aka the pirate-looking symbiote with tongues). Any particularly favorite new symbiote or Spider-Man you’re excited for folks to check out?

Jordan: That is actually a redesign of Viking Venom from the aforementioned VENOMVERSE REBORN! But yeah–Luciano is NAILING all the designs! He actually just turned in a pair of designs last week that COMPLETELY RULE but which folks won’t be seeing until issue 3 when a character is finally fully revealed…

And that’s a wrap up this positively goopy symbiote column! Before you click away, make sure to take the fan survey below. Your answers could be answered by Jordan D. White in the next edition!

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