Venom #37 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

If I'm not mistaken, this issue is the last issue of "Venom" in my to-read stack, which means that it's my last issue of "Venom" period.  I've been on the fence with this series for a while, probably since the ridiculous "Circle of Four" arc.  But, I kept giving it another chance, trying to make it work.  To be honest, I think that Bunn actually has a pretty decent take on Flash and is giving this series a narrative stability that it's never really had.  (Remember when Flash could only be in the suit for 48 hours or some such time period?  Remember "Project:  Rebirth?"  Remember when he was a Secret Avenger?  Remember all the demon stuff?)  Moving Flash to Philadelphia was a good call and Bunn seems to be using Lord Ogre and Katy Kiernan to great effect, giving Flash a serious nemesis and an unreliable ally.  But, I think I've just been burned too many times by this series to care anymore (or, at least, to start caring, only to have its whole modus operandi changed again).  So, good luck, Flash.  I hope you get the happy ending that you're probably not going to get.

Venom #36 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Honestly?  I decided to finally drop this series in the comic store when I was holding issue #38 in my hands and just didn't feel excited about it.  After reading this issue, I realized that it's because I just can't handle the melodramatic narration that frames every issue.  Flash seems to give us a recitation of his sad history every...single...issue.  It's seriously distracting, since you often don't actually get to the point of the issue until somewhere at the half-way mark.  I've got one issue that I already bought in my stack and then I'm done.

Venom #35 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

I'm torn where to go with this series at this point.  Unusually, Bunn wraps up this arc in a way that it would be pretty easy to leave the title now and feel satisfied.  Eddie agrees to allow Flash to try to live a normal life and hopefully Flash will do exactly that.  Sure, he'll have some challenges to overcome, but at some point he'll hopefully settle into his role as a teacher, maybe meet a girl, and live a regular ol' superhero life.  The problem is that this series rarely allows Flash that sort of chance and I'm just not sure I want to be here as Flash continues to get broken more and more.  Moreover, I'm not a huge fan of Bunn's.  For example, Eddie's sudden decision to allow Flash off the hook was as convenient as Flash and Eddie miraculously defeating the techno-creatures, who seemed nigh unstoppable last issue.  It just felt like Bunn decided that he wanted to be done with both stories, rather than them coming to their natural conclusion.  Decisions, decisions.

Venom #34 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)`

OK, sure, it's not too hard to write a great symbiote-vs.-symbiote story, but I have to give credit to Bunn all the same, because I really enjoyed this issue.  Bunn made it pretty damn clear that Flash was getting his ass handed to him and his "Hail Mary" play at the end showed the kind of tactical decision that a former combat veteran like Flash should make but, frankly, often hasn't.  (For a moment, I was worried that he was going to play dead...again.)  Bunn built the tension to that final moment really well, in no small part thanks to Shalvey, who really goes to town here in showing just how much more powerful Toxin is than Venom.  Moreover, Bunn's makes it clear in this issue that Venom is still going to be spending the next few issues cleaning up the U-Foes' mess, since the Symbiote Slayers seem to be from the same batch of experiments as the Figure was.  It's an approach that at least explains why this number of crazies have suddenly flooded Philly's streets.  It can't last forever, but, for now, at least, it's working.  Good stuff.

Venom #33 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

This issue is definitely better than the last one.  Bunn clarifies that Figure was indeed one of the U-Foes' experiments and, although I don't remember there having been several experiments, I'm willing to roll with it at this point.  Moreover, Toxin is at least no longer just hanging in alleys waiting for someone to eat, now that Figure can lead him to Flash.  I'm not sure why Eddie couldn't have found Flash on his own, but, again, I'm rolling with it.

Shalvey really nails the fight between Figure and Toxin, showing how Figure's flexibility is more than a match for Eddie.  It managed not to be your typical slugfest, because I really didn't know where we were going to go in the next panel, so I really have to applaud them for that spontaneity.  Bunn also does well with Flash in the quiet moments, showing him really struggling to make his civilian identity work.  I thought Bunn highlighted that struggle well with the Flash's participation in the Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, where he clearly felt almost ridiculous for talking about one of his problems given how many other ones that he has (and can't discuss).  The use of Beast via Skype was possibly the most interesting addition and one that Bunn should consider maintaining.  As we've established, Flash needs some friends and, given the way things are going in Philly, it seems unlikely that he's going to develop any soon.  So that this title doesn't descend into the morosity that previously defined it, somebody has to care about Flash and help him stay on the straight and narrow.

The move to Philly has definitely injected some life into this series, though I still wonder how much longer I'm going to get it.  We'll see if we slip into the old ways or if Bunn can find a way to have Flash battle his demons without being totally consumed by them.

Venom #32 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

First, I have to say that turning Flash Thompson into a high-school gym coach forced to face down the ghost of himself past is a brilliant move.  I could almost just read a whole comic about that issue alone!

The new job is an important step for this reborn series, in part because Flash needs SOME people in his new life.  As he mentions, Katy is his only friend (and I'm pretty sure that she doesn't live in Philly) and Peter has stopped returning his calls (for reasons that anyone reading "Amazing Spider-Man" understands).  If Flash isn't going to be sitting around his apartment by himself (not exactly a great idea for an alcoholic), he needs to be in the world.  The gym-teacher angle is just an inspired way to do it.

