Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} Spider Sense Spider-Man Spider-Man versus Venom by John Sazaklis Tingled Web: 15 Secrets You Never Knew About Spider-Man's Spider Sense. Spider-Man's most confusing power is also his most interesting, whether or not it appears in the movies. Here's everything you need to know! Before the release of Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), news broke that Peter Parker may not have one of his most iconic powers in the movie: his spider sense. Kevin Feige eventually confirmed that the MCU Spider-Man did in fact have his spider sense, it just wasn't explored specifically in the new film. That is a perfect example of why the power isn't just noteworthy, it's also confusing. It's one of the only super powers that can be appear in a movie and people aren't even sure if it's there or not. The way that the power is supposed to work is like this: when there's danger nearby, Peter feels a buzzing in the back of his skull or top of his neck. He refers to this sensation as a tingling , which often sounds creepy to people who are unaware of what's happening. This power gives Peter a huge advantage in a fight and makes it nearly impossible for people to sneak up on him. Of course, given the confusing nature of the power, it gives writers a lot of freedom in how it's used. Over the years, it's become Spider-Man's most varied power, and here are 15 things people never knew about it! 15 IT ALWAYS LOOKS DIFFERENT. When Spider-Man shoots his web, he always makes the same hand motion. When he swings around the city or crawls around walls, there are certain poses that artists always draw him in. When spider sense activates, however, there's much less consistency. Initially, it was depicted as a bunch of wavy lines above his head. If it went off while he was walking around as Peter Parker, he would be drawn with a half Peter face, half Spider-Man face. Meanwhile, over on-screen, The Spider-Man Animated Series (1994) would have the entire world turn into a mid '90s music video for a few seconds. In Sam Raimi's Spider-Man (2002), time would freeze and the camera would zoom around in bullet time. It seems like every artist or producer has their definition of what exactly it means to tingle. 14 DANGER DOESN'T HAVE TO BE IMMINENT TO ACTIVATE IT. Even though the ability to walk on walls and having super strength and agility are amazing powers, Peter's spider sense is definitely his best asset. While it's often referred to as a danger sense, it doesn't just detect imminent danger. As the Chameleon has often learned, the spider sense will warn Peter of dangerous people near him, even if they're currently not up to no good. The problem with this is that with no imminent danger, Peter often doesn't realize why his spider sense is tingling. It lets him know that somebody around him isn't who they seem to be, like when Glory Grant briefly dated a werewolf. Peter ran into the couple in Amazing Spider-Man #316 (1989) by David Michelinie and Todd McFarlane, and Peter had no idea that his spider sense was buzzing to warn him to avoid the guy around full moons. 13 HE CAN COMMUNICATE WITH IT. In Amazing Spider-Man #1 (1963) by and , the Chameleon makes his villainous debut. He hatches a plan to steal plans from a defense installation in New York City. Since he needs the real Spider-Man to show up at some point and take the fall, he uses a machine that broadcasts a message using a frequency that Spidey can pick up using his spider sense. Spidey gets the message and shows up at the installation, not knowing that the Chameleon had just stolen the plans while dressed as Spider-Man. What's interesting is that Peter just starts hearing a voice in his head and decides to follow it. He never even questions how the Chameleon knew the exact frequency his most secretive power worked on. Peter really was pretty gullible during this time period. 12 IT CAN TRACK VILLAINS. Using his spider sense as the basis, Peter invented a way to track his enemies without them knowing in Amazing Spider-Man #11 (1964) by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. He called the devices spider-tracers, and they're tiny little spider shaped transmitters that he can stick to an enemy. They're small enough to not be noticed, and they broadcast a signal that can be followed. Initially, he needed a receiver to follow the signal, but he eventually upgraded the devices to work with his spider sense. The real is why Peter would develop a device that every hero could benefit from, and then change it into something that only he can really use. Some other heroes like Daredevil can pick up the signal, but it doesn't work as well for them as it does for Spidey, who seems to be kind of selfish with his crime fighting equipment. 11 CLONE DETECTOR. If Peter encounters somebody who's evil, they'll usually activate his spider sense, even if they're currently not up to anything. Recently, however, it's also been revealed that his spider sense can detect clones. At least, that's what seemed to be suggested in Amazing Spider-Man #16 (2016) by Dan Slott and Giuseppe Camuncoli. After an explosion at one of Parker Industry's plants, one of the workers was left dying from chemical wounds. Peter allowed a medical firm called New U to perform an experimental procedure to save the man's life. In reality, they just cloned the man and switched the two bodies. The clone wasn't aware it was a clone, so it didn't have any duplicitous intentions. However, Peter's spider sense seemingly just went off because it recognized that the guy was a clone and it knows that clones mean nothing good is about to happen. 10 HE LOSES IT ALL THE TIME. Out of all of Peter's super powers, it seems like his spider sense is the most fragile. All the way back in Amazing Spider-Man #39 (1966) by Stan Lee and John Romita, the developed a gas that could knock out Spidey's danger sense, allowing him to follow the hero around without Spidey having any idea. Unfortunately, Peter changes out of his Spider-Man costume with the Goblin watching, which would go on to have major ramifications for years to come. This gas has been replicated several times by villains hoping to finally catch the hero by surprise without his spider sense warning him. It's a good thing that Peter's other powers can't be turned off so easily, or else his superhero career would've ended a long time ago. 9 IT'S NOTHING LIKE A REAL SPIDER. Out of all of Spider-Man's powers, his spider sense seems like the most random. Most species of spider can walk on walls, are comparatively strong for their size and are incredibly agile, so it makes sense for Peter to also have those powers. They also shoot webs, but Peter just replicates that power with mechanical web shooters. One thing spiders definitely don't have is a precognitive sense that warns them of danger. The thing is, there are species of spiders that do have a sort of "danger sense." Some species can feel any sort of vibration on their web, while others are highly sensitive to changes in air pressure, warning them of any nearby intruders. Sadly, real spiders can't use their danger sense to tell when someone's lying, or a clone or secretly a supervillain. 