On Sale Date: December 1985
Writer: Tom DeFalco
Artist: Ron Frenz w/ Tom Morgan & James Fry
Inker: Joe Rubinstein w/ John Romita Sr.
Letterer: Joe Rosen
Colorist: George Roussos & Co.
Editor: Jim Owlsley
Editor-In-Chief: Jim Shooter
Cover Artist: John Romita Sr.
The Beyonder, a being of ultimate power, invades the realm of Mephisto, set on destroying it and everything else within the Multiverse of creation. Mephisto strikes a wager with the Beyonder that within the span of one day a mortal being will show that he is worthy of living, thereby saving the entire Multiverse. The Beyonder chooses Spider-Man to be Mephisto's agent and then frees Zarathos from the Soul Crystal, setting him loose on Earth to torment Spider-Man. The Beyonder creates a giant video screen in Hell so he and Mephisto can watch, stating that Zarathos must merely get Spider-Man to give up his sense of responsibility within the time frame allotted.
On Earth, Spider-Man overhears some criminals talking about a hit they've placed on the Kingpin of Crime. Spider-Man finds himself in a moral dilemma about saving the Kingpin's life and Zarathos appears before him demanding that the Kingpin die, blasting Spider-Man with a cloud of sulfur before disappearing. Spider-Man is the attacked by the Green Goblin, who he unmasks as the deceased Norman Osborn. Spider-Man returns to his apartment and falls asleep, where Zarathos attacks in his dreams while disguised as his parents. Peter wakes up covered in boils yet still tries to make his way to save the Kingpin, but not before he's confronted by the ghosts of Captain Stacy and his daughter, Gwen Stacy, who ravage Spider-Man with guilt. Zarathos attacks directly, blasting Spider-Man with hellfire, but the hero refuses to give up and defies Zarathos, punching him away and winning the wager for Mephisto. Spider-Man rescues the Kingpin from the assassination attempt and, in Hell, Mephisto places Zarathos back within the Soul Crystal and tells Mephisto that the Multiverse can live for another day.
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| Must feel good to stretch your legs! |
THE ROADMAP
Zarathos was trapped in the Soul Crystal alongside Centurious in Ghost Rider (1973) # 81. The Soul Crystal is next seen in The Mighty Thor (1961) # 430 still in the possession of Mephisto. Centurious will escape the Soul Crystal soon after and reappears in Ghost Rider (1990) # 18. Zarathos will be revealed to be living inside Centurious' body and escapes in Ghost Rider (1990) # 43.
This issue is a tie-in to the "Secret Wars II" crossover event.
CHAIN REACTION
Tom DeFalco, former editor of the old Ghost Rider series, brings Zarathos back for a swan song during this "Secret Wars II" tie-in issue.
Of all the random guest appearances the characters have made over the years, this may be one of the most random of all. Ghost Rider had been cancelled three years before this and, outside of a Johnny Blaze appearance in New Defenders, nothing had been said about