That said, the rest of this issue is a little weird.  Flash patrols the street trying to find the experimental weapons that some group of criminals apparently released onto the streets in Philly, but I was distracted since I don't remember who did that.  I thought the U-Foes only had one weird weapon, not a whole bunch of them.  So, I'm not sure if I'm remembering it wrong or Bunn is alluding to an event that I forgot entirely.  Either way, Flash locates a guy who's been turned into a monster by the experimental weapons, sparking a flashback sequence that also oddly seems that Flash and Toxin were subject to experiments by the same doctor as the one who experimented on the guy.  I was definitely confused here and I'm not sure if it was Bunn not explaining or Shalvey making different flashbacks look the same.  At any rate, Flash seemed pretty distracted here, since it seems weird that he could take on the entire U-Foes team but not be able to keep this guy from escaping.  But, I guess that stopping him would've kept him from stumbling onto Toxin, who, for reasons also unclear to me, is just sitting in alleyways waiting for people to eat to stumble into his path.

As I said, it was a weird issue.  I like the gym-teacher angle, but I feel like we could tighten up the action sequences a bit, particularly since it's getting a little hard to believe all these menaces are just wandering around Philly.  I mean, I get that Bunn uses the release of the experimental weapons as the excuse for this sudden uptick in meta-human activity, but it doesn't help when the details of the release are unclear.  Hopefully we'll get more information next issue.

Venom #31 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Oh, Flash.  With all the progress that Flash seemed to be making in taking control of his life and moving to Philadelphia, Bunn makes it clear that he's still not quite there.  His assertion that he's in charge of the symbiote and doesn't need the drugs that Beast gave him to tame it is fascinating.  First, he knows that it's not true, something that becomes all too evident later in the issue after the symbiote attacks his obnoxious neighbor as Flash "slept."  But, he seems to be purposefully shirking the trust that the Avengers have in him by giving him the tools to tame the symbiote on his own.  Bunn seems to be making the somewhat insightful point that Flash's life is a mess because he wants it to be.  We've seen Flash make similarly bad decisions over the course of this series, like not going to the Avengers to help in his fight with Crime-Master, and it seems to support this approach.  Every time Flash has the opportunity to make the right decision (usually involving asking for help), he makes the wrong one.  Is he intentionally sabotaging himself?  Does he like wallowing with demons and murders because he feels that he's one of them?  Bunn isn't saying so exactly here, but he seems to raise the possibility of it and I'm intrigued to see where he goes with it.

Venom #30 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Bunn does a good job of showing how crowded things are in Flash right now, given that he's fighting for control with a demon and symbiote.  I rolled my eyes at first at the idea that the demon had taken over Flash, but Bunn really has it serve a purpose here, giving it the role of Emma Frost showing Iceman that he could do more than he thought that he could.  I mean, controlling lackeys via the symbiote's tentacles?  Pretty cool.  Bunn also shows Flash's profound loneliness, evident in the fact that he's taken to talking to symbiote-created dummies of Katy and Valkyrie (who act and appear disturbingly similar).  Flash specifically makes the point that neither woman stayed much longer than it took to clean up the mess that the U-Foes left, but, at some point, Bunn is going to have to create a stable supporting cast for Flash.  Books like "Captain Marvel" and "Hawkeye" excel in no small part because DeConnick and Fraction have done a great job building up the support network around each hero, making you feel a stronger connection to them (and proving the impetus to interesting stories).  I get that Flash is a loner, but he's going to need a Frenchie or a Microchip:  someone who helps him tactically and, to a lesser extent, emotionally.  But, I'm still pretty happy with this series' new direction and can't wait to meet the new Toxin!

Venom #29 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

At the end of last issue, we were left with the U-Foes revealing that they had acquired some sort of machine that they were using on kidnapped victims to figure out its purpose.  I actually kind of like that twist, since Bunn pretty much nails the U-Foes perfectly.  They're not really Doc Ocks or Dr. Dooms who would be able to figure out the machine on their own; they're just a bunch of thugs hoping it'll help them get more power.  I still wonder where they got it and how it's connected to Project Rainbow, the alleged fringe-science government program, but, I figure we'll probably learn more next issue.

But, aside from the mystery over machine's origins, Bunn uses the reveal that it's actually a memory machine to great effect, since, in one panel, Katy Kiernan gets a lot more interesting.  Why is she shaking hands with the Kingpin?  Is her husband the person by whose grave we see her standing?  Speaking of supporting characters, I'm also really digging the Valkyrie/Venom dynamic.  On a personal level, it's fun to watch Flash get all discombobulated around her.  Plus, on a fighting level, they work well as a team, with Valkyrie evening out Flash's impulsiveness.

We also discover what Flash had come to suspect is true, that the symbiote is alive and well.  It was a little odd to see it talking as if it had a personality, which makes me wonder whether it has developed a higher level of awareness than we've previously seen it have or if Flash has simply created a separate personality for it within his mind.  Either way, it probably doesn't bode well for Flash.

All in all, I'm pretty glad that I accidentally wound up getting these issues in my pull-list stack.  I'd be pretty happy reading a comic with Flash and Katy on the trail of some sort of secret-government conspiracy, almost inverting the original premise of this series.  Fingers crossed that we don't regress to demons and devils.

Venom #28 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

So, I had actually dropped "Venom," but, for some reason, my LCS accidentally put a copy of issue #31 in my stack and I didn't discover it until I got home.  Figuring that it was some sort of sign (because I read too many comic books not to see it as a sign), I picked up issues #28-#30 just to see how this transition to Philadelphia went.  I'll say that I'm happily surprised.

