Carnage: Superior Carnage

Superior Carnage #1-5

by Kevin Shinick, Stephen Segovia (Illustrator)

Locked away in an asylum, it looks like Carnage is finally gone for good - but his fellow inmates have other plans. Will they successfully wake the monster...or will this hideous experiment create the most powerful, dangerous, maniacal Carnage yet - a Superior Carnage? After performing unspeakable acts in the name of science, the Wizard finally unveils Carnage's brand new look and releases his personal agent of evil out into the world! But can the new Frightful Four control their newest member? Or will the team be destroyed from within? And lest you think we forgot, it's the moment you've been waiting for: Superior Carnage vs. Superior Spider-Man, with enough blood and bluster to rival Sunday nights on HBO! It's a story so grotesquely gratifying you wont be able to look away!

COLLECTING: Superior Carnage 1-5

Genres: Comics, Marvel, Graphic Novels, Spider Man, Superheroes, Graphic Novels Comics, Science Fiction

120 pages, Paperback

First published July 17, 2013

Reviews

[Bookishrealm · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was a lot going on in this book and quite frankly a lot that I didn’t end up necessarily enjoying. The focus is on the Wizard as he attempts to gain the respect of his genetically cloned son. He works closely with the Claw to get access to the carnage symbiote after he realizes that the venom symbiote is now being used as a government weapon. Of course, he underestimates the entire situation and makes a series of mistakes. Additionally, the Wizard is suffering from dementia so while he at some point has control of the carnage symbiote, he quickly loses it once he loses focus. This was one of the most random comics that I’ve read in a while. It wasn’t horrible but it wasn’t good either. I did enjoy that it explained the emotional connection that the carnage symbiote had to Kassady but that’s about it. Artwork was also a plus.

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

Carnage: is there a more 90s character? Looks awesome, has zero substance. Well it’s the 21st century now and Carnage hasn’t changed, he’s still as one-dimensional as ever. The Carnage symbiote’s host, Cletus Kasady (a serial killing redneck), has had his brain eaten away after years of being bonded with Mister Red and Slobbery so he’s now a zombie for Carnage to run around in. Except Carnage has been captured by the Wizard who has other plans for him - wait, who!? You know, the dude from the Frightful Four. The what!?! Yeah - Superior Carnage is where all the lame villains gather.

It’s kind of about Carnage but it’s really about the Wizard, whose own brain is starting to fall apart, and he just wants to impress the clone of his dead son - Bentley-23 - just once, to show him his old dad isn’t a loser, so he decides to reform the Frightful Four and take City Hall. Seriously, that’s the plot of this book.

Unlike Superior Foes of Spider-Man, Superior Carnage does feature Superior Spider-Man (could I ram any more “superior”s into that sentence?) and there’s some cool Spidey on Carnage action. I do appreciate Kevin “Robot Chicken” Shinick is trying to make the reader care about the Wizard in this book even though he doesn’t accomplish it - not for lack of trying, it’s just such a flimsy storyline for such a weak-ass character. And, hey, it’s an unexpected direction to take for the Carnage book, so kudos? I just wish it were more interesting to read!

Stephen Segovia’s art is pretty good, it’s about what you’d expect for a Marvel superhero comic and is kinda like Steve McNiven-lite, even though his design for Superior Carnage looks like the Red Skull cosplaying as the Punisher.

I suppose Superior Carnage is for fans of Carnage and/or the Wizard but I’m not sure there are many of those (especially the latter!). For the rest of us, is it essential reading? Not in the least. It’s a quick, painless and forgettable offshoot of the Superior Spider-Man franchise and totally dispensable (then again, it’s a five-issue mini-series so that was probably the point. Mission accomplished, chaps!).

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alright, so you've got Superior Carnage. It's definitely a fun story. It hooks right into when Otto was Spidey, so you've got these two "superior" guys just going at it, which is pretty cool.

