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Tyrannosaurus (Symbiote) (Earth-616)

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We might not be able to throw lightning... but we can damn sure bring the thunder.

—Rex Strickland's Symbiote[source]

The symbiote known as Tyrannosaurus was extracted from the symbiote-dragon code-named Grendel and bonded to a soldier named Rex Strickland during the Vietnam War. Under the influence of the dark god Knull, Tyrannosaurus rampaged across Vietnam but was inspired by Logan and Rex's nobility to break free of Knull's control. When Rex was killed by a Nick Fury Life Model Decoy, Tyrannosaurus assumed his identity and became an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., coincidentally assigned with hunting itself down.[1][3] Years later, Tyrannosaurus tracked down Eddie Brock - the current host of the Venom symbiote - and recruited him to rescue the other Sym-Soldiers. Unfortunately, its plans backfired and the Grendel resurfaced again, forcing Tyrannosaurus to bond to Eddie and ultimately sacrifice itself in an attempt to stop Knull from being unleashed; with only a sample of the Grendel surviving.[5]

Tyrannosaurus was reunited with Rex's codex in the Symbiote Hive-Mind, and during Knull's invasion they recruited Agent Anti-Venom and the newly-deceased Eddie to stop Knull from within the Hive-Mind. Breaking into the Hive-Mind's core, they freed a number of captured symbiotes -- enabling Flash to "download" his codex into a Symbiote Dragon. Before Eddie could follow, Knull seized control of Tyrannosaurus to kill Eddie once again, seemingly destroying the codex of Rex and his symbiote from the Hive-Mind.[6]

History

Vietnam War[]

When the Grendel symbiote was excavated by S.H.I.E.L.D., samples of its living abyss were extracted and bonded to soldiers wounded in the Vietnam War, forming a black-ops super-soldier initiative named the Sym-Soldier Program.[7]

Rex Strickland (Earth-616) and Tyrannosaurus (Symbiote) (Earth-616) from Web of Venom Ve'Nam Vol 1 1 001

Bonded to Rex Strickland while under Knull's thrall

One of these offshoot symbiotes - codenamed "Tyrannosaurus" - was bonded to Rex Strickland. Enraged by the experiments S.H.I.E.L.D. was performing on the symbiote-dragon in order to find a way to kill it, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote - under the influence of Knull, the dark god who had created the symbiotes - seized control of its host and tried to corrupt him.[7] For four mouths, Tyrannosaurus and its brethren prowled the jungles of Vietnam devouring any soldier they came across - Việt Cộng and American alike - until a Nick Fury Life Model Decoy and Logan were dispatched to subdue them. The Tyrannosaurus symbiote separated from Rex and disguised itself as him in an attempt to catch Fury and Logan off-guard, but was exposed by Rex and briefly repelled. Upon returning with its brethren, it bonded to Logan but was quickly separated from him by Rex. When the LMD began counting down to self-destruct, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote - touched by Logan's compassion and influenced by Rex's nobility and inherit goodness - broke free from Knull's influence and bonded to him one last time, conveying regret for its actions. The Tyrannosaurus symbiote threw Logan to safety and tried to shield Rex from the ensuing blast, but failed.[3]

Modern Times[]

Tyrannosaurus (Symbiote) (Earth-616) from Venom Vol 4 1 001

Posing as Rex Strickland

After the death of its host, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote emulated Rex's appearance and personality to assume his identity;[2] becoming an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. ironically assigned with hunting itself down.[1][3]

While Logan was a test subject at Weapon X, Doctor Cornelius observed there were trace remnants of the Tyrannosaurus symbiote in Logan's blood and began experimenting to see how they responded to various stimuli. These experiments caused the remnants of the Tyrannosaurus symbiote to regenerate into a Knullified duplicate, which took over Logan's body and attacked the scientist. Doctor Cornelius was able to escape and subdue the symbiote, and after determining it couldn't be tamed for weaponization, Doctor Cornelius purged the symbiote from Logan's body and decided to infuse him with adamantium instead.[8]

At some point, "Rex" began investigating an ancient symbiote-worshiping cult dedicated to the revival of Knull, and realized he would need help to put a stop to them.[9] To this end he attempted to recruit Agent Venom to save his cryogenically-frozen brethren after the collapse of S.H.I.E.L.D., but his intel on who was bonded to the Venom symbiote was outdated. "Rex" instead encountered Eddie Brock and knocked him unconscious to prevent his rampaging symbiote from killing a pair of police officers. Disappointed that he hadn't been able to recruit Flash, "Rex" nevertheless decided to make do with Eddie and passed him information on the Sym-Soldier Program, requesting his help to rescue his comrades in exchange for helping him fix his symbiote.[1]

