The King in Black’s Weakness is Finally Revealed

Warning, this article contains spoilers for Symbiote Spider-Man: King in Black #2.

The King in Black event has sent shockwaves through Marvel Comics. Knull and his symbiote army are in fact so powerful that their darkness has sent ripples through time altering history as the symbiotes alter their hosts. Knull’s release from the living prison of Klyntar marked the end for many. His campaign to Earth allowed him to cross paths with Wraith as well as the Kree/Skrull alliance. The God of Symbiotes used his abilities to engulf every being he encountered in darkness, ushering in a new era for the universe.

Knull was the universe’s 1st occupant, born at a time when there was not a single star in the vast expanse of space. The cold, dark abyss was his home and he grew to love it. The universe became his realm to rule over, at least until the ancient space-gods The Celestials entered the picture. Knull was powerful but the Celestials had both strength and numbers. He was forced to retreat from the battle for the galaxy and regroup once the Celestials began reshaping the universe and creating life. Knull lost the battle but the war was far from over. He used his own shadow to craft a strange and powerful creature, the 1st symbiote, All-Black The Necrosword. The sword was so powerful that Knull was able to slay a Celestial thus giving the blade the nickname ‘the godslayer’. The All-Black briefly bonded to Gorr before eventually being returned to its master.

Knull’s All-Black makes him the most powerful being on Earth after his arrival on the planet. What’s even more frightening is, readers have yet to see him use it on any of Earth’s heroes. It has not been necessary to slaughter and overwhelm the likes of The Avengers and The X-Men. Knull used his bare hands to rip Sentry, Marvel’s Superman, in half. All hope is not lost thanks to one extremely important weapon and its wielder. In Symbiote Spider-Man: King in Black #2 by Peter David and Greg Land, a symbiote reveals Knull’s greatest weakness to the worst person possible: The Black Knight.

The Black Knight is the wielder of the famed Ebony Blade, a sword with special properties. The king can be slain with the right weapon, and the Black Knight just happens to be an expert in swordplay. The symbiote’s verbal diarrhea just gave Earth’s heroes enough hope to cling on to. The symbiote was able to mortally wound The Black Knight and steal the Ebony Blade but the hero is saved by one of the weirdest duos in Marvel Comics history. Kang The Conqueror and Rocket Raccoon recruit The Black Knight to save time…and the universe, no pressure right?

This latest issue of Symbiote Spider-Man reveals the next major plot-point in the King in Black event. The king of darkness and his evil dragons can indeed be slain, by a knight and the right mystical blade, surprise! It turns out that the big hero in this crossover event may not be Venom or any of the current Avengers team. The end of the evil king’s reign of terror may be fewer symbiote shenanigans and more medieval sword fights. Time for a duel.

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