With the introduction of new versions of Venom from across the multiverse, a new Scorpion makes his debut with an amazing fresh design that is perfect to give this classic Spider-Man foe a new role.

Debuting in Extreme Venomverse #1 by Leonardo Romero, Ryan North, Paulo Siqueira, Mirka Andolfo, and Niko Leon, this new version of Scorpion hails from a dystopian world where the only hope seems to be Takemoto Tatsuya, the Samurai Venom. Working for the Government and Oscorp, this Scorpion sports a heavy, tactical costume with bulky white armor plating reminiscent of corporate security from a dystopian 1980s movie. This design choice is perfect in signaling that, like in so many stories, Scorpion is once again hired muscle for some greater threat. In this case, he’s working for Oscorp as part of yet another variation on the classic Sinister Six.

Scorpion Gets Another Connection To Venom

MacDonald Gargan has had a strange career trajectory. First introduced in Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s Amazing Spider-Man vol 1 #20, Gargan, a Private Detective, is hired by J. Jonah Jameson to investigate Peter Parker’s potential connections to Spider-Man but is more than happy to be subjected to experimental mutation to gain Scorpion powers when Jonah grows bored with tailing Peter and decides to simply defeat Spider-Man. This transformation gives Gargan superhuman strength, speed, agility, and the ability to stick to walls like Spider-Man, and his costume gives him full control over an artificial tail. However, the transformation also turns him evil, and as Scorpion he becomes a reliable, if B-List, villain for Spidey. In the ensuing years, Gargan has had near-countless augmentations to his powers, most memorably becoming Venom for a time, and having bonded with at least two other symbiotes since.

This Scorpion’s connection to Oscorp makes a lot of sense considering Gargan and Norman Osborn’s history together. Gargan’s biggest moment in mainstream continuity is undoubtedly his original tenure as Venom and the Dark Avengers’ ‘Spider-Man’, both while working under Osborn during Norman’s rise to power in the 2000s. As the cannibalistic new Venom, Gargan embraced his worst self, a legacy that has followed the character ever since. It makes sense then that the first villain fought by Tatsuya’s heroic Venom is his version of a man who embodies the worst potential of the symbiote.

It does however remain to be seen what could be done to make the Scorpion more than simply a goon. Since his time as Venom, Gargan hasn’t properly held the spotlight. Either he’s the classic Scorpion again, or he’s a second-string symbiote character. In both cases, he’s usually also part of an ensemble, the warm-up for Spider-Man or another hero before a greater villain takes the stage. Not every villain needs to be an A-Lister, but it would be nice to see a focus on what makes Scorpion unique outside his connection with Venom.