The Queen in Black: Marvel’s Dark Crown Evolves

Marvel’s symbiote saga is not finished with Earth yet.

This summer, Marvel launches Queen in Black, a five-issue event series written by Al Ewing with art by Iban Coello. The story spins out of recent Venom and Knull stories, but the hook is simple enough: Hela has taken Knull’s throne.

That is not a small problem.

Knull was the god of the symbiotes; the ancient darkness behind Venom, Carnage, and the wider Klyntar mythology. In King in Black, he brought that darkness to Earth directly. Now Hela, Marvel’s Asgardian goddess of death, has seized that power for herself and declared herself the Queen in Black.

Which means Earth is caught between two cosmic nightmares: Hela, commanding symbiote forces of her own, and Knull, who is not exactly the forgiving type.

Why This Event Matters

The most interesting part of Queen in Black is that it is not just repeating King in Black with a different villain. Knull represented emptiness, domination, and the old horror of the symbiotes. Hela brings something different: death, magic, Asgardian ambition, and a very personal understanding of power.

That combination makes her dangerous in a different way. Knull wanted everything swallowed by darkness. Hela understands kingdoms, thrones, bargains, soldiers, and conquest.

In other words, she may be better at ruling than he was.

Who Is Involved?

The event pulls in major Marvel players, including Venom, Eddie Brock, Dylan Brock, Spider-Man, the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, Thor-related characters, and more. Tie-in stories are also expected to explore different parts of the conflict, including Asgard, Eddie Brock’s role, and the larger battle between light and dark.

For readers who have followed modern Venom, this is a continuation of one of Marvel’s biggest mythology expansions of the last decade. For newer readers, it also works as a big summer event built around a clear premise: Hela has stolen the crown of the symbiote god, and the Marvel Universe has to survive the fallout.

Do You Need to Read King in Black First?

It would help, but it probably is not required.

King in Black explains who Knull is, why the symbiotes matter on a cosmic scale, and why the title “in Black” carries weight. But Marvel events are usually designed to bring readers in at the beginning of the new story. If Queen in Black does its job, issue #1 should give readers enough context to understand the threat.

That said, readers who enjoy Venom, Carnage, Thor, Hela, cosmic Marvel, or big crossover stories will probably get more out of this if they know the basic shape of King in Black first.

Why We’re Watching It

At Twilight Comics, this is the kind of event we pay attention to because it connects several different reading lanes at once. It is a Venom story. It is a Marvel cosmic story. It is an Asgardian story. It is also the next major chapter in the mythology that turned the symbiotes from Spider-Man villains into something much larger.

Whether you are already following Venom or just want a big, strange, dramatic Marvel event, Queen in Black looks like one to watch.

Queen in Black #1 is scheduled to arrive in July 2026. Let us know if you want it added to your pull list.