Hear me out:

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deluxetrashqueen:

So obviously we’re all upset about the whole Donny Cates thing. The comic itself and the choices it’s making and especially Donny’s whole childish reaction to any criticism. But he’s made it incredibly clear at this point that he does not accept criticism. Arguing with him on the internet is pointless. It just gives more and more attention to him and to his work. “No such thing as bad publicity” and all that. And, as others have said, just boycotting the comic or rating it really poorly won’t help either. Marvel will only see it as people not liking Venom and would be more likely to cancel it all together than go back to a Costa-like run.

So, if we do want to make our voices heard in any way that might affect anything, let’s do it in a positive way. 

On January 16, when the new Cates Venom comic drops, let’s all instead buy the Mike Costa Venom 2016 Issue 154.  From various online or psychical sources.  

That issue is basically the polar opposite of the Cates run. It’s all Symbiote POV and has very little action, focusing much more on the Symbiote’s feelings on good an evil and its own existence as a person. It has it accepting its mistakes and going on to have a heart to heart with another character who it hurt in the past, in which it, for the first time in those words, says that it loves Eddie. 

While the art style can be a little off-putting, the issue itself is a golden example of what makes the Costa run so great: a focus on the love between Eddie and the symbiote, treating the symbiote as a person with good intentions, and exploring its motivations and sense of self. 

If enough of us buy the issue (which is now available for about 2 dollars), it may make a spike in sales big enough to attract at least a little attention from Marvel. Pair this with honest and glowing reviews and 5 star ratings. Nothing negative. No mention of Cates at all. Just true, wholehearted praise of the way the relationship is handled and the way the symbiote’s character is portrayed. It doesn’t mean anything if it’s not really from the heart. If it’s forced people can tell and it seems like a ploy or something done by bots. 

Don’t fight this petty spitefulness with more negativity about what we hate. Let’s fight it with an outpouring of love and support for what we like and want to see more of. Is it likely that this will convince Marvel of anything? Probably not. But, if there’s a slight chance that, next time they are looking to hire a new Venom writer, they can look back and see marked fiscal success associated with queer romance and growing, developed characters, and that in some way sways their decision, that will have been worth it to me.

symbrockbigbang: symbrockbigbang: symbrockbigbang: The time is...

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symbrockbigbang:

symbrockbigbang:

symbrockbigbang:

The time is upon us! The Symbrock Big Bang is officially open for business! Sign-ups are open from December 1st, 2018 to January 1st, 2019. 

CLICK HERE FOR AUTHOR SIGN-UP

CLICK HERE FOR ARTIST SIGN-UP 

Below the cut is a refresh of the general, author, and artist rules. Please take a look if you need a reminder! 

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A week into signups and we’ve had an amazing turnout! There’s always space for more! Come join us for all the monster madness! 

Just THREE more days till signups close! Come join us, you know you want to!

Symbrock prompt: We got to see Venom rather epically coming to Eddie's rescue in the movie. Could we

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“And  of course, this is our goose laying the golden eggs.”

Eddie’s grin is so fixed it hurts, feels as though his face might shatter from the force of it. The cell is hazy with gas, green-grey fog, but he can see the faint, black shadow huddled in the corner.

God, he’s so small.

“Small but deadly.” The scientist pulls a face and Eddie starts, he hadn’t realised he was speaking aloud. “We found the remains in what was left of the shuttle. Whatever Drake thought he was doing with it, he was sitting on a goldmine.”

It’s the hardest thing Eddie has ever done to keep his mask in place, smile with all the interest he can dredge up, every inch the potential investor Annie set him up to be. His knuckles slowly turn white on the edge of his briefcase, all those convincing papers she’d mocked up for him. “If it’s so deadly, how are you keeping it contained?”

“Sonic emitters to begin with, but we’ve found a chemical mixture that supresses higher mental functions.” Eddie’s going to be sick. “It’s only temporary at the moment, and we need to keep it in this fog, but with your investment, we should be able to create a series of injections that will prove more permanent-”

Eddie can’t hear any more, his heart is beating in his ears so loud there’s nothing but blood, his eyes fixed on the woman’s throat. She trails off, one hand going to her neck. “Mr Smith?”

Eddie licks his lips. Any control burning to nothing. He sends Annie a half-hearted apology, this was only meant to be recon and she’s never going to forgive him for this. “You’ve got something on your-” He indicates the front of her blouse.

When she looks down, Eddie brings his briefcase down on the back of her head with both hands.

The briefcase bursts in a flurry of white paper. A spray of blood slashes across Eddie’s shirt, smears against his cheek. Eddie wonders for a moment if he killed her- then remembers the last few seconds, what they’ve been doning, what they were going to do- and spits on what is hopefully a corpse.

