Venom Features the Return of a Marvel Favorite

The second issue of Marvel's King in Black event series saw Eddie Brock breathe his last breath, dying while surrounded by his Avenger friends and teenage son, Dylan. Folks wondered if that would stick since it was already known that Eddie would appear in this week's Venom #32, but the new issue from Donny Cates and Iban Coello actually only follows the spirit of the hero as it is trapped in Knull's symbiote mind-hive, removed from his earthly body. While in the hive, Eddie works with Rex Strickland to help those still alive in the physical world, and the duo are joined by a hero we've thought long gone, one that Rex was looking for when he initially met Eddie at the beginning of this Venom run.

WARNING: This article contains major spoilers for Venom #32! Continue reading at your own risk...

If you recall, when Rex seeks out Eddie in the early issues of Venom, he informs the hero that he's actually looking for Flash Thompson, who has been dead for some time. Well, Flash makes a return at the very end of Venom #32, arriving to help Eddie take down Knull from the inside.

While helping Eddie understand that he's in a state in which his physical body is no longer, he explains that he finally found Flash Thompson, aka Agent Venom, who has been trapped in the hive since before Knull arrived.

"Like I told you, there's still some symbiotic friendlies in the hive. Some that were here before Knull arrived and don't exactly agree with his agenda," Rex told Eddie. "You'll have me and mine. Tyrannosaurus Rex'll have your back as long as we're standing. But most importantly, I'm happy to say I finally found the Venom I was looking for in the first place."

Of course, while this is the first time we've seen Flash Thompson in a somewhat living state in quite a while, it's important to remember he's not exactly alive. Their souls are in the hive but, as Rex explained to Eddie, their bodies are dead. This isn't going to stop Eddie from trying to escape back to the real world, so we'll see soon enough whether or not a resurrection from the hive is possible.

What did you think of Venom #32? Are you happy to see Flash back in action? Let us know in the comments!