But honestly, it's also kinda more about Klaw and Wizard—who, yeah, I didn't know jack about either. And it's really their whole thing, trying to either wreck the city or run it. Plus, Wizard's clearly got some screws loose, which leads to some fun situations.

Overall, it's good stuff. It's got that usual superhero flair, but it doesn't exactly try anything super new. Still, a solid 3 out of 5 for me.

[Judah Radd · Rating 4 out of 5]

A neat little story.

Nothing groundbreaking happens here. It’s a mostly formulaic carnage story. The big twist here is the presence of Superior Otto Spidey.

Seeing how Otto handles a by the numbers Carnage incident is fun! It’s made even better with brilliant pencils by Stephen Segovia.

Overall, this is a quick, fun read. It probably won’t be your favorite ever, but i’m certain anyone reading it will enjoy themselves.

[47Time · Rating 4 out of 5]

Them symbiotes are so versatile. They can bond to whatever maniac is available. The level of violence is pretty adequate here and further enhanced by the wonderful artwork. Carnage is again freed, then imprisoned again, but the ride is all kinds of fun.

Cletus Kasady is imprisoned after having been lobotomized by Venom. The Wizard frees him to possess his mind and rebuild the Frightful Four which he believes will impress his son. Unfortunately, he is unable to control Cletus because of the latter's brain damage. Klaw, the master of sound and another of the Wizard's recruits, saves the Wizard from Carnege's attack. Dr. Karl Malus is the last member of the Frightful Four and the first to doubt the Wizard's sanity. He is forced to bond with the Carnage symbiote so the Wizard can control the awesome power that belonged to Cletus.

The trio want to take over city hall, then the world, like all respected villains. In city hall they meet Spider-Man who eventually breaks the Wizard's control over Carnage. Carnage kills Klaw and the resulting explosion separates the symbiote from Malus. It bonds with the Wizard and serves Spider-Man a full can of whoopass. Spider-Man has his squad bring in the catatonic Cletus and Carnage leaves the Wizard's body in favor of the host it's most familiar with. Even though practically dead, Klaw is still able to direct the forces of nature against Carnage so he can be captured by the Spider Squad.

[Tesutamento · Rating 2 out of 5]

Berbat bir mini seri. Wizard ve Klaw gibi iki tane B sınıfı bile olmayan kötünün Carnage yaratıp kontrol etme çabasını okuyoruz. Carnage dediysem Cletus Kasady değil. Lobotomi geçirdiği için aklı ele geçirilemeyen Kasady yerine Marvel'ın otuz yıl önce Captain America çizgi romanlarında kullandığı sonrasında da unutulan bir bilim adamı Carnage oluyor. Hikaye yok gibi bir şey. Sırf karakteri yaratıp kullanma amacıyla mecburiyetten yazılmış bir takım cümlelerden ibaret.

Superior Spider-Man vs Superior Carnage dövüşü hiçbir şey sunmuyor. Ne adam akıllı dövüşüyorlar ne de güzel sahneler sunuyorlar. Superior Carnage görünüş olarak da etkileyicilikten çok uzak. Marvel'ın doksanlı yıllarda herkese palto giydirme sevdası vardı. Bu Carnage da palto giyiyor. Bir sahnede neden giydiğini açıklıyor ama yani kimse ikna olmuş mudur bilemem.

[Dimitris Papastergiou · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not fun, a chore to read, although I liked the artwork.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chapter 26 in the inexorable “read everything Carnage-related” mission I set out for myself head of Absolute Carnage.

Never heard of this writer and I had no expectations going in, but writing of the self-declared “evil genius” villains (The Wizard) as a slightly-bumbling narcissist is hilarious.

In fact this book takes a page from Superior Foes of Spider-Man and that’s entirely alright by me. After all the gibbering nonsense about how much of a dyed-in-the-wool serial killer Kasady is, it’s nice to have him fully lobotomised and mercifully fucking non-verbal.

I mean, the saga of Kletus has been like reading an ode to the escalatingly ridiculous adventures of Jason Vorhees - should’ve been dead more times than we can count, seems to get stronger and arch-er every outing.

