Marvel has officially debuted the most powerfulVenomhost in its entire canon, as a battle between Hyperion and Nighthawk (Marvel’s Batman and Superman stand-ins) reaches terrifying new heights. Recently, Marvel’s ‘Venomverse’ was reborn - a multiversal web connecting every version of Venom across every reality. Marvel’sVenomverse Rebornseries offers fans a guided tour of the Venomverse’s most significant worlds, while also answering some major questions about the symbiote’s expanded lore.
In a preview ofVenomverse Reborn #4, the question under debate is the identity of the multiverse’s most powerful Venom. So far, the series has seen everyone from Spider-Man and Wolverine to She-Hulk, the Sinister Six,and prehistoric Venom Rexshowcase their symbiote potential. Howeverit’s a battle between Marvel’s Superman and Batman that seeks to answer the question of which Venom has most raw power.
The Venom on the issue’s cover - seemingly flying with a billowing cloak - might suggest to fans that Venom’s new host is Hyperion. However, the issue’s summary (below) seems to confirmit’s actually Nighthawk who is the strongest Venom, having carried out experiments on his body to match his all-powerful rival. The issue will also tell the story of a Wakandan Queen who has bonded with the symbiote, exploring her story for a different definition of power - that of nations and armies.
NOTHING BUT VENOMS! The journey across the VENOMVERSE reaches uncharted territory in the wide, weird and uncanny Marvel Universe(s)! Spider-scribe DAN SLOTT teams up with STEPHEN BYRNE to team NIGHTHAWK up with Venom! JUSTINA IRELAND and KEN LASHLEY travel to the ancient past and never-before-seen present of a Wakanda forged not of vibranium - but of symbiote! And AL EWING and DANILO S. BEYRUTH set the stage for what’s to come for the future of the VENOMVERSE!
Derrick Chew’s variant cover gets Marvel fans as close to a Venomized Batman as they’re ever likely to get.
“The All New Venom”: Venom Debuts New Design & Powers as Marvel Reinvents Its Iconic Symbiote (In Main Continuity)
Marvel has announced a new Venom, revamping the iconic antihero. A new host is claiming the symbiote, leading to a new look and fresh powers.
Nighthawk Becomes Marvel’s Most Powerful Venom
Marvel’s Batman Becomes the Multiverse’s Strongest Symbiote to Beat Hyperion
Beginning with aBatman v Supermanfight between Nighthawk and Hyperion, the issue teases thatvigilante Nighthawk (aka Kyle Richmond)has radically changed his biology to stand up to his Eternal rival. Derrick Chew’s variant cover for the issue depicts what appears to be Nighthawk’s Venom form perched on a gargoyle in the rain, evoking Nighthawk’s Batman-alike status, though the issue’s other covers show the character in more Superman-like poses, flying through the air with his fists balled.
Earlier inVenomverse Reborn, fans revisitedthe Venom ofVenom: The End(by Adam Warren and Chamba.) This version of Venom is tied into all biological life in the history of the world, and can access and combine essentially every superpower.It will therefore take ahugeevolution by Nighthawk to qualify as Marvel’s most powerful Venom, with his new powers likely just being the start of his rise to power. However, if Nighthawk is now Hyperion’s equal, he’s already taken onehugestep towards godlike power.
Hyperion has taken down Galactus in his time, so if Nighthawk is now his equal, that’s a huge power upgrade that goes beyond just uniting with Venom.
Marvel’s New, Totally Rebooted Venom Is Already 10x Freakier Than the Original
Marvel’s “Ultimate Spider-Man” is introducing a new version of Venom, & it is somehow even creepier and more possessive than the classic symbiote.
Matching Hyperion Is an Unbelievable Feat
At His Strongest, Hyperion Has Crushed Galactus Without Breaking a Sweat
There have been many different versions of Hyperion in Marvel lore, with some being heroes (Thor considers the heroic Hyperionwho joined the Avengers his brother) and others being villains (a deadly Hyperion was Earth’s most powerful hero in the alternate reality of theHeroes Rebornevent.)Hyperion was introduced to Marvel as a clear reference to Superman, allowing Marvel to have the Avengers fight the ‘Distinguished Competition’ without breaking any trademark laws.
