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Donny Cates’ Venom Reading Order

Donny Cates' Venom Reading Order

Introduced during the first Secret Wars event in the “80s, this alien symbiote was Spider-man’s black costume for a short period of time. When Reed Richards realized it was more than a piece of intelligent fabric, he helped Spidey to get rid of it. Following its rejection, the alien symbiote tried to get back to Peter Parker, but ended up bounding with Eddie Brock. This reporter for the Daily Globe wrote a story exposing the identity of the Sin-Eater but Spider-Man revealed it was not the truth and Eddie lost his job. At the end of his rope, Eddie met the symbiote. Together, they became Venom.

Friend or foe, Venom changed over the years and became a major Marvel player. He went from Eddie Brock to other hosts but came back to Eddie. When Donny Cates took over the writing duties on his title, Venom got back to Eddie who is searching for redemption. To do that, he aligned himself with heroes. During his fight with a cosmic monster, he discovered the real origin of the symbiote, opening a new way in the mythology of this iconic character.

What to read before Venom by Donny Cates?

There are a lot of Venom stories and some are referenced in Donny Cates’ run on Venom. That said, it’s a new start, a new mythology, and clearly a friendly entry point for new readers.

To know more about what came before, go to our Venom Reading Order.

Donny Cates’ Venom Reading Order:

Venomnibus

Donny Cates & Ryan Stegman’s Venom run is now available in one big Omnibus.

  • Venomnibus by Cates & Stegman
    Collects Venom (2018) #1-35, Venom Annual (2018) #1, Web of Venom: Ve’Nam (2018) #1, Web of Venom: Carnage Born (2018) #1, Web of Venom: Wraith (2020) #1, Absolute Carnage (2019) #1-5, King in Black (2020) #1-5; material from Free Comic Book Day 2019 (Spider-Man/Venom) #1, Free Comic Book Day 2020 (Spider-Man/Venom) #1, Incoming (2019) #1, Carnage: Black, White & Blood (2021) #2.

In paperbacks

Donny Cates' Venom Reading Order Volume 1An ancient and primordial evil has been awakened beneath the streets of New York. With it, something equally evil has been awakened in that most wicked of web-slingers: Venom! The symbiote may still be a Lethal Protector of innocents in New York, but this never-before-seen threat could possibly force Venom to relinquish everything it holds dear — including its human host, Eddie Brock!

Donny Cates' Venom Reading Order IconThis is when The War of Realms Event (Reading Order) takes place. Venom was in two places at the same time. In the storyline published in the Venom: War Of The Realms TPB collecting Venom (2018) #13-15 (and Web of Venom: Cult of Carnage #1), Cullen Bunn took over and wrote this three-issue story arc that you can skip. The other storyline is with the War Avengers and … it doesn’t make sense with the actual story of Venom. Great event though, but there’s nothing interesting for Venom readers.

Donny Cates' Venom Reading Order IconWe are jumping from one event to the other. This time, it’s a special Venom. It’s Carnage meets Knull vs Venom, Spidey, and the rest of New York’s greatest heroes. It’s called Absolute Carnage (Reading Order). If you just want the Venom stuff, you’ll need those two TPBs:

Absolute Carnage Omnibus - Donny Cates Venom Reading Order

The Absolute Carnage event is now fully collected in one omnibus edition.

King in Black! The sequel to Absolute Carnage. Read full reading order here.

Venom by Donny Cates Reading Order Icon

The Hardcover Collection

After Venom by Donny Cates

After Donny Cates ended his Venom run with a bang aka The King in Black Saga, Al Ewing and Ram V teamed up to take over the title with a new narrative approach. It’s not a reboot though, but a sequel.

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