BB Review Group week 329 - Venom #1 (Spoilers)

**Ray G.** · 03-09-2011, 03:52 PM

This week we are reading: Venom #1 (Marvel) written by Rick Remender and drawn by Tony Moore.

Cover

Our reviewers this week are:

This week the Alternative Review Group is reading:

#187: Finder Vol. 1: Voice by Carla Speed McNeil (Dark Horse, 02/16)

- http://www.606studios.com/bendisboar....php?p=7601868

#188: The Gathering Volume 2: The Other Side of Despair ed. by Andrew Goletz (Gray Haven Comics, 02/17)

- http://www.606studios.com/bendisboar....php?p=7601870

The voting for next weeks book will begin Thursday

Our previous reviews:

**ATTN: There has been a change in how we are allowed to review older books. Please feel free to review any of the 24 most recent books at any time. If you would like to review a book older than that please PM me first, those threads are over 6 months old they are locked. If you'd like to review one of those books I'll create a new thread and link to the original.

Spoiler:

Our higest average grades so far were for Underground #1 with 9.7, Pride of Baghdad with 9.66, and Daredevil #82 with 9.64

Our lowest average grade so far Wildsiderz #0 with 2.9

Our Sponsor: Isotope Comics (SF Bay area)

What we do: This is a fanbased review group, open to everybody.

As people post the reviews, I will add your name and score to a list in the main post and at the end of the week average the scores for an overall grade on the book. We grade on a scale of 0-10, the meanings of which roughly translate to:

10 - Everything I want in a comic, an instant classic
9 - Excellent, a nearly perfect read
8 - Highly recommended but it has minor flaws
7 - Very good, it does have some problems
6 - Above average but has deep flaws
5 - An average comic
4 - Below average, the flaws outweigh the good
3 - A disappointing comic
2 - Forgettable, a waste of time
1 - Stay away!! One of the worst comics I've read

Anyone who participates is asked to please keep this scale in mind when giving a grade so that everyone is operating on the same system.

THERE IS NO OBLIGATION TO PARTICIPATE EVERY WEEK. Please join in as little or as much as you like week to week. If you are uncomfortable giving a grade then just join in the discussions and ask questions.

**Kingsumo** · 03-31-2011, 02:27 PM

Holy shit! A review thread without a review.

Well, I will fix that.

Sadly, this book was kind of a let down. For all intents and purposes Flash should make a good venom, and really a lot of that should be addressed in his origin in Spider Man rather then this comic.

However, since this was my first exposure to him in the suit, I was let down. I am not sure what they were going for, but if I wanted to read Deadpool in a black suit I would read X-force. The art went from passable to terrible in the middle of the book, and I found that I just don't care even a little for the here in this one.

I loved Eddie Brock, and I learned to like Mac Gargon in the symbiote, but I don't like Flash in there. Plus most of the "I cannot let the anger and emotion overtake me" has been done in the Hulk for... well, fuck, forever now.

On the whole I would give it a 3/10.

Ok, so I didn't say it would be a positive review.

**Fake Pat** · 03-31-2011, 02:31 PM

I was totally stoked for it until I saw the interiors. Moore's pencils got butchered to the point of being unrecognizable in spots. Major disappointment and already dropped.

5/10

**Blake Sims** · 03-31-2011, 02:34 PM

Originally Posted by Fake Pat

I was totally stoked for it until I saw the interiors. Moore's pencils got butchered to the point of being unrecognizable in spots. Major disappointment and already dropped.

5/10

Yep. I had no intention of buying it, but after seeing the interiors it solidified my decision.

**shoelaceless** · 03-31-2011, 02:36 PM

Yeah, after great Moore stints on Ghost Rider and Punisher I was really looking forward to this, but yeesh. I'll flip through the next issue but if it looks half as bad as this one I won't bother buying it. Really disappointing show, Marvel.

**Fake Pat** · 03-31-2011, 02:50 PM

Originally Posted by shoelaceless

Yeah, after great Moore stints on Ghost Rider and Punisher I was really looking forward to this, but yeesh. I'll flip through the next issue but if it looks half as bad as this one I won't bother buying it. Really disappointing show, Marvel.

It's insane how much worse the finished product in Venom is compared to both those runs. I'm baffled as to why they decided to futz with the production.

**shoelaceless** · 03-31-2011, 02:56 PM

Originally Posted by Fake Pat

It's insane how much worse the finished product in Venom is compared to both those runs. I'm baffled as to why they decided to futz with the production.

Yeah. Was there some rush to get this out? Was that what the dozen different inkers was about?

**Fake Pat** · 03-31-2011, 03:03 PM

Originally Posted by shoelaceless

Yeah. Was there some rush to get this out? Was that what the dozen different inkers was about?

Even if that were the case (which i wondered about too), I assumed that's why they brought Hawthorne in to do layouts (right?) on Punisher, which ended up looking a LOT better than this. Plus I don't know why that would effect the coloring.

**shoelaceless** · 03-31-2011, 03:06 PM

Originally Posted by Fake Pat

Even if that were the case (which i wondered about too), I assumed that's why they brought Hawthorne in to do layouts (right?) on Punisher, which ended up looking a LOT better than this. Plus I don't know why that would effect the coloring.

Yeah. Like you said, baffling.

**Joe Henderson** · 03-31-2011, 03:08 PM

I thought the story was great, the concept clean and smart, and the new Jack O'Lantern very interesting. I read it a bit ago and don't remember the art being as atrocious as everyone hear makes it sound. All in all, a book I'll be eagerly reading every month. 9/10