8 IT MIGHT BE MYSTICAL. Part of the reason why Peter's spider sense is so much different than that of a normal spider is that it might actually be mystical in nature. In Amazing Spider-Man #30 (2001) by J. Michael Straczynski and John Romita Jr, Peter meets a man named , who has spider powers of his own. Ezekiel tells Peter that he didn't get powers from an irradiated spider, but had actually become a human totem and had formed a mystic link with spiders. This would explain why Peter's spider sense acts the way that it does, as opposed to being more like a real spider's danger sense. Of course, the standing of the mystical aspect of Peter's origin has never been fully confirmed, but he has been the target of the villain , who feeds off of spider totems, so it seems that there is at least something slightly mystical about Spidey's powers. 7 IT CAN DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN FRIEND OR FOE. While Peter's spider sense is usually pretty good at alerting him to danger, it has one major flaw: it can apparently tell the difference between a friend or foe. In Amazing Spider-Man #114 (1972) by Gerry Conway and John Romita, Spider-Man is spying on ' hideout when he's suddenly struck in the back of the head with a vase. His spider sense didn't warn him because the assailant was his . Obviously, this is a huge flaw in the power. Luckily, it also doesn't seem to be very consistent. If that were the case, then any time Spider-Man fought another hero (which, in , is a surprisingly common occurrence), his spider sense wouldn't help at all. Thankfully, it only seems to be an issue when it's convenient for the writers. 6 IT SOMETIMES TAKES CONTROL. Peter's spider sense is so powerful that it can actually take control of his reactions for him. That makes sense, considering that it often warns him of dangers like bullets or laser beams or any other sort of crazy ray that's being shot at him. By the time the danger sense went off and Peter recognized it and decided to move out of the way, whatever was being shot at him would have already hit him. Over the years, Peter's trained himself to just let his spider-sense take control, especially when he's in a fight. This allows him to avoid getting hit while also focusing on how take down whatever villain he's currently facing. Of course, this does come with one obvious downside. 5 IT DOESN'T WORK ON EVERYBODY. There are several people who don't activate Peter's spider sense, leaving him at a direct disadvantage during a fight. While some villains have figured out ways to temporarily deactivate the power, others are permanently immune to it for various reasons. That means when Peter faces off against them, he's fighting with a severe disadvantage. For example, since Peter wore the Venom for an extended period of time, it's become completely invisible to the spider sense. When Spider-Man finally met in Amazing Spider-Man #300 (1988) by David Michelinie and Todd McFarlane, he was surprised that Venom was able to keep catching him by surprise. Fortunately, it wasn't enough of an advantage and Peter was still able to beat the villain. 4 IT'S POWERFUL ENOUGH TO HURT. While having a danger sense is an obvious benefit, it has one major downside: when it triggers hard enough, it can actually hurt Spider-Man. A recent example of this actually occurred in Nova #4 (2016) by Sean Ryan and Corey Smith, albeit to and not Peter. Still, the two have very similar spider senses, considering they both got their powers from similarly mutated spiders. During a fight in the 's underground lair, when Spidey's sense warned him about an imminent cave in, it clearly hurt him. If the danger is strong enough, the buzzing seems to be enough to cause pain. Granted, in the situations where it hurts Spider-Man, the spider sense becomes more of a distraction than a help. 3 NOT EVERYONE KNOWS IT EXISTS. Spider-Man is one of the Marvel Universe's most famous heroes, not just in the real world, but also in the world of Marvel. Everyone seems to know of him, but surprisingly, they're not all well-versed in his powers. Now, plenty of people are aware of Spidey's spider sense, but there's also a surprising number of people who seem to have no idea what Peter means when he says his "spider sense tingling." In New #61 (2010) by Brian Bendis, Stuart Immonen and Daniel Acuna, Spider-Man is hanging out with Spider-Woman, and when he mentions his tingling spider sense, she has no idea what that means. Out of all people, Spider-Woman should know Spider-Man's powers, but apparently she's too busy to learn the powers of the other spider-people she knows. 2 HE CAN CONTROL IT. At first glance, it might seem like this is less of a superpower and more of an extra sense (hence why it's called spider sense). This would imply that it's like any other sense and it's just always working, regardless of what Peter wants. For example, he can't decide not to taste something or turn his ears off. While it's always ready to buzz for danger, Peter also has some level of control over it. In Amazing Spider-Man #1 (1963) by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, Peter was able to focus his spider sense to locate a helicopter the Chameleon was using to escape. Considering that Spider-Man had just been framed for a crime and was being chased by the cops, it's pretty astounding that he was able to tune out all of the other danger around him to locate a fleeing threat. 