Marvel Resurrects an Ancient Race for Knull in King in Black

The long awaited King in Black event is finally here and Knull, the creator of the Symbioates, has Earth squarely in his sights. As a result it’s literally an “all hands on deck” scenario, with Venom, The Avengers, and even the X-Men all assembling to try and tackle the threat. Due to being the first being out of the abyss, Knull has been around for a long, long time, and it becomes clear very quickly that his plan of attack to take over Earth includes some surprising weapons. SPOILERS for King in Black #1 by Donny Cates, Ryan Stegman, JP Mayer, Frank Martin, and Clayton Cowles follow.

The first wave of Knull’s attack on Earth is not only his dragons but also some symbiotes who fly around attempt to consume the planet, but as Knull himself prepares to step foot on the planet we see his secret weapon: Celestials. As Eddie recounts in the issue, since Knull has been around since before creation the first beings he had to fight were these Jack Kirby creations who have long been present since the early moments of the universe. Knull is so in charge of these tarnished Celestials that he’s riding in one of them as his own personal vessel.

The Avengers have a secret weapon of their own though as The Sentry is shot at Knull in attempt to quell the invasion. Bob flies through the head of the celestial and tackles Knull, flying into space with him in an attempt to destroy him. Things don’t go as planned though, and Knull literally rips The Sentry to pieces. Eddie Brock tries to make a last ditch effort to stop Knull, who rips the Venom symbiote from his body and throws him from a great height, and this is just the first issue!

In addition to the flagship King in Black series, the event will stretch out into exclusive mini-series tie ins and even stories within some of Marvel’s monthly books. December brings not only King in Black proper but also one shots King in Black: Iron Man/Doctor Doom and King in Black: Immortal Hulk #1, mini-series King in Black: Namor, while also tying into Spider-Woman and Venom (naturally).

January sees the event continue with more King in Black, one shot King in Black: Black Knight, new mini-series King in Black: Planet of the Symbiotes, King in Black: Return of the Valkyries, King in Black: Gwenom vs Carnage, and King in Black: Thunderbolts, and tie-ins to ongoing titles like Daredevil, Deadpool, Guardians of the Galaxy, Savage Avengers, and S.W.O.R.D. February will include the fourth issue of King in Black, new one shots for Captain America, Marauders, and Black Panther.