Marvel: What If . . . Marc Spector Was Host to Venom? (A Moon Knight & Venom Story)

A Moon Knight & Venom Story

De: Mike Chen

Narrado por: Keith Szarabajka, Xavier Casals

Marc Spector and Venom engage in a battle of wills in the next adventure of an epic multiversal series reimagining iconic Marvel origin stories.

So many worlds, so little time. Infinite possibilities, creating infinite realities. Long have I watched Marc Spector cheat death in the name of the Egyptian god Khonshu. But…what if Moon Knight was subsumed by a Venom from another universe?

Marc Spector is used to voices in his head. He’s used to waking up disoriented, unsure what his alters, Jake and Steven, might have been up to. He’s used to having an Egyptian god command him as Moon Knight, his avatar of justice and revenge. What he’s not used to: staring into the face of a literal, out-of-body doppelganger.

Another Marc, crash-landed from an alternate reality, begging for help? Yeah, that is a new one, even for him.

But before he can really process anything beyond Khonshu’s incessant alarm bells, it becomes clear this other Marc didn’t travel solo. Some kind of alien—a symbiote named Venom—casts off its current host and begins to merge with Marc, forcing Khonshu away from his chosen champion and claiming Moon Knight for its own. The formerly stark white suit that struck fear into the hearts of criminals now looms as a jet-black shadow over friends and foes alike. Marc’s lethal prowess fueled by Venom’s penchant for violence carves a trail of chaos as they comb through the vigilante’s torturous past.

Yet a sliver of hope remains: Finally free of Venom’s control, the other Jake and Steven re-gain consciousness to find themselves in a strange reality, without their Marc, but with a strange bird-like god insisting that “they will do.” Desperate, lost, and running out of time, the pair make a deal: become Khonshu’s new avatar to track Venom’s path of destruction, save this universe, and just maybe figure out a way back to their own.

©2024 Mike Chen (P)2024 Random House Audio

Most anticipated, biggest disappointment

The narrator gives a monotone, disinterested read that made listening a chore. The action scenes are delivered in the same flat tone as the opening credits. I get books in audible because I listen while driving. This book reminds me of one of those bed time sleep aid storybooks. If you've ever read an audio book read by ai, this has a similar vibe.

A complete misunderstanding

It is clear from the earliest chapters that the author does not understand the character of Moon Knight. If you are a fan of the widely panned Bemis run, or the alter/DID focused retooling of the character present in the MCU, you might enjoy this take on Marc Spector.

Unfortunately, the novel becomes complicated by a lazy multiverse plot that overpowers the Moon Knight storyline, as well as random mentions of America Chavez and a larger narrative apparently told over the span of the What If? Line of books. This is a strange decision for what should be an anthology of interesting tales.

Sadly the issues deepen as the author introduces a second Moon Knight, one bearing Venom but entirely unfamiliar with Khonshu. This ends up causing the book to feel like a series of first chapters and exposition dumps.

The author also misunderstands the character of Venom, and uses him as a shallow alien invader. There is no interesting reflection on all of the voices in Marc’s head having to deal with Venom joining them - as Venom simply forces them out.

The narrator does a great job of Moon Knight/Marc Spector/Jake Lockley/Steven Grant, and a fine job as an MCU inspired Khonshu. His voice for Venom is an issue, sounding like a lazy smoker instead of an alien symbiote - and oddly like Eddie Brock, which makes little sense.

Overall, this book is a mess. A misunderstanding of Moon Knight and Venom smashed together with a multiverse plot, as though by a corporate boardroom at Disney+ instead of a genuine fan of the characters. After many months of eager pre-order, I am deeply disappointed in this novel.