When Venom returned from the mission and revealed that he had failed and the Grendel symbiote had awakened, "Rex" realized that Venom was slowly succumbing to Knull's control and told him of what had transpired in Vietnam decades prior.[7] When Venom returned from an encounter with Knull, "Rex" was forced to reveal its true form and apologized for the deception. While "Rex" initially despaired that it would be unable to stop Knull from assimilating it into the Grendel symbiote and rejoining it to the Hive, Venom asked for it to join him in taking the fight to Knull. "Rex" bonded to Eddie and amalgamated with the Venom symbiote, showing Venom an arsenal of weapons it had appropriated while an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.[2]

Edward Brock (Earth-616), Venom (Symbiote) (Earth-616) and Tyrannosaurus (Symbiote) (Earth-616) from Venom Vol 4 6 001

Bonded to Venom

In order to prepare for the final battle, the augmented Venom armed himself with portable energy cannons, machine guns, and sonic grenades; before the Tyrannosaurus symbiote reconnected to the Hive Mind to summon Knull. When the Grendel symbiote attacked, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote destabilized it by feeding it a pair of sonic grenades, forcing Knull to manifest. The Tyrannosaurus and Venom symbiotes were ultimately separated from Eddie by Knull and absorbed into the Grendel symbiote. However, Eddie detonated the arsenal, and the Tyrannosaurus symbiote shielded the Venom symbiote from the blast so that it could return to Eddie. With Knull's avatar weakened, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote dragged its progenitor into the blast furnace, sacrificing itself in an attempt to immolate it.[4]

Legacy and Post-Mortem[]

Unfortunately, all their efforts would be in vain, as a small piece would survive, and be bonded to the serial killer Cletus Kasady. Becoming Carnage once more,[10] he would go on a rampage in order to get enough codices to awake Knull. He would succeed in his quest when Eddie impaled him with a Necrosword, Venom assimilating the Carnage-ized Grendel symbiote and the codices. With Knull awakened, he assimilated the symbiotes back into his dark Hive-Mind and resumed his conquest to destroy the cosmos.[11]

Reunited with Rex Strickland in the symbiote afterlife at the bowels of the Hive Mind, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote helped him assemble a team of deceased hosts and their symbiotes to oppose Knull's imminent revival; and was eventually reunited with Eddie Brock after he was killed by Knull.[12] Along with Flash Thompson's codex, they found themselves in the God Hive. Flash took possession of a Symbiote Dragon in the real world, alerting Knull of their presence. He took possession of the Tyrannosaurus Symbiote as his avatar and engulfed Eddie in living abyss, seemingly erasing the codex of Rex and his symbiote from the Hive-Mind.[13]

Personality

He was my host in Vietnam. He was a good man and he died out there and then I... I became him. I am him. I have been for a very long time.

—Rex Strickland's Symbiote[source]
Under the influence of Knull's hive mind, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote was driven by insatiable bloodlust and ravenous hunger, devouring countless Việt Cộng and American soldiers alongside its brethren. While impersonating Rex Strickland, it expressed horror and revulsion at the carnage it and its brethren had wrought while berserk - though it is unclear whether this was genuine or an act intended to catch the Nick Fury LMD and Logan off-guard.[3] Following the original Rex Strickland's death, it emulated not only his appearance but his personality;[2] displaying a wry sense of humor and mocking Eddie Brock's lack of knowledge about the symbiotes.[1] Despite being enraged by Nick Fury's callousness towards its kind and the murder of its host to cover up S.H.I.E.L.D.'s dark secrets,[3] it refused to rejoin Knull's hive-mind - having been touched by the "light" of Rex's nobility - and agreed to work for S.H.I.E.L.D. Despite being afraid of being forcibly assimilated into Knull's hive-mind, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote displayed a veteran soldier's grit and determination while advising Eddie Brock, psychoanalyzing him in an effort to better understand the man it had allied itself with.[2]

Attributes

Power Grid[15]
:Category:Power Grid/Fighting Skills/Some Training:Category:Power Grid/Energy Projection/None:Category:Power Grid/Durability/Superhuman:Category:Power Grid/Speed/Normal:Category:Power Grid/Strength/Superhuman (800 lbs-25 ton):Category:Power Grid/Intelligence/Normal

Powers

Weaknesses

Unlike most symbiotes, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote was apparently resistant to heat and sonics;[7] to the point of being able to walking through napalm unharmed and withstand a Life Model Decoy's self-destruct.[3] However, it was unable to withstand the intense heat of a steel-smelting blast-furnace.[4]

Paraphernalia

Weapons

While feral, the Tyrannosaurus symbiote utilizes its fanged jaws, prehensile tongue, and claws as weapons; and can also transform the limbs of its humanoid form into bladed appendages.[3] As an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., it amassed a large arsenal of high-ordinance weapons.

Notes

  • Donny Cates had stated that Tyrannosaurus would have returned for Absolute Carnage, however, the symbiote didn't show up.[14]

See Also

Links and References

References

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