On Sale Date: February 2009
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Tan Eng Huat
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Colorist: Jose Villarubia
Assistant Editor: Sebastian Girner
Editor: Axel Alonso
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
Cover Artist: Arthur Suydam
In the middle of the Arabian Desert, Kowalski sits with his hellfire shotgun and waits for his chance to get revenge on the Ghost Rider. Meanwhile, in the African Congo, Zadkiel's Black Host, led by Dan Ketch, wages war on the last remaining Spirits of Vengeance and their Phantom Riders. Baron Skullfire is killed, but the Spirit inside him simply moves to a new host. Ketch creates avatars of himself out of hellfire to absorb the power of the Spirits, then challenges his brother Johnny Blaze to a race that will settle the outcome of their battle. Blaze accepts and rides away, giving himself a head start. Johnny and Danny race their bikes across the entire planet, fighting with one another while debating the consequences of Ketch's actions. Blaze tries to convince his brother that he's been duped by Zadkiel, but Danny still believes that he's doing the right thing. While they race, Danny's avatars in the Congo have killed and absorbed the power of the last of the Spirits of Vengeance, leaving only the two of them. Their race reaches the Arabian Desert, and Blaze is suddenly blown off his bike by Kowalski's hellfire shotgun. Ketch blasts Kowalski away with hellfire and approaches his wounded brother and absorbs his power, consolidating all the power of the Spirits of Vengeance inside Danny. Zadkiel smiles as Ketch ascends to Heaven on angelic wings.
Back in Africa, Sister Sara staggers through the battlefield in disbelief that they lost the fight. Blaze arrives, having used the last of the supernatural energy in his bike to make it back to Africa, and he tells her that Danny won and took his power. She gives him a look of horror right before the sky splits open and rains fire, spitting a screaming Ketch back to Earth. Danny lands on the battlefield while a blast of fire strikes Johnny, repowering him. In the Arabian Desert, Kowalski wakes up to find himself transformed into a Spirit of Vengeance as well. Johnny and Sara press Danny for information, and he tells them that they were right about Zadkiel, he used the power of the Ghost Riders to destroy the gates of Heaven. When Blaze asks how they can stop Zadkiel, Ketch tells him that it's too late. Heaven has fallen and Zadkiel has won.
Back in Africa, Sister Sara staggers through the battlefield in disbelief that they lost the fight. Blaze arrives, having used the last of the supernatural energy in his bike to make it back to Africa, and he tells her that Danny won and took his power. She gives him a look of horror right before the sky splits open and rains fire, spitting a screaming Ketch back to Earth. Danny lands on the battlefield while a blast of fire strikes Johnny, repowering him. In the Arabian Desert, Kowalski wakes up to find himself transformed into a Spirit of Vengeance as well. Johnny and Sara press Danny for information, and he tells them that they were right about Zadkiel, he used the power of the Ghost Riders to destroy the gates of Heaven. When Blaze asks how they can stop Zadkiel, Ketch tells him that it's too late. Heaven has fallen and Zadkiel has won.
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| Love you too, Baron Skullfire! |
THE ROADMAP
Blaze discovered that the Ghost Rider curse was given to him by the angel Zadkiel in Ghost Rider (2006) # 18. He has been searching for a way to get to Heaven since Ghost Rider (2006) # 20.
Danny Ketch made his reappearance as an angel of Zadkiel in Ghost Rider (2006) # 22. His reasons for joining with Zadkiel, along with the explanation of his whereabouts in recent years, are told in Ghost Rider: Danny Ketch (2008) # 1-5.
Kowalski first appeared in Ghost Rider (2006) # 21 and was given the Penance Stare by Blaze in Ghost Rider (2006) # 23. He acquired Blaze's hellfire shotgun from Michael Badilino in Ghost Rider (2006) # 30 and appears next as the new Vengeance in Ghost Riders: Heaven's On Fire (2009) # 2.
Following the end of this issue, Ketch and Blaze are the last remaining Spirits of Vengeance on Earth. Ketch appears next in Ghost Rider (2006) # 34 and Blaze in Ghost Rider (2006) # 35 before reuniting in Ghost Riders: Heaven's On Fire (2009) # 2.
Danny Ketch made his reappearance as an angel of Zadkiel in Ghost Rider (2006) # 22. His reasons for joining with Zadkiel, along with the explanation of his whereabouts in recent years, are told in Ghost Rider: Danny Ketch (2008) # 1-5.
