Venom might have started as a villain, but he was only a villain for one key reason. He hated Spider-Man. Venom was a symbiote that came to Earth with Spider-Man, and it wasn't until Peter Parker learned it was a living alien and rejected it that Venom found Eddie Brock and set out to get revenge against Spider-Man for his rejection.
However, wanting to kill Spider-Man is the only thing that really makes Venom a villain. Despite that, he is an antihero in the form of someone like Punisher, where he is willing to kill or even eat a villain to end a fight. With that in mind, there are also many moments where Venom is a truly wholesome hero, although that takes on a slightly different meaning for this hero.
Venom Becoming The Lethal Protector
Venom spent most of his career as a villain in Spider-Man comics, but things changed when Eddie Brock decided to leave New York for a fresh start. He went to California, and with Spider-Man in his rear-view mirror, it was time to become a hero. Venom set out to protect San Francisco's homeless population and the people that society had forgotten. Yes, Venom still killed and ate people, but he did it for the betterment of mankind. This is also where the Life Foundation first appeared.
Venom Saves Kids In A Church
Venom actually went undercover in Venom: Sign of the Boss by Ivan Velez Jr. and Thomas Derenick, working for the United States government. They charge him with protecting a South American leader who is giving a speech in a church. To get in and remain hidden from detection was for Eddie Brock to go in, under the disguise of a nun. When an assassin showed up named Teraknid, Venom leaped into action, saved the children in the path of danger, and even convinced Ghost Rider that he was changing his ways and working for the government.
Venom As A Space Knight
Venom went into outer space for a long period of time, working with both the Guardians of the Galaxy and eventually Rom. For younger fans who don't know, Rom was a Space Knight who came to Earth and battled to save the planet from the Dire Wraiths, shapeshifting aliens intent on conquering planets. In Venom: Space Knight in 2015-16 by Robbie Thompson and Ariel Olivetti, Venom took on his own Space Knight armor. He eventually saved an entire planet, and the residents there looked to him as a savior.
Venom Helped In Spider-Island
In Spider-Island, all the Spider-Man characters had to work together to battle the threat of everyone in Manhattan receiving Spider-Man powers and going wild. This included both Flash Thompson's Agent Venom and Eddie Brock's Anti-Venom.
With Reed Richards helping to figure out a way to fix things, Eddie Brock ended up as a hero, using his symbiote to offer a cure to everyone. This action destroyed his Anti-Venom symbiote, but he saved the city, and he became the hero of the entire storyline thanks to his sacrifice.
Venom Saved Las Vegas From Hell
One of the strangest moments in Venom's comic book history came in the storyline "Circle of Hell," which lasted from Venom#13-14 by Rick Remender, Jeff Parker, and Rob Williams. In this story, Mephisto's son Blackheart borough Hell to Earth, and specifically Las Vegas. Venom showed up to fight, as did Ghost Rider and Red-Hulk. Alone, they were not powerful enough, but soon they agreed to work together and formed one being, taking the battle to Blackheart and saving Las Vegas.
Eddie Brock Gives Up Venom
For years, Eddie Brock was attached to Venom, and his only life was that of his symbiote partner. However, soon Eddie realized that he didn't want this life anymore and didn't want to hurt anyone again. The tragic thing is that Eddie had cancer, and the only thing battling the disease and keeping him alive was the symbiote. Eddie auctioned off the symbiote and selling it, donating all the money to charity and then settling down to die. It was a true sacrifice to end his time as a monster. Eddie survived, saved by Mister Negative, and eventually took on the symbiote again.
Venom Saves Mary Jane From Carnage
If there is one person that never trusted Venom, no matter how many times he proved himself a hero, it is Spider-Man. This likely is why someone like Mary Jane Watson also doesn't trust the symbiote antihero. In "Go Down Swinging," Venom's offspring Carnage was running rampant, threatening to kill anyone and everyone in his path.
This included MJ in Amazing Spider-Man #800 by Dan Slott and Humberto Ramos. When Venom came in to help, MJ fought him, but Venom kept his head, finally convinced her he was there to help, and saved Mary Jane from Carnage, proving himself to her.
Venom Protected Mania From Going Dark
In Venom #39 by Cullen Bunn, Kim Jacinto, and Mike Henderson, Venom took on a mentor's role. This was Flash Thompson as Venom, and he took the time to help high school student Andi Benton, who had become the symbiote Mania. She became the hero after watching Jack O'Lantern murder her father. She went for revenge, but Venom convinced her not to, and he kept her from taking the same dark path that other symbiote hosts had taken in the past.
Venom Helps Anne On An Alternate Earth
In 2020, Venom was sent to an alternate Earth in a story by Donny Cates and Juan Gedeon. This was Earth-1051, and on this Earth, Eddie Brock actually took his own life before the symbiote could stop him, and it was his wife Anne Weying who became Venom. In this world, his son Dylan grew up to become a villain known as Codex. In the story, Eddie and Dylan ended up on this Earth and helped stop the evil Dylan and save the planet. It took a year to return, and in that year, he spent it with Anne and Dylan, giving them all the feeling of family they never had a chance to experience on their own Earth timelines.
Venom Sacrifices Himself To Save His Son
King in Black is the latest Marvel giant crossover event, with the symbiote god Knull attacking Earth and bringing all the heroes to their knees. Knowing that Dylan was in great danger if Knull found him, Eddie locked his son away somewhere safe and then set out to stop a god on his own. He failed, and in doing so, he sacrificed himself for the one person in the world that he loved, his own son, and it was this sacrifice that helped open the door for the heroes to take the offensive in the war.