Does this particular tale mean something? In the end, I think all it does it retcon the lobotomy of Kletus Casady, and the tumour/death throes of The Wizard. No great lesson, and only a small bit of adventure as we visit Superior Spider-man once more.

[Austin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of Superior Carnage

This was a fantastic story and gave some B class villains some time in the spotlight and Carnage's performance in this comic was SPECTACULAR! And having The Superior Spider-Man in the comic was great too! I strongly recommend this read to all Spider-Man, Carnage, Wizard, and Klaw fans!

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a weird book that was released during the time the consciousness of Doctor Octopus was occupying Peter Parker's body as the Superior Carnage. But he's not quite the focus of this book - instead it's a weird plot by The Wizard together with Klaw to somehow recruit Carnage into a new Frightful Four.

The difference is that the Wizard has gained information on the Agent Venom program and hopes to recreate the government's success by turning Venom into his own agent. But with Cletus Kassidy no longer mentally present, it also means there is no discernable consciousness for the Wizard to take control of.

The book on the whole was rather weird as they tried to juggle multiple things. The Wizard is really doing all this to somehow gain the respect of his genetic duplicate son Bently, who is already in the care of the Fantastic Four. But he may also be suffering from a condition like dementia as has been inflicted upon him by Black Bolt as punishment. Klaw is still Klaw but largely dedicated to the Wizard because of how he has brought him back to life time and time again.

It tried to be rather introspective in tone but it never quite managed the sense of gravitas one needs for stories of that nature. It had some interesting fights and changes in the balance of power, but the story didn't quite make a bigger impact.

[Villain E · Rating 3 out of 5]

This really could have used a "previously ..." section. Elsewhere in the Marvel Universe, someone lobotomized Carnage and someone lobotomized the Wizard. The Wizard, not in his right mind, got ahold of the fact that the Venom symbiote was bonded to Flash Thompson, and he decides to do that with Carnage to create someone he can control. Carnage is the title character, but he's just a weapon. Along with Klaw, the Wizard and Carnage get in a fight with the Superior Spider-Man and his henchmen. It all ends how you think it will. This might have been better as a Spider-Man story, but calling it a Carnage story is annoyingly inaccurate.

[Mr. M · Rating 1 out of 5]

Easily one of the worst stories I’ve ever read. From the new carnage design with a cape (he’s like a magician, but way, way lamer) to the foregrounding of The Leader and Klaw as main antagonists for Otto’s Spidey. None of them can compete and even carnage isn’t much of a challenge. Nothing new, nothing surprising, nothing that put a new spin or theme on a y of the characters except The Leader who. i have no attachment to. If you reeeaaally like The Leader, then maybe this book is for you, but if you like carnage, you will probably loathe everything about this book. P.s. it’s not Cassidey (If you understand what I mean, then stay faaaaaaar away from this book).

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

While named Superior Carnage, this is without a doubt a story about The Wizard. The story is good, a super genius dealing poorly with the loss of his intellect, but this wasn't the vehicle for it. The Wizard's tale is sad and meaningful. Carnage and Spider-Ock are after thoughts here. The story also wrapped up much to easily. The art by Stephen Segovia is very good. Overall, Carnage fans should look elsewhere.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Wizard decides he needs a saner version of Carnage for his Frightful four. His solution to control the mind of the host body. This does not go well. It is a very clever story, and the twist at the end even took me by surprise. This story is about the importance of family, even for bad guys. A good read.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superior Carnage

Great book, quick read but worth the time. I've been read alot of Spider-man and Spider-man related books and loved most of it. Best one are the ones about Venom and Carnage. But to me Carnage is going about 5 steps too far on spin-off, the evilness and such. But we love it. Keep writing we'll keep reading.

[Kimberly Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrifying. Really good read. The last issue is heart breaking and powerful.

Subject explains everything pretty well. Terrifying. Really good read. Blast issue is heart breaking and powerful. Would absolutely recommend it

[Zombie_Phreak · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a little hard to follow, but the artwork was good, and the fight scenes were interesting. Fans of Carnage will like it, and New York's favorite Wall-Crawler shows up in it as well, so it's worth a read.

