History Characters / Carnage

* BerserkButton: The symbiote ''hates'' being separated from Cletus, and woe betide anyone who tries to hurt its beloved host.

--> '''Symbiote''' Don't talk to me about ''your'' family! I've got family too! You kept them locked up here! You let ''this'' happen to my family!

* ChildHater: The look of exasperated annoyance on his face when a little boy with a Spider-Man doll starts pestering him wasn't a giveaway, the fax that that all Deadpool found [[NoBodyLeftBehind only left a few traces of blood]] and a shredded Spider-Man doll certainly is.

--> '''Cletus:''' I forgot who I was... I admit! Dreaming of [[MayorPain taking over cities]]... [[DimensionLord conquering tiny universes]]. Thought I was thinking big! But those kinds of ambitions... they're ''lies''. Now the cataracts have been peeled from my eyes! I can see clearly! Back to the basics! Simple... beautiful... ''random'' ...Carnage!

Dying without its host, the symbiote escaped containment to search for Kasady, traveling across the United States, though the only part of it to survive the journey had been chemically neutered, making incapable of replicating itself. The symbiote found Cletus dead in a prison, having been stabbed and suffocated by his psychologist, Dr. Jenner, who wanted to become its new host. The symbiote vehemently turned him down and resuscitated Cletus, who reclaimed it and strangled Jenner in retribution.

--> '''Doctor Jenner:''' Your ''adopted'' family. You can always adopt a new one... ...one who is worthy of you... ...one who has ''dreamed'' of this... ...[[InLoveWithYourCarnage of your embrace]]... ...for oh-so-long.
--> '''Symbiote:''' [[DramaticStutter Who... ...who... ...who... ...who...]] WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

* BodySurf: In order to reunite with Cletus in ''Superior Carnage Annual'', the surviving remnants of the symbiote jump from host to host, consuming them from the inside out to regenerate.

--> '''Detective:''' Cell's not even locked. He could walk right out.

--> '''Carnage:''' Shriek's alive. [[BirdsOfAFeather She's like me]]. Too mean to die.

--> '''Carnage:''' Gonna sit right here... t'il I'm left alone... t'il I'm my own man again...

* HealingFactor: Cletus seems to have somehow regrown the lower half of his body, and recovered from his lobotomization after reuniting with the symbiote.

* BerserkButton: The symbiote ''hates'' being separated from Cletus.

Carnage is a ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' villain and the first spawn of ''ComicBook/{{Venom}}''. The symbiote has bonded to a number of hosts over the years, and like Venom has accumulated a number of alternate-universe counterparts.

Carnage is a ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' villain and the first spawn of ''ComicBook/{{Venom}}''

Carnage is a ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' villain and the first spawn of ''ComicBook/Venom''

In the early 1990's, ComicBook/{{Venom}}'s skyrocketing popularity as an antihero derailed co-creator David Michelinie's plan to kill Eddie Brock off and have the symbiote jump from host to host. Feeling Marvel had lost one of its most terrifying villains as a result of Venom's transition into the Lethal Protector, Michelinie came up with a new symbiotic super villain, one with no redeeming features whatsoever. Carnage debuted in 1991, when a piece of the Venom symbiote bonded to serial killer Cletus Kasady. Since then, Carnage has become one of Franchise/SpiderMan's most (in)famous villains, appearing in several video games and animated series. The character is set to appear alongside Venom in a spinoff film from the Film/TheAmazingSpiderManSeries, tentatively titled ''Venom: Carnage''.

[[Characters/{{Venom}} Click here for the other Marvel Comics symbiotes]]

!Carnage's appearances in various media:
[[index]]
[[AC:Comics]]
* ''ComicBook/SpiderMan''
** ''ComicBook/MaximumCarnage''
** ''Carnage Unleashed'' miniseries
** ''ComicBook/TheCloneSaga''
*** ''Web of Carnage'' arc
** ''On Trial'' miniseries
** ''The Carnage Cosmic'' arc
** ''Carnage'' miniseries
** ''Carnage USA'' miniseries
** ''Minimum Carnage'' crossover
*** ''ComicBook/ScarletSpider''
*** ''Venom'' Vol. 2
* ''Superior Carnage'' miniseries
* ''Deadpool vs. Carnage''
* ''ComicBook/{{AXIS}}: Carnage''
* ''ComicBook/SpiderGirl''
* ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan''
* ''Exiles''
* ''What If: What if the Venom Symbiote Possessed Deadpool?''

[[AC:Literature]]
* ''Literature/CarnageInNewYork''
** ''Goblin's Revenge''

[[AC:Film]]
* ''Venom: Carnage'': a spinoff set in the ''Film/TheAmazingSpiderManSeries'' universe.

[[AC:Video Games]]
* ''Maximum Carnage''
* ''VideoGame/SpiderMan'': Carnage is the game's final boss; symbiote bonds to Doctor Octopus to become Monster-Ock
* ''VideoGame/UltimateSpiderMan'': Peter Parker is turned into the Ultimate version of Carnage during Venom's final boss fight
* ''VideoGame/SpiderManWebOfShadows'': Spider-Carnage is an unlock able costume for Symbiote Spider-Man
* ''VideoGame/SpiderManShatteredDimensions'': The Ultimate version of Carnage appears as a boss
* ''VideoGame/TheAmazingSpiderman2'': Cletus Kasady is a reoccurring antagonist, and becomes Carnage during the final boss fight; Spider-Carnage is an unlock able costume
* ''VideoGame/MarvelAvengersAlliance''

[[AC:Western Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries''
* ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManUnlimited''
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSpectacularSpiderMan''
* ''WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan''
----

In the early 1990's, ComicBook/{{Venom}}'s skyrocketing popularity as an antihero derailed co-creator David Michelinie's plan to kill Eddie Brock off and have the symbiote jump from host to host. Feeling Marvel had lost one of its most terrifying villains as a result of Venom's transition into the Lethal Protector, Michelinie came up with a new symbiotic super villain, one with no redeeming features whatsoever. Carnage debuted in 1991, when a piece of the Venom symbiote bonded to serial killer Cletus Kasady. Since then, Carnage has become one of Marvel's most (in)famous villains, appearing in several video games and animated series. The character is set to appear alongside Venom in a spinoff film from the Film/TheAmazingSpiderManSeries, tentatively titled ''Venom: Carnage''.

* MindHive: The symbiote could remotely control separated parts of itself, enabling it to seize control of Tanis' prosthetic, the Iron Rangers' [[PoweredArmor armors]], and Baron Karza's fused Venom[=/=]Carnage clones.

* PuppeteerParasite: Inverted, as it's implied that ''Kasady'' took control of the symbiote rather than the other way round. However, the symbiote ''does'' possess a mind of its own, as it tried to take over Ben Reilly and Norin Radd, and following Cletus being put in a coma by Kaine it took over his body and that of Karl Marcus when forcibly transferred to him. The symbiote was also capable of infecting others with pieces of itself and controlling them through it.

* EatsBabies: David Michelinie described Cletus as a ""

* LikeAnOldMarriedCouple: In ''Venom[=/=]Carnage'' Cletus displays this dynamic with his symbiote, exacerbated by the fact that he happened to be [[VillainsOutShopping ironing clothes]] and [[http://kasadys.tumblr.com/post/70964786967/cletus-tried-to-blow-up-his-son-tried-to-kill drinking coffee]] at the time.

A protoplasmic entity created by Curtis Connors and Ben Reilly by combining a sample of Spider-Man's blood, which at the time still contained particles of the Venom Suit, with a sample of his own, which contained traces of the Lizard Formula. The creature's genetic code was incomplete, so to sustain itself it began attacking everyone it came across and draining them of all their vital fluids. Possessing fragments of Peter's memories, it returned to his house, where it encountered and killed Gwen Stacy. Peter, seeking revenge, threw the creature down an industrial smoke stack. which regenerated into a clone of Gwen Stacy, possessing all her memories. Otto Octavius and Ben Reilly later created a second Carnage using DNA samples of Gwen as a base. The second Carnage, possessing Gwen's memories, sought out Peter Parker after escaping from SHIELD during the Green Goblin's breakout. When Eddie Brock threatened Peter in an attempt to get the Venom suit back from SHIELD, Gwen intervened and transformed into Carnage. This caused the traces of the Venom Suit inside Eddie's body to reform, and after a brief fight he consumed Carnage, spitting out the fully human clone of Gwen.

Cletus Kasady was imprisoned in a maximum security prison cell before being broken out by Eddie Brock, who gifted Cletus with a portion of his symbiote. An unknown amount of time later, Carnage attacked Colonel Jameson's shuttle to Counter-Earth alongside Venom, guided by an entity they called the Synoptic. On Counter-Earth, Carnage and Venom began working to further the Synoptic's goal of conquering Counter-Earth with symbiotes, at times working with the High Evolutionary, but most often against.

* DenserAndWackier: This being a SelfDemonstrating/{{Deadpool}}-centered WhatIf comic, she was born from a botched haircut, looked completely human, and was sleeping with two cosmic entities.

* RetGone: She was erased from existence by the Retcon Expungifier.