First, we finally ditch the demons and the symbiotes.  When Katy first appeared on the scene, I thought that she had the potential to inspire some cool stories, tipping off Flash to any number of weird occurrences that he could help her investigate.  But, we never really got to see that potential fulfilled, since we wound up getting distracted by "Minimum Carnage" and the Hellstrom business.  But, Bunn uses her to great effect here.  She's definitely on the border of q distressed damsel, though Bunn wisely at least gives her Lois Lane's spunky attitude to make sure that we don't slip too far into '80s gender roles.

(Speaking of '80 gender roles, I've been re-reading some old "Avengers West Coast" issues and just ran across the statement from Mockingbird, about Hawkeye, in issue #24:  "I was a pretty 80's lady before we met, but I'm a real, old-fashioned wife when it comes to loving my man."  I know.  Words fail me, too.)

Meanwhile, Bunn brings back the U-Foes, who I love for reasons that I can't fully explain.  One of the things that I like about "Scarlet Spider" and "Venom" is that bad guys actually kill people and we see the U-Foes pretty gruesomely take out a number of people here.  Flash is going to have some trouble dealing with this failure, just as Kaine struggled after "Minimum Carnage."  But, it's a much more realistic story than we see in other series, such as Spider-Man insisting that no one would die under his watch.

So, I'm back.  I'm not guaranteeing that I'll be here for long, but so long as Bunn gives us more stories about Katy and Flash investigating weird conspiracies and fewer about Flash and his demons (literal and mental), I'll be here.  Plus, I wonder what the U-Foes did with Flash in the end...

Venom #27.1 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

OK, as I expected, this issue is really my last issue of "Venom."  At the end of the day, I just can't really take the constant pity party.  Sure, Flash had some dark times.  Sure, he was a teenage bully.  But, OMFG, he just needs to get over it.  Of course, the whole point of this issue is exactly that.  I'll hand it to Bunn that he, too, realized that Flash needs to get over his past.  However, unfortunately, Bunn goes about getting Flash to realize that in a pretty ham-fisted way.

I'm not really quite sure where he was going with having the gay kid that Flash bullied in high school call him.  Bunn never really makes it clear why A.J. would want to do so.  Was he going to berate Flash, hoping that he had changed enough to let him berate him (and not hit him), but didn't because he was such a sob story?  We don't know.  Instead, this incident only serves to tee up the conversation that Flash has with Peter at the end of this issue, where Pete basically tells Flash what millions of bullied kids around the world know:  at some point, your life gets better and you move past the bullying.  Flash is clearly inspired by those words to start the same process in his life and, for Flash's sake, I hope he succeeds.  But, for me?  I'm not going to be there.

Bunn's failure to explain why A.J. wanted to contact Flash is representative of my problem with this series throughout its run.  Characters are often simply vehicles for the high-minded concepts that the author is trying to push through the book, a way to set the stage for whatever terrible event Flash is imminently poised to suffer.  I'm just not all that interested in that.  Plus, I'm really not a demons guy. It's the same problem I have with "Red Hood and the Outlaws:"  I expected a lot of espionage and gunfire, but got demons and spells.  So, good-bye, "Venom," and good luck, Flash, since, clearly, you're going to need it.

Venom #27 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

After the excitement of the last two issues, this one is a bit of a pause, allowing the various converging storylines to merge.  The problem is that we don't really get anywhere until the end of the issue.  Bunn emphasizes that the symbiotes are slowly killing the Microverse and most of the issue is dedicated to a fight with the Enigma Force, Kaine, and Venom on one side, the symbiote army on another, and Carnage on his own side.  The denouement comes at the end of the issue, where Flash takes control of his anger and somehow uses it to destroy the symbiote army.  Bunn isn't entirely clear on how he manages to do that and I have to admit a little eye-rolling as we once again plumbed the depths of Flash's tortured soul.  Is there any problem that can't be solved by him crying over his father?  I also didn't really follow how Carnage dissolving somehow turned him into a mini-symbiote army in the Macroverse, but hopefully we'll learn more about that in the last issue.  I'm a little concerned that the shift to the Macroverse is going to side-step the issues we have in the Microverse, like who the Redeemer and Marquis Radu really are.  But, I guess we'll see.

Venom #26 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

This issue is fantastic.  Seriously, I think Bunn does some of the best work that I've ever seen him do.  This cross-over event started with a pretty significant "WTF?" factor, since I don't think anyone was really clamoring for a "Kaine and Venom go to the Microverse" story.  But, Bunn moves us past that question by telling an action-packed story that also delivers essential background information in a pretty fluid way.  By the end of this issue, we understand who all the players are and Bunn has set up the second half of this event nicely.

First, let's discuss the backstory part.  We quickly learn, in the form of one of the Microns giving an arrival briefing of sorts to Cletus, that the Microverse has things called "flesh factories" that churn out "perfect beasts and killing machines."  We also learn that this group has brought Cletus to Microverse to kill the Redeemer, who Kaine met at the end of last issue.  But, justifying Katy's inclusion from a story perspective, Bunn has Katy realize that they want Cletus to kill the Redeemer not as an assassin, but as the source an army of Carnages manufactured by the factories.  (Shudder.)  Bunn conveys all this information over a two-page spread in a way that that makes it feel like a believable conversation and not just forced expository.  For that accomplishment alone, I'd give him a gold star, since it's been a while since I've seen anyone pull of that much exposition so effortlessly.