1 IT'S HIS MOST INCONSISTENT POWER. For the most part, writers all agree on how Peter's powers work. While there might be some debate as to how strong he is, or how sticky his wall crawling is (does he stick immediately, or could he slide down a building for a second?), they're generally depicted working the same way. The spider sense, on the other hand, is much more troublesome. It's the one power that writers seem willing to mold into their own uses, or sometimes even just straight up ignore. In an early scene in Spider-Man 3 (2007), is able to successfully pull off a sneak attack on Peter while he's driving down a New York City street. When asked about the spider-sense, the filmmakers basically admitted that they ignored it for story purposes. Basically, the spider sense works however the current writer needs it to work in that moment. Would you want to have a spider sense, or would it be more of a burden than a gift? Let us know in the comments! The Best Spider-Man Fight Scenes Ever. Originally, this was going to be my Top Five fight scenes of all-time in comic book history. It’s another one of those Top Ten list ideas for our podcast that we have not gotten around to yet, and one that I thought had some legs and was eager to get a sneak-peek jump on by writing about my own personal preferred five for you. But there are a lot of fights in comics, and so damn many of them are awesome. So it’s hard to choose five! At that point, it became necessary to narrow them down a touch. Thus, the progression of the list was: Top Five Fight Scenes In All Comics! Eh, Top Five Mano-A-Mano Fight Scenes In Comics Because Big Team Battles Are Hard To Judge. Okay, So, THAT, But Only Hero Vs Villain Fights. No Hero Vs Hero Fights. And even then, I looked over my list–I did have a Top Five that fit that criteria–and just felt so “meh” about it. I had some off-the-wall choices that I don’t think would make the cut on many other fans’ lists, and I don’t want to come across as era-biased or anything like that. But they were MY five, and I didn’t want to cut them to just go with some basic “safe” choices that any list-making site could give you. So I reviewed further, trying to determine how to right the swaying ship. There was one fight from the list that called out for further attention, and it involved Spider-Man. However, it made me think “Well, why THAT one? Spidey’s had a lot of great fights over the years; I could probably do a Top Five of just Spider-Man’s fight scenes”. Cue the lightbulb next to my head, and here we are. Before we jump into the list proper, there is one Honorable Mention, as it was the third fight that immediately sprung to mind, and it hung on the list until the very end when I found something else to bump it off. It’s Spider-Man vs Firelord from A mazing Spider-Man #270 . It’s a fun brawl of an incensed Spidey punching WAY over his head against an opponent he had no business battling. It’s the ultimate example of Peter unleashing his speed and agility, in partnership with his Spider-Sense, to keep a more powerful foe off-balanced. I know this fight and issue get written off a lot as impractical, but for just a story purpose, it works and is a lot of fun. 5) Spider-Man vs : by Jim Owsley & Mark Bright. The Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and the Ol’ Canucklehead have crossed fists several times over the years, but their most memorable encounter was in this one-shot title simply called Spider-Man Versus Wolverine . For being a quick cash-in on two of Marvel’s biggest names having a dust-up, the book is actually pretty damn good. And while the fight is brief and doesn’t happen until near the end of the comic, it is wonderfully impactful. With no other way to save his friend Charlemagne, Wolverine has agreed to kill her. Spider-Man, mentally shaken from having found ’ dead body, jumps in to stop the mercy killing, and the two heroes brawl. After a few close calls because he’s too disturbed and distracted, Peter gives himself over to the instinctual fighting style of his Spider-Sense and begins hammering Logan, at one point pummeling him so hard against a that it cracks under the pressure. The two heroes get each other in a mutually-assured destruction kind of scenario, with Spidey in position to break Wolverine’s spine but Wolverine with his fist to the webbed hero’s chin, but it is broken up at that point. The scene ends with a jumpy Peter accidentally turning and punching Charlemagne so hard it kills her because he thought the X-Man was coming back for more, and this would haunt him for the rest of the issue. But like I said, this book is more than a rad fight. It gives wonderful character work on both stars, and furthers some things going on in both of those books in that era. Definitely read it if you haven’t already. 4) Spider-Man vs : by Roger Stern & John Romita Jr. A two-parter that takes place across Amazing Spider-Man #229 and #230, this is one of Peter Parker’s most famous battles… and one of those defining Spidey moments. When Juggernaut comes for , only Spider-Man can save her from his intentions, and what follows is a wild fight across New York as Spider-Man does everything he can to take a bite out of the unstoppable monster. Wrecking balls are useless, collapsed buildings barely bother him, and even running a tanker truck into him for an explosion doesn’t deter Juggernaut. Spidey finally jumps on the behemoth’s back, blinds him, stands strong under the pressure of his wailing fists, and guides Juggy into a pool of cement. With that, the Juggernaut is finally stopped. It’s a GREAT battle, with Spidey’s never-say-die attitude on full display, and he even runs out of webbing early in the fight to make the situation seem even more hopeless. Fellow Ghost, Andy Larson, also talked about this battle on our Character defining issues show of the podcast as his pick for Spider-man as well as in his Juggernaut write up on his Top 5 Marvel baddies . If two agree on something, you know it’s the truth! 3) Spider-Man vs : by J. Michael Straczynski & Ron Garney. We haven’t seen the last of J. Michael Straczynski penned books on the list, as this is the first of two, and it’s the last book to make the list before I started ranking and writing. I thought I had this whole deal set, but as I was searching images to use as a banner for this article, I turned up a page from the climactic battle of this Amazing Spider-Man: Back In Black run. Immediately I knew I must include it. While a lot of Spidey’s best fights are desperate wars against foes much more powerful than he (Juggernaut or Firelord) or even-kieled struggles against other heroes (Wolverine), this is something different, and fun in its own right. In this fight, we see Spider-Man taking on an enemy who simply isn’t in Peter’s weight class… but who has deluded himself into thinking he is. Kingpin has historically fought Spider-Man evenly in their shared history in battles that make as little sense as when Pete took down Firelord, but here, Kingpin has pushed Spider-Man too far by sending an assassin after Parker’s family. What follows is an utter humiliation of Wilson Fisk; Spider-Man easily defeats the crime boss while verbally reminding Fisk how hopeless a physical confrontation is. To further it all, the fight takes place inside a prison, and the Kingpin loses face in front of the very men he constantly seeks to use as pawns in his rise to power. If you are the kind of fan who thinks the idea of characters like Batman and Superman fighting is ludicrous because one should just wipe the floor with the other, then this is the story for you. Garney does great work making Peter feel more imposing even in the face of the larger Kingpin, and there is no story-driven evening of the playing field. It plays out exactly how it should. 