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| Cover Art: Salvador Larroca |
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Title: "Bitter Smoke"
Writer: Ivan Velez Jr.
Artist: Salvador Larroca
Inker: Sergio Melia
Letterer: Richard Starkings
Colorist: Brian Buccellato
Editor: James Felder
Editor In Chief: Bob Harras
SYNOPSIS
Francis Ketch has a nightmare about her daughter Barbara's grave being disturbed by images of crows. Meanwhile, Ghost Rider sits atop the hospital that houses Capt. Dolan, his mind confused about the visions he's had since his fight with Vengeance. He transforms back into Dan, who breaks into a sweating seizure. Blaze picks him up, deciding to take him to a special kind of doctor.
The two arrive at the house of Dr. Strange, who tells Blaze that Dan is host to a Spirit of Vengeance that was once a mortal man that has had his memories erased. During the battle with Vengeance Ghost Rider received the Penance Stare, which has caused some of these memories to leak out. Meanwhile, in Hell, Blackheart watches as his servants bring forth his bride - Black Rose.
Strange and Blaze take Dan to a young sorceress named Jennifer Kale, whose help is demanded by Strange. Jennifer releases the memories inside the Ghost Rider and he reveals his true name, Noble Kale. Simultaneously, Dan floats alone in the void until three beings called the Furies appear to kill him.
The two arrive at the house of Dr. Strange, who tells Blaze that Dan is host to a Spirit of Vengeance that was once a mortal man that has had his memories erased. During the battle with Vengeance Ghost Rider received the Penance Stare, which has caused some of these memories to leak out. Meanwhile, in Hell, Blackheart watches as his servants bring forth his bride - Black Rose.
Strange and Blaze take Dan to a young sorceress named Jennifer Kale, whose help is demanded by Strange. Jennifer releases the memories inside the Ghost Rider and he reveals his true name, Noble Kale. Simultaneously, Dan floats alone in the void until three beings called the Furies appear to kill him.
ANNOTATIONS
The full story behind Noble Kale's origin is revealed in Ghost Rider (1990) # 78 and Ghost Rider (1990) # 92.
The spell keeping the Ghost Rider's memories hidden from him was broken when he received the Penance Stare, courtesy of Vengeance, in Ghost Rider (1990) # 76. Gerald Dolan was injured during the same fight, victim of a heart attack.
Ghost Rider has caught fleeting glimpses of his past memories on two other occasions: when he was killed by Blade in Ghost Rider/Blaze: Spirits of Vengeance (1992) # 13 and when attempting to give the Penance Stare to Skinner in Ghost Rider (1990) # 64.
Francis Ketch's dream about Barbara's grave is actually a real event. Barbara Ketch's reanimated body reappears at the end of Ghost Rider (1990) # 82 and it is revealed in Ghost Rider (1990) # 83 that the Scarecrow has taken possession of the corpse.
Blackheart killed his father Mephisto in Ghost Rider/Wolverine/Punisher: The Dark Design and was first seen as the new King of Hell in Ghost Riders: Crossroads # 1.
The true identity of Black Rose is revealed in Ghost Rider (1990) # 93.
Ghost Rider has caught fleeting glimpses of his past memories on two other occasions: when he was killed by Blade in Ghost Rider/Blaze: Spirits of Vengeance (1992) # 13 and when attempting to give the Penance Stare to Skinner in Ghost Rider (1990) # 64.
Francis Ketch's dream about Barbara's grave is actually a real event. Barbara Ketch's reanimated body reappears at the end of Ghost Rider (1990) # 82 and it is revealed in Ghost Rider (1990) # 83 that the Scarecrow has taken possession of the corpse.
Blackheart killed his father Mephisto in Ghost Rider/Wolverine/Punisher: The Dark Design and was first seen as the new King of Hell in Ghost Riders: Crossroads # 1.
The true identity of Black Rose is revealed in Ghost Rider (1990) # 93.
REVIEW
Following the conclusion of the Vengeance arc, Ivan Velez dives into uncharted territory with his version of the Ghost Rider's origin.
I have a lot of fondness for this arc and for the Noble Kale origin story, even if at the time it seemed to fly completely in the face of everything that had come before during Howard Mackie's defining run. At first glance it appears that Velez is trying to rewrite continuity, he's not been the best example of consistent characterization up to this point, but when everything is finally revealed it all does fit together with very little effort on the part of readers. You have to kinda forgive some things, sure, but even Mackie had hinted at the Ghost Rider having an identity of his own before becoming a Spirit of Vengeance. Velez takes that idea and runs with it, making this issue the start of what's really the writer's defining legacy on the series.