However, the plot, as they say, also thickens.  Venom, as we saw last issue, has been saved by a rag-tag band of rebels called the Enigma Force.  (I loved Flash commenting how Peter would love "this science fiction mumbo jumbo."  It was a nice way to remind us who's in that suit.)  The Enigma Force is apparently working for the aforementioned Redeemer (popular guy), who wants to see Flash.  We also learn that members of the Force fear the symbiote, believing that it has the potential to corrupt the entire Microverse.  When agents of Marquis Radu, the guy who wants the Redeemer dead, attack the Force, Bunn shows them carrying sonic weapons.  It makes you wonder whether the Force because the Microverse has experience in battling it.  I wonder where we're going with that thought.  Bunn also uses this scene to get in some character work, having the Force's seamless teamwork remind Flash of the days when he used to fight for something that meant something to him.  It's a poignant moment, reminding us again how alone and isolated Flash is, even as he tries to make it work with the Secret Avengers.  It's hard to work in these moments in these sorts of events, so I salute Bunn for putting in the effort and managing it so well.

Bunn is equally adept at the Kaine part of the story.  After fighting off the monster that attacked him at the end of the last installment of this mini-series, Kaine chats with the Redeemer, learning that he's a former conqueror set on healing the Microverse.  Bunn also gets in some character work on Kaine, having him express skepticism that the Redeemer is ever going to purge all the murderous instincts from the Microverse, since, after all, Kaine knows from whence he speaks.  The Redeemer informs him that he's brought Kaine to this planet to "heal" the Marquis.  However, before they can infiltrate the Marquis' base, Carnage arrives.  Having previously killed most of the team that brought him to the Microverse, he had one of them bring him to the Marquis, conveniently running into Kaine and the Redeemer on the way.

The issue ends with everyone on a collision course.  Flash should arrive in time to help Kaine fight Carnage and then the group is likely to make its way with Marquis.  It actually seems possible at this point that Carnage could JOIN with Flash and Kaine, which is a team-up moment that I would really love to see.  To get through the entire missing backstory in a way that also delivered a great "Star Wars" space epic is quite an accomplishment and, for all the criticism I usually have for Bunn, I really applaud him for it.  As I mentioned in a previous review, I didn't really need a Microverse adventure involving Kaine and Venom.  But, you can't always get what you want.  Sometimes you get what you need.

Venom #25 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Bunn actually manages to save the concept of this arc for me with this issue, but I'm not sure if I like where the series is going as a result.

In fighting the "Monsters of Evil," Flash tries to summon happy thoughts.  When he realizes that he has none, he instead decides to focus on his rage as a motivator, using it to take control of the monsters and set them against Hellstrom.  As I said last issue, I don't really buy this idea that Flash's life is so dark and dreary that he literally has not a happy thought, but Remender and Bunn both seem to think that it's the case, so I don't see much point belaboring the point.  At least, in this issue, Bunn has Flash use that darkness for good purposes, if you will, so it no longer simply motivates him to whine about his childhood.  (Harsh but true, lately.)  Interrogating Hellstrom later, Flash learns that he was able to control the demons because of the mark he received from Mephisto as part of the "Circle of Four" arc.  According to Hellstrom, all the Hell-Lords are marking their potential heirs as they prepare for the Descent, when one of them will fall farther than the others and become the "true" devil.  (I'm intrigued that the Marvel Universe apparently doesn't have a "true" devil.)  Hellstrom informs Flash that one of the two of them (or someone else marked by Mephisto) will become a devil once the Descent has happened, controlling a corner of Hell.  Hellstrom justifies his alliance with the DAO as using all the tools available to him to make sure that he wins and suggests to Venom that it's better for him to run Hell than someone really bad.

As I mentioned above, I actually think that it's a pretty intriguing concept, this fight for the throne of Hell.  The problem is that I don't really want to read about Flash being part of that contest.  I liked this series when it was Flash conducting espionage and fighting to keep control of the symbiote.  But, now, it's all monsters and demons.  It's why I hated Peter Finch's "Batman:  The Dark Knight:"  these sorts of stories just seem to be a poor match for a human character who's better lurking in dark shadows and fighting human villains.  As such, even though I liked what Bunn did here, I think that I'm done with this series once "Minimum Carnage" ends.  I'm just not that interested in the story that Bunn wants to tell to justify spending $5.98 a month on it.

Venom #24 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

At the end of the day, Bunn loses me here for two reasons.

First, I don't believe that Flash can't contact the Avengers.  OK, sure, he couldn't contact them last issue because his cell signal was blocked when he entered Hellstrom's building.  I still thought it was a ridiculous excuse then, but, whatever, fine.  But, he's free now.  If he could claw himself to that reporter's apartment, he really couldn't get himself to Stark Tower?  Bunn is running into the problem that comes with having an independent hero join a superhero team, particularly one who allegedly exists outside the bounds of normal society.  Slott has always seemed to have a good sense of knowing when it would be reasonable for Spidey to call in the Avengers and when it wouldn't.  But, I feel like Remender and Bunn have had to go to increasingly desperate lengths to justify why Venom wasn't picking up the phone and asking for help.  They seem to default to Flash not wanting to admit a mistake, something I thought that we had moved past at the end of the Savage Six arc, but still seems to be haunting us.  The problem with it is that it makes Flash look like an idiot.  I'm all for a flawed hero, but, at some point, if Flash doesn't want the Avengers' help, you begin asking why he's on the Avengers in the first place.