2) Spider-Man vs Venom: by David Michelinie and Erik Larsen. There just HAD to be a Venom fight somewhere on this list. It was imperative. The question was simply: WHICH Venom fight? Going down the list chronologically, I found this battle, from Amazing Spider-Man #346-347 to be a favorite. Of the earlier contests, none quite seemed to match the intensity and sense of foreboding that this one offered up. In typical comic villain plot convenience, Venom has Spider-Man defeated and unconscious after tricking him into a cryofreeze. From there, Venom LOADS HIM UP ON A PLANE AND FLIES HIM TO THE CARIBBEAN so that they could have their death battle on the privacy of an island. Did… was Adam Sandler secretly Venom the whole time? Anyway, aside from that, this fight drips with dread; Peter is all alone, running low on webs, facing a foe he had NEVER defeated straight-up to that point, and in territory that Venom has scouted. Oh, and there is an abandoned village complete with burial ground in the middle of the chosen arena. It’s all Spidey can do for most of the issue to just flee from the symbiote-covered foe and try to come up with a plan. But plan he does, and between physical confrontations against Venom, this issue is all about Spidey thinking on his feet and running on survival instinct. What it ultimately comes down to is Parker having to trick Venom into thinking the former died during their fight… when in reality, he was swimming out into the ocean and hoping to come across some kind of ship to take him to safety. How awesome does that make Venom look when Spider-Man would rather FLEE INTO THE OPEN OCEAN than fight him? Say what you will about Brock nowadays, but Marvel did a great job at making him seem unbeatable for years after his debut. 1) Spider-Man vs Morlun: by J. Michael Straczynski & John Romita Jr. The fight that birthed this whole idea, as it would have been one of the five I included in a non-Spidey-centric list, this is a fantastic cover-to-cover war between Spider-Man and the debuting Morlun. After having finally tracked Spider-Man down, Morlun battles his would-be prey for HOURS around New York in what is, for my money, one of the best issues of Romita Jr’s illustrious career. I run hot-and-cold on JR Jr’s art, but he absolutely brought his A-game here, showing off a Morlun who is confident, sophisticated, and proud going up against a Spidey who gets more and more battered the longer the encounter drags on. There is real emotion in the pencils here, and it fits the dramatic fight that Straczynski laid out. The best part of this comic is the ending where, after finally creating some distance between himself and Morlun (an explosion doesn’t stop the vampiric foe, but it does, at least, cause him to leave to get new clothes), Spider-Man barges into the offices of Ezekiel, who had previously promised Peter sanctuary. At that point, Ezekiel tells him there is no longer any hope; now that Morlun has found him once, no force on Earth can keep him from the wall-crawler. After a brutal struggle that sees Spidey incapable of doing lasting damage to his enemy, it’s a bleak declaration. Spider Sense Spider-Man: Spider-Man versus Venom by John Sazaklis. Alright, people, let's do this one last time. My name is John Yan. I helped start a gaming website. And for 26 years, I reviewed plenty of consoles. I'm pretty sure you know the rest. You see, I got sent a PlayStation 5 with Miles Morales, played through the game, saved the city some more, enjoyed the haptics on the controller, maybe too much. The graphics were really tight. I went through the story, blah, blah, blah. I had some rough spots, but I handled it like a champion. Because, you know what, no matter how many times I got hit, I always got back up. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is the launch title for the PlayStation 5 and it’s a wonderful follow up to the great Spider-Man game from Insomniac Games. Following the ever popular titular character, you experience Miles’ story as he first develops his powers and comes to grips with the responsibility of being a superhero. When I first experienced Spider-Man, I compared it to the likes of the Batman Arkham series, because that’s one of my favorites and a lot of the things in Miles Morales's gameplay is similar to that game as well. The quick-action combat that Miles can perform gives a ballet-like quality in gracefully moving from one enemy to the next as you dole out punches, kicks and webbing. Miles has more powers than Peter Parker as he can channel electrical attacks—dubbed Venom Strikes—and can also turn invisible. Both are very prominent in the gameplay and you’d be wise to take advantage of them to make your life easier. As you fight, your venom meter increases and when full, you can unleash an electrically charged punch to stun a person where you can continue your attack on a helpless victim. They are very effective against those with weapons that can block Miles’s punches and kicks, so you’re really encouraged to use the Venom Strikes in the game. The meter will also facilitate the ability to heal yourself during the fight. When you get into situations where your health is running low, a quick press down on the D-Pad will heal you slightly, provided you have some of your Venom meter filled. It’s this balancing act of healing or dishing out punishing electrical blows that puts a little bit more of a strategic element into the combat. Should I risk taking this enemy out quickly and hope I can continue dodging the other attacks long enough to heal myself, or do I be more conservative and keep my health higher and risking getting hit more from the number of bad guys left? So the extra powers add a new wrinkle to the gameplay. I found myself doing a lot more stealth playthrough, especially once Miles gets the ability to turn himself invisible. Like the previous game, though, you’ll increase your abilities, gadgets, and suit to add some more toys and options during a fight. You’ll get tech parts and activity points to spend on these upgrades as you finish main missions and side missions. Manhattan is a busy city, so there are lots of NPCs walking around and plenty of traffic in the streets. It feels alive. You’ll see a lot of activity happening as you’re moving around. Swinging around, you might be notified of a crime near you. You can do your friendly neighborhood Spider- Man duty and stop those crimes. There are some training missions and even side missions to record sounds throughout the city. Miles also has