* DenserAndWackier: This being a Deadpool-centered WhatIf comic, she was born from a botched haircut, looked completely human, and was sleeping with two cosmic entities.

* BlackEyesOfEvil: His eyes look like nothing more than empty holes.

* FusionDance: When the DC and Marvel Universe combined, so did everything in them, including two enemies of their flagship superheroes.

* PaletteSwap: Is Carnage, but white and jagged, with black eyes.

* BlackEyesOfEvil: His eyes look like nothing more empty holes.

* PaletteSwap: Is Carnage, but white and jagged, with black eyes.

* RetGone: She was erased from existence by the Retcon Expungifier.
[[/folder]]

-> '''AKA:'''

[[folder: Carnage (Unlimited)

* MostCommonSuperpower: She was incredibly buxom.

** ''ComicBook/UltimateSpiderMan''
** ''What If: What if the Venom Symbiote Possessed Deadpool?''

* [[AC: Alternate Counterparts]]

* ''VideoGame/SpiderManWebOfShadows'': Spider-Carnage is an unlockable costume

* ''VideoGame/TheAmazingSpiderman2'': Cletus Kasady is a reoccurring antagonist, and becomes Carnage during the final boss fight; Spider-Carnage is an unlockable costume

[[Characters/{{Venom}} Click here for the other Marvel Comics symbiotes]]

----

[[folder:The Carnage Symbiote]]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/carnagesymbi_8327.jpg]]

-> '''Debut:''' ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #361

The first spawn of the Venom symbiote, left behind during the alien's jailbreak of Eddie Brock. Needing a host and sensing Cletus' jealousy of Venom's power, the infant symbiote entered the serial killer's body through a cut and bonded to his bloodstream. The Carnage symbiote was utterly subservient to him and fully embraced his nihilistic philosophy to the point where it functioned as an extension of Cletus' will. Despite supposedly being irremovable, the Carnage symbiote left Cletus twice of its own volition, once to bond to Spider-Man's clone Ben Reilly, and the second time to bond to the Silver Surfer, but both times returned to its original host. Fed up with Carnage, Venom [[OffingTheOffspring once devoured the symbiote]], leaving Cletus powerless for a time, though the serial killer somehow managed to obtain an exact duplicate of it in the Negative Zone that has since merged with the remnants of the original.

Eventually, like its progenitor, the Carnage symbiote gave birth to an offspring, which Venom later dubbed Toxin. Despite initially being disgusted at the notion of giving birth, Cletus came to consider the Carnage symbiote to be female, [[InterSpeciesRomance causing his relationship with the creature to take on a new dynamic]]. When Cletus was torn in half by the Sentry, the Carnage symbiote cocooned him in a state of suspended animation until they were recovered by Hall Industries, which extracted it and used it to create a line of biomechanical prosthetics and suits of powered armor. Kept alive by Shriek, the symbiote seized control of Dr. Tanis Nieves' prosthetic arm and forced her to free it and take it to Kasady, who had been equipped with a set of prosthetic legs. Following this the symbiote discovered that it could separate pieces of itself and remotely control people with them, using this ability to help Cletus take over the town of Doverton, Colorado. Cletus and the symbiote were freed by agents of Baron Karza, a warlord in the Microverse who wanted to build an unstoppable army. Karza used his Body Banks to create clones of the Venom and Carnage symbiotes and merge them together, though this backfired when Carnage seized control of them. When Cletus was lobotomized by Kaine, the symbiote assumed control of his comatose body. It was extracted from Cletus by the Wizard, who wanted to create his own version of Agent Venom but couldn't control the handicapped Cletus, and bonded to Dr. Karl Malus, who became Superior Carnage. The furious symbiote took control of Malus when the Wizard's control slipped during a battle with the Superior Spider-Man, killing Klaw before jumping hosts to the Wizard. The symbiote was temporarily reunited with Cletus before the disembodied Klaw separated them, and the alien was taken into Otto's custody.

Dying without its host, the symbiote escaped containment to search for Kasady, traveling across the United States, though the only part of it to survive the journey had been chemically neutered, making incapable of replicating itself. The symbiote found Cletus dead in a prison, having been stabbed and suffocated by his psychologist, Dr. Jenner, who wanted to become its new host. The symbiote vehemently turned him down and resuscitated Cletus, who reclaimed it and strangled Jenner in retribution.

