Venom's New Armored Redesign Officially Revealed by Marvel

Published Aug 11, 2026, 7:00 PM EDT Robert Wood is a writer and editor based out of Cheshire, England. He is the author of 'The False Elephant: and 99 Other Unreasonably Short Stories' - 100 stories, each told in exactly 100 words. Rob got into comics via Bendis' Ultimate Spider-Man and the UK anthology 'The Mighty World of Marvel,' which was running Frank Miller's Daredevil, Classic Hulk and Contest of Champions II. Prior to journalism, he worked in copywriting and copyedited for Oxford University Press. He is on X as @PinchTwigs and Instagram as roobwoodjourno. Iconic symbiote antihero Eddie Brock - aka Venom - has an awesome new look, exchanging his symbiote ichor for slick gauntlets and cables. But why does the symbiote suddenly look so different? Marvel is currently publishing the Queen in Black event series, with the Asgardian goddess Hela stealing the former powers of Knull, the King in Black. Now commanding all symbiote life in the universe, she's set on making Earth her base of operations. Meanwhile, Knull - now wielding the powers of the god of light - has likewise targeted the planet as a strategic resource. The result is a war for first the planet, then the galaxy, with Earth and its heroes caught between Venom lore's heaviest hitters. Sadly for Eddie Brock, so far he's sat out the battle in prison... Venom Gets Armored Redesign as Eddie Brock Cuts Loose Recently released solicit information for the Queen in Black tie-in Queen in Black: Venom Unchained #2 shows an awesome new design for Venom. Germán Peralta's variant cover shows Venom with white armor on his arms and knees, as well as different markings including leg darts and 'fangs' descending over his face. On social media, Peralta shared the process of working up the cover, in which Venom stands menacingly over the defeated bodies of a group of robbers wearing superhero masks. This is an awesome look for Venom, and likely one that will debut in the next issue of the comic. However, fans can't help but ask why Eddie Brock's symbiote looks so different. Why Does Venom Look Different? Over the last few years, Eddie Brock has been replaced as Venom. First, his son Dylan Brock took on his symbiote, which passed to Spider-Man's Mary Jane Watson following the events of Venom War. Craving a symbiote, Eddie merged with Carnage - a disastrous decision which saw the symbiote burgle Spider-Man's true identity from his mind. Now stripped of Carnage, Eddie has been imprisoned, with the first issue of Queen in Black: Venom Unchained seeing him locked up for his crimes. However, that issue ended with Eddie being approached by Sleeper - one of the many symbiote offspring of Venom. It's likely that Peralta's cover shows Eddie wearing Sleeper. The head and leg markings are the same, and Sleeper has a propensity for using its shapeshifting to create unusual accessories, recently using piping and glass to mix chemical compounds within its body. However, the Venom on Peralta's color is white rather than Sleeper's yellow. This isn't an insurmountable difference - it's the kind of thing symbiotes can change when they want to - but it prevents fans being totally sure which symbiote Eddie is wearing. Venom Is Heading for a Major Reset Eddie Brock may have a new look, but fans already know it's going to be shortlived. Marvel recently announced a new volume of Venom beginning in October, and coming from Charles Soule and Tommaso Bianchi. The issue's cover (from Davide Paratore) shows Venom back in his classic design, while the issue's summary proclaims, "Eddie Brock and Venom are reunited - and it feels so good! Of course, a new design can always find a life of its own in comics, especially when an unusual character like Sleeper is involved. While Eddie Brock won't be wearing this armored symbiote suit for long, it's possible the look could migrate to another character. If Eddie is Venom again, then Dylan Brock and MJ will find themselves without the symbiote - could they merge with Sleeper as an alternative? These questions will be answered in the months to come, as Eddie Brock reclaims the Venom title and Queen in Black rewrites symbiote lore in the aftermath of the Knull vs Hela war. Queen in Black: Venom Unchained #2 is coming August 26 from Marvel Comics. Created By David Michelinie, Todd McFarlane Cast Tom Hardy, Topher Grace First Appearance The Amazing Spider-Man Alias Eddie Brock RELATIONSHIPS Eddie Brock (primary host and ally), Peter Parker/Spider-Man (initial enemy, later uneasy ally), Anne Weying (former wife of Eddie Brock and occasional host), Cletus Kasady/Carnage (offspring of the Venom symbiote and a deadly enemy) Alliance Vigilante