Some dinosaurs need punching.
It's fascinating to compare Venom as it exists now to where the book was just a few months ago. The creative team may be the same, but nearly everything else about the series has changed. There's a new central protagonist with the return of Eddie Brock and a new status quo to go with him. Even the basic tone of the series has evolved, becoming much more goofy and over-the-top with the transition from Lee Price to Eddie Brock. None of these changes completely fix the book's ongoing woes, but they certainly help.
The most striking thing about issue #152 is how much better the series is being tailored to artist Gerardo Sandoval. Sandoval's extreme, exaggerated character designs tended to work against the book when the focus was more on gritty crime noir. But now that you have a musclebound, symbiote-clad anti-hero battling Stegron and his dinosaur army, suddenly those exaggerated characters seem much more appropriate. Sandoval's bombastic depictions of Venom and his reptilian foes are very easy on the eyes. Obviously, the art fumbles when the focus shifts back to more grounded matters. But even there, colorist Dono Sanchez-Almara brings a brighter, more cheerful sheen to the series that helps offset the murky, muddled line-work in those scenes.
For his part, writer Mike Costa maintains a solid balance between zany humor and continuing his exploration of the troubled bond between symbiote and host. It's all good and well to see Venom punch some dinosaurs for a few pages, but at some point you need a little depth to the conflict. Costa achieves that as he digs deeper into Brock's tenuous physical condition and explores his growing dependence on newfound benefactor Liz Allan. The fact that the symbiote itself has such a pronounced personality remains probably the book's greatest strength. I still find myself worrying that this series is more concerned with calling back to the past than trying to push Venom in new directions, and maintaining that dynamic between Brock and his suit is crucial.
Plus, it doesn't hurt to see Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur put in an appearance. Sure, it' seems almost obligatory for them to pop up in newer Marvel titles, but it's hard to argue they don't belong here given the nature of the conflict. And Lunella's feisty attitude makes her an entertaining foil for the humorless Eddie.
The Verdict
Venom still has some kinks to iron out, particularly in terms of the visuals, but at this point there's no denying the the series is better off with the return of Eddie Brock and the other changes that status quo shift has brought about. This issue offers plenty of zany fun without losing sight of the core host/symbiote dynamic that's been the series' strongest asset all along.
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