Marvel's Avengers/Fantastic Four Empyre Crossover Leads Into Venom Event

Marvel Comics has announced Web of Venom: Empyre's End #1 by Clay McLeod Chapman and Guiu Villanova. The one-shot is a prelude to the upcoming Venom crossover event King in Black and bridges the gap between that event and the ongoing Avengers and Fantastic Four crossover Empyre. Marvel released a teaser for the one-shot, which you can see below. King in Black is the next installment in writer Donny Cates and artist Ryan Stegman's run on Venom, which already led to the Absolute Carnage event. Knull is the God of the Symbiotes, first appearing in Cates and Stegeman's run. He's ready to conquer the Marvel Universe and he's headed to Earth. His arrival will force the heroes of Earth, including the Avengers to the X-Men, to go to war against Knull and his symbiote army.

Marvel teases that King in Black is the climax that Cates and Stegman have been building towards from the beginning of their run. It will see Venom, Eddie Brock, coming face-to-face with Knull.

"Since the beginning of our entire Venom saga, Ryan and I have been talking about the God of the Symbiotes, Knull, this insanely powerful being that now, after the events of Absolute Carnage, is free," Cates says. "And we've been saying that the God of the Symbiotes, Knull, is coming, Knull is on his way to Earth. Well, unfortunately, folks, come this December, he's here in a book called The King in Black.

"As far as event books go, this is the coolest, darkest, most heavy metal, Cthulhu dark horror thing I've ever been able to do. I still can't believe that Marvel is letting us go as dark and scary as we're going."

"One of the things I'm most proud of in this series… is the creation of the character Knull," Stegman says. "We have some new designs that we'll be unveiling throughout the series that are really cool and really creepy. The cool thing is that, in being used in an event like this, and he's taking on the whole Marvel Universe, it's pretty rare that you get an opportunity like that."

Cates adds, "All the Marvel characters think that they are prepared for this. They think that they have a plan. Eddie Brock has told them Knull is coming. The thing is, they are so not ready for it. Captain America, Iron Man, every single X-Men team, it is all hands on deck. What's even more exciting than that is none of you at home is going to be ready for it either. It all comes to The King in Black."

Before Empyre's End, another Web of Venom one-shot will highlight Wraith, one of the Dark Guardians who is hunting down Knull. That one-shot goes on sale in September.

Web of Venom #1 goes on sale in October. King in Black #1 goes on sale in December.