Contains Spoilers for All-New Venom #3!Venom has a new host in Marvel Comics, but even readers don’t know who it is, and a single line has just upturned the whole mystery. As the series continues to build toward its big reveal, there is something weird going on with the new Venom – and readers are only just starting to put together the pieces of the puzzle so far.

In All-New Venom #3 – written by Al Ewing with art by Carlos Gómez – Venom drops an uncharacteristic use of ‘I’, hinting that maybe readers have been approaching the mystery of his secret identity from the wrong direction.

In the issue, the mysterious Venom has a heart-to-heart with his former host, Dylan Brock, who Venom considers like a son. Dylan stands in for the reader, bringing up all the different theories of who Venom could be, much to Venom’s discomfort. He’s also the one who catches Venom speaking in the singular, which Venom immediately corrects.

The Mysterious new Venom Uses 'I', But What That Means Is As Mysterious As Their Identity

All-New Venom #3 – Written By Al Ewing; Art By Carlos Gómez; Color By Frank D'Armata; Lettering By Clayton Cowles

The identity of Venom’s mysterious new host has been the core conceit of All-New Venom so far. Issue 1, by the same team as #3, introduced the four suspects; Luke Cage, Madam Masque, Rick Jones and Robbie Robertson. This issue apparently confirmed it’s not Luke Cage, since Venom is shot through the symbiotic ‘head,’ proving that the host is both shorter than Luke and not bulletproof. It also nixed Madam Masque, who shows up at the same time as Venom, giving her a seemingly solid alibi – though nothing can be taken for certain in the series.

The use of the singular ‘I’ recalibrates the whole mystery. Some fans have radically interpreted this to suggest that there is, in fact, no-one in the suit, that it is operating on its own. Symbiotes can’t typically operate without a host for extended periods, so maybe one of the four suspects separated from the symbiote for just this fight. If so, that would mean that Venom could still be Luke or Masque, just not in this issue. That would fit with All-New Venom #2, when Venom is depicted as definitely having a host, who they talk to with no-one else around.

Some "Venom" Readers Are Worried That Something Is Wrong With The Symbiote

How That Relates To The Big Host Mystery

The other possibility is that there’s a problem with the Venom symbiote itself. In the aforementioned conversation in All-New Venom #2, the symbiote says that it and the new host are "stuck together," suggesting something wrong with the symbiote that’s forced it onto its new mysterious host. The use of ‘I’ in All-New Venom #3 could show that the new host has a greater control over their individuality than ever before, which could be further proof of the symbiote being broken in some way. The mystery of the new Venom is only getting more and more complicated, so anything’s possible.

All-New Venom #3 is available now from Marvel Comics.