Second, Bunn seems to want us to believe that Flash's soul is so dark that he's capable of trapping a demon and not vice versa.  Honestly, I just don't know where to start.  Suffering years of abuse at the hands of your father and turning to alcohol to help soothe that problem doesn't make you evil.  It's almost like I'm supposed to believe that Flash isn't the guy who lost his legs saving a fellow soldier or made peace with Peter Parker.  Bunn seems to be making the point that Flash is bad at his core and I'm just not OK with that.

As I'm pretty sure I've said before, less demons, more espionage.

Venom #23 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Cullen Bunn begins his solo run on this series and it's mostly a mixed bag.  And, by mixed bag, I'm being nice because he's new.

I thought the issue started off well, once you got past the overly long recap sequence that this series seems fond of doing almost every issue.  Bunn almost immediately delivers a pretty funny scene where Flash meets with a tabloid reporter to get some background information on the Department of Occult Armaments, a "secret Nazi occult weapons division."  The reporter is sharp-tongued, quick-witted, and super-hot, characteristics that result in Flash remarking, "She scares the Hell out of me."  Bunn plays up Flash's intimidation to great comedic effect, giving us a side of Flash that we haven't really seen in this title yet.  Although I wasn't really sure why the Secret Avengers had no better source on the DAO than a tabloid reporter, I was willing to overlook it since we at least got some good dialogue.  Unfortunately, everything more or less goes downhill from there.

First, although Hawkeye ominously warns Flash that he's "only" on a reconnaissance mission at the start of this issue, we never really learn why the Secret Avengers have decided to start watching the DAO.  Second, Flash completely disregards these instructions, despite knowing that he's on thin ice with Hawkeye in the first place after his revelations last issue.  Flash seems to have a good reason to dive into the DAO's headquarters headfirst, given that he heard "what sounds like screaming babies."  I mean, it's hard to argue with screaming babies.  But, it's also screaming babies in the headquarters of a "secret Nazi occult weapons division," so you think that even Flash would've found a way to request back-up assistance before diving into the fray guns ablazin'.  He claims that his signal died the minute he entered the building, but it seems like he could've prettily easily just exited the building, requested immediate help, and then re-entered to help the aforementioned screaming babies.  I thought Flash coming clean with the Secret Avengers last issue was a sign of his maturity, that he was going to stop believing that he could (or had to) do everything by himself all the time.  But, apparently, it was just an uncharacteristic moment of self-awareness and we've regressed to the mean, with him blundering into a situation without asking for assistance, despite how easy it would've been to get said assistance.  Finally, we get a completely bizarre sequences where we learn that Damion Hellstrom is apparently running the DAO, a revelation that makes Flash realize (a little too late) that he needed the aforementioned backup assistance.

It's Flash's fight with Hellstrom where I really thought Bunn lost control over the issue's narrative.  Rather than using this fight sequence to reveal why the Secret Avengers care about the DAO, Bunn somewhat oddly turns it into a grudge match between Flash and Hellstrom, with Flash chastising Hellstrom for turning on his former allies and going all evil.  Given that they were only "teammates" for a short time during the "Circle of Four" arc, Flash seems WAY too emotionally involved here.  (Plus, it seems a little unrealistic that Flash would be so surprised that the Son of Stan went evil.)  To make matters worse, Bunn tries to pin Flash's angry reaction to Hellstrom on his apparent fear that he's just like Hellstrom because he's a killer.  It's a stretch, because it seems a long way to go from Flash feeling justified to kill bad guys on occasion given his soldier sensibilities and, you know, worry that he's in the same league of evil as the son of Satan.  But, even if Flash did worry about it, why would it make him mad at Hellstrom for changing sides?  Is he afraid he's going to change sides?  Equally bizarrely, Hellstrom then decides to prove this point by forcing Flash to embrace the more violent side of Venom.  But, it doesn't really prove his point, since, after all, Hellstrom had to force Flash into it.  If Flash really were a monster, he wouldn't need Hellstrom to push him as hard as he does here to get him to reveal it.

In the end, I think that it's pretty clear that I''m just not sure where Bunn was going here.  We started the issue seemingly returning to the days of Flash going on covert missions but ended it yet again talking about Flash's tortured soul.  We get it.  In fact, we just spent the better part of the last 22 issues exploring it.  Crappy things happened to Flash.  We KNOW.  Can we please see him even attempt to move past it?  I think, at this point, this series needs to shoot more for "Captain America" and less for "General Hospital."

Venom #22 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

If I hadn't already known that Rick Remender was leaving "Venom," it would've been pretty clear from the first few pages of this issue.  It becomes clear that this issue is Remender's coda, his dissertation on the character of Flash.  This issue reminds who he his and who he wants to be.

Remender and Shalvey deliver some pretty brutal moments throughout this issue.  You'd think that they'd be the ones related to Jack O'Lantern cutting out his victims' brains and using their hollowed out heads as, well, jack o'lanterns, but they're not.  They're the scenes where we see just how violent Flash's childhood was.  We see Flash wale on Peter in high school because he thought it made him a man.  But, Remender reminds us that Flash was trying to be a man exactly because he wasn't; he was still a child, curled in a ball on his bed in his varsity jacket after his father beat him over a speeding ticket.  Of all the moments in this issue, it's perhaps the most brutal one for me, because Shalvey really managed to convey just how vulnerable Flash was.  You woldn't think it could get worse, but Flash's mother blaming the beating on him just sinks the needle on the sympathy meter.  By the time you get to this point, you feel like anything Flash does to Jack O"Lantern is totally justified, particularly when we discover that he's exhumed Flash's father's body.