an app where citizens can request help. All told, you’ll have a ton to do during and after the end of the main storyline to keep you busy for hours. Speaking of the main storyline, it took me around eight hours to complete. It’s definitely a tighter, shorter story but it’s fun nevertheless. If you’re a comic fan, you’ll recognize a lot of the characters. The is somewhat different from the comics, but it works for the game. Miles's Uncle Aaron has a prominent role in the game and Peter Parker’s is more of an overseer in this one, like Tony Stark in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Again, the story isn’t that long, but it’s got a satisfying beginning, middle and end. There were only a few times I got frustrated with the game, and for once it wasn't the end game. Fights can get a little tough if you don’t take advantage of your Venom Strikes and invisibility, but for the most part, I didn’t have too much trouble getting through it on the default difficulty level. On the PlayStation 5, Miles Morales plays like a dream. Let’s start off with the load times. From the PlayStation 5’s home menu to the start menu of Miles Morales takes about seven seconds. That’s blazingly fast and shows off the improved storage technology of the PlayStation 5 to get you into the game quickly. And reloading a saved game was but a few seconds. Insomniac Games really took advantage of the speedy storage on the PlayStation 5 to get you playing in minimal time. We knew the next generation of consoles would have a big emphasis on improved graphics and Miles Morales really shines here. Now, we know the graphics will be improved in future games as developers take advantage of the hardware in the system—but for a launch title, Miles Morales looks gorgeous in 4K HDR. I have the console hooked up to an LG OLED TV and everything just pops off the screen. I decided to play the game in fidelity mode, which runs at 4K 30FPS with ray tracing, enhanced lighting, and other visual effects turned on. There’s also a performance mode which turns off those extra features, but lets you run the game at 60fps. For me, the performance mode does look smoother and you can tell when Miles is swinging around the city. With fidelity, it isn’t as smooth, but man, the game looks so nice with the extra features that I stayed on fidelity mode the entire time and didn’t feel like I missed anything with the halved FPS performance versus the other mode. Textures are super high quality and you can see the detail of the suits that Miles wears. There were many times I just stared at all the intricate patterns in the suits and marveled at how detailed they were. There’s a vast amount of detail in the city where the increased polygons and textures the PlayStation 5 make everything look great. With the game taking place in the Winter season in Manhattan, you’ll get some immaculate winter scenes with nice-looking snow falling down at times. Blizzards can impede your with heavy snowfall. And yes, as you walk through snow, you’ll leave tracks behind. HDR will make the game shine on some levels, especially where there are dark areas lit up by neon. I love the contrast of colors in some scenes, and during the daytime the city really pops in HDR. Add in enhanced lighting and ray tracing when fidelity mode is on, the Miles Morales really takes off with vibrant colors. While the previous consoles weren’t that bad in having good quality textures, the extra power afforded to you by the AMD RDNA architecture in the PlayStation 5 delivers graphical fidelity only seen on PCs of recent years. As with my review of the console, the DualSense controller really enhances the gameplay of Miles Morales. Besides the usual rumble and shaking when doing punches are charging up a Venom Strike, the subtle haptic effects really come together to offer you a deeper connection to the world. In the beginning when Miles rides the subway, the DualSense controller will rhythmically vibrate to simulate the bounce of a train rolling on the tracks. When Miles helps someone put a sofa into the back of a truck, the game simulates the feeling of the sofa legs dragging on the floor of the truck as they slide it in. There are times the controller will rumble a little as cars drive by him. Zip around and you’ll feel a slight rumble as your spiderweb flies out of the wrist guards. These little things add up to the experience and show Insomniac Games attention to detail in providing not only top notch gameplay and visuals, but on the physical level as well. I did have a few hiccups while playing. During an early scene with , my game just locked up in a cutscene. Later on, a phone call with Uncle Aaron wouldn’t end so I was stuck without the use of my spider-sense to see where certain activity icons were in the world. Hopefully, a patch comes out on release day to address some of the random issues, but those were the only two I found in my 15+ hours or so of playing. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is a great standalone game that continues the story that Insomniac has crafted. While the main story is a little short, there’s still plenty of things to do around the city. The graphics, especially for a launch title, shows off the power of this next generation console. The DualSense controller adds to the immersion in the game, giving you a tactile connection to the world. Spider-Man: Miles Morales is a solid entry in the series and a great launch title for the PlayStation 5. Venom (The Spectacular Spider-Man) Venom is the result of a bond between Eddie Brock and the alien symbiote previously worn by Spider-Man. Eddie's hatred of Peter Parker combined with the symbiote's betrayal by Spider-Man make them one of the greatest foes for the webslinger alongside Doctor Octopus and Green Goblin. Contents. Biography. From Friend to Foe. Eddie Brock was once Peter's childhood friend. Their families were close and they grew up together. Their mothers were best friends, and their fathers were business partners. One day, the four of them went to a conference in Queens and died in a plane crash. ("Group Therapy") Brock and Peter developed a fraternal relationship and often addressed each other affectionately as "bro." During high school, Brock protected Peter from bullies like . He apparently was also a popular quarterback. ("Survival of the Fittest") Brock welcomes both Gwen, and his childhood friend, Peter, to the lab. After his graduation, Brock enrolled in the , and so as to support his tuition he got a job as Dr. Curt Connors' personal lab assistant. When and Peter become lab interns, Brock gleefully welcomes them both. ("Survival of the Fittest") Brock makes a move on to provide an escape for Peter, Gwen, and Liz. During one night, while Max