As I continue to feel as though Superior Spider-Man has jumped the shark, Marvel unleashes Superior Carnage. Well, there’s no superior here. There is no new psychopath beneath the Carnage symbiote. Cletus Kasady, the sick bastard who has long been part of Carnage, remains the human form of the red evil. His brain is gone though. Scarlet Spider and Venom apparently beat Kasady so severely that the brain damage is irreversible.
Cue Superior Carnage, penned by Kevin Shinick with art from Stephen Segovia. Most of this intro issue is told from the point of view of a white-collar criminal. One who has been transferred to a maximum-security prison for super-villains. The criminal, named Ted Connelly, walks us through his life of torture and torment. He’s repeatedly beaten, living in such a state of complete fear that he soils his underwear on a regular basis. One day, Kasady is transferred into the prison, though he’s just a shell of a man. Thanks to security guards under mind control, Kasady is released and turns back into Carnage. He promptly kills Ted Connelly.
That’s when Superior Carnage #1 switches focus. Now the story is told from the point of The Wizard. He’s taken control of the prison with the express goal of controlling Carnage’s brain and using it for evil purposes. It almost works, except Carnage has no brain – Kasady’s is mush. Carnage beats The Wizard within an inch of his life before Klaw, the master of sound, uses his talents to render Carnage and Kasady unconscious. Apparently, The Wizard was trying to put together another version of The Frightful Four, and Klaw was his first recruit.
There’s nothing Superior about this issue. I can only fathom the reason it’s being referred to as Superior Carnage is to tag onto the Superior Spider-Man bandwagon. Fine, but at least give us a story that’s compelling. The last time Carnage had his own book, it was twisted and evil. This is like torture porn. We watch some useless hack crap his pants and then die. The Wizard gets beaten up and makes a lot of tremendous speeches. Shinick doesn’t have a hook, nothing to compel purchasing a second issue. Carnage has never been the most interesting symbiote, but written well, he’s often a lot of fun. Superior Carnage is not fun. Instead, it’s dull.
Stephen Segovia’s art does the job, but that’s about it. He never captures the darkness of the prison or Carnage. He clearly loves to draw blood and violence, but it’s devoid of any real horror. Gore is not fear, there’s a big difference. Segovia also draws his characters way too muscular. The Wizard looks like a joke, not a villain to take seriously.
Overall, Superior Carnage is anything but.
(2.5 Story, 2.5 Art)
