Ghost Rider (Marvel Comics)

Rating:
Summary: Classic Rendition
Review: The Ghost Rider was a character that appeared in 70s comics, in which a man, Johnny Blaze, sells his soul to the devil in order to save the love of his life only to find that he has been manipulated all along. That in itself, causes him to renege against his makers and seek vengeance for what they have done. The series was colorful, albeit gloomy. The Ghost Rider himself was not a mysterious figure as it was first intended, but more of a circus show act.

Jump to the 90s. With the old Ghost Rider retired as Blaze has successfully gitten rid of the curse of the devil, a new skull figure similar in looks to his predecessor, but completely enshrouded in mystery. Writer Howard Mackie set to make comic book history with his rendition of the classic character and what a rendition it is. This new Rider, shares only the skull of the old one. Everything else about him is just not yet clear. Leather jacket, command controlled chain, and a bike from hell that anyone out there just dreams of owning one day, this character meant business and he meant it. This Rider was born from innocent murder in Cypress Hill cemetery. No more Johnny Blaze. Dan Ketch was the person in control, or was he?

This TPB collects the first 7 issues of the classic tale of tragedy and triumph, of winning through losing. Mackie helped mkae this new version of the classic character very dark, gritty and completely enshrouded in mystery, which is very unlike the flamboyant earlier character. Artists Javeir Saltares and Mark Texeira bring out an astounding work in making this concept work. It is not crisp as the comics popular at the tim, but very shady with a higher concentration in a general haze rather than fine lines. The coloring is mostly dark matching the art, with the only thing ablazing is the fiery skull of the Rider himself. The setting of the action is mostly at night and occurring in the darkest borough of the darkest city in the world, Brooklyn, NY. These 7 issues bring out the concept of the new Ghost Rider, and does not delve much into his origin. Not only are the readers at a loss, but also the character himself. In just that short time, Mackie helps create a formidable rogues gallery for the Rider.

During that period, Marvel was really into creating horror based comics that first started with Ghost Rider and continued on with other revamped characters old and new. This line grew too big for its own good as complex stories started taking over, the original Ghost Rider tagging along and an origin tale that was just too much to handle for the readers. The presence of the old Ghost Rider was not looked upon favorably by the new readers. The older readers of the original series began comparing the characters and lost interest in the new one. The fresh feel of the book lost to all that was happening at the time. The horror line waned and ironically completely disappeared when the Blade, a supporting character for the Rider, movie came out.

A movie starring Nicolas Cage as the original Ghost Rider is being planned and a new miniseries have just come out with the return of the original character, Johnny Blaze. Though the series is promising, to me the real Rider, the one I grew up with, has always been Dan Ketch and these first 7 issues presented in the TPB defined him as one of the most fascinating out takes on one of Marvel's most mysterious characters to date.

Rating:
Summary: This Ghost Rider rocks!
Review: This is the second (and in my opinion the best)incarnation of Ghost Rider. This version is a bad-a$$ that doesn't take anything from anyone. This is a refreshing read for the comic fan that likes good blood and violence in his book. This came out at a time where Marvel was really trying to tone down violence so this was a very refreshing find at the time. It's a shame that Marvel took this particular Ghost Rider too far with cross-overs and other titles. I would like to see more of the Danny Ketch Ghost Rider but I know that will never happen.