Dillon was upgrading the labs' bioelectrical filters, an accident occurred and Max received an electric discharge and was bathed in a dangerous fluid. Brock and Doctor Connors rush him to the hospital, and Brock watches as Max is taken into the isolation ward. After Max's condition had been stabilized, Brock keeps him company and tries to console him, but Max is frustrated and storms out. On the next night, the team is back at the lab trying to find a solution for Max's condition, when he bursts in looking for Connors. Max, now calling himself Electro, threats Connors and as he presses in, Brock lunges at him to allow Peter, Gwen and Liz Allen to slip out. Brock gets knocked out and then Curt and Martha Connors drag him away. ("Interactions") In another act of heroism, Brock saves Spider-Man from drowning. A few days later, Brock is still cleaning up the laboratory when Dr. Connors comes in with his family to celebrate the recovery of his once lost limb. Brock is thrilled and predicts a guaranteed Nobel Prize. However, his joy soon turns to concern as they ascertain that Connor's experiment had some unexpected side effects. Brock runs some tests and determines that the formula Connors used on himself creates new reptile sequences faster than he can identify and neutralize. Peter then suggests the concoction of a gene cleanser, but before they could act on it, Connors transforms into a human sized . Brock tackles him, but the Lizard is irrational and too strong, and shakes him off. Brock tells the others to start working on the gene cleanser and goes off in Connors' pursuit. Brock lashes out at Peter for the first time. He tracks the Lizard down into the subway. As Connors stows himself away in a train headed to the Bronx Zoo, Brock gets on board. At the Zoo, Brock phones Martha reporting their whereabouts. When Spider-Man arrives, he tells Brock to stay clear, but Brock doesn't listen. When Spider-Man makes his move on the Lizard and nearly drowns, Brock pulls him out of the water. Spider-Man decides that plunging the Lizard in the polar bear pond would slow him down enough for him to administer the oral cleanser. Upon this, Brock volunteers to serve as live bait. On the next day, after the crisis has been averted, Brock shows the Connors the newspaper with the story on the Lizard, illustrated with Peter photos. Brock lashes out at Peter, thinking he ditched the attempt to make the antidote to take photos. Peter is fired, and Brock turns his back on him. ("Natural Selection") For the subsequent days, Brock still harbors some resentment for what he thought was Peter's backstabbing. He tells him on the phone he'd get over it, but he needed some space. ("Market Forces") Some time later, Brock asks Gwen if Peter asked her to the Midtown Fall Formal. She tells him Peter isn't going, so Brock offers himself as her date. ("The Invisible Hand") They go to the Formal together, but Gwen gets upset when she sees Peter arriving with , and walks away from Brock. ("Catalysts") Venom Is Born. Brock's resentment against Peter keeps pilling up. When an organic black mud is found attached to Colonel 's space shuttle, it is taken to Connors for analysis. Peter phones Brock who tells him that because of the Lizard ordeal, Martha Connors does not trust Peter to be near their business. When the alien life form disappears, everyone assumes that Spider-Man stole it, and Brock is upset at Peter for taking pictures instead of calling the police during the robbery. ("Persona") A few days later, Brock runs into Peter and vents his rage on him, saying that he is an opportunist and should lose something he values. He speeds off and picks up Mary Jane for a date, whom apparently he invited to spite Peter. While he is driving Mary Jane through town in his motorcycle, Brock starts lashing out at Peter and driving precariously. Mary Jane yells at him to pull over and tells him that in spite of his mistakes, Peter is twice the man Brock will ever be. Brock is left alone feeling upset. ("Group Therapy") As Brock's rage escalates, he unknowingly makes contact with the symbiote. When Gwen tells Brock about Aunt May's heart attack, he goes to visit her at the Manhattan General Hospital, despite not wanting to see Peter. On his way out, Brock bumps into Peter and vents his resentment at him further, accusing him of being uncaring and ungrateful. Back at the ESU lab, Dr. Martha Connors informs Brock that after losing the alien life form the funds for its research were pulled, and thus they cannot afford to keep Brock on their payroll. Brock protests that without that job he'll have to drop out of college, but to no avail. Brock heads back to the hospital and waits for Peter. When he drops in, Brock grabs his shirt, which happens to be the symbiote, and lashes out at him, but Peter slams him against the wall and Brock backs down. Brock merges with the symbiote. . and becomes Venom! Later that night, Brock returns to the laboratory to pack his things when he finds Spider-Man dumping the symbiote in its cylindrical container. Brock is overjoyed with the prospect of getting his job back, but his hopes come to naught when Spider-Man lowers the temperature of the containment, freezing the alien to death. Brock berates and curses Spider-Man, deeming him as bad as Peter, when he notices that the alien is still alive and is calling to him. Brock opens the container and the symbiote ensnares him. The alien tells Brock he has sensed and liked his hate. It then asks him if he hates Spider-Man and Peter. Brock confirms and the symbiote reveals that Peter is Spider-Man. The alien then proposes Brock that they bond to enact revenge on their common enemy. Brock agrees and the two merge, becoming an over-sized creature, sporting the likeness of Spider-Man's black costume, but with jaws and a protruding tongue. ("Intervention") The creature goes to the 's headquarters just after Spider-Man goes back on their deal, and offers to fill in. The Big Man tells the creature he needs to prove himself by killing Spider-Man. The creature gladly accepts. On the next day, Brock takes a call from Peter commiserating for his lost job, and Brock pretends forgiveness and proposes a get-together later on. Peter declines because he needs to be with Aunt May and Brock guarantees they will meet soon. After Peter comes back from another hospital visit, the creature pulls him out of his room and engages Spider-Man in his backyard. He lashes out at Spider-Man for spurning the symbiote and vouches to destroy Peter and Spider-Man, dubbing himself Venom. Spider-Man puts up a fight, but Venom is considerably stronger and knocks him around for a while. He finally restrains Spider-Man with his webbing and claims that killing him now would be too