Remender has made us feel how powerless Flash feels most of the time.  We've watched him fail to impress his father with winning the game, fail to stop him from beating his sister, fail to protect his sister's husband from Jack O'Lantern.  His accomplishments fade into the background; Flash himself acknowledges that "you only remember the bad stuff."  By this point, we expect him to kill Jack.  After all, he's killed villains previously.  If anyone deserves to bear the brunt of a lifetime of frustrations, it's Jack.

But, Remender takes a stand here.  Flash doesn't kill Jack.  He does it by the book, defeats him and hands him to the authorities.  He confesses to the Secret Avengers, giving them a complete picture of his relationship with Crime-Master.  It's here, of course, that we see Flash become a man.  It's not him waling on Peter that shows it; it's him taking responsibilities for his actions.  But, Remender also shows that Flash has learned that he needs to trust people.  Betty accused him of being selfish last issue, an accusation that definitely rang true.  Flash has always insisted that he do everything on his own and he's paid the consequences, leaving out the Avengers when their help could've prevented matters from escalating with Crime-Master.  In this issue, Remender implies that Flash just can't invite the judgment that would come with admitting his error, fearing the response that would come with it; he makes it clear why Flash would fear that.  But, by coming clean with the Secret Avengers, Flash turns over a new leaf, accepting that he needs help, that he's not an island.  In leaving Flash this way, responsible and trusting, Remender gives us hope for the future, that Flash'' be able to overcome his past and establish new patterns.  We'll see if Bunn lets him.

Venom #21 (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Remender and Bunn have a challenge in this issue, since it's pretty clear that this arc has to end with the death of Crime-Master:  they need to make the road to this inevitable conclusion interesting.  Happily, they succeed.  They build the intensity as we watch Flash continue to barrel his way through the Savage Six.  After killing Death Adder and de-winging the Human Fly last issue, Remender and Bunn leave you wondering what Flash is going to do to the rest of the "team" in this issue.  You get some false hope that Flash is going to be spared too much bloodshed when Megatak is actually eliminated by Toxin and, for a moment, he appears to get a win by managing to remove Eddie Brock from the symbiote.  However, as usual for Flash, it all goes bad when the symbiote grabs Eddie, pulling him into the fire that Flash set to destroy it.  It's a chilling moment, for both Flash and the reader, as we watch a 20-year-old character burn.  It makes you wonder what Eddie's next chapter is going to be.  He's had so many -- from Venom to Anti-Venom to "Hero of Spider-Island" to Toxin -- that it's hard to say.  But, it's unlikely to be on the hero end of the spectrum, I'm guessing.  Flash is just as unsettled as we are by this turn of events, but he tries to maintain his focus, finally coming to the boss level, where he takes down Jack O'Lantern by letting him fall into a vat of acid.  Assuming he's dead (because, really, I don't think you get to live if you fall into a vat of acid), it leaves only Crime-Master (and, possibly, Human Fly, if he survived) knowing Flash's identity.  The battle between them is short and Remender and Bunn manage to keep you guessing until the end.

The fact that Betty pulls the trigger is surprising, but welcome.  I've previously complained that I'm tired of Betty constantly being the woman in a refrigerator, so it's nice to see her take a stand here, particularly since the authors don't have her fall to pieces after it.  As I mentioned as a possibility last issue, Betty acknowledges that Crime-Master came after Flash because of her, and, as such, forgives Flash for what he's had to do as Venom.  But, she ends it with him, again taking a stand that she really need to take.  As she says, Flash is selfish.  Throughout this series, Flash has had the opportunity on numerous occasions to ask for help and he refused to do so.  He often had excuses for why he didn't, but they rarely passed a common-sense test.  (Did he really think that the Avengers couldn't stop Crime-Master before he took revenge on Flash's family?)  In the end, it was Flash's need to do it himself that made bad situations worse, and Betty, thankfully, acknowledged that.  But, happily, Remender and Bunn allow Flash to acknowledge it, too, as we see on the last page, as he comes clean to the Secret Avengers.  It seems like we're all now ready to start the next phase.

New Comics!: The Spidey Affinity Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

Avenging Spider-Man #9:  Awesome.  DeConnick does such a great job here that I'm pretty sure I'm going to wind up buying up all the back issues of "Captain Marvel" when I go to the comic shop today.  DeConnick intuitively grasps the entire point of "Avenging Spider-Man," namely that it's an opportunity for Pete to have some banter with a fellow Avengers while facing a not-so-serious threat.  I mean, if the world is going to end, it's probably not going to be in "Avenging Spider-Man."  You're more likely to get the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man trying to eat the Chrysler Building than Dr. Doom setting off a nuclear device.  DeConnick gets that and it's all the better of an issue for it.

