Venom #5Posted: Thursday, August 4, 2011By: Robert Tacopina Rick RemenderTony Moore, Tom Fowler, Crimelab! Studios (i), John Rauch, Joe Caramagna (l)Marvel Venom #5 scales back the action to take a heart wrenching view into the life of Eugene "Flash" Thompson. The appropriately titled "Father's Day" is one remarkable piece of storytelling right there, folks! Rick Remender's Venom series has been a blast from the get-go, but this latest issue was the proverbial icing on the cake to this point. For the all-out action sort of people, this may issue may be a let down for you -- outside of an opening sequence that features Venom thwarting a kidnapping ring by the Human Fly, this issue was basically a 101 on character building. Read Full Review

As we head towards Spider Island, in which Venom is supposed to figure rather significantly, it's looking as though we can bet on Dan Slott handling the high-adventure side of the event, while Remender shows us the disgusting and horrifying side of life with everybody in Manhattan getting crazy spider-like abilities. It seems like a good balance... and we'll need the one to cope with the other. Read Full Review

We are reminded here that we have a completely different host for the Venom suit. Flash Thompson is a character with a deep history that has drastically evolved over the years. Rick Remender allows Flash to take a little time off from being Venom in order to show us the other issues in his life. Wearing the suit is taking a toll on Flash and with everything he's dealing with, being a hero won't be easy. We have some great Tony Moore art and get to see Venom fight a villain that is fitting. The majority of the issue's art is by Tom Fowler which gives a different feel to the issue but the way the sections are split apart doesn't interrupt the flow of the story. We get a tiny bit of a message in this story but it serves to show who Flash is and everything he has to deal with. Venom with a gun is cool but Remender gives a great reminder that being Venom (or Flash Thompson) isn't easy. Read Full Review

Art duties on this issue are split between Tony Moore (pages 1-6) and Tom Fowler (the rest). Since we've seen both artists work on this book, both styles are familiar and fit with the tone that we've come to expect. However, both styles are vastly different in both penciling style and inks (Crimelab Studios inks Moore while Fowler inks himself). While colorist John Rauch does a commendable job at providing some consistency, what helps more is the fact that Moore plays to his strengths in doing the only pages that are action-oriented and Fowler tackles the bulk of the issue that is ultimately character-centric and emotional. Both styles wind up a bit muddied by the colors in some instances, but overall this issue is up to par with the four issues previous, albeit with a sense of division. Read Full Review