Marvel Comics Presents (1988) # 98

"D'Spryte Times, D'Spryte Measures"

Cover Date: March 1992

On Sale Date: January 1992

Writer: Dan Slott
Artist: Jimmy Palmiotti
Letterer: Janice Chiang
Colorist: Fred Mendez
Editor: Terry Kavanagh
Editor in Chief: Tom DeFalco

Cover Artist: Sam Keith

On a snowy winter night in New York City, a homeless man named Jack Weaver sits on the sidewalk and appears to have a conversation with himself. Unseen by everybody but Weaver, however, is a small demon sitting on his shoulder talking with him. The demon points out to Jack that the man coming toward them will give at least a dime. When Weaver asks him for any spare change, the man spits in his change can and tells him to get a job. The demon tells Jack that all he has to do is say the word and he'll "get 'im good". After a moment of goading, Weaver gives in and asks the demon to get the man back for him.

 

Half a block away, Dan Ketch rides through the streets, thinking about all the things going on in the Ghost Rider's life. Ahead of him he sees a crowd of people all looking up at a man on the ledge threating to jump. The man - the same one that refused to give money to Weaver - is being coerced by the small demon into jumping because he's a "horrid, pathetic little man". Seeing this, Dan thinks that the Ghost Rider could get the man down safely. But, since the Rider will only come out when innocent blood has been spilt, Dan buts his own palm with a knife and slaps it down on his mystical motorcycle's gas cap. To his surprise, nothing happens. Dan continues to furiously slap his bloody hand against the gas cap, desperate to make the transformation. On the ledge, however, the demon has successfully convinced the man that he should commit suicide. Under the demon's influence, the man jumps from the building to his death...causing a splatter of blood to land in the snow next to Dan. Because of this, the transformation finally triggers and Dan transforms into the Ghost Rider. The Rider makes his way to the ledge, where the small demon is laughing hysterically. Ghost Rider grabs the demon in his hand and declares that vengeance must be served. The demon tells him that he is D'Spryte, a servant of D'Spayre. "Wherever there is a broken will where pleas are voiced into the ether, there will be a D'Spryte," he tells the Rider, "my kind is legion". Ghost Rider hears a flapping noise behind him, and when he turns he sees thousands more D'Sprytes heading toward him. Overwhelming him, the vigilante tries to fight back, but the ledge beneath him crumbles, causing him and his motorcycle to fall to the ground below.

Looks like fun, right?

THE ROADMAP

Ghost Rider last appeared in Marvel Holiday Special # 1.

 

This issue of Marvel Comics Presents also contained stories featuring Wolverine, Gladiator, and the Werewolf by Night.

CHAIN REACTION

There's only two issues left until Marvel Comics Presents reaches issue # 100, so we're given a 2-part fill-in story to bridge the gap between the anniversary story and the last multi-part series. Surprisingly, however, this 2-part story is one of the better tales to come out of Ghost Rider's time in MCP.

 

Written by future superstar writer Dan Slott, this story is certainly nothing consequential to the ongoing Ghost Rider mythos. That doesn't keep it from being a great little story in its own right, despite its simplicity. The D'Sprytes, offspring of the cosmic entity D'Spayre, are sort of like the little devil that sits on everyone's shoulder, filling their heads with bad ideas. In this instance, the D'Sprytes fill their victims with despair, but also provide companionship with the homeless people on New York's streets.

 

Slott also gives a great insight into Dan Ketch with his attempt to trigger the transformation into the Ghost Rider. The image of Dan slapping his bloody palm against the bike, frantically trying to trigger the change before the jumper dies, is very powerful and serves as an interesting look into the nature of the Ghost Rider's mission. Only when the victim dies does the Ghost Rider emerge, with Dan protesting the lack of fairness in the Spirit of Vengeance's call. It certainly plays up well the idea that the Ghost Rider can only react when blood has already been spilled and is perpetually unable to save victims...he can only avenge them, because if he DID save the man then his mission would be moot. What use would there be for vengeance if no innocent blood was spilled?

 

We're also given artwork by Jimmy Palmiotti, better known as an inker and writer than as a pencil artist. Palmiotti's artwork brings comparisons to Javier Saltares' early work on the Ghost Rider series, and it fits the dark story perfectly.

 

Believe it or not, this was the first solo Ghost Rider/Dan Ketch story not written by Howard Mackie, but Slott and Palmiotti show that they have a great handle on the character. 

 

"For we are...maaaaaaannnyyyyy."