Carnage reading order thread!
(By story arcs and single issues!)

Cletus Kasady first appears in experts in Amazing Spider-Man 344 and 345 as Eddie Brock’s cellmate. When the venom Symbiote breaks Eddie out of prison it leaves behind the carnage Symbiote that would bond with Kasady. Carnage then gets his first kill in the last pages of ASM 360

Carnage’s first main story is in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man 361-363. This is his first encounter with Spider-Man who discovers that Carnage is like nobody else he’s faced before. Spider-Man is forced to team up with Venom to try and stop Carnage.

Carnage’s next story is arguably his biggest one yet, Maximum Carnage! Carnage breaks out of prison and teams up with other villains (Shriek, Doppelgänger, Demogoblin, Carrion) to wreak chaos and murder across the city. Spider-Man, Venom and a team of heroes try to stop it!

Maximum Carnage is a 14 issue event that is told in these comics:
Spider-Man Unlimited 1
Web of Spider-Man 101
Amazing Spider-Man 378
Spider-Man 35
Spectacular Spider-Man 201
Web of Spider-Man 102
Amazing Spider-Man 379
Spider-Man 36
Spectacular Spider-Man 202
....

Web of Spider-Man 103
Amazing Spider-Man 380
Spider-Man 37
Spectacular Spider-Man 203
Spider-Man Unlimited 2

Next, Carnage visits and attempts to kill someone from his past in Amazing Spider-Man annual 28!

Spider-Man has no help this time from other heroes. It’s up to him to stop Carnage!

Next up Carnage gets his own video game in Venom: Carnage Unleashed 1-4

A big video game developer bought the rights from ravencroft to make Carnage’s story into a video game. However there’s more to this than meets the eye and Venom is the one who will be trying to stop Carnage

Carnage appears in the Spider-Man and Venom: Planet of the Symbiotes story

A Symbiote invasion and it’s up to Spider-Man Scarlet Spider and Venom to stop it

The story is told in these super specials

Amazing Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Venom
Spectacular Spider-Man
Web of Spider-Man

Carnage: Mind Bomb And Carnage: It’s a wonderful life, are comics that dive into the mind of Carnage and show us his insanity and how he sees the world.

These comics are very interesting to read but can also be very intense and graphic.

Next Carnage bonds with Ben Reilly Spider-Man in the Spider-Carnage (“Web of Carnage”) storyline!

Carnage bonds to Spider-Man in this story who is forced to combat the symbiote’s violent and murderous urges.

The issues for Spider-Carnage are

Sensational Spider-Man 3
Amazing Spider-Man 410
Spider-Man 67
Spectacular Spider-Man 233

Carnage bonds with the Silver Surfer and becomes the Carnage Cosmic in Amazing Spider-Man 430-431!

The Carnage Symbiote leaves Kasady and bonds to the Silver Surfer because of a race memory and the symbitote corrupts the Surfer and wants to use his power for it’s own desires!

Venom actually consumes the Carnage Symbiote and steals it from Kasady at the beginning of Peter Parker Spider-Man 10. (Carnage doesn’t appear in the rest of the issue) Kasady cannot cope with the loss of his other and this is seen in Peter Parker Spider-Man 13.

Kasady gets his Carnage Symbiote back in Webspinners Tales of Spider-Man 13!

Carnage appears next in Venom vs Carnage 1-4.

Venom and Carnage are fighting over the future of the Symbiote that Carnage is about to give birth to. Venom wants to make it his partner while Carnage wants to kill it.

Carnage next appears in New Avengers 2. He is one of the prisoners involved in the raft breakout. He is flown into space by sentry, torn in half and presumed dead. That’s all you really need to know that happens in this comic in order to move on.

Carnage makes his glorious return in Carnage (2010) 1-5! This story is also known as Carnage: Family Feud

After being seemingly dead for 6 years Carnage is back in this series! Spider-Man and Iron Man are going on the trail that leads to Carnage!

Carnage Family Feud has a sequel by the same creative team (Wells and Crain), this sequel is Carnage: USA 1-5!

Carnage claims the town of Doverton Colorado as his own and he subjects the town to his chaos. Spider-Man and a team of Avengers attempt to stop him but can they?

Next, Carnage faces off against Scarlet Spider (Kaine) and Agent Venom in Minimum Carnage

Carnage fights Venom and Scarlet Spider in the macroverse

Story is told in:
Minimum Carnage Alpha
Scarlet Spider 10
Venom (2011) 26
Scarlet Spider 11
Venom (2011) 27
Minimum Carnage omega

Next is Superior Carnage 1-5 and annual 1. The Wizard tries to use the Carnage Symbiote for his own sinister plot. But he eventually learns that Carnage is not one to be controlled. Superior Spider-Man tries to stop the chaos wreaked by Carnage!

After this Deadpool tries to stop Carnage in Deadpool vs Carnage 1-4

Deadpool thinks he’s the only one who is insane enough to beat Carnage. Is he though? Who’s insanity will win?

Next up, Carnage’s alignment is reversed and he becomes a good guy in Avengers & X-Men: Axis 1-9 (optional to read But it had some carnage) and Axis: Carnage 1-3

Carnage tries to become a good guy because of the Axis that switched the alignment of several heroes and villains.

After his alignment is restored, Carnage is back to his evil ways and this time, is targeting Nova in Nova (2013) 26-27.

Carnage remembers Nova’s secret identity from working with him in Axis and now he’s going after him!

Carnage finally got an ongoing solo comic! That comic was Carnage (2015) 1-16

In this comic series Carnage encounters the Darkhold and it changes his life as he attempts to uncover its secrets. The government sent a team that includes Toxin to try and stop Carnage!

Carnage also appears in Venomverse 1-5 and Venomized 1-5!

Carnage’s next appearance is the Web of Venom: Carnage Born one shot comic! This comic involves a Cult devoted to Knull attempting to ressurect Carnage via Knull’s Grendel Symbiote!

Carnage briefly appears in Web of Venom: Venom Unleashed where his Absolute Carnage plot is explained and it’s shown that he’s taken over the underground city in San Francisco that appeared in Venom Lethal Protector

In Web of Venom: Cult of Carnage, Carnage’s Cult is shown to have started in Doverton Colorado (the same city from Carnage USA).

Next, Carnage hunts Andi Benton (the former host of mania) in Web of Venom Funeral Pyre!