* AdaptiveArmor: Like the Venom symbiote, the Carnage symbiote protects its host from harm and took on the appearance of body armor while bonded to Karl Malus.
* AlternateSelf: Not to the same degree as the Venom symbiote, but the Carnage symbiote has a number of prominent AU counterparts.
* AntagonisticOffspring: To Venom. Even Cletus refers to the black symbiote, regardless of its host, as his father.
--> '''Symbiote:''' Maybe if my host had a little more filial sentiment... a little more human love for his own daddy... some of it would have crossed over to me. As it is, I feel nothing but cold empty contempt. I hate you daddy.
* ApocalypseHow: Duplicates of the symbiote (created by the government to take down Mayhem after she went rogue) called "Biopreds" and "[[SpellMyNameWithAThe The]] Carnages" [[GoneHorriblyWrong decimate and overtake most of the Earth]] in a BadFuture shown in ''ComicBook/SpiderGirl''. Cletus had similar ambitions in ''Carnage [=USA=]''.
* AsteroidsMonster: Following the shenanigans at Hall Industries, the symbiote found it could separate pieces of itself and remotely control them. The only surviving piece of the symbiote to reunite with Cletus no longer possesses this ability.
* AxCrazy: Just like its favorite host, the symbiote delights in bloodshed and violence.
--> '''Symbiote:''' (on Black Cat) Look, Cletus, a pretty girl. Smells nice. Nice and soft...
--> '''Cletus:''' Squeeze all the perfume outta her.
--> '''Symbiote:''' Great idea, partner.
* BerserkButton: The symbiote ''hates'' being separated from Cletus.
* BlobMonster: Like its progenitor, the Carnage symbiote is an amorphous mass when not bonded to a host.
* BloodyMurder: The symbiote is bonded to Cletus' bloodstream, making it ''very'' difficult for them to be separated. There have even been times when, without it, Cletus was on the brink of death due to anemia.
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: It acts this way towards Venom, who just wants to discuss its pregnancy, at the beginning of ''Venom vs. Carnage''.
--> '''Carnage Symbiote:''' The old fool has lost his mind. This is just his way to exert control. We'll both ignore him.
* CantLiveWithoutYou: In ''Superior Carnage Annual'', after being separated from its host for a prolonged period of time the Carnage symbiote is dying and makes a desperate bid to reunite with Cletus. The only part of it that survives is a "neutered" piece that was separated from the main body.
* EmotionEater: The Carnage symbiote somehow converts hatred and bloodlust into biomass, making Cletus and [[HatePlague Shriek]] a perfect team.
* EvilCounterpart: The Carnage symbiote was created to be one to the Venom symbiote.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: The symbiote considers Cletus to be its one true host and hates being separated from him.
* FemaleMonsterSurprise: Played with: While the Carnage symbiote is actually asexual, Cletus has considered it to be female ever since it gave birth to Toxin.
* FromASingleCell: Because it's bonded to Cletus' bloodstream, there have been times when the symbiote was thought to be killed only for it to reform when he cut himself.
* FusionDance: The remnants of the symbiote in Cletus' blood have apparently assimilated the doppelgänger he obtained in the Negative Zone.
* GoalOrientedEvolution: Klaw deduces that the reason the symbiote keeps leaving Cletus for stronger hosts is so that when it returns to him they'll be more powerful than before.
* InLoveWithYourCarnage: The symbiote views Cletus as the perfect host due to his sociopathic nihilism enmeshing with its own predatory instincts.
* KillItWithFire: One of the symbiote's weaknesses, although according to Karl Malus it doesn't mind flames if it's the one wielding them.
* LegacyCharacter: Despite being bonded to his blood, the symbiote has been separated from Kasady on numerous occasions and bonded to other people, namely [[http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20111127111255/spiderman/images/d/dc/Spider-Carnage_(Ben_Reilly_-_Peter_Parker_Clone Ben Reilly]], [[http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20060530104711/marveldatabase/images/0/03/Amazing_Spider-Man_Vol_1_430_page_--_Norrin_Radd_%28Earth-Earth-616%29.jpg Norrin Radd]], [[http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110219085826/marveldatabase/images/0/05/Carnage_Vol_1_3_page_12_Tanis_Nieves_%28Earth-616%29.jpg Tanis Nieves]], and [[http://img1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130923022706/marveldatabase/images/b/b8/Karlin_Malus_%28Earth-616%29_from_Superior_Carnage_Vol_1_3_001.jpg Karl Malus]]. It always returns to him in the end, though.
* LoudOfWar: The symbiote's other weakness, although Cletus claims it's developed a resistance to it.
* LovecraftianSuperpower: Initially to a greater degree than Venom, as it enables its hosts to freely transform their limbs into weapons. Venom later develops this ability as well after bonding to Flash Thompson.
* MaternallyChallenged: It was just as thrilled to be pregnant with Toxin as Cletus was.
--> '''Venom Symbiote:''' Don't be ashamed, Carnage. It happens to all of us.
--> '''Carnage Symbiote:''' I'm not ashamed. I just don't want anything to do with it.
* MindHive: The symbiote could remotely control separated parts of itself, enabling it to seize control of Tanis' prosthetic, the Iron Rangers' [[PoweredArmor armors]], and Baron Karza's fused Venom[=/=]Carnage clones.
* MindRape: The symbiote forces Cletus' memories onto hosts in order to break them.
* MonsterIsAMommy: The symbiote has two offspring, Toxin and Scorn.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: When the symbiote left Cletus and bonded to the Silver Surfer, it was apparently unaware that the separation would doom Cletus to a slow and painful death from stomach cancer. When it learned Cletus was dying, it instantly called off whatever plans for mass destruction it had and returned to him, not caring that he was still imprisoned or it could just stay with the far more powerful Silver Surfer.
* OhCrap: When the symbiote sees the Silver Surfer it abandons Cletus in terror, having [[GeneticMemory recalled]] an incident when Radd callously fed a symbiote-infested planet to Galactus.
* OrganicTechnology: Hall Industries used the symbiote to create biomechanical prosthetics and PoweredArmor.
* OverlyLongTongue: Although nowhere near as frequently as Venom, the Carnage symbiote as occasionally been drawn manifesting a long, thick tongue.
* ThePowerOfHate: Theorized to be one of the reasons why the Carnage symbiote is more powerful than the Venom symbiote.
* PuppeteerParasite: Inverted, as it's implied that ''Kasady'' took control of the symbiote rather than the other way round. However, the symbiote ''does'' possess a mind of its own, as it tried to take over Ben Reilly and Norin Radd, and following Cletus being put in a coma by Kaine it took over his body and that of Karl Marcus when forcibly transferred to him. The symbiote was also capable of infecting others with pieces of itself and controlling them through it.
** Cletus's influence on the symbiote was apparently once so all-encompassing that when it briefly left him in favor of the ComicBook/ScarletSpider and the ComicBook/SilverSurfer, it acted ''almost exactly'' like Cletus while possessing Reilly and Radd (who, granted, [[FightingFromTheInside put up a fight]]), and Nieves. While the symbiote was bonded to the comatose Cletus, it acted like a beast instead of mimicking his mannerisms, but following its reunion with Cletus it becomes able to talk, and [[spoiler: in ''Superior Carnage Annual'' #1 turns down Dr. Jenner's request to become its new host]].
* PsychoSupporter: The symbiote fully endorses Cletus' nihilistic vision of a world filled with wanton violence and anarchy.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: The symbiote's coloration is red and black, and Cletus' influence on the symbiote has made it even more savage than its progenitor.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: When the Wizard rips it out of Cletus' body and forcefully bonds it to Karlin Malus, the not–so–good doctor warns Klaw that the symbiote is ''severely'' pissed off, which only gets worse when the wizard blows up his base with Cletus's body inside. After taking control of Malus the symbiote shanked Klaw with a chunk of vibranium, massacred Spider-Man's soldiers, ate Malus after taking over the Wizard, and was just about to eat the Wizard after reuniting with Kasady before Klaw hit it with a lightning bolt.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: When Carnage ran into the ComicBook/SilverSurfer, the symbiote (aware of the Surfer's connection to ComicBook/{{Galactus}} due to its GeneticMemory) freaked out and ran off, leaving Cletus behind.
* SpikeShooter: The Carnage symbiote can fire projectiles made of its biomass, but they only last for 30 seconds before disintegrating.
* TheSymbiote: The Carnage symbiote is the offspring of the Venom symbiote, which is even ''more'' vicious than its progenitor. [[SymbioticPossession It is completely subservient to Cletus and operates as an extension of his will and body]]... until he is lobotomized and [[PuppeteerParasite their relationship is temporally inverted]].
* TemporaryBulkChange: The John Jameson version of Carnage was very tall and ''very'' muscular, which was Ben Reilly's first clue that someone other than Cletus was in the suit.
* ToServeMan: Not to the degree of the Venom symbiote, but the Carnage symbiote isn't averse to chowing down on human flesh.
* UpgradeVsPrototypeFight: The Carnage symbiote is more powerful than the Venom symbiote, but conversely weaker than the Toxin symbiote.
* TheVoiceless: Prior to ''Superior Carnage'' #5 the symbiote could only vocalize by screeching, snarling, and roaring.
* ShapeshifterWeapon: The Carnage symbiote lets its hosts morph their limbs into bladed[=/=]serrated weapons and fire projectiles formed from the symbiote. This was notably an ability the Venom symbiote did not initially possess, though it later figured the trick out.
* SuddenlyVoiced: The ''Web of Carnage'' four-parter was the first time the Carnage symbiote was shown speaking, though it only does so through internal dialogue, and hosts. It's established as having absolutely nothing in the way of goals or personality beyond what it picked up from Cletus, making it little more than an extension of his will.
* WifeBasherBasher: While bonded to a scientist named Carla Unger, the symbiote took time off from its reunite-with-Cletus-at-all-costs quest to help her put the "death" in "till death do us part".
--> '''Carla (as Carnage):''' I want you to know something, [[DomesticAbuser Will]]. Everything that's about to happen... All the nasty things that I'm going to do to you... It's not the monster making me do it. I'm killing you because I want to. I've been married to you a long time. It's about time you started bringing me some joy!
** While in possession of John Jameson in ''Web of Carnage'', the symbiote murders an abusive alcoholic in a ParkingGarage, but leaves his wife alone.
* {{Yandere}}: The symbiote is yandere for Cletus, doing whatever it takes to reunite with him if they are separated.
* YouCanTalk: In ''Superior Carnage #5'' it's revealed the symbiote has developed the ability to [[SssssnakeTalk talk]] without using a host as a medium.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Carnage]]

-> '''AKA:''' Cletus Kasady
-> '''Debut:''' ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #344; ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #361 (as Carnage)

[[quoteright:286:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/carnage_773.png]]

A psychopathic serial killer imprisoned for eleven consecutive life sentences, Cletus Kasady met Eddie Brock when the latter, separated from the Venom symbiote by the toxic touch of the supervillain Styx, became his cellmate. Learning of Brock's grudge against Spider-Man, Kasady tried to convert him to his nihilistic philosophy, mocking Eddie over his claims to have once been the supervillain Venom. Repeatedly rebuked, Kasady decided to murder his cellmate, but before he could the Venom symbiote entered the cell and rebonded to Eddie. Venom broke free, leaving the terrified and jealous Kasady behind. Sensing his desire for the power Eddie possessed, a scrap of the symbiote left behind dripped onto Cletus' hand and bonded with him, transforming him into the monstrous Carnage. As Carnage, Kasady proved stronger than Spider-Man and Venom combined, and his symbiote was not only less susceptible to sonics than its progenitor but infinitely more difficult to remove, having bonded to his bloodstream. In his first appearance, Carnage forced Spider-Man and Venom to [[EnemyMine call a temporary truce]] to defeat him, and in his next major appearance Carnage rounded together numerous other super villains and [[MaximumCarnage nearly succeeded in taking over New York]] before being defeated. When Cletus realized the Carnage symbiote was about to give birth, he passed the offspring on to a police officer named Patrick Mulligan, exhausted from trying to suppress the process and intending to kill them both later. This backfired when the offspring, Toxin, teamed up with Spider-Man and Black Cat to defeat him and Venom. While imprisoned on the Raft, Carnage participated in a breakout but was apprehended by the Sentry, flown into orbit, and torn in half.

Presumed dead, Cletus was actually cocooned by the symbiote, but missed out on the Civil War, Skrull Invasion, and Dark Reign. His body was eventually recovered by Hall Industries, which extracted the symbiote from him and used it to engineer [[OrganicTechnology unique prosthetics]]. Equipped with a new pair of legs, Cletus was eventually reunited with the symbiote and stronger than ever, but was repelled by Spider-Man and Iron Man with help from the symbiote's new offspring, Scorn. Traveling to Doverton Colorado, Kasady took over the town by creating copies of the symbiote, even parasitizing the Avengers, but was defeated by the Life Foundation symbiotes, Scorn, and Agent Venom. Imprisoned, he was freed by servants of Marquis Radu, a tyrant in the Microverse who intended to use the Carnage symbiote to create an unstoppable army. Pursued by Agent Venom and the Scarlet Spider, Carnage betrayed Radu's forces but was captured, his symbiote cloned and fused to copies of the Venom symbiote. Intrigued by this, Carnage attempted to assimilate the Venom symbiote to become even more powerful, but was stabbed through the head by the Scarlet Spider's stingers and lobotomized.

