Venom has had a pretty storied history in Marvel Comics. The symbiote from the Klyntar species has bonded to plenty of hosts over the years and has seen some truly strange things. But, occasionally the Lethal Protector is at the center of the weirdness. Venom doesn't do well with adapting to bizarre circumstances.
What's fascinating about Venom is that its own evolution can be seen as weird from the outside. Indeed, many of these events are actually character-based and seem to go against everything readers know about the symbiote. Other weird moments can be attributed to the unexplainable chaos of the Marvel Universe.
10 Learning To Live With A Host
It's in the very DNA of the symbiotes to use up the hosts that they bond with. The Klyntar has been depicted as a mostly vicious species. Although there are symbiotes that have also demonstrated a desire to protect their hosts, other symbiotes have shunned Venom due to its benevolence.
One of the strangest things that ultimately happened to Venom is his changing attitude toward its hosts. Venom learned to create a mutually beneficial bond, rather than killing the hosts once it was through with them. Evil symbiotes have imprisoned Venom for its outlook and refusal to comply with their tradition. This strange sense of partnership should seem foreign to a violent creature like Venom.
9 Gaining Spider-Man Abilities
Some of the greatest Spider-Man comics depicted the web-slinger bonded to the Venom symbiote. Spider-Man didn't initially know that his black costume was a dangerous sentient alien being. But the wall-crawler had nonetheless left his mark on the beast.
One weird thing about Venom's link to Spider-Man is that it actually gained his powers. They had been bonded so thoroughly that Venom now swings from building to building and reflects the mannerisms of its original host. This has given Venom the advantage in battle compared to other symbiotes who have not developed the same skills. Plus, Venom is invisible to Spider-Man's classic spider-sense.
8 Feeling Empathy For Peter Parker
Venom had been so attached to Spider-Man that it wished to bond with the web-slinger permanently. Much of Venom's hatred of Peter Parker stems from the character's rejection of the symbiote. However, strangely, Venom experienced an emotion it couldn't quite fathom.
Spider-Man continued to fight off Venom with both sonic and heat-based attacks. He wanted Venom out of his life for good. However, in the struggle over Peter Parker's body, one of the weirdest things happened to Venom. It felt empathy. During a conflict in Our Lady of Saints Church, Venom actually drags Peter to safety. This indicated that despite Venom's bitterness it still wanted to protect its former partner. Venom has tried to kill Peter in the years since, which makes this decision even odder.
7 Creating Carnage
There's a lot to know about Venom and Carnage's relationship. The two symbiotes are sworn enemies and have been involved in plenty of violent battles. But Carnage's strange origins are heavily linked to Venom, who was partially responsible for the serial killer's creation.
Venom has been known to create plenty of symbiotes, but the forgery of Carnage was in unique circumstances. Venom came to Eddie Brock's rescue in a prison cell and left a piece behind. This piece went into the bloodstream of Cletus Kasady through a cut in his hand and thus mutated him into Carnage. It's odd that Venom had created its own worst enemy without even telling Brock that something had been left behind in the cell.
6 Attacked By Styx
Venom has faced insurmountable odds in the comics so the idea that it could be killed seemed impossible. However, a run-in with the villainous duo Styx and Stones placed the symbiote in an unusually vulnerable situation. Venom refused to let anyone else kill Spider-Man and thus intervened in the ongoing battle.
However, Venom was hit with Styx's virus and was seemingly killed. In truth, Venom had weirdly been placed into a coma-like state, which it eventually awoke from. However, Venom had rarely felt such a lack of control, and this was a formative experience for the villainous entity. Especially because its intervention in Spider-Man's battle could easily have been confused once again with feelings of empathy, regardless of Venom's supposed reasoning.
5 Brought Onto The Dark Avengers
Before bonding with Mac Gargan, formerly known as Scorpion, Venom had rarely been hailed as a hero. To see the Venom symbiote on an Avengers roster considering the harm he had caused would have been an incredibly strange sight. That's why his time as a leading Avenger is so bizarre.
One of the weirdest things to have happened to Venom was his status as a national hero. Installed into Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers, Venom masqueraded once more as a black-suit Spider-Man to hide Gargan's true identity. Although Venom could barely contain his bloodlust, he was briefly a defining Avenger.
4 Turned Into A Weapon
Venom is one of the most powerful symbiotes in Marvel history. During the War of the Realms narrative, Malekith sought to create a weapon that would rival Knull's own All-Black. It stood to reason that Venom would be the symbiote Malekith could use for his warmongering.
Venom experienced one of his weirdest moments and was turned into a sword for Malekith to wield. Nicknamed the Venom Blade, Malekith took on the title of Butcher of Thors and tried to dispatch of the Asgardians with the weapon. Although Venom would eventually be released from Malekith's control, the power of the villain and anti-hero together was especially haunting.
3 The King In Black
After the King in Black event, Knull was defeated by Eddie Brock. In conjunction with the Venom symbiote, Brock would take on the mantle of King in Black. That essentially elevated him to a God-like status and put Venom in a strange position due to their association.
Venom could be deemed to be a deity in his own right by tapping into Knull's former gifts, because of the connection he has with Brock. Although Brock can now control other symbiotes, he still relies on his friend. Venom has seen incredible things thanks to this unexpected elevation. Eddie Brock is the Nexus of the Hive mind and for the first time, Venom has direct communication with an allied head of the Klyntar. That's quite the strange changing of roles.
2 Time Travel Transformation
The King in Black narrative is as equally impactful on Venom as it is Eddie Brock. Eddie can use the symbiotes to travel through time and thus Venom has also been shown these secrets of the universe. But in this confusing story, Venom has previewed versions of its future.
Eddie Brock will supposedly transform into other entities as the years progress. Venom himself assumes a new form as Bedlam, which is a really weird transformation. The Dark Web story sees this personality and physical shift, as Venom becomes a red, hulking monster. Despite its sheer power, this villainous form does appear to be easily distracted by brutality.
1 Reverting To A Previous Mindset
The Dark Web storyline had a massive impact on the Venom symbiote. Thanks to the mind manipulation of Madelyne Pryor, the Klyntar went through a personality shift. This was influenced by its past. Pryor tapped into the deepest and darkest parts of the symbiote.
Venom's hatred of Spider-Man was renewed and Pryor set it on the web-slinger as if it was the villain of yesteryear. It was a weird case of brainwashing and mystical torment that deeply affected Venom's identity. Readers surely felt as if they were reading an old comic, with Venom's actions seemingly disregarding plenty of anti-hero development.