I honestly can't really blame him for wanting to steer the series away from what Mackie had done, especially concerning Ghost Rider's origin and identity. The whole Medallion of Power origin was such a huge misstep for the character that it actively hurt the ongoing mystery of the series, so quietly shoving it into the background for a much more personal take on the Ghost Rider's actual identity is honestly pretty refreshing. There's a great hook to this issue, that Ghost Rider's memories are seeping out like poison that is affecting Danny in the real world, and it drags this series further into being a character-based drama in place of a superhero action series.
Unfortunately, those characters are absolutely all over the place, and its not to Velez's strength when he brings in guest-stars. John Blaze is still wildly out of character, screaming and whining like a maniac at everyone. I actually think that his use of Blaze is one of my least favorite aspects of Velez's run as a whole, it's so exaggerated and hostile that it's irritating to read. Similarly, his use of Doctor Strange makes the character so inherently antagonistic to two heroes that had not long ago been pretty solid allies, though perhaps that's due to things that had gone on in Strange's own series at the time that I'm just not aware of. Then there's Jennifer Kale, whose reappearance I appreciated even if it left me scratching my head about. Why, I wonder, did Velez land on Kale as the linchpin character of this arc, tying her significantly to the Ghost Rider mythos in such a familial way? Sure, it's nice to see her again, considering how much I enjoyed Steve Gerber's Man-Thing stories that introduced her, but she's essentially unrecognizable here.
I'm still appreciating Salvador Larroca's artwork, which has evolved in some pretty interesting ways during his extended tenure as the regular series artist. The guy was consistent, with not a single fill-in issue during his run, and though he started as an obvious Jim Lee clone he grew as an artist very quickly. His work at this point, which is nearing the end of his run, is more minimal than even a few issues ago. He's not as interested in filling up the page with lines and allows the characters to get some definition, while also not scrimping on the details. His rendition of Ghost Rider continues to be fantastic, and the splash page with him on the hospital roof is fantastic.
All in all, there's a lot to love about Velez's run on the series, despite its drawbacks and occasional characterization problems. This issue in particular is one of the better ones of the run.
I have a lot of fondness for this arc and for the Noble Kale origin story, even if at the time it seemed to fly completely in the face of everything that had come before during Howard Mackie's defining run. At first glance it appears that Velez is trying to rewrite continuity, he's not been the best example of consistent characterization up to this point, but when everything is finally revealed it all does fit together with very little effort on the part of readers. You have to kinda forgive some things, sure, but even Mackie had hinted at the Ghost Rider having an identity of his own before becoming a Spirit of Vengeance. Velez takes that idea and runs with it, making this issue the start of what's really the writer's defining legacy on the series.
I honestly can't really blame him for wanting to steer the series away from what Mackie had done, especially concerning Ghost Rider's origin and identity. The whole Medallion of Power origin was such a huge misstep for the character that it actively hurt the ongoing mystery of the series, so quietly shoving it into the background for a much more personal take on the Ghost Rider's actual identity is honestly pretty refreshing. There's a great hook to this issue, that Ghost Rider's memories are seeping out like poison that is affecting Danny in the real world, and it drags this series further into being a character-based drama in place of a superhero action series.
Unfortunately, those characters are absolutely all over the place, and its not to Velez's strength when he brings in guest-stars. John Blaze is still wildly out of character, screaming and whining like a maniac at everyone. I actually think that his use of Blaze is one of my least favorite aspects of Velez's run as a whole, it's so exaggerated and hostile that it's irritating to read. Similarly, his use of Doctor Strange makes the character so inherently antagonistic to two heroes that had not long ago been pretty solid allies, though perhaps that's due to things that had gone on in Strange's own series at the time that I'm just not aware of. Then there's Jennifer Kale, whose reappearance I appreciated even if it left me scratching my head about. Why, I wonder, did Velez land on Kale as the linchpin character of this arc, tying her significantly to the Ghost Rider mythos in such a familial way? Sure, it's nice to see her again, considering how much I enjoyed Steve Gerber's Man-Thing stories that introduced her, but she's essentially unrecognizable here.
I'm still appreciating Salvador Larroca's artwork, which has evolved in some pretty interesting ways during his extended tenure as the regular series artist. The guy was consistent, with not a single fill-in issue during his run, and though he started as an obvious Jim Lee clone he grew as an artist very quickly. His work at this point, which is nearing the end of his run, is more minimal than even a few issues ago. He's not as interested in filling up the page with lines and allows the characters to get some definition, while also not scrimping on the details. His rendition of Ghost Rider continues to be fantastic, and the splash page with him on the hospital roof is fantastic.
All in all, there's a lot to love about Velez's run on the series, despite its drawbacks and occasional characterization problems. This issue in particular is one of the better ones of the run.
Grade: A-
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