Sep 11, 2026, 5:29 AM1 views

Marvel Officially Confirms Venom's Worst Nightmare Is A Classic Hero, And It's Not Who Fans Expect

Marvel Comics' Queen In Black event reveals that there’s a popular superhero who traumatized Venom, and it’s the last person anyone would expect.

Published Sep 10, 2026, 7:59 PM EDT

Mark has been a comic book journalist for over 15 years and has interviewed comic book creators like Gail Simone and Caspar Wijngaard. And when he's not writing, he's working on beating his record of 1,200 comics read in a year.

The Klyntar are a symbiote race that many know from , and the two of them are fighting for supremacy in the current event, Queen in Black.

During Venom No. 261, Reed Richards is working on a way to remove the Venom symbiote from Mary Jane Watson without killing either of them. This is a good thing for both Venom and MJ. Sadly, it brings back trauma that Marvel Comics readers didn’t know existed.

The Torture of Venom

Venom No. 261; Written by Al Ewing; Art by Carlos Gómez; Colors by Frank D'Armata

Venom No. 261 begins with the symbiote telling Reed Richards about when they first met. At the time, no one knew much about the black suit other than it was sentient and wanted to remain bonded to Peter Parker. What readers learn is that Venom didn’t want to feed off him. It was the first time it had a host who made it feel good, and Reed wanted to take that away. Unfortunately, the story only gets worse from here.

As the story continues, the suit explains that it perceived Reed as a monster. Mr. Fantastic used sonics to hurt it, had Johnny Storm surround it with fire, and then imprisoned it. Now, imagine going through that torment and, years later, being forced to be experimented on by the person who taught you fear. That’s what Venom was going through. It’s understandable that it lashed out during the testing.

The pain of trying to Marvel Is Teasing Venom's Next Era