Marvel has no shortage of iconic and beloved heroes, but few can compare to the wall-crawler himself. Spider-Man is synonymous with responsibility, selflessness, and sacrifice. His ability to save the day under the direst of circumstances while still telling jokes along the way earned him the nickname of "friendly neighborhood hero." We've watched him protect New York City and put others above himself more times than we can count. However, there are some rare instances where we watch him act a bit more... evil.
There was that time when Peter inherited Norman Osborn's sins and turned into a new version of the Green Goblin. And who can forget when he nearly killed the Kingpin of Crime after the villain ordered the assassination of Aunt May? On other occasions, the hero has physically turned into an unrecognizable creature, such as when he became Man-Spider. Now, those two oddities have transpired at the same time, as not only has Spider-Man turned into a horrifying monster, but he could let all hell loose as well.
Spider-Man bonds with the Carnage symbiote, and a terrifying monster is born
There's a new serial killer in town. The Marvel Universe has recently been shaken by the introduction of Torment, a relentless assassin with a very unique modus operandi. When Torment picks a target, he doesn't kill them right away. Instead, the villain hunts every member of the victim's family, starting from the most distant and working his way in. Unfortunately, Peter Parker, Mary Jane Watson, and Eddie Brock are all in Torment's crosshairs. That means no one even remotely related to these fan-favorite characters is safe.
Torment proved how relentless he is by killing Shocker (whose cousin married a Watson) and Eddie Brock's father first. Zero hesitation, one city under terror, and two lifeless bodies behind. Those acts alone were enough for Peter's Spider-Man, MJ's Venom, and Eddie's Carnage to team up and attempt to hunt the hunter. However, things didn't go as expected.
The Carnage symbiote betrayed Brock, who was trying to keep it from killing any being that crossed their path. Instead, the parasitic alien assumed that Torment could be a better host, given his willingness to end lives. The two villains then bonded to create a horrifying new monster, but there were some troubles during their honeymoon period.
Whereas Torment is calculating and picks his victims carefully, Carnage simply does what he does for the sake of it. The two embark on a mission to reach the F.E.A.S.T. shelter and kill Aunt May and Anna Watson. However, Carnage also takes the opportunity to assassinate every other person in the room, especially since Eddie Brock isn't there to temper its dark impulses.
The two villains start to argue about who to kill and who to spare, eventually breaking their symbiotic bond. Just at that moment, Spider-Man and MJ's Venom get to the crime scene to try to save everyone who is still alive (including their aunts). The friendly neighborhood hero tries to stall Torment while Mary Jane gets everyone else to safety, but just as things seem to get better, tragedy strikes. Torment fatally wounds Spidey, who drops to the floor stained by his own blood.
The wall-crawler seems to meet his end at the hands of a powerful foe. But then the unthinkable happens, and the Carnage symbiote bonds with Peter Parker. The two then create a terrifying monster who might set the Marvel Universe on fire, as teased by Carnage:
"Oh, Peter (...), we'll do wonderful things together. Such wonderful, beautiful, horrible things. You'll never forget them, for as long as you live."
All of this madness has been part of Marvel's ongoing Death Spiral storyline, which is set to conclude with the release of The Amazing Spider-Man (2025) No. 27 on April 22, 2026. So we'll have to see if Carnage will get the better of the friendly neighborhood hero or if Spider-Man will be able to keep the monster under control and simply use the symbiote to defeat Torment.
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