easy. First, he wants to hurt him by going after every person he cares about, so he takes off after Aunt May. Venom had sent her an anonymous bouquet of flowers, and just as he creeps towards the window, Spider-Man intercepts him. The symbiote chooses Peter over Brock. A fight ensues, and Spider-Man manages to keep Venom away from Aunt May's room window. Venom declares that she is not his only target, and after revealing to Spider-Man that he is Brock, he goes after the person Peter loves the most: Gwen. Brock meets Gwen at the Thanksgiving Day Parade and suspends her from a balloon. Venom intercepts Spider-Man before he can save Gwen and taunts Spider-Man about how he doesn't trigger Spider-Man's Spider-Sense. Another fight ensues, and Spider-Man tries to get through to Brock, but Brock declares that they are not brothers, and while Peter always had Aunt May, Brock has always been alone until he bonded with the symbiote. The fight pursues until Spider-Man tricks Venom into slashing Gwen's balloon, causing it to descend slowly. Venom still tries to knock Gwen over, but she is rescued and taken to safety. Afterwards, Venom takes on Spider-Man and declares that he is done playing with him. Spider-Man pretends surrendering himself to the symbiote. The alien detaches itself from Brock, who collapses in disbelief. ("Nature vs. Nurture") After coming to, Brock heads back to his apartment, packs his things, and goes AWOL. ("Blueprints") The Return. After successfully tricking Spider-Man into taking him to the symbiote, Brock prepares to reunite with it. A few weeks later, Brock starts stalking Peter. He allows himself to be seen by both Peter and Spider-Man in the hopes that Peter would become paranoid and lead him to the place where he had buried the symbiote. Brock is spotted twice by Spider-Man while on patrol, and then crashes Flash Thompson's birthday party. He goes on camera to say that he plans to crash more parties and that "they" will see Peter soon. In the following hours, Spider-Man battled with abroad an oil tanker. Brock puts on a sweatshirt with Venom's arachnid symbol and slips away in a rooftop in plain sight. Spider-Man spots him and assumes that Brock has bonded with the symbiote again. He goes back to the construction site only to find out that the alien is still buried under hard cement. Unsuspecting, Spider-Man swings off and Brock webs down with a web-shooter he had created from Peter's memories. [1] He thanks Peter for leading him to the symbiote's location and starts mauling the soil with a sledgehammer. ("First Steps") He eventually frees the symbiote and bonds with it again. The Revenge. Venom is back and wants revenge on Spider-Man. Some time later, Venom goes on a crime spree to frame Spider-Man. He changes his appearance so as to look like Spider-Man when he was donning the black suit, and foils a robbery in progress in a convenience store. He ensnares the crooks as they make a run with the stolen money, and when the police show up, he subdues them too and absconds with the loot. On the next day, he attacks an armored van from Midtown's Bank, causing it to overturn. When Spider-Man drops in, Venom snares him to the top of a nearby building. A fight ensues and he accidentally sets the building aflame. Venom declares that he wants to destroy every aspect of Peter's life. Just as soon as Colonel Jupiter makes an entrance, Venom slips away. From afar, he watches a squabble between the two heroes, and sees this as an opportunity to further his plan. Venom barges in the and reveals Peter's secret identity. He attacks Colonel Jameson in his loft, posing as Spider-Man, and flees before he can be followed. Venom succeeds in instigating a fight between Spider-Man and Colonel Jupiter. Spider-Man eventually defeats the Colonel and unwillingly drives him insane. On the following day, J. J. Jameson is blaming Spider-Man for destroying his son and wants retribution. In that moment, Venom bursts in the Daily Bugle and announces that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. ("Growing Pains") Brock harasses Peter and contemplates using Gwen to get back at him. On the next day, Brock walks in ESU lab and announces his return, claiming to have taken some downtime after being sacked. He proposes Gwen they catch up over coffee, alone, but Peter immediately extricates Gwen saying they have a date with Harry Osborn. Dr. Martha Connors offers Brock his job back, which he gladly accepts. He then takes Peter aside and says he is disappointed that his disclosure didn't do the expected damage. Before Brock can say what he intends to do, Peter pushes him away and walks out. Venom nearly unmasks Spider-Man in public. Later that night, Brock is walking down a street and gets pulled up by Spider-Man onto a rooftop. Spider-Man tries to reason with him, saying that he is going to hurt many people. Though, as he turns to Venom, Brock turns the tables on the webslinger declaring that many people will get hurt because of Peter's secrets, and he can't wait to see them turn on him. And fight ensues and the two fall down in front of the ESU Student Store, which is crawling with reporters. As every objective turns to the brawling arachnids, Venom introduces himself and announces that he is going to unmask Spider-Man. Spider-Man resists and repels Venom, who claims that if Spider-Man isn't Peter he wouldn't resist so much. Then Venom lands a blow on Spider-Man with so much strength that he hurls him all the way to a rooftop. When he leaps after him, Spider-Man has already slipped away. Spider-Man plunges the gene cleanser down Venom's throat. On the following day, Brock resumes his work at the ESU lab and steals a vial of gene cleanser. There, he is also interviewed about Spider-Man being Peter, and he nonchalantly admits that they grew up together and should have realized the truth before. Then, Venom goes after Spider-Man and tells him that after unmasking him he will pour the cleanser down his throat, making him a helpless target for his enemies. Venom actually manages to unmask Spider-Man, but Peter retrieves his mask just before anyone can see his face. The two fight and chase each other around, until they end up fighting inside Midtown High school Biology classroom. Spider-Man fences Venom with a few sonic waves, but this only enrages him more. They fight all the way to the gym and Venom tries to force-feed Spider-Man with the gene cleanser, when Flash Thompson provides a distraction and Spider-Man gets loose with the cleanser. Venom grabs Spider-Man and demands the vial, so Spider-Man shoves it down Venom's mouth. As the symbiote starts to release Brock, he tries to hold on to it, but to no avail. Spider-Man tells Brock he is free and can stop hating. Brock