“Okay.” Eddie tries to breathe, gropes around the woman’s neck and finds her key card. There are no signs of an alarm, this iteration of LIFE is just as paranoid about getting found out as the last one. “Okay darling, I’m coming. I’m here.”

The door wails and spits as he swipes the keycard. A hiss of compressed air and the door opens. Eddie chokes and covers his mouth, the air tastes of chlorine and melted plastic. “V-” He chokes, the room smells like a fire in a swimming pool. His eyes are watering so badly he can barely see. “V, where are you? I’m here, come on-”

There’s a flicker of darkness in the corner of his eye. Something moving, just a little. “Yeah, that’s it.” Eddie coaxes, Venom is a tightly coiled knot of tendrils in the corner of the room, shivering. “It’s me darling, you remember me?”

Nothing. Eddie’s heart shatters, he kneels down, dragging in a ragged breath, and now the wetness in his eyes has nothing to do with the stinging air. “Come on, I’m getting you out.” 

He runs a hand over the dark mass, feels Venom tremble under his hand. He tries to pull his tentacles out of the way and Eddie chokes at the sight- so many severed, and chunks missing from the rest. “It’s okay.” Eddie rubs his burning eyes. “Come on, I won’t hurt you. No one’s going to hurt you. We’ll eat them if they try, yeah?”

Venom trembles again, but Eddie feels him slowly relax under the soft strokes, “That’s it darling, come on, bond to me. You remember how? You and me darling, together?”

A tentacle reaches out tentatively, wraps around Eddie’s wrist. It’s thin and pock marked, as though the poisonous air was eating away at it. Eddie strokes him again, glancing at the door, the fog is starting to clear, but God, they can’’t stay here much longer, his little tour must have have been expected to finish by now, they’ll be wondering where he is. “Sorry, sweetheart.” Eddie grits his teeth and wraps his arms around Venom, pulling him up, cradled against his chest.

Venom freaks out. He’s lashing out in every direction, clawing at Eddie’s arms, his chest. Eddie hisses in pain as a toothy tentacle claws his cheek open. “It’s me!” He cries out, then grabs the tentacle and presses it to his cheek. “Here! Taste familiar? You ate half my organs last week. Calm down!”

And to his complete shock, it works. Venom stills, tentacles slowly falling slack.  Then he gathers himself in Eddie’s arms, like a sleek black wave. He’s trying to form a face, Eddie sees an eye emerge, a cluster of teeth- but he can’t quite manage it and slumps back against him, shivering, sick and scared.

“Oh darling.” Eddie leans down and presses his lips against Venom’s form, trying to shove the memory through to him. In the forest, Venom racing over to him, chewing off Treece’s head, pulling him to his feet and-

The kiss.

The sheer shock of it, the relief and joy and a feeling like a puzzle piece finallly falling into place. This is what was misssing, this is what they both wanted so badly, right from the beginning. “I love you.”

But he’s speaking to empty air, the last black tendril vanishing inside him. “Oh, thank god.” Eddie whispers.

Venom’s a tangled ball of terror and confusion inside him. He can’t think. Everything is a burst of senseless sensation he can’t make sense of, fear and pain and massive creatures hurting and cutting and pouring in air that made him sick and stupid, injections that felt worse, dull and draining until he wanted to die from it-

“Shh,” Eddie stumbles for the door. Not far, not far. Nearly there, thank god, nearly there. He opens his mind to Venom, tries not to think to much, lets Venom use his brain while his is- offline.

Eddie. The whisper makes him sob, fuck, he’d missed him so much. Alone- pain-

“I know darling.” Finally, they’re out, Eddie drags in breath after breath of fresh air, feeding it into his bloodstream and to Venom. “We’re out. Let’s go home.”

Broken. Venom shudders. Can’t think.

“You’ll feel better soon, we’re out of that- whatever fucking fog that was.”

Might- not be. Wanted- broken forever. May have- succeeded.

Eddie stops, takes in a breath. The scientist is still lying on the floor in a pool of blood, she isn’t breathing. Good. “I don’t care.” He says finally. “I love you. I’ll take care of you. You’ll always have a home in me.”

Venom cannot answer in words, but the huge wave of love and relief and weeping joy says enough. Eddie swallows back the tears, and heads to the door.

They don’t quite get there, the door bursts open and- wow, Drake really did have his own private little army, didn’t he? “Get down! Hands on the ground!”

Eddie? 

“Mask?”

Copy.

Eddie grins, grins wider and wider and wider until his whole face unzips into teeth, and the screaming starts.