Review Fix Exclusive: Marvel’s Robbie Thompson Talks Venom: Space Knight #5

Review Fix chats with Venom Space Knight writer and Marvel Comics veteran Robbie Thompson (Spider-man, Silk, Guardians of Infinity), who discusses the series and working alongside the Wounded Warrior Project’s Dan Nevins to help show readers the day-to-day hurdles a double amputee must face.

The storyline sees Thompson (who lost his legs in Iraq) as Venom, working with the Guardians of the Galaxy in a swashbuckling space adventure, but Marvel and Wounded Warrior want it to be remembered as a far more human story. Illustrated by comics veteran Ariel Olivetti (Star Wars, Annihilation, Carnage) comic fans can expect a realistic look at overcoming and conquering disability.

For more on the series, click here.

Review Fix: Do you think Flash Thompson has ever been this emotionally vulnerable before?

Robbie Thompson: In a way, think emotional vulnerability has always been at the core of Flash’s character. Flash is a character that’s overcome huge obstacles, battled inner demons, alcoholism, and thanks to the events of the “Planet of the Symbiotes” storyline in Guardians of the Galaxy, he’s come out the other side. He and his partner, the Klyntar, have a clean slate and both want to be the hero that they’ve believed they could be all along. But Flash — and the Klyntar — still have a one day at a time type battle within that we’re going to slowly unpack as the series continues, and exploring his rehabilitation and adaptation to prosthetic legs felt like an organic way to explore that side of his character.

And I have to say, this all came from Editor Jacob Thomas. I put in a detail about 803 making prosthetics for Flash in a story document, and Jake called me up right away and said he thought we had an opportunity to really explore something emotional with that — it wasn’t just a detail. That phone call led Jake and Marvel to Wounded Warrior Project, and they, in turn, put us in touch with Dan Nevins, who has been invaluable as we’ve begun to explore the dramatic possibilities.

Review Fix: How does it feel to be the writer to tell this story?

Thompson: I’m honored — Flash is a character that I’ve loved in the Marvel Universe for years. I was excited to be telling the story of him traveling through space with a strange cast of characters and getting in and out of old school, high-octane space trouble, but this new thread that we’ll be exploring slowly throughout the series has made it all the more special. I’m really grateful to Jake and everyone at Marvel for the chance to tell this chapter of Flash’s on-going story.

Review Fix: How do you want this arc to be remembered?

Thompson: Well, first and foremost, I hope that people have as much fun reading it as we’ve had to make it. Working with Jake and Assistant Editor Kathleen Wisneski has been awesome, and we all pinch ourselves when Ariel Olivetti’s incredible art comes in for each issue. But I do hope that shining a light on veterans, and the battles the faceoff the battlefield can maybe be part of a much needed larger conversation about their experience. We’re not trying to preach, or get too heavy handed, but we do hope to add some realism to a pretty heightened tale.

Review Fix: How did work with Dan Nevins change your creative process?

Thompson: Dan has been incredible and so generous with his time and his experience. Jake and I jumped on the phone after our first conversation with Dan and just couldn’t stop pitching ideas back and forth. Dan is incredibly articulate and passionate and has such a clear and beautiful way of communicating his experience. The conversations have been inspiring and extremely motivating. We’re in Dan’s debt.

Review Fix: What did you learn from the experience?

Thompson: The importance of collaboration and dialogue in the creative process. As I said before, I had a detail in a story, and that led to Jake wanting to pause so we could explore it more, and soon enough we were on the phone with Dan, and hearing about his experience and passion for telling this story right. Ultimately, we want to tell a positive and entertaining story, but in talking with Dan, we began to realize we could begin a longer, more character-driven story for Flash and the Klyntar that could hopefully bring awareness to an important issue.

Review Fix: What’s next for the series?

Thompson: Crazy aliens. Intrigue. Robots. Space ships. Punching. Big bad Venom. And some fun guest stars from Marvel’s galactic characters. And on a more personal level, we’re going to explore what’s motivating Flash to be so far from home. Is he off doing the good thing, fighting the good fight? Or is he avoiding something? And for the Klyntar, he was cleansed in the “Planet of the Symbiotes” storyline, but does he view himself that way? He was forgiven, in a sense, but can he forgive himself? They’re both running from themselves, which can be problematic for an addict and a symbiote.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14262 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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