retorts that hate is the only reason why the alien loves him. Brock is deemed insane and taken away. Moments later, Brock is wheeled to an ambulance, strapped in a gurney, promising revenge and asserting that the symbiote will return, and that he is Venom. ("Identity Crisis") Powers and Abilities. Because of the symbiote's former bond to Spider-Man, whoever acquires the symbiote has all of his powers. Venom has the ability of superhuman strength, agility, durability and equilibrium as well as the ability to cling to most surfaces. However, Venom's abilities are greater than Spider-Man. Venom and his webbing are stronger. Venom's most powerful trait is that he is immune to Spider-Man's Spider-Sense making him the one enemy that can sneak up on the wallcrawler. One possible explanation is that while bonded to Spider-Man the symbiote figured out a way to block it. Another is that since the symbiote was a part of Spider-Man that his Spider-Sense recognizes the symbiote as friendly. Weaknesses. Like Spider-Man when he had the symbiote suit, Venom is vulnerable to sound. Background. Venom was voiced by Benjamin Diskin. This Venom is a combination of the Mainstream Venom, Ultimate Venom, and Venom from Spider-Man . The symbiote is an alien lifeform such as the 616 version. Eddie is a childhood friend of Peter such as the Ultimate version. And the symbiote came to Earth thanks to John Jameson such as the earlier series version. MCU Spider-Man & Blade Battle Sony’s Venom & Morbius In Fan Art. A new work of fan art depicts Marvel Cinematic Universe heroes Spider-Man and Blade in battle with Sony's Spidey villain characters Morbius and Venom. A new piece of fan art has offered a glimpse at what it could look like if Spider-Man and Blade teamed up to battle Morbius and Venom within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The interconnected world based on Marvel Comics debuted in 2008. In the time time, the combined franchise has produced three phases that featured trilogies for characters such as , , and . Each phase has also included a team-up movie that pits the entire roster of The Avengers against a different foe. Phase 3 itself concluded the entire "Infinity Saga" with the superhero collective defeating Thanos and restoring trillions of lost lives in Avengers: Endgame . Following an unprecedented deal between Marvel Studios and Sony, a new version of Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland) debuted in Captain America: Civil War . As well as also starring in Avengers: Endgame , the character went on to lead two solo films of his own - including, most recently, Spider-Man: Far From Home . With a third already confirmed, it's expected that the movies will eventually cross streams with Sony's fledgling universe centered on Spider-Man villains and anti-heroes. Having already begun with the hugely successful Venom , that corner of the franchise is set to continue with Venom: Let There Be and Morbius - both of which will connect to the MCU more directly. Thanks to illustrator and concept artist Jackson Caspersz, fans can now get a taste at what that clash could look like. Posted on his personal Instagram page, the result of Caspersz's time and effort looks right out of a comic book itself. Amid soaring debris, an MCU-accurate version of Spider-Man can be seen pummelling at Eddie Brock in full Venom mode. Played by Tom Hardy, Venom offered a different version of the character's origin story, sans Spider-Man. Despite ending the film more hero than villain, it's still expected that Venom will initially clash with Spider-Man before aligning. If that wasn't enough, the image (which comes in various stages of completion) also features Blade squaring off with the vampiric Morbius. Check it out below: Though previously played by Wesley Snipes on the big screen, the vampire-hunting Blade has yet to make his MCU debut. However, it was previously confirmed that the character would be a prominent part of Phase 5. Furthermore, it was announced that two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali will embody the role. Like Venom, Morbius frequently blurs the line between hero and villain in the comics. That will no doubt be true in the solo movie - which will see Jared Leto's Morbius go up against the ever more villainous Loxias Crown (Matt Smith). As such, it makes plenty of sense for Blade to initially dismiss Morbius as just another vampire. It remains to be seen whether the MCU will cross over with Sony's Spider-Man universe to the degree of having Morbius and Blade meet. Equally, with both Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Morbius delayed until 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the full extent of their connection with the MCU and if Holland will cameo as Spider-Man is equally unknown. However, there is no doubt that a clash that briefly partners Spider-Man and Blade against Venom and Morbius would be epic to behold within the MCU . Caspersz's work indeed serves as proof of that and will no doubt leave fans just as eager for it to be realized on the big screen. Key Release Dates. Black Widow (2021) Release date: Jul 09, 2021 Eternals (2021) Release date: Nov 05, 2021 Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) Release date: Sep 03, 2021 Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) Release date: Dec 17, 2021 Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) Release date: May 06, 2022 in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) Release date: Mar 25, 2022 Black Panther: Forever/Black Panther 2 (2022) Release date: Jul 08, 2022 The Marvels/Captain Marvel 2 (2022) Release date: Nov 11, 2022 Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021) Release date: Sep 24, 2021 Morbius (2022) Release date: Jan 21, 2022. John Atkinson has been a news and feature writer for Screen Rant since late 2018. Before that, he had articles published across a number of different outlets. A graduate of the University of London, John was raised on a small island by television and movies. As such, he pursued a career in screenwriting and film journalism when it became apparent that actually becoming Spider-Man was impossible. John's fondest wish is to one day produce a film of his own. Until then, he's more than happy to spend countless hours just talking about them. John's love of film and television defies genre and sometimes even logic. Nothing is off-limits to his passion - be it Marvel, DC, Rian Johnson's Star Wars, or Tommy Wiseau's latest cinematic offering. Away from screens, John can often be found in a park reading mystery and/or fantasy novels, jumping up and down at various music events, or thinking too deeply about Keanu Reeves' career and why Edgar Wright doesn't have an Oscar.