She has a great ear for Pete's personality and voice, so much so that I would love to see her try her hand at "Amazing Spider-Man" after Slott leaves.  For example, I totally believe that Pete would be afraid of flying in a prop plane, even though, as Carol notes, he swings "from spittle off skyscrapers."  DeConnick also manages to be the only author who seems to remember Carol and Pete's mutual attraction.  I've always loved the idea of the two of them together and I'm sorry that I wasn't reading comics when they went on a few dates.  DeConnick delivers some truly excellent flirting in this issue and I am so, so very proud of Peter for climbing onto that limb and saying, "Or, better yet, three minutes in the clo --"  Damn jetpack girl screwing up his line.  Lest you think only Pete gets the winner, Carol delivers one of the best lines of the issue:  "Don't you lady me, son, I'm an Avenger."  Awesome.  DeConnick adds to the impact of these lines by having a sense of comic timing that I don't think I've ever seen come across so clearly in a comic before.

In terms of the plot, DeConnick delivers an initially non-threatening MacGuffin in the form of the aforementioned jetpack-wearing activist seeking to steal money from a bank and redistribute it to the people.  (She decides to call herself "Robyn Hood" after a joke Pete made.)  She's being chased by an overzealous guy in armor who the Boston cops reveal is sub-contracted to the city after the bank "donated" his armor to the city.  (Smart bank.  Donate the armor to make sure your guy is the one to handle your cases.)  My only problem with the story is that he seemed to be WAY too blood-thirsty.  I get the fact that he wanted the bonus, but the fact that he was willing to kill not only Robyn Hood but also Captain Marvel and Spider-Man simply because he was allowed to capture her "dead or alive" really seemed WAY over the top.  Moreover, despite the cops claiming that they had no control over the situation, I'd be very surprised if a real cop would just step aside and let a glorified security guard kill someone, bank robber or no, donated armor or no.  But, the plot doesn't matter so much when you're having this much fun.

Venom #20:  You know, I've been reading comic books long enough to know that "Chekhov's gun" always applies.  As such, when the intro page mentioned Betty's brother Bennett, you'd think that I would've taken notice.  I did, but I noticed the next panel, mentioning Ned.  I knew from a spoiler that Crime-Master revealed his identity in this issue, so I was expecting to learn that Ned had returned from the dead.  I was not expecting it to be Betty's brother.  I'm not really sure how I feel about that.  On one hand, it helps Flash, since I'm pretty sure Betty is going to feel like Flash was chosen as Crime-Master's pawn as a result of his relationship with her and, although it might not eliminate her angry, that guilt will likely remove her ability to be completely indignant.  (I'm going to have to read earlier issues to see how Crime-Master found Flash in the first place.  Even if he didn't know his identity in the beginning and their "relationship" happened by accident, he likely amped up the "relationship" once he knew that it was Flash.)  However, on the other hand, we've got poor Betty Brant yet again being a victim of a man, this time of her brother.  I mean, first, she had her husband go insane (and become the Hobgoblin, since I don't acknowledge the ret-con). But, then, just in the last few issues, she's been kidnapped by Crime-Master, ("Venom" #4), mugged ("Amazing Spider-Man" #665), kidnapped by Crime-Master AGAIN ("Venom" #19), and now learns that Crime-Master is her brother.  I mean, I feel like we're seriously moving past "Women in Refrigerators" syndrome and creating a whole new "Betty Brant in Hell" category.

Meanwhile, Flash totally loses his shit in this issue.  His mother, thankfully, isn't dead (I'm assuming Human Fly ate her dog or something), but, in Flash's attempt to find her, he kills Death Adder (in front of a woman and her young son no less) and cuts off the Human Fly's wings.  Remender makes it pretty clear that Flash is in a head-long rush to find Betty and his mother.  But, it's also pretty clear that he's going to have to find a way to live with what he's doing now when the dust settles.  This series has made it clear that Flash is a little more comfortable with death than the average superhero, given his time as a soldier.    But, the way he killed Death Adder, the way he tortured Human Fly, and the fact that his brother-in-law was killed because of him are all going to be things that will weigh on him later.  Man, can't Flash have a win?

New(-ish) Comics!: The Spidey Affinity Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

OK, so, I'm current with most of my titles, but I'm still making my way through the backlog of Spidey books that I accrued during my move.  The cover date of this batch is June.  Yup, we have a long way to go.

Amazing Spider-Man Annual #39:  I've said it before and I'll say it again:  I'm not a huge fan of time-travel stories.  They're used way too often and usually contain so many logic inconsistencies that it's hard to focus on the plot at hand because you're too busy trying to figure out the various implications of the Butterfly Effect.  For example, we never really get an explanation why Uncle Ben is able to recall who Peter is but no one else can.  If I'm reading between the lines, it's because Uncle Ben is actually in Heaven, so he exists outside the normal constraints of the time stream.  But, we never actually get confirmation of that (probably because it's a bit of a ridiculous premise from the start).  Moving beyond the inconsistencies problem, I feel like this issue is cursed by using another plot device that's been used way too often recently, namely, bringing back Uncle Ben from the dead.  Maybe I've just read Spider-Man for too long, but we seem to have gotten to this well a little too much lately.  Reed actually did better than most in conveying the emotion that sort of moment would provoke in Peter, but, I have to say, I've read this sort of story too often for it to have any emotional impact on me.  Finally, are we really supposed to believe that the only positive contribution Pete made to the world was accidentally saving Anna Watson from getting hit by a car?  This issue seems to be more portraying a nightmare that Peter would have where, despite all his sacrifices, the world is demonstrably better without him in it.  I mean, if you look at a recent example, wouldn't everyone be dead because Peter wasn't there to keep Grady from making the mistake on his time machine?  [Sigh.]  It's not a terrible issue, but time travel combined with Uncle Ben combine with a dubious assertion about Peter's value left me feeling cranky by the end of it.

