Venom is a host-jumping alien symbiote who is most associated with Eddie Brock. But it’s had many hosts over the years, and in What If…Marc Spector was Host to Venom by Mike Chen, we see what it would be like if Moon Knight hosted the alien. But we get extra bang for our buck with not one but two Moon Knights from different realities colliding in this action-packed thriller that gives us our first real view of the threat to the wider What If… world this series is tracking.
[Warning: My review of What If…Marc Spector was Host to Venom contains some spoilers!]
Too many voices for one head
Marc Spector already has three too many voices in his head. Not only is he in there, but so are his alternate personalities, Jack Lockley and Steven Grant. Oh, and don’t forget Khonshu, the ancient Egyptian god that gives him the powers of Moon Knight in exchange for protecting the travelers of the night. It’s a lot to say the least. Which means that he’s seen the inside of a psych ward or two in his time. Like now. What If…Marc Spector was Host to Venom opens with Marc stuck in a psych ward with his two friends, Gena and Frenchie. They escape, only to run right into…Marc Spector?
This Marc also has DID, but instead of Khonshu in his head, he has Venom. You know, the hive-minded menace that’s usually causing problems for Spider-Man. But this time he’s on a mission of his own. Well, not really his own, as we’ll later find out. We just know that he needs Marc Spector, and he has one directive: “no witnesses, no survivors”. That doesn’t work out so well for the alternate Spector when Venom jumps from him to this world’s Marc to continue his mission (yes, it’s confusing; it works better when you’re reading the story, I promise). Body left for dead, Spector himself is missing, leaving Jake and Steven to fend for themselves in a new universe with Khonshu (who they don’t know in their universe) screaming orders at them.
But even if Spector is missing, Jake and Steven aren’t helpless. They begin to track down this reality’s Marc Spector to help save him and foil Venom’s plans. Hopefully without dying, because I forgot to mention, when Venom jumped ship, he left Spector’s body mortally wounded. Khonshu is doing his best to stave off death, but a small drop of Venom stayed in the first body, and it’s doing its best to carry out that “no witnesses, no survivors” mandate I mentioned earlier. It’s a race against time for not just Moon Knight but all the universes because something bigger is going on that will touch every corner of the multiverse before it’s done.
Be prepared for all those voices
So as I mentioned, Marc Spector has DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder). He has two alters. In What if… Marc Spector was Host to Venom; both versions of Spector have DID. Which means there are two versions of Marc, two versions of Jake, and two versions of Steven. That’s a lot of repetitive names to keep straight. It does help that Chen refers to this reality’s version of Marc Spector as “Marc” and the new version as “Spector”. It also helps that in this reality’s version Jake and Steven are locked away by Venom, meaning Marc thinks about them and tries to talk to them, but they don’t answer. At the same time, Spector is missing from the other Moon Knight, leaving only Jake and Steven (and Khonshu) in that body. So the number of personalities we have to keep track of is functionally roughly the same. But all the different versions keep getting mentioned, so you have to work hard to keep them all straight! I recommend not reading while you’re tired or distracted!
Individual questions with a common thread
The What If… series can be looked at as individual stories that ask the questions fans always ask: “What if…” something were different. Each story in the current Marvel series from Random House Worlds asks a fun question like that: “What if Peter Parker and Wanda Maximoff were siblings?” “What if Loki was worthy?” “What if Moon Knight was Venom too?” These questions are fun to think about, and the resulting adventures are new and exciting to read, taking the characters in new and interesting directions.
But this series isn’t just individual adventures; they’re all connected into one bigger plot. Someone is pulling the strings to create these “what ifs,” and it’s threatening the entire multiverse. America Chavez turns away from her role as a watcher to try and right the wrongs this person is creating and to ultimately stop them. This means that you need to read this series in order and not miss any books. So if you didn’t read the first two, go back and get them.
Technically, I suppose you could pick and choose. Each individual story will make sense (so far at least; I have a feeling the “what ifs” will be more intertwined with the America Chavez backstory as the series continues) on its own if you ignore the chapters that are about America. But it will take away from the overall storytelling. Plus, who doesn’t want an exciting series to read? So, as I was saying, if you haven’t read the first two books, go back and get them before you settle in with What if… Marc Spector was Host to Venom. And after you read the third book, you can get the fourth one. And a fifth is coming out this fall! Talk about happiness!
So just to recap…
What if… Marc Spector was Host to Venom is the third book in the current Marvel What If… novel series. It’s an action-packed book, but a great deal of it actually takes place inside Moon Knight’s head. One Moon Knight is trying to figure out what’s going on and deal with Venom while the other is trying to save the world and not die. It’ll keep you on the edge of your seat, and Moon Knight fans will get a kick out of seeing both Marc without his alters, and his alters without Marc. Both concepts are fascinating and well written by Chen. All Marvel fans, but especially those of Moon Knight and Venom, won’t want to miss this one.
Rating: 8/10
What If…Marc Spector was the Host to Venom by Mike Chen is available now!
Learn more about the book at the official website for the title.
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