Dark Reign: Sinister Spider-Man #4

Jul 13

Jul 13 Dark Reign: Sinister Spider-Man #4

What the Fuck Is This Shit All About?!

Times Square: Now

Venom is being attacked from all corners from members of the Rolling Sevens and the Park Avenue Players, as well as members of the Redeemers, and his own teammates Bullseye and Daken. As he fends off his attackers, Venom wonders how this all came to be.

18 Hours Earlier

J. Jonah Jameson is furious to learn that Norman Osborn’s Spider-Man was responsible for the recent gang war between Rolling Sevens and Park Avenue Players. This comes on the eve of the Big Apple Festival. He calls in Norman Osborn to complain about it. Osborn ignores Jonah’s bluster, telling the mayor that Spider-Man is a hero and that if he denies these alligations he’s inclined to believe him.

With no other choice, Jameson is forced to have Spider-Man appear at the festival to give people a sense of security even though the city has a crime problem and the economy is in the toilet. Instead of patrolling the area, Venom instead spends time with the Miss Apple pageant contestants. As this is going on, the Redeemer and the last few members of his team — General Wolfram and the Dementoid — have arrived at the festival and confirm that Spider-Man is in attendance. They are soon joined by members of the two gangs who have also learned that Spider-Man had manipulated them into going to war one another. The leaders of both gangs agree to a truce until after they put Spider-Man into the ground.

Moments later, J. Jonah Jameson goes into the tent where the talent is located and discovers that not only is Spider-Man gone, but so are all the beauty pageant contestants and the bands he hired are also gone. Jonah goes on stage to address the audience and his speech is interrupted when Spider-Man arrives to make a mockery of the mayor. That’s when Bullseye and Daken arrive to have some fun. Bullseye grabs a dog in the crowd and has Daken bet which one of Venom’s eyes he can hit by throwing the dog at him. Getting hit in the eye causes Venom to drop his Spider-Man disguise. As Venom is getting attacked, Bullseye tells him that he’s fired and right now Norman Osborn is already writing a press release about how he’s an impostor who was posing as Spider-Man.

Although he is ambushed by his two teammates, the Redeemers, and the two gangs, Venom fights relentlessly. Eventually, Venom beats them all in combat prompting J. Jonah Jameson to grab a shotgun and fire off a round, ordering everyone to stop. That’s when the Chief Ibanze recognizes Bullseye and proclaims both Venom and J. Jonah Jameson heroes for stopping a dangerous criminal. As the crowds cheer, the quadriplegic Redeemer refuses to accept the fact that Venom is being hailed as a hero. That’s when Chief Ibanez overhears how Redeemer worked with the two gangs to try and kill Spider-Man and he puts him under arrest.

Two days later, Venom is back at Avengers Tower where he learns that Daken and Bullseye are out of prison and will eventually get over their battle. Norman then warns Venom that while he managed to get out of trouble this time, he expects him to behave in the future. Venom calls Norman’s bluff and then heads out because he has a date with a bunch of women. As he swings across the city with the women in tow, Mac Gargan admits that he enjoys playing the role of Spider-Man.