Comatose and under the control of the symbiote, Cletus was eventually broken free by Klaw and the increasingly psychotic Wizard, who wanted to turn him into his own version of Agent Venom. Unable to do so due to Cletus being brain-dead, the Wizard had Klaw subdue the symbiote and transferred it into his old friend Karl Malus, [[DroppedABridgeOnHim blowing up his base with Kasady still in it]]. The Wizard's control over Malus proved tenuous at best, and during a fight with the Superior Spider-Man he lost control, allowing the symbiote to take over and go on a rampage, destroying Klaw's corporeal form in the process. The resulting shockwave blasted the symbiote off Malus and onto the Wizard, who the symbiote promptly [[LaserGuidedKarma took control of]] and resumed its rampage. Superior Spider-Man learned Kasady survived the explosion, albeit badly injured, and had his body recovered to exploit the symbiote's preference for him. The symbiote rebonded to Kasady, but the reunion was short lived before Klaw directed a bolt of lightning towards Carnage, separating Kasady and the symbiote once more. Spider-Man took the symbiote into custody while Kasady was reincarcerated... and revealed to have made a full recovery from his lobotomy. Cletus underwent psychotherapy and was integrated into the mainstream prison population, while without a host the symbiote began to die and escaped containment, seeking to reunite with him. Upon learning of the symbiote's escape, Kasady's psychologist Dr. Jenner hired a thug to shank him and then smothered him to death, offering himself to the symbiote as its next host. The symbiote instead resuscitated Kasady and rebonded to him, and the reunited Carnaged returns the favour by smothering Jenner.

Carnage decided that his ambitions of conquest and transcendence had caused him nothing but grief and decided to get back to basics with another randomized killing spree. This attracted the attention of psychotic antihero SelfDemonstrating/{{Deadpool}}, who tracked Cletus down using MediumAwareness, much to Carnage's confusion and outrage. Deadpool gained an upper hand until Carnage's girlfriend Shriek arrives. Carnage and Shriek escaped, but Deadpool tracked them down again and badly injures Shriek. Team Mercury arrived to break up the fight, but they were killed by Carnage and their symbiotes were taken by Deadpool, whose utter lack of a fourth wall drives Cletus into a VillainousBreakdown, causing him to believe he's being "controlled" by higher powers, and he willingly allows himself to be taken into custody.

