Writer: Al Ewing
Artist: Sergio Dávila
Colorist: Frank D’Armata
Cover Artist: Bryan Hitch
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewer: StoryBabbler
Eddie Brock has gone through much to return the present day and rejoin with his son Dylan and the Venom symbiote. But there are still problems to deal with, and in order to face those problems, Eddie turns to one man who may have what he needs – Doctor Doom! Read Venom #24 to see how this encounter between Eddie Brock and the ruler of Latveria plays out.
Review:
From the get-go, it’s safe to say that this comic is thankfully a fun comic book. To some that might seem weird, but if you’ve been following this run, then you know that plenty of times Al Ewing can lean too far into the cosmic babble side of things. But here he leans more towards the fun adventure direction and pulls off this encounter between Eddie Brock and Doctor Doom very well. There will be some slight SPOILERS here and there in the review, but nothing too big.
The comic starts with Eddie passing through a security check at a Latverian airport, or rather trying since’s he getting held up by a Doombot who are the general security there. After repeatedly lying to the Doombot and denying to show what’s in his odd red bag. Of course, shenanigans ensue as it turns out the red bag is Bedlam, if it wasn’t obvious, and soon enough there’s a fight. Eventually, things shift to Dr. Doom’s palace where the Lethal Protector finally meets the man in charge and they get to business.
It goes without saying that this comic is not only a good read, but a fun read in both the writing and art. Firstly, Al Ewing does an excellent job in the characterization of both Eddie Brock, Bedlam, and Doctor Doom especially. It’s so easy to mess up Doom, but Al Ewing manages to hit all the best parts of Dr. Doom’s sense of aristocratic chivalry, intellect, and his ego even in his Doombots. This leads to some great back and forth between Eddie and Doom, and there’s actually a good reason why Eddie sought out Doom above anyone else.
Then there’s the art. According to the synopsis, Sergio Dávila is supposed to be a guest artist, possibly for this story arc. If so, I hope that’s true and we get more of Dávila’s art because while it’s not Cafu, it’s still pretty good. The art looks great with still characters and even more when they’re in action as we see in the fight scenes between Eddie & Bedlam with the Doombots and Dr. Doom himself. Best of all, Davila’s art with Frank D’Armata’s colors really compliment Eddie’s new design with Bedlam as well as Dr. Doom too. Which makes seeing their following altercations an enjoyable sight that I never thought I’d picture wanting to read and re-read over again. The best part is that the comic doesn’t make either one character overpowered or underpowered, they’re strong as they should be and how the fight develops makes sense to both characters and their goals at the time.
Final Thoughts:
Venom #24 continues Eddie Brock’s side of things as he travels to Latveria of all places to see Doctor Doom himself. The story gives a good reason behind this encounter and sets things up for a new fun story arc for Eddie and Doom. And that’s the thing, this is a genuinely fun comic thanks to Al Ewing’s pacing and solid characterization of Eddie, Bedlam, and Dr. Doom, which goes in hand with Sergio Dávila’s art to make this a dynamic comic book to read. Venom and Marvel fans will enjoy this comic book on its own and as part of this Venom run, and they will definitely want more by the end of the issue.