Kowalski first appeared in Ghost Rider (2006) # 21 and was given the Penance Stare by Blaze in Ghost Rider (2006) # 23. He acquired Blaze's hellfire shotgun from Michael Badilino in Ghost Rider (2006) # 30 and appears next as the new Vengeance in Ghost Riders: Heaven's On Fire (2009) # 2.
Following the end of this issue, Ketch and Blaze are the last remaining Spirits of Vengeance on Earth. Ketch appears next in Ghost Rider (2006) # 34 and Blaze in Ghost Rider (2006) # 35 before reuniting in Ghost Riders: Heaven's On Fire (2009) # 2.
CHAIN REACTION
Jason Aaron and Tan Eng Huat finish up "The Last Stand of the Spirits of Vengeance", and boy they weren't lying about that story title, were they?
Something that Aaron did very well during his entire run was to flag up just how futile Johnny Blaze's quest for vengeance on Zadkiel really was, because honestly, just how WOULD you get to Heaven to fight an angel? Blaze, and all of the remaining Spirits of Vengeance, were fighting a losing battle from day one, a fact that's hammered home brilliantly at the end of this issue. The good guys just don't stand a chance, because not only are they fighting an actual celestial army but they have to stand up against Danny Ketch, who at this point is the most powerful Ghost Rider who ever existed. Aaron plays up the brotherly bond between Blaze and Ketch and it works perfectly, making what was a pretty reviled plot point from the 90s series into a great story about extreme sibling rivalry.
Another thing that Aaron did exceptionally well, not only in this issue but throughout the entire run, was by balancing the high-concept religious elements with an absurd sense of grandeur to...well, to everything. Blaze and Ketch just don't have a motorcycle race, they race around the planet. They throw sharks at each other, for christ's sake! That huge "this is so batshit crazy it's awesome" feeling works for this book, but even with all of the insane stuff going on Aaron knows not to take things too far. That was a problem he had with his run on Wolverine and the X-Men, but here he balances things out just right.
Helping out with that balance is Tan Eng Huat, who finishes up his work on the series with this issue. Huat's work wasn't everyone's cup of tea, and I think there were aspects of his art style that didn't quite fit the character as nicely as I'd have liked, but you can't deny the energy that he brought to the pages. His characters all have a fluid sense of motion around them, they don't like stiff or posed, which is important when you're drawing something like the aforementioned race around the world. There are some issues with clarity, though, and I think that's due more to the fact that the book's colors were applied over his pencil drawings without being inked first. I've seen Huat's work when it's inked, and it looks much better than this (seriously, check out his work on Doom Patrol and Batman: Journey Into Knight, it looks amazing).
This issue had an appropriately downbeat ending that marked the mid-point for one of the character's best eras.
Something that Aaron did very well during his entire run was to flag up just how futile Johnny Blaze's quest for vengeance on Zadkiel really was, because honestly, just how WOULD you get to Heaven to fight an angel? Blaze, and all of the remaining Spirits of Vengeance, were fighting a losing battle from day one, a fact that's hammered home brilliantly at the end of this issue. The good guys just don't stand a chance, because not only are they fighting an actual celestial army but they have to stand up against Danny Ketch, who at this point is the most powerful Ghost Rider who ever existed. Aaron plays up the brotherly bond between Blaze and Ketch and it works perfectly, making what was a pretty reviled plot point from the 90s series into a great story about extreme sibling rivalry.
Another thing that Aaron did exceptionally well, not only in this issue but throughout the entire run, was by balancing the high-concept religious elements with an absurd sense of grandeur to...well, to everything. Blaze and Ketch just don't have a motorcycle race, they race around the planet. They throw sharks at each other, for christ's sake! That huge "this is so batshit crazy it's awesome" feeling works for this book, but even with all of the insane stuff going on Aaron knows not to take things too far. That was a problem he had with his run on Wolverine and the X-Men, but here he balances things out just right.
Helping out with that balance is Tan Eng Huat, who finishes up his work on the series with this issue. Huat's work wasn't everyone's cup of tea, and I think there were aspects of his art style that didn't quite fit the character as nicely as I'd have liked, but you can't deny the energy that he brought to the pages. His characters all have a fluid sense of motion around them, they don't like stiff or posed, which is important when you're drawing something like the aforementioned race around the world. There are some issues with clarity, though, and I think that's due more to the fact that the book's colors were applied over his pencil drawings without being inked first. I've seen Huat's work when it's inked, and it looks much better than this (seriously, check out his work on Doom Patrol and Batman: Journey Into Knight, it looks amazing).
This issue had an appropriately downbeat ending that marked the mid-point for one of the character's best eras.
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| Ghost Riders should always throw sharks at people. |
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