At last! They say you have to give the Devil his due; well this Devil’s comeback is long in coming and painfully awaited. Actually, to call Ghost Rider a devil is actually fairly ironic as Lucifer is his number 1 enemy. Though you will agree that he ain’t no angel. Now I know many of you are as saddened as I am that this is only a mini-series, but I have the feeling we will be seeing a lot more of Johnny Blaze.

Surprisingly, this is not a remake of the story of Ghost Rider, but actually a continuation of his story. A certain angel is in deep water when a contact in hell betrays him and lets a demon with a certain ass-kicking quality loose on Earth. Now he has to fix things quick before he is found out and banished to Hell where they mop up the floor with pretty boys like him. After consulting his brother, he discovers that there is a man in Hell with the power to defeat demons that rides a cavalry demon in the form of a burning motorcycle. This man was once a champion against demons on Earth until the hordes finally caught him and dragged him to Hell where he makes a desperate ride for freedom every night and never makes it. They call him Ghost Rider.

The writing, by Garth Ennis, is very well done and completely free from quips and puns (well almost). The art by Clayton Crain is truly amazing. Just look at that cover. Oh man that rocks. We really need more painted comics, but I imagine that they require a whole lot of work. Well, however long it took, the effort put into this comic is overwhelming and apparent and I would be deeply ashamed if I was a comic fan that didn’t buy this series.

 

-Fumanchu