* ADayInTheLimelight: The one-shots ''Mind Bomb'' and ''It's a Wonderful Life'', the latter being a JourneyToTheCenterOfTheMind story.
* AnAxeToGrind[=/=]BladeBelowTheShoulder: One of his favourite means of attacking is morphing his limbs into bladed weapons.
* AndIMustScream: After running afoul of the ComicBook/SilverSurfer, Carnage was imprisoned in a statue-like state - able to think, but in no way able to move or talk. He later got better, though.
* ArtificialLimbs: Cletus was briefly equipped with cybernetic legs [[OrganicTechnology derived from his symbiote]], although they were destroyed by a sonic machine and he seems to have somehow regrown his legs.
* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: Claims to have done this following exiting the Microverse, though he's quickly subdued by Agent Venom and Scarlet Spider.
* AxCrazy: Cletus believes that chaos is the natural order, and expresses this belief through wanton violence.
* BackFromTheDead: Cletus was murdered by his psychologist Dr. Jenner, who wanted to become the symbiote's new host. It turned him down, resuscitated and rebonded to Cletus, and the reunited Carnage paid Jenner back with interest.
* {{Badass}}: Carnage is definitely one of Spider-Man's most powerful enemies, as he has almost never been defeated without [[EnemyMine help from Venom]] or another character stronger than Spider-Man himself, and even managed to [[CurbStompBattle take down most of the Avengers]] in a What If? comic.
* TheBerserker: Without Cletus's mind to direct it the symbiote was little more than a feral predator attacking anything it saw, though after reuniting with him it develops the ability to speak on its own.
* BigEater: Between himself and Doppelgänger, Cletus ate a meat processing plant's supply of cattle ''and'' the workers stationed there to increase the symbiote's biomass and let him take over Doverton.
* BlatantLies: He's brought in as a witness for the prosecution in ''Venom: The Trial''. His testimony regarding his and Eddie's time together as cellmates is as believable as you'd expect.
--> '''Cletus:''' It was almost impossible for me to hear my wonderfully intellectual classical music tapes--Beethoven, Mozart, and Mantovani--because of Brocko's loony lip!
--> '''"Flashback" Eddie:''' As a serial killer, you are some chump, Kasady. You got convicted on eleven counts. You must have been begging to get caught. I PUT DOWN MORE THAN TWICE AS MANY AND THEY'RE NEVER GOING TO MAKE ANYTHING STICK TO ME!
* BloodKnight: While Cletus prefers flat-out killing more than actual combat, he still enjoys a good fight and actually complained that "it was just gettin' good" when the Sentry left him to die after ripping him in half.
* {{Bomb Throwing Anarchist|s}}: Cletus espouses a nihilistic philosophy of lawlessness, randomized murder, and chaos. The ''Maximum Carnage'' storyline did the whole "[[OlderThanTheyThink Agent of Chaos]]" thing ''before'' ''Film/TheDarkKnight.''
* BookDumb: Kasady is uneducated but not an idiot, and prior to getting the symbiote had cleanly gotten away with a number of murders; worse, since he doesn't hold the same intense grudge against Spidey the same way his other enemies do and he doesn't have as sensitive an ego, he's not as vulnerable to Spidey's [[YouFightLikeACow usual psychological tactics]]. Carnage is ''focused'' on his mission, and that mission is killing as many people as he can.
* BroughtDownToNormal: Venom once ate the symbiote, though Cletus was able to find a duplicate of it in the Negative Zone. There have also been times it's left him for stronger hosts.
* CardCarryingVillain: He kills people ForTheEvulz.
* CardboardPrison: Breaks out of prison on a semi-regular basis.
* CharacterDevelopment: Following his return from space, Carnage started becoming increasingly megalomaniacal, taking over Doverton, Colorado and later trying to conquer the Microverse. This... didn't turn out so well for him, and in ''Superior Carnage Annual'' he decides to get back to basics.
* ChaoticEvil: [invoked] Cletus is a psychopathic nihilist obsessed with spreading chaos and death.
* ChekhovsGunman: Cletus Kasady debuted as a bit-part bad guy in ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' #344.
* ChestBurster: The off-panel result of him attempting to hold in the Toxin symbiote.
* CloningBlues: Played with, as during the ''Minimum Carnage'' arc Cletus initially states that one Carnage is enough but is later delighted by the "incestuous" fusions of Venom and Carnage created by the body banks... mainly because he can control them. During the ''Carnage USA'' arc the symbiote demostrated the ability to create copies of itself at will, enabling Cletus to control multiple people through them. The remnant of the symbiote that survived the journey to rebond with Kasady in ''Superior Carnage Annual'' was stated to have been neutered, indicating it is incapable of doing this anymore.
** "[[XMakesAnythingCool Xraven]]" was the result of [[Characters/XMenVillains Mr. Sinister]] splicing DNA samples taken from Carnage, Kraven the Hunter, and the original five X-Men.
* TheCorrupter: Tries to convert Eddie Brock to his nihilistic philosophy when they first meet.
--> '''Eddie:''' Sometimes I wish I didn't have to live with a foul serial killer like you.
* CorruptHick: Cletus is [[DependingOnTheWriter often]] given a Southern accent, which Spider-Man and Deadpool [[BullyingADragon relentlessly tease him about]].
--> '''Carnage:''' Ain't no clues!
--> '''Deadpool:''' Come on... be ''faithful'' to your backwoods upbringing. Don't you mean "''Tweren't'' no clues"?
* {{Cyborg}}: For a short while he had prosthetic legs [[OrganicTechnology derived from the symbiote]].
* DeadpanSnarker: Carnage enjoys delving into DeadBabyComedy.
* DependingOnTheArtist: Carnage was originally drawn as being red and black with black teeth, but starting with Kyle Hotz in ''It's a Wonderful Life'', artists began depicting him as all-red with white teeth. The latter look has since become his most frequent, which his "classic" appearance having been last seen in 2004's ''Venom[=/=]Carnage'' miniseries and 2006's ''VideoGame/MarvelUltimateAlliance II'''s DLC. Even more recently, some artists have drawn him as being [[http://www.comicbookresources.com/prev_img.php?pid=5266&disp=ilib&oty=1&oid=49996 all-red with red teeth and glowing yellow eyes]].
* DependingOnTheWriter: Whether Cletus is afraid to die, doesn't care if he does, or is secretly a DeathSeeker varies on who is writing him.
* DisabilityImmunity: When he was lobotomized, Kasady was immune to Wizard's mind control, leading the latter and Klaw to extract the symbiote from Cletus and bond it to someone who isn't.
* TheDreaded: One of Spidey's most absolutely terrifying enemies and perhaps the only one he almost never chooses to fight alone; when Carnage shows up, Peter almost always seeks out friends- and in the case of Venom, [[EnemyMine even enemies]]- to team up with to take him down. Given Carnage is both quite a bit stronger than Spidey and by far the most homicidal and crazy of his rogues, this is a ''very'' sensible strategy.
* EatsBabies: David Michelinie described Cletus as a ""
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: When Deadpool shreds their stolen car with a combine and badly injures [[DarkMistress Shriek]] in the process, Cletus becomes [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge uncharacteristically pissed off]].
--> '''Cletus:''' Shriek! Shriek, baby?!
--> '''Deadpool:''' Awwww, yeah! Frigding! Did big, bad Deadpool break your widdle psychotic suicide girl? Don't worry. Maybe you'll get conjugal visits -- in Hell!
--> '''Carnage:''' All right, dumbass! You wanna poke the komodo? YOU GOT IT! I'm gonna ''peel'' you outta there like a crawdaddy from its shell!
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Cletus tells off a businessman who has illegally parked in a handicapped spot in the Carnage Cosmic two-parter.
* EvilerThanThou: He was introduced into the comics pretty much for this express purpose. Venom had become something of a NobleDemon and AntiHero by the 90's, and the writers thought this was a waste of one of Spidey's most visually impressive and scariest enemies. David Michelinie had intended to kill Eddie off and have the symbiote jump from host to host, but Marvel vetoed the idea. Thus, Michelinie came up with Carnage as a stronger, scarier, and much more evil version of Venom who is [[CardCarryingVillain he is damn proud of it too.]]
** Why he and the SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker turned on each other in a ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' crossover. Carnage thought the Joker's plans were too slow, convoluted, and stupid. The Joker deemed Carnage's methods lazy, unoriginal, and a tad gross.
** ''Deadpool vs. Carnage:''
--> '''SelfDemonstrating/{{Deadpool}}:''' See, pal, you may be a homicidal maniac. But when it comes to crazy, you're simply outclassed.
--> '''Shriek:''' [[DynamicEntry And you're outnumbered.]]
* EvilHasABadSenseOfHumor: Cletus ''loves'' his DeadBabyComedy, which sometimes actually ''does'' involve dead babies.
* EvilRedhead: He has red hair and he's evil. Nuff said.
* EvilMeScaresMe: Suppressed somewhere ''deep'' in Cletus' psyche is a traumatized little boy utterly terrified of the monster he has become.
* EvilVersusEvil: Treated the invasion in ''Planet of the Symbiotes'' as a buffet.
* {{Expy}}: Of the [[Franchise/{{Batman}} Joker]] (with [[Film/{{Psycho}} a bit of Norman Bates in there too.]]) Arist Erik Larsen even admitted to patterning Kasady's looks on the Clown Prince of Crime. Coincidentally, SelfDemonstrating/TheJoker was initially delighted to meet Carnage during a {{Batman}}[=/=]SpiderMan crossover, but they quickly had a falling out over their different opinions on how to kill people.
* FakingTheDead: He faked his own death in ''Maximum Carnage'' by attaching a piece of the symbiote to a mangled body. [[NeverRecycleYourSchemes He tries this again]] in ''Spider-Man and Batman'' #1, but the heroes see through it.
* FanServicePack: Cletus disturbingly borders on MrFanservice when drawn by Clayton Crain.
* FlatCharacter: One of the common criticisms labeled against him both in real life and in-universe is that his obsession with death and chaos is really all there is to him.
* ForTheEvulz: And unlike the Joker, he doesn't bother with being artistic: he just likes to flat-out kill.
* FullFrontalAssault: Once tried to go on a rampage without the symbiote, waving a knife around while wearing nothing but red paint.
* FullyEmbracedFiend: Cletus was ''jealous'' of Venom's powers right from the start, and once he got his own symbiote they all-but literally became inseparable.
* FusionDance: After witnessing the combined power of the cloned Venom and Carnage symbiotes in Baron Karza's Body Banks, Kasady tries to assimilate the Venom symbiote but is stopped by Kaine.
** In the ComicBook/AmalgamUniverse, he was merged with SelfDemonstrating/{{Bizarro}} to create "Bizarnage".
** The Hall Industries Iron Rangers wore armor derived from the symbiote, which allowed Carnage to forcibly combine with them (killing the pilots) in a twisted Anime/{{Voltron}}-ish fashion.
--> '''Mass Carnage:''' Metal feels funny next to their bodies, heh heh. This isn't the first time I've worn dead bodies as clothes... might be the most fun I've had though. Makes the top three at least.
* GoalOrientedEvolution: After becoming magnitudes more powerful from visiting the Microverse, Carnage decides to abandon his last vestiges of humanity and become the UltimateLifeForm by assimilating the Venom symbiote, though this is quickly kyboshed by Kaine.
* GoMadFromTheRevelation: Deadpool's psychotic lack of a fourth wall actually manages to out-crazy Carnage's nihilistic sociopathy and drives Cletus into such a VillainousBreakdown to the point that he [[WasItReallyWorthIt questions everything he previous believed in]].
* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe: Was ripped in half by the Sentry, but survived thanks to the symbiote. He seems to have somehow regenerated his legs by the time of ''Superior Carnage''.
* HandicappedBadass: In addition to having been ripped in half, Cletus [[spoiler: was left in a catatonic state by the Scarlet Spider, leaving the symbiote in full control of his body. Both his dismemberment and lobotomy seem to have been fixed by the symbiote as of ''Superior Carnage Annual''.]]
* HealingFactor: Cletus seems to have somehow regrown the lower half of his body, and recovered from his lobotomization after reuniting with the symbiote.
* HeelFaceTurn: As a result of [[spoiler:being Inverted in the upcoming Axis crossover, Cletus and the symbiote will seek to redeem themselves]].
* HesBack: A villainous example:
** At the end of the ''Superior Carnage'' miniseries, Cletus reveals he's recovered from his lobotomy.
** Cletus is set to recover from his Deadpool-induced VillainousBreakdown during the ''ComicBook/{{AXIS}}'' event. [[spoiler:However, the events of the crossover will "[[http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=54736 invert]]" his morality, and cause him to embark on a redemptive journey of sorts, one of that will bring him into conflict with a new Sin-Eater]].
* HijackedByGanon: Carnage appears as the TrueFinalBoss of the ''Seperation Anxiety'' game, despite not being featured at all in the storylines it's based on.
* HilariouslyAbusiveChildhood: Cletus had a lousy childhood, but a lot of the things that happened he brought on himself.
* IAmAHumanitarian: Like Venom, Carnage has threatened to eat his victims and isn't shy about using his [[FangsAreEvil teeth]] in combat. It's implied Cletus ate Eric Morrell's daughter Stephanie during his stay in Doverton; some guards joked to Ted Connelly that Kasady's cell mates tend to wind up as symbiote chow; and when reunited with Kasady after being forcibly bonded to Karl Malus, the symbiote tried to eat the Wizard as revenge for separating them.
--> '''Mr. Sinister:''' [[NoSell You can't hurt me, Mr. Kasady]]. I will get what I want, with or without your cooperation. But I would prefer this go smoothly. Work with me, and I can help you.
--> '''Carnage:''' Help me get out? Help me ''eat'' the doctors?
--> '''Mr. Sinister:''' If you like. Appropriately enough, they're in the cafeteria.
* IAmLegion: Generally averted. In his first appearance, Kasady acknowledged the Carnage symbiote's intelligence, but tended to refer to himself as "I". Successive appearances had Carnage continue to do so, with the symbiote being completely subservient to him.