[Idang Alfarisi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember buying this comic years ago, I still own it. Yet I don't remember anything about the details of the story. I remember the art style is alright, but the story didn't engage me at all, until Superior Spider-Man (Dock Ock) showed up near the end and finished the job. That's about it.

[Prateek · Rating 3 out of 5]

I sense great possibilities with carnage,but it always leaves me hanging,cut down on the kills and maybe a more deeper story line will be great.

[Adrian Fulneczek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice touch.

Hate Otto, but Klaw made it worth it.

[Guillermo García Rojas C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una historia muy simple.

[Lillian Francis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun but very bloody.

And now someone is on to Otto.

[Rubén Huerta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muy chido

[lex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hagan un fanfic de klaw y el mago

[Paul Vance · Rating 2 out of 5]

Liked the art hated the story. For a villain with such a strong history and character I thought this was a cheap story just cashing in on people’s love for the symbiote storylines

[Silas · Rating 4 out of 5]

At times, it seems like this comic is trying really hard to make its title make sense. Titular issues aside, I actually enjoyed how this comic went. It involves the Wizard (a character who shows up from time to time, but who I don't know terribly well), who is apparently dying and going mad. I don't know the Wizard all that well, but this comic did a great job of tying in things that I did know about him, and involving some characters that are related to him. Cletus Kassidy, Carnage's usual host, has been rendered brain dead in some comic that I haven't read, so the Wizard tries to use mind control to get some muscle to prove to his clone/son that he isn't a loser, and it goes wrong for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the Superior Spider-Man trying to stop him. This is an exploration of an underserved part of the Marvel Universe using a high profile character, and although the titular character is sort of a minor player, it is an interesting story, nonetheless.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty decent Carnage tale. The Wizard has been mentally handicapped by Black Bolt, and is attempting to reunite with his "son", who is actually his clone. He makes an attempt to reform the Frightful Four, with himself, Klaw, Dr. Malus and Carnage. His plan is to control Carnage with his mental powers, but Carnage is just too nuts to control. The symbiote also ends up switching bodies a few times, so we see a few new hosts.

The Superior Spiderman shows up, which is Doc Ock's mind in Spiderman's body. I haven't read that book, so I'm still not sure how that came about.

Overall the art is decent and it's got all of the murder and mayhem you'd expect from a Carnage story. I credit the story with trying to use the Carnage character in a new way rather than same old, same old.

If you're a Carnage fan you should read this one. If you don't like Carnage I'm not sure if this will change your mind, but I will say there's more of a plot than you'd probably expect.

[Alex Sarll]

The theory goes that there are no irretrievably bad characters in comics, not if the right writer gets hold of them. I have some doubts (I saw the best minds of my generation defeated by Angela, swords, po-faced, near-naked), but of late even the execrably nineties Carnage has appeared in some OK comics. This, alas, is not one of them. In its describing-what-we-can-see dialogue, laboured correspondences and junk science it feels like a blood-soaked homage to the worst tics of Marvel's early days and the atrocious writing of Stan Lee and his followers. I'm told Shinick's recent work is better; I certainly hope so.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh no Carnage is back and he's SUPERIOR! At least that's what the comic promises. Carnage doesn't seem to be that superior at all. He's "part" of the Frightful Four, plus Cletus Kasady isn't Carnage most of the time. I understand this is really a book to showcase how Otto Spider-Man would handle him, but still it was lacking. We've got the Wizard and Claw forcing Carnage to do their work. I feel that Carnage should be able to do take down these guys plus Spider-Man easy. I guess I'm wrong according to this comic.

[Rigoberto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pretty good story, definitely brings out the chaotic side of the symbiote and gives us a good view of how Superior Spider-Man would deal with the threat. The ending was pretty decent, at least we will see Carnage again. I would recommend this to any fan of the symbiotes.