Avenging Spider-Man #8:  This issue is in theory an epilogue to "Ends of the Earth," but in reality it doesn't have much to do with it.  It begins shortly after the events of "Amazing Spider-Man" #688, with the Avengers and Spidey searching for Silver Sable's body.  But, then, the Avengers depart to take Doc Ock to the Raft and Spidey recounts a story of one of his adventures with Sable to Cap.  I can't say that I was particularly moved by the story.  In theory, it was supposed to show how Silver Sable was, under her cool exterior, really a big softie, as she helps Dr. Strange and Spider-Man aid a Symkarian princess in avoiding an arranged marriage with Dr. Doom.  (It's better if you don't ask for the details.)  Templeton relies on way too many convenient plot devices to get where he needs to go here; for example, Dr. Strange, for no good reason, apparently neglected to convey an important piece of information to the princess that would've essentially precluded Spider-Man's participation in this story if he had divulged it earlier.  The heroes eventually win the day and we return to the present, where we see Spidey dismiss Doc Ock over the course of two panels.  As expected, we also get hints that Sable might still be alive since, shocker, they can't find the body.  Given how abruptly "Ends of Earth" ended, I had really been hoping that this issue would tie up some of the loose ends.  But, instead, we get a pretty silly story and essentially no actual plot development, other than confirmation that Sable's body hasn't been found.  You can definitely skip this issue, even if you liked "Ends of the Earth."

Scarlet Spider #6:  I love this series.  Yost is doing a spectacular job of keeping his eye on the ball as he takes us on Kaine's journey from villain to hero.  After six issues, a lot of authors would've already discarded some of the original concepts of the series for expediency's sake.  (Remember how quickly "Venom" ditched the restriction that he could only be in the suit for 48 hours at a time when it started getting difficult to believe?)  However, Yost has really stayed focused on Kaine's struggles here.  We don't see Kaine suddenly embrace his superhero responsibilities and he's certainly not suddenly forgiven himself for his past sins.  It's Yost's continued attention to Kaine as he struggles with both his responsibilities and sins that really drives this series.

Yost is smart to separate Kaine's struggles as a superhero from his struggles with his past.  After all, you get the sense that Kaine is starting to enjoy being a good guy.  I mean, he does keep saving people.  If he didn't want to be a good guy, he could just stop saving people.  Plus, a guy bothered by whether his alias is cool enough can't be all that upset about the fact that he has one in the first place.  (I thought his whole "Dark Spider" commentary was great.  Yost has managed to keep injecting these moments of humor into the series.  Given the darkness of the stories he's telling, it's a welcome effort.  It helps you really see Kaine as something more than tall, dark, and grim.  See also Kaine's frustration with Aracely at the dinner.)  In fact, most of the humor in this series comes from Kaine's increasingly ridiculous insistence that he's not a hero.

By contrast, as we see with his conversation with Annabelle and the priest, Kaine is having a lot harder time reconciling his present with his past.  He's worried that Annabelle is going to hate him when she learns who he really is, and that worry fuels the most poignant scene of the series so far when he tells Annabelle to leave him before she gets hurt and she tells him that she's not going anywhere.  Part of the reason why it's so poignant is that Yost isn't rushing anything with them.  A lot of authors would've had them in a committed relationship already or would've annoyed us with forced tension.  Yost isn't playing a "Will they or won't they?" game here.  We're actually just seeing two people get to know each other and starting to trust one another.  It takes skill to show that sort of restraint, and I'm glad that Yost has that skill.

But, it's Kaine's conversation with the priest that really shows us how deep his guilt goes.  I don't think that I had realized that Kaine is not only struggling with his own past, but also with the fact that he's still alive and a "better" man, Ben Reilly, isn't.  It's an existential question, sure, but, again, it's really these questions of who Kaine is and who he wants to be that make this series so great.

In terms of the events of the issue itself, it's a great sequence of events.  Ryan Stegman and Edgar Delgado pull out all the stops:  Kaine's fight with Ana Kraven in the fire is spectacular.  But, most of all, I'll remember this issue for perhaps the best page of a comic I've seen all year:  Kaine standing in the middle of normal people, contemplating what it would be like to live a normal life, and then the crowd parting to reveal Ana.  It's a spectacular scene and I had to do a double take the first time I read it before I realized that it was Ana Kraven.  Awesome.  Later, when he saves Ana from the falling ceiling, we the reader realize that Kaine's transition to good guy is complete and his concern over the death of a "better" man is misplaced.  But, it's clearly going to be a while before he realizes that.

If it's not clear, I absolutely cannot wait for next issue.

Venom #19:  Holy crap.  I may have to strop reading this title, just because it's so grim.  Flash's brother-in-law getting lanterned by Jack O'Lantern, his mom possibly devoured by the Fly:  this issue is tough.  Ever since "Venom" #9, when we watched a woman and her child get killed, this title has put everything on the table.  Throughout this issue, I wasn't sure if even Betty Brant was safe.  As such, Remender created real tension as Flash searched for his sister, since it was entirely possible that she was already dead.  I really have no idea how Flash is going to win this one.  Crime-Master and his Savage Six just seem to be one step ahead of him.  Can he really kill all of them?  I guess we'll see.  Poor Flash, man.