* IfYouEverDoAnythingToHurtHer: The Jackal breaks into Ravencroft and violently extracts the Carrion virus from Shriek. Carnage, who is in a nearby cell, reacts negatively to this development.
--> '''Carnage:''' If you've injured Shriek... If you attempted to harm her... I swear I'll have you squealing beneath my claws!
--> '''Jackal:''' Promises! Promises!
* IndulgentFantasySegue: After Venom ate his symbiote, Cletus was left stewing his cell, fantasizing about getting revenge on him as Carnage.
* InterSpeciesRomance: After getting it into his head that it was female, Cletus starts referring to the Carnage symbiote as his "girl" and "the missus", even teasingly accusing it of cheating on him with it took over Tanis Nieves. For its part, the symbiote views Cletus as its one true host and stops at nothing to reunite with him if they are forcibly separated.
* IgnoreTheFanservice[=/=]NotDistractedByTheSexy: Like the Joker, he is usually far too busy being evil to pay much attention to his DarkMistress.
* InLoveWithYourCarnage: Pun aside, this is the reason Shriek fell for him.
* JaggedMouth: Carnage was originally drawn with black teeth, giving this impression due to the majority of his mask being black.
* JokerImmunity: He's been frozen in an inescapable statue by the Silver Surfer and ripped in half by the Sentry and still survived, [[spoiler: and survives being trapped in the Frightful Four's exploding base while he's in a coma. Even after he's murdered, the symbiote resuscitates him]].
* LeanAndMean: He's usually lanky as both Cletus and Carnage. Taken to the extreme in ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManUnlimited'', where he had a [[DemBones skeletal]] motif.
* LightningBruiser: Carnage is more powerful than both Venom and Spider-Man combined, and when he seriously tries to wreck havoc has necessitated superhero teamups to stop him.
* LikeAnOldMarriedCouple: In ''Venom[=/=]Carnage'' Cletus displays this dynamic with his symbiote, exacerbated by the fact that he happened to be [[VillainsOutShopping ironing clothes]] and [[http://kasadys.tumblr.com/post/70964786967/cletus-tried-to-blow-up-his-son-tried-to-kill drinking coffee]] at the time.
--> '''Cletus:''' How could you let him beat us? A kid? A whelp? Barely a week old!
--> '''Symbiote:''' Be quiet, Cletus Kasady.
--> '''Cletus:''' Oh, be quiet yourself. You might be the bus driver, but you need this bus.
--> '''Symbiote:''' Wrong. There are plenty more human hosts.
--> '''Cletus:''' So leave me. I don't need a symbiote to be a Grade A Bona Fide Terra Firma Quo Vadis psychopathic killer. I did just fine and dandy before you came along.
** ''Carnage'' #4:
--> '''Shriek:''' Where are you going? You didn't say anything about [[TwoFaced my new face...]]
--> '''Carnage:''' Can I have five minutes to kill some dudes before you talk my ear off?!
--> '''Shriek:''' I'm just trying to help...
--> '''Carnage:''' I can't have you screaming around me with that voice!
--> '''Shriek:''' How long are you going to be?!
--> '''Carnage:''' *sigh*
* LosingYourHead: During the ''Minimum Carnage'' arc, Carnage is decapitated when Venom copies his BladeBelowTheShoulder ability, and simply reattaches his head like nothing happened.
* LovesTheSoundOfScreaming: Cletus thought Michael Hall's screams as the Doppelgänger ate him made good thinking music.
* MajorInjuryUnderreaction: Cletus' reaction getting ripped in half by the Sentry was as follows:
--> '''Carnage''': Now jus' who the hell is this Sentry buck? [[WorthyOpponent He's a strong one.]] Yeehaw! Fast too! [[OhCrap Wait, are those my...]] Heh heh... that shouldn't be funny, should it? Aw... Where you goin'? Don't leave me up here! [[BloodKnight It was just gettin' good!]] ... Guess I'm dyin'. Hope it's as fun as it looks.
* MakeMyMonsterGrow: During the ''Planet of the Symbiotes'' storyline, he discovered he could increase his size by forcibly absorbing the symbiote invaders. He wound up [[http://static.comicvine.com/uploads/original/4/46562/1414850-giantcarnage1.jpg growing]] to near {{Kaiju}} levels.
** After exiting the Microverse, Carnage is ''[[AttackOfThe50FootWhatever huge]]'', though it's only temporary.
* MakeWayForTheNewVillains: Well... more like "Make Way For A New Version Of An Old Villain". When Mac Gargan became a far more bloodthirsty version of Venom than Eddie Brock had been, Carnage was seemingly killed off and only brought back after the Venom symbiote had been given to Flash Thompson.
* ManBitesMan: During his symbiote-less brawl with Flash Thompson, he took a bite out of the latter's shoulder and remarked [[TheSecretofLongPorkPies it tasted like book learnin', pig]].
* MindRape: The symbiote usually does this to non-Cletus hosts by forcing them to experience Cletus' twisted memories. Cletus himself once drove a doctor murderously insane by shoving a tentacle into his head, and showing him how he saw the world. He even reverse-hacked Iron Man's Bleeding Edge armor through sheer bloodlust.
* MommyIssues: Culminated in him digging up and attempting to abscond with his mother's inexplicably empty casket at the end of ''Maximum Carnage''.
* MoreTeethThanTheOsmondFamily: Like "father" like "son". Carnage's teeth were initially drawn as being [[JaggedMouth black and blending in with the rest of his face]], but more recently they've been drawn as white, yellow, and even red.
* TheMostDangerousVideoGame: Once killed a few people through ''Carnage Unleashed'', and had plans to massacre even more when the game went online, though he was stopped by Venom in a cyberspace showdown.
* MultipleChoicePast: Carnage's backstory is... inconsistent. The most frequently drawn on story is that he killed his grandmother by pushing her down a flight of stairs, tortured his mother's dog, and manipulated his father into killing his mother. When sent to [[OrphanageOfFear St. Estes Home for Boys]] he was bullied due to his [[TheSociopath antisocial behaviour]], and eventually murdered the disciplinarian administration and burned the place to the ground before becoming a full-time serial killer.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Carnage is tricked into nearly killing Shriek by Deadpool. Upon realizing what he has done, Cletus breaks down ''while cradling her in his arms''.
--> '''Carnage:''' Symbiote... covered her... disguised her... tricking me into... but they tried to warn me... tried to tell me... if I'd listened... no!
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Dude calls himself Carnage, and lives up to it.
* NightmareFetishist: Going back to his childhood, where his favorite film was one that happened to star UsefulNotes/JohnFKennedy.
--> '''Carnage:''' I kill because it makes me feel like I'm on T.V., with my own personal soundtrack. Like JFK, brains on the leather and pretty blood on his pretty wife. JFK. NBK. KKK. And his pretty wife, now think of it, all wet and humiliated, crawling in front of the whole world--I like that, too. When I was a kid, my favorite movie was the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zapruder_film Zapruder film]].
* NoOneCouldSurviveThat: Cletus has been ripped in half, decapitated, stabbed in the head, and [[spoiler: trapped in an exploding base]], but aside from missing half his body and being in a coma,[[note]]both of which he's recovered from thanks to the symbiote[[/note]] he's still alive. [[spoiler:Even when he's shanked and suffocated, the symbiote just resuscitates him.]]
* NotQuiteDead: The ''Carnage'' miniseries revealed that the Carnage symbiote managed to keep Kasady alive for nearly a year in space before a corporation found them, removed the symbiote, and gave Kasady [[{{Cyborg}} prosthetic legs]].
* OneTrueLove: Cletus and the symbiote see each other as soul mates, taken to InterspeciesRomance levels due to Cletus considering the symbiote to be a "girl" after it gives birth to Toxin.
-->'''Carnage''': I was hollowed out inside... Empty... Just like [[TheSymbiote my other]]. We were both sick... Because we were incomplete... But not anymore. We healed each other... Made each other whole. Neither one of us can survive without the other. Forget host. Forget symbiote. There is only Carnage.
** To a lesser extant, there's Shriek.
--> '''Boy:''' Mister... your girlfriend don't look so good. I think she might be dead.
--> '''Carnage:''' Shriek's alive. [[BirdsOfAFeather She's like me]]. Too mean to die.
* OnlyFriend: The closest thing he had to friend growing up was a boy named Billy. As Carnage, he decided to ''invoke'' KickTheDog by tracking down and killing Billy, because what's more evil than murdering the only person who was ever genuinely nice to you? Currently, the Carnage symbiote is the only other entity Cletus genuinely cares about.
* PopCulturedBadass: Quotes ''Film/{{Babe}}'' and ''Series/FantasyIsland'' (through the symbiote-controlled citizens of Doverton) in ''Carnage USA''.
* PrimalStance[=/=]RunningOnAllFours: In ''MarvelUltimateAlliance 2'' and ''LEGO Marvel Superheroes'', Carnage runs on all fours to emphasize his feral nature.
* {{Retcon}}: Around about the same time the Venom symbiote was revealed to be keeping Eddie's adrenal cancer in check, Cletus was retconned as having stomach cancer that ''his'' symbiote was keeping in check. It's never been brought up since, possibly due to the symbiote curing it, as unlike the type of cancer Eddie had Cletus's was in no way beneficial.
* {{Sadist}}: Exemplified in ''Carnage U.S.A.'', where he forces Hannah Morrell to go out and try to murder her husband, Eric. When Eric ''volunteers'' to be killed, Cletus becomes annoyed over him "ruining" everything and calls it off.
* SanitySlippage: When Cletus was in a coma, Carnage was little more than a feral beast.
* SelfDuplication: Following the shenanigans involving Hall Industries Cletus discovered he could infect and control people using parts of his symbiote, although he's since lost the ability to do so.
* SelfMadeOrphan: Cletus' [[MultipleChoicePast most consistently used backstory]] is that he manipulated his father into killing his mother, who was trying to kill him after he'd murdered his grandmother and mutilated his mom's dog. His father was blamed for the crimes and imprisoned, leaving Cletus to be sent to an OrphanageOfFear.
* SerialKiller: Before he got the symbiote he was in prison for 11 consecutive life sentences. It just made him worse.
* SinisterMinister: Acts like one, complete with stolen priest clothes, for a bit in ''[=USA=]''.
* TheSociopath: Even ''before'' being bonded with the Carnage symbiote, Cletus was a diagnosed psychopath and convicted SerialKiller. Bonding to the symbiote made him worse.
* StatusQuoIsGod: Every time the symbiote leaves Cletus it ultimately returns to him. [[spoiler: In ''Superior Carnage Annual'', Cletus decides that [[EvilPlan all]] [[GoalOrientedEvolution the]] [[TakeOverTheWorld character development]] he's undergone over the years just hasn't worked out and that he wants to [[StrawNihilist get back]] [[AxCrazy to basics]].]]
* StrawNihilist: He doesn't believe in order and morality, and kills people for fun.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: After Venom devoured his symbiote, Cletus acquired an identical one from the Negative Zone. [[VoodooShark It was confusing]], and is now seemingly non-canon.
* TakeThat: Deadpool blasts Carnage with dubstep, noting that Agent ComicBook/{{Venom}} can't stand it. All it does is weaken the symbiote and give Cletus a headache.
* TeethClenchedTeamwork: With Demogoblin - a KnightTemplar who only allied with him because it would allow him to kill more "sinners" than usual - in ''ComicBook/MaximumCarnage''.
* TranshumanTreachery: When the offspring of the Venom symbiote bonded to him, Cletus Kasady - being a nihilistic psychopath - used it to become even more of a monster than he already was.
* UnholyMatrimony: Kasady's "[[DarkMistress wife]]" is Shriek, although their relationship is ''very'' dysfunctional.
--> '''Cletus, through the Symbiote''': She screams her pain as death and hatred. She kills for me. I like it. [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness When it gets boring, I'll put her down like my mother's dog]]. I am Carnage. Killing someone I love will make me happy. So happy.
** Some lines in the ''Carnage'' and ''Carnage USA'' miniseries more-than imply Kasady considers his relationship with the symbiote to be this, as he refers to it as "girl" and jokingly accuses it of cheating on him when bonded to Tanis Nieves.
* VillainousBreakdown: [[NoFourthWall Deadpool's]] taunts and jeers about Cletus being a CosmicPlaything, coupled with various {{Contrived Coincidence}}s that have occurred, cause Carnage to try and force the patients and staff of a mental institution to answer his nonsensical questions about being "controlled" by higher powers as he rants about breaking into one nuthouse after another until he gets satisfactory answers. After Deadpool tricks him into mangling Shriek - something he thinks the "higher powers" tried to warn him against doing through the muttering of a few mental patients - Carnage, convinced everything he's believed about chaos and randomness is false, suffers a mind-shattering FreakOut.
--> '''Carnage:''' Gonna sit right here... t'il I'm left alone... t'il I'm my own man again...
--> '''Detective:''' Cell's not even locked. He could walk right out.
* VillainSong[=/=]ImageSong: ''Carnage Rules'' by Green Jelly.
* VoiceOfTheLegion: Beginning in the 2000's, Carnage speaks using distorted red speech bubbles with white text.
* WhereIWasBornAndRazed: Burned down the orphanage that took him in.
* TheWorfEffect: Spider-Man's taken him down solo on occasion, and he was ''ripped in half'' by the Sentry.
* WorthyOpponent: Cletus initially saw Spider-Man as one.
--> '''Carnage:''' Gee, Webster, I dunno why ragged on ya so much! I think you're kinda ''fun!'' I mean, I could really get into reunion battles, grudge bouts! Too bad I gotta cut this short -- -- by killin' ya now!
* {{Yandere}}: As a teen he pushed a girl he had a crush on in front of a bus when she refused to go out with him.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Spider-Carnage]]
-> '''AKA:''' Benjamin "Ben" Reilly
-> '''Debut:''' ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' Vol. 1, #145; ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' Vol., 1 #410 (as Spider-Carnage)

