Warning: SPOILERS for All-New Venom #2With the debut of an all-new Venom, readers have been set ablaze trying to figure out who the hero’s new identity is. With theories split between Rick Jones, Luke Cage, Robbie Robertson, and Madam Masque, it’s an absolute toss-up hidden behind false clues and clever leads. However, as much as Marvel is trying to hide the symbiotic hero’s true name, it’s become painfully clear who the new Venom is: it has to be Rick Jones.

All-New Venom #2 by Al Ewing and Carlos Gómez continues to tease Venom’s host while the duo takes to their new life of crime fighting. With an expressive fresh face and bright golden accents, Venom has now become a flashy reflection of its previously dark and brooding aesthetic.

Boisterous and quippy, this host loves his heroic moments and chances to flex in front of the masses. However, underneath the bravado, the host frequently second-guesses themselves, realizing that they don’t compare to Venom’s other hosts. All that said, it’s become obvious who the new Venom is underneath the alien goop, the most likely suspect being Rick Jones.

The All-New Venom Absolutely Has to Be Rick Jones

All-New Venom #2 by Al Ewing, Carlos Gómez, Frank D’Armata, and Clayton Cowles

Unlike Eddie or Dylan Brock before, this Venom seems to love the attention that the notorious alien symbiote has garnered. In nearly every fight they have been in, they take center stage, ensuring that everyone nearby is looking in their direction. They aren’t egotistical but are desperate to be seen as a hero. When onlookers run in fear, Venom is quick to call out, assuring the innocent that they are a hero. Of the four candidates that have been offered, these personality traits can’t belong to anybody but Rick Jones.

When Rick desperately needs something, destiny tends to reach out a hand to help.

Rick Jones is a career sidekick. While he has had his time to shine, his legacy will always be ed as the guy who stands next to the Hulk or Captain America. Luke Cage has already basked in the heroic light before and has nothing to prove. Madam Masque has never begged for redemption. And Robbie simply doesn’t have the spunk that this Venom does. However, Rick Jones not only wants to be recognized but needs it. Fortunately for him, when Rick desperately needs something, destiny tends to reach out a hand to help.

Venom and Rick Jones Are Bonded Together by the Destiny Force

The Two Are "Stuck Together"

Despite his seemingly permanent sidekick status, Jones does actually have a power. On rare occasions, when he is in desperate need, a limitless mystical energy called the Destiny Force answers the call. When active, Rick is cast in a glowing golden light before accomplishing nearly impossible feats. Now, after being forced within an inch of its life, Venom has completely recovered from its near-death encounter, similarly engulfed in a shiny golden aesthetic. As close to death as it was, only something as powerful as the Destiny Force could have staved off Venom’s impending death.

The new Venom even says that the two are “stuck together.” Venom, at any point, could leave its host to find a new one. There aren’t many situations where a host would be “stuck” with Venom unless something greater than the two alone were holding them together. The Venom symbiote may only be alive because the Destiny Force has bound its life with Rick’s. Cocky, desperate for approval, and bound by a glamorous gold aesthetic, it's more and more obvious that the all-new Venom is not-so-secretly Rick Jones.

All-New Venom #2 is available now from Marvel Comics.