Review by Ian Keogh

The last time Miles Morales came into contact with Cletus Kasady and his symbiotic alter-ego Carnage he was temporarily taken over by the alien entity, and Carnage Reigns begins with his trepidation about it occurring again.

Carnage started out as a dark and repulsive creature, and over the years has become ever more distasteful, more the province of horror comics than superhero adventures, and entirely out of keeping with the positive tone usually applied to Miles’ adventures. Here Cody Ziglar adds to nihilistic negativity by supplying Carnage with a crony defining his murders in terms of artistic expression, and via the Scorpion, an old villain now deputised on behalf of a distinctly shady New York police department. This Carnage is also different, constantly masquerading as different people by possessing them. It opens up the story possibilities as anyone could now be a disguised Carnage, but unless established by someone else, it’s also lazy writing on Ziglar’s part. Why not have him snap his fingers and alter reality? Well, Ziglar pretty well takes that option as well.

After the extended introductory chapter Alex Paknadel writes alternate chapters with Ziglar closing matters off and other creative teams providing short strips with background material. A chapter featuring Red Goblin will puzzle anyone who’s not been keeping up with the extended Osborn family of late.

The sample art is the impressive work of Julius Ohta, but all contributing artists pull out the stops. Given Carnage’s distasteful activities, though, this isn’t necessarily a good thing, and there’s a level of gratuitous nastiness reflecting the scripts. While Federico Vicentini isn’t the worst culprit, his art is very fussy with so much going on there’s often no clarity.

In places Carnage Reigns could be seen as a deliberate prod at people who confuse online activities with the real world, and can’t draw a distinction between slaughter they see on screens and doing the same in New York, but that’s a brief interlude.

Iron Man turns up for what’s an incredibly fast paced finish, and while that could seem a rabbit from the hat he’s able to generate an imaginative conclusion to what’s been set in motion. Anyone whose tastes run to Carnage and his murderous personality is likely to be pleased at his rampage here, but if you find him utterly distasteful this interpretation isn’t going to change your mind.