Hyperion generally leads a version of the Squadron Supreme, with a roster of heroes who mimic other DC heroes, including Power Princess (Wonder Woman), the Blur (the Flash), Doctor Spectrum (Green Lantern), and Nighthawk (Batman.) He possesses essentially the same power-set as DC’s Man of Steel and similar weaknesses (for example, Hyperion’s powers are sapped byArgonite in a play on DC’s Kryptonite), however when he’s a villain, he’s often far more willing to unleash his powers in deadly ways.
Who is Hyperion? Marvel’s Version of Superman Explained
Hyperion is Marvel’s version of Superman, an Eternal with roots in the Silver Age - and almost as many retcons as the Man of Steel himself.
Hyperion has accomplished many major feats in Marvel lore, but the most recent include defeating the Avengers single-handed, beating Juggernaut in a one-on-one fist fight, burning the Hulk to death with his heat vision, andflying through Galactus' headat a fast enough speed to kill the cosmic being.
If Nighthawk has given himself the power to match Hyperion by becoming Venom’s latest host, then Marvel’s Superman is facing one of the most powerful superhumans to ever exist. However, it’s still possible Nighthawk may use his powers for good - after all,like Batman, he’s characterized by superhuman willpower and the desire to protect the innocent. Sadly, the same can’t be said for all the denizens of the Venomverse.
Strangely, Nighthawk has tried touse the Venom symbiote against Hyperionbefore. InHeroes Reborn #7, a flashback to the alt-reality’s Civil War event shows Nighthawk combining the symbiote and Doctor Strange’s eye of Agamotto against Hyperion, only to be thrown into space.
The Nighthawk Venom already has the perfect nemesis in a terrifying new symbiote who stole Eddie Brock’s powers.
Marvel’s Superman Just Became the Avengers' Biggest Threat, As He Finally Gets Ambitious
Marvel’s Superman pastiche, Hyperion, has reappeared as a major new enemy for the Avengers, threatening to destroy planet Earth with one punch.
Marvel’s New Venom Is the Most Powerful, But He’s Not the Most Dangerous
A Terrifying Child Venom Is Even Deadlier (With Less Power)
As the narrator Venom of the series reminds fans in the preview, settling Marvel’s most powerful Venom comes on the heels of the previous issue identifying the mostdangerousVenom. That honor went to a young cancer patient who used Eddie Brock’s visit to his hospital room to convince the Venom symbiote to abandon its current host, promising to use it to its fullest potential and become an A-list, world-conquering villain.
The story of Venom going to meet a young fan struggling with illness is a pastiche of 1984’s iconic story ‘The Kid Who Collects Spider-Man,’ fromThe Amazing Spider-Man #248. Roger Stern and Ron Frenz’s story sees Spider-Man reveal his secret identity to a young fan, only for the twist ending to reveal the child has terminal leukemia. In Venom’s take on the story, the sick child uses the symbiote to remove his cancer and implant it in Eddie Brock, leaving him to die in his place.
X-Men’s Gambit Is Powerful Enough to Destroy Marvel’s Superman
Up against Hyperion - Marvel’s evil version of Superman - the X-Men’s Gambit didn’t just hold his own, but vaporized the godlike villain.
In that context, Nighthawk’s new powers won’t necessarily mean there’s no-one who can stand against him, even asit puts him at the top of the power ladder for every Venom currently in existence. WhileVenomverse Rebornhas been pure fun so far, Marvel’sVenomlore is increasingly bound up in the multiverse, with each of these new Venoms having a cosmic link to the original, Eddie Brock. It’s likely fans will see Nighthawk’sVenomagain very soon, potentially as part of an army of symbiotes that is so far looking all but unbeatable.
Venomverse Reborn #4is coming from Marvel September 11.
Venom
Venom is a symbiotic alien entity bonded with various human hosts, notably Eddie Brock and later Flash Thompson. It grants superhuman strength, agility, and a shape-shifting black costume. Initially a Spider-Man villain due to its origins, Venom evolved into an antihero, battling both villains and his own dark impulses. The character embodies themes of duality and redemption within the Marvel Universe.
