In 1991, a character unlike any other was introduced into the Spider-Man mythology. This character was Cletus Kasady, an unhinged serial killer who genuinely loved to cause pain and to kill. This dark villain would only become something much, much worse when bonded to the spawn of the alien symbiote Venom, thus becoming Carnage.

RELATED: Marvel: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Venom & Carnage's Relationship In The Comics 

In the 30 years since he first appeared, he has found a way to escape jail time and time again, to cause more misery and death wherever he goes, and even cheat death on multiple occasions. With so many events headlining the gruesome killer, a rundown of all those major story arcs in the order they were published, leading up to the latest Extreme Carnage arc, is necessary.

7 Maximum Carnage Put Kasady Into The Big Leagues (1993)

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Go big or go home is clearly a mantra that Carnage believes in, as his first major event was a real doozy. After escaping Ravencroft for the first time since his initial defeat from Spider-Man and Venom, Carnage formed a band of fellow murderous psychopaths and literal monsters to help him attack NYC, who he dubbed as his "family."

The 14-issue crossover featured a host of heroes including obvious names such as Spider-Man and Venom, but also Captain America, Morbius, Cloak & Dagger, and more. The action was brutal and constant and solidified Carnage as a legitimate threat against the Marvel Universe. Maximum Carnage was written by Tom DeFalco, J.M. DeMatteis, Terry Kavanagh, and David Michelinie.

6 The Return Of Carnage's "Family" Was Inevitable (2010)

Maximum Carnage

In the years following Maximum Carnage, the symbiotic lunatic popped up many times to hassle his old rivals Venom and Spider-Man, and yet another breakout would see him seemingly killed by The Sentry. Of course, this wouldn't be the end for this villain and he was discovered alive and well in Zeb Well's Family Feud.

This arc featured the wall-crawler teaming up with Iron Man to face the return of some of Carnage's so-called family as well as a new host for the symbiote, Dr. Tanis Nevies. Inevitably, the alien would be rejoined with its favorite host and Kasady was reborn as the nightmare once again.

5 Carnage USA By Zeb Wells Is What Nightmares Are Made Of (2011)

Carnage dressed as Uncle Sam in Carnage USA

Following his return, Carnage took off and made himself at home in Doverton, Colorado. Rather than instantly slaughter the residents as one might expect, he instead manages to bond with virtually every resident of the town, turning it into a horrendous landscape and torturing the innocent souls every second.

RELATED: Let There Be Carnage: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Cletus' Past

Even worse than that, he manages to take over several Avengers who try to stop him, leaving Spider-Man, a few uninfected residents, and Agent Venom to take the fight to him and his army. The imagery in Carnage USA is straight out of a horror movie and features some genuinely creepy scenes. Not even the kids are safe in this one.

4 Minimum Carnage By Christopher Yost And Cullen Bunn Was A Lot Deadlier Than It Sounds (2012)

Agent Venom and Scarlet Spider fighting miniature cloned symbiotes in the Minimum Carnage event

Yet another prison escape and this time Carnage flees to Texas, where his antics catch the attention of Kaine Parker, AKA the Scarlet Spider. He doesn't have to face the crazed killer alone though, as Agent Venom isn't far behind to offer assistance in this very weird scenario.

Lots and lots and lots of little Carnage's populate this particular crossover. No, he didn't have a bizarrely large litter of symbiote tykes but instead enlists the aid (forcibly) of a scientist who specializes in inter-dimensional travel, allowing Carnage to escape into the Microverse. The two heroes butt heads with each other almost as much as they do with the villain they came for. At least the little killers are kind of cute.

3 Superior Carnage By Kevin Shinick Was A Fun Twist (2013)

Dr. Karl Malus as Superior Carnage

Everyone had a "superior" phase for a while, meaning Doctor Octopus is something of a trendsetter. Following Minimum Carnage, Kasady had been lobotomized but the symbiote still remained a threat, or potentially a huge asset. Enter the Wizard and Klaw who broke them out of prison for a nefarious plan.

The symbiote finds itself transferred to Dr. Karl Malus who dubbs himself the Superior Carnage and intends to use the alien for a lot more than senseless slaughter. However, it's hard to keep a good relationship down and Kasady gets both reunited with his slimy friend and has his damaged brain healed.

2 AXIS By Rick Spears Turned Carnage Into A Hero (2014)

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The 2014 crossover "AXIS" had a great plot device to allow for some fun dynamics with several established characters. The event saw numerous heroes and villains have their personalities completely inverted, turning the heroes into villains and vice versa. One of the villains affected was Carnage, and a heroic Carnage is quite something.

RELATED: 10 Reasons Carnage Deserves His Own Movie

The former killer returned to NYC to start helping people... or at least trying to. Even with good intentions, Carnage doesn't make for much of a hero, but it's fantastic to watch him try. That said, he would ultimately give his life in order to save countless others in a moment of heroic sacrifice.

1 Absolute Carnage By Donny Cates Was An Awesome Spectacle (2019)

Absolute Carnage

Of course, he didn't really die at the end of AXIS, and he didn't remain a hero either. After a few more misadventures and even a battle with Deadpool, Carnage came back bigger, better, and badder than ever in Absolute Carnage. As wild as this event is, it was only leading to something even bigger down the line.

This arc saw Carnage hunting down every single former symbiote host on Earth in order to harvest remaining symbiote codexes from their bodies, ultimately killing them. He made his way through numerous heroes, villains, and innocent people until a grand showdown with Venom. As many would have expected, this still wasn't the end for Kasady and the Carnage symbiote, with Extreme Carnage being the latest big event to hit comic shelves.

NEXT: Spider-Man: 10 Times Carnage Went Too Far