--> ''"I am reborn in BLOOD and AGONY! I am remade into a bringer of DEATH and DESTRUCTION! CHAOS is my only love - and CARNAGE is my name!"''

[[quoteright:250:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/spider-carnage_169.jpg]]

One of the two clone "brothers" of Peter Parker created by the Jackal, Ben Reilly believed himself to be the original Spider-Man and convinced Peter to retire, taking over the identity for a time. When Ben learns that Carnage has escaped Ravencroft, an investigation reveals that the symbiote had left Cletus Kasady and taken over security chief John Jameson. During their fight, the Carnage symbiote left Jameson and latched onto Ben, bonding with him and transforming him into "Spider-Carnage". Spider-Carnage is stopped from killing Peter Parker by Ben's willpower, but after learning his friend Seward Trainer may have been behind the clone debacle, the symbiote overwhelmed him and set out to take revenge. Ben regains enough control to seek out Cletus Kasady, who the symbiote tries to return to when it realizes that Cletus is dying due to their separation. To stop this from happening, Ben elects to contain the symbiote within his own body, and remain in Ravencroft. The symbiote leaves Ben when John Jameson floods his cell with microwave radiation, but before it can be captured, it escapes through the room's sink, and reunites with Cletus.

* BadassBoast: After successfully taking Ben over, the symbiote lets out the above statement.
* BattleInTheCentreOfTheMind: Ben was continually fighting the symbiote for control of his body, and eventually managed to expel it.
--> '''Cletus:''' You can't beat it. You can't control it. It's a disease--a cancer growing inside you--spreading its fingers throughout your brain--altering your perceptions--twisting you into what it wants to be!
--> '''Symbiote:''' And I want you to be a bloody piece of meat that I can play with! I want you to be small! Give in to me!
--> '''Ben:''' [[UnusualEuphemism Rub a lamp]], pal--this is my head--this is my mind--my will against yours--and I won't be cowed in my own head!
* BreakOutVillain: Despite only appearing in three issues, Spider-Carnage has appeared in ''WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries'', ''VideoGame/SpiderManWebOfShadows'', and ''VideoGame/TheAmazingSpiderMan2''.
* CloningBlues: Both Peter and Ben believed themselves to be the original Spider-Man, although Ben had convinced Peter to retire as Spider-Man. The discovery of a skeleton wearing the charred remnants of a Spider-Man costume threw them both into a second round of existential crisis because it was found in the same smokestack where Spider-Man had cremated his apparently-dead clone.[[note]]The body found was actually that of a fourth Spider-Man clone that the Jackel killed and left in Ben's place specifically to {{troll}} them both.[[/note]] For Ben, this was only made worse when he learned that his best friend Seward Trainer was involved with the bad guys responsible for the whole Clone Saga debacle. Add the [[AxCrazy Carnage symbiote]] to the mix, and it's a recipe for disaster.
* ConsultingAConvictedKiller: In a desperate bid to learn how to control the symbiote, presumably to see if he can possibly use it for good, Ben breaks into Ravencroft to see Cletus.
* DemonHead: An in-universe example occurs when Ben forms one to tell a couple he saved from some muggers to get away.
* FireAndBrimstoneHell: The mental plane Ben fights the symbiote on is depicted as this.
* FightingFromTheInside: Ben struggled to overcome the symbiote's control of his body, and ultimately succeeded in expelling it.
* IAmLegion: After arguing with Peter about Seward Trainer, Ben angrily swings away, and refers to himself with "we" while doing so.
* IKnowYouAreInThereSomewhereFight: Peter tries this on Ben. It works, but barely.
--> '''Peter:''' Ben... don't... don't do this.
--> '''Symbiote:''' I'm sorry... Ben is not available at the moment... please leave a message at the sound of the tearing flesh and he'll try to get back to you.
* IndulgentFantasySegue: While using his new powers to stop some muggers, Ben envisions ripping them apart, and very nearly does so.
* JaggedMouth: Like the original Carnage, Spider-Carnage had black fangs that blended into his mask.
* LegacyCharacter: The Carnage symbiote ditched Cletus and took over John Jameson before jumping to Ben Reilly and bonding to him.
* PaintTheTownRed:
--> '''Ben:''' No... leave him alone. Let him live.
--> '''Symbiote:''' Be quiet, Spider! Can't you seem I'm trying to work! Now shut up... you lose! I'm in control of this body now! And, as my old friend Cletus taught me... it's time to start painting this town a lovely shade of red.
* PowerFist: The symbiote forms a hand out of Ben's chest to try and punch its way into Cletus's cell.
* PowerLimiter: The symbiote merging with him dulls Ben's Spider-Sense, but doesn't completely remove it.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: In ''Spider-Man'' Vol. 1, #67 the blue areas on the Spider-Carnage's arms and legs were colored black.
* RooftopConfrontation: Spider-Carnage fights Peter, John Jameson, and the Ravencroft crew on top of a hospital.
* SealedEvilInACan[=/=]SealedInsideAPersonShapedCan: Ben regains control long enough to tell John Jameson to stick him in a Ravencroft cell, fully intending to spend the rest of his life in it if it means keeping Carnage contained.
* SuperPoweredEvilSide: When symbiote successfully took over Ben it caused him to behave exactly as Cletus had, though he tried to fight its influence.
* TaintedVeins: The blue areas of Ben's Spider-Man costume are covered in red veins.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Ben was only Spider-Carnage for three issues before the symbiote returned to Cletus.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Carnage Cosmic]]
-> '''AKA''' Norin Radd
-> '''Debut:''' ''ComicBook/FantasticFour'' #48; ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' Vol. 1 #430 (as Carnage Cosmic)

--> ''"My mind is aflame with MADNESS! OUTRAGE, WRATH, and CHAOS now smolder within me! I long to give vent to my most wanton desires and my basest emotions! The Silver Surfer is no more! In his place soars... THE CARNAGE COSMIC!"''

[[quoteright:246:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/carnage_cosmic_4221.gif]]

In an effort to cut costs, the new chief of security weakens the microwave radiation keeping Carnage in his cell. Naturally, Cletus promptly escapes and heads to the Daily Bugle to pick a fight with Spider-Man, injuring Martha Robertson in the process. Spider-Man comes out of retirement to do battle... and the Silver Surfer crashes the party. The symbiote recognizes him as a Herald of Galactus and abandons Cletus in its terror, later ambushing the Surfer and bonding to him. Cletus reveals that [[FollowTheLeader he has terminal stomach cancer the symbiote was keeping in check]], and is hospitalized. While Spider-Man tries to rally the suprheroes against the threat of a cosmically-empowered Carnage, the Surfer flies out into space to try to suppress the symbiote, but is taken over and returns to Earth. Upon learning that Cletus is dying without it, however, the symbiote ditches Radd and returns to its original host, and the Silver Surfer imprisons Carnage in an inescapable energy prison.

* BreakOutVillain: Not to the extent of Spider-Carnage, but enough that he received a WhatIf comic where he fights the Avengers before committing suicide, and cameoed in ''Superior Carnage'' #5.
* CurbStompBattle: The combined power of the Carnage symbiote and the Power Cosmic completely overwhelms Spider-Man and the Avengers in ''WhatIf... The Avengers Battled The Carnage Cosmic?'' It's only Radd regaining control of himself long enough to commit suicide that stops him from killing everyone.
* DrivenToSuicide: In the ''What If'' comic that showed what might have happened if the symbiote had decided to stay with the Silver Surfer, Carnage Cosmic almost kills the Avengers. Norin regains control of himself long enough to [[DrivenToSuicide fly himself]] and the symbiote [[HurlItIntoTheSun into the sun]] to keep it from hurting anyone else.
* FightingFromTheInside: Norin flies himself and the symbiote into space to stop it from killing innocents while he tries to fight it off. It succeeds in breaking him and returns to Earth... only to find that Cletus is dying without it.
* AGodIAm: Carnage really enjoyed having access to the Power Cosmic.
* HumanoidAbomination: Radd by himself is a god-like entity due to the Power Cosmic, and the already Lovecraftian Carnage symbiote taking over him results in a threat the likes of which even the Avengers couldn't stop.
* ICannotSelfTerminate: Radd asks Spider-Man to kill him before the symbiote takes him over completely.
* JaggedMouth: As with most depictions of Carnage in the 1990's, he has black teeth that blend into his face.
* LegacyCharacter: The symbiote ditches Cletus out of terror and jumps Norin in an alleyway, only returning to Cletus when it learns that he'll die without it.
* MindRape: The symbiote forces Cletus' memories onto Radd in an effort to break him.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: ''Almost'' averted, as aside from his face and teeth, Carnage Cosmic is completely red.
* SealedEvilInACan: After returning the symbiote to Cletus, Norin traps him in an inescapable energy field.
* SkySurfing: Carnage Cosmic uses the Silver Surfer's Cosmic Surfboard covered in the symbiote's biomass.
* SpikesOfVillainy: The main thing differentiating Radd's Carnage form from other hosts - aside from the giant surfboard - was that he was covered in huge spikes.
* TakingYouWithMe: At the end of his ''WhatIf'' comic, the Silver Surfer commits suicide by flying into the sun, and takes the Carnage symbiote with him.
* ThatManIsDead: Proclaims "The Silver Surfer is no more!" when revealing himself to Spider-Man.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Silver Surfer was only Carnage Cosmic for two issues (and a non-canon ''WhatIf'') before the symbiote returned to Cletus, but he was acknowledged by Klaw as one of its four major hosts alongside Cletus, Ben Reilly, and Tanis Neives.
* WhatTheHellHero: In an effort to make him think he's NotSoDifferent from Cletus, the symbiote dredges up memories of all the planets he callously helped Galactus devour, including one that had been conquered by symbiotes.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Superior Carnage]]

-> '''AKA:''' Doctor Karlin "Karl" Malus
-> '''Debut:''' ''Spider-Woman'' #50; ''Superior Carnage'' #2 (as Superior Carnage)

[[quoteright:250:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/superior_carnage_2339.png]]

Growing up, Karlin Malus was fascinated by the exploits of the Fantastic Four and graduated with a degree in biology, wanting to study the science behind superpowers. Unable to get money through legal means, Karl turned to crime and set up the Institute for Supranormality Research with backing from criminal organizations. Through illegal human testing, Malus developed supersoldier serums, but his desire to experiment on an already superpowered individual went unrealized until Richard Deacon, a supervillain called the Fly, came to him looking for a power boost. Malus' experiments brought him into conflict with Jessica Drew, the first Spider-Woman, and later Captain America. Malus was eventually hired by Power Broker, Inc. to supply superhumanly strong wrestlers for the Unlimited Class Wrestling Federation, though this arrangement backfired when the serum he used drove most of his subjects insane and his spine was broken. Wheelchair-bound, Malus was later recruited by his old friend the Wizard, who sought his help in controlling the Carnage symbiote... by forcibly transferring it to his body and mind-controlling him instead. Resentful of the Wizard's trickery, Malus nevertheless was forced to become the "Superior Carnage", joining Wizard's attack on city hall and coming into conflict with the Superior Spider-Man. Malus ultimately lost control of the symbiote and killed Klaw, and was stripped of it and eaten by the symbiote-controlled Wizard.

* AdaptiveArmor: Under the Wizard's direction the Carnage symbiote takes on the appearance of body armor to mock Agent Venom.
* ArchEnemy: To [[SpiderWoman Jessica Drew]] and CaptainAmerica.
* BadassBandolier: Rocks one as part of his "superior" look.
* BadassLongcoat: Manifests one when the Wizard whines about too many superheroes and villains wearing PaintedOnPants and SensualSpandex. After taking control of Malus, the symbiote remarks that it thought the coat was a stupid addition until it realized it could [[CreepySouvenir accessorize it]], namely with the tongues of Spider-Man's {{Mook}}s.
* BlackEyesOfCrazy: As Superior Carnage he has black sclera and glowing red pupil-less irises, though he has BlankWhiteEyes when the symbiote takes over.
* BladeBelowTheShoulder: Forms a curved sword-like blade on his left arm when assuming his "superior" look.
* BoxedCrook: Malus kept finding himself in this situation whenever he was arrested, having his bail paid in exchange for access to his knowledge on superpowers.
* BroughtDownToNormal: After Malus loses control of the symbiote and kills Klaw, the shockwave strips Malus of the symbiote. The symbiote takes over the Wizard and promptly eats Malus.
* EatenAlive: Karl is eaten off-panel by a Carnage-controlled Wizard.
* EmpoweredBadassNormal: Was a crippled MadScientist before bonding to the Carnage symbiote.
* EvilCounterpart: The whole point of Wizard recruiting Carnage was to create one for Agent Venom. Like Flash Thompson, Malus is wheelchair-bound without the symbiote, though rather being from a military background he is a scientist specializing in superpowers.
* EvilCripple: Is wheelchair-bound thanks to having his spine broken by insane super-strong wrestlers he created for Power Broker Inc.
* FightingFromTheInside: Both Malus and the symbiote were ''very'' resentful at being forced to obey the Wizard and being separated from its favourite host respectively. Malus even warned Klaw that if the Wizard's control faltered for even a moment, the symbiote would take over and eviscerate them all in revenge for what they did to Cletus.
* FingerFirearms: Of a sort: Malus launched a flurry of shurikens formed from the symbiote's fingertips at Superior Spider-Man's Spiderlings, decapitating them.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: Malus went from a relatively obscure Spider-Woman villain to the new Carnage. He died ''very'' shortly afterwards.
* GlowingEyesOfDoom: [[RedEyesTakeWarning Red ones]] as Superior Carnage, though he has BlankWhiteEyes when the symbiote takes over.
* LegacyCharacter: When Wizard is unable to mind control Carnage due to Cletus Kasady being in a coma, he extracts the symbiote and stuffs it down his old friend Dr. Karl Malus' throat.
* LovecraftianSuperpower: Though his use of them is more sporadic than Kasady's, Malus uses tentacles to turn a flamethrower into an ArmCannon.
* MadScientist[=/=]MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: Dr. Malus, inspired by [[ReedRichardsIsUseless Reed Richards]] of the Comicbook/FantasticFour, got a degree in biology from the University of California and once ran the Institute for Supranormality Research, experimenting on super-powered individuals and supplying the LA mob with PsychoSerum formulas.
* MoreTeethThanTheOsmondFamily: Though they're not as pronounced as they are when the symbiote takes over.
* NoSell: Uses tentacles to turn a flamethrower into an ArmCannon, remarking that the symbiote doesn't mind the heat so much if it's the one dishing it out.
* TokenGoodTeammate: While Malus is ''not'' a good person by any stretch of the word, he ''is'' [[EvenEvilHasStandards appalled]] by Klaw's drone-like obedience to Wizard and at his old friend's [[SanitySlippage decrepit mental state]].
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: The symbiote becomes noticeably red-and-black again, and although it's subdued by the Wizard it's still plenty AxCrazy.
* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: The first thing Malus does after becoming Carnage is try to kill the Wizard.
* SuperPoweredEvilSide: When the Wizard's mind control slipped up after being defenestrated by Spider-Man, the symbiote partially reverts to its original appearance and rampages.
* [[SuperheroPackingHeat Supervillain Packing Heat]]: As Agent Venom's EvilCounterpart he is equipped with an arsenal of firearms, though the symbiote is markedly fond of disemboweling its victims instead.
* TakeThat: Malus proclaims that Kasady was a fool for being so obsessed with chaos when much more power could be attained with even a little focus.
* WalkingSpoiler: For those reading the ''Superior Carnage'' miniseries.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: Was only Superior Carnage for a single issue before he was stripped of the symbiote while [[TakingYouWithMe killing Klaw]], and was eaten by the Carnage-controlled Wizard immediately afterwards.
[[/folder]]

[[{{Characters/{{Venom}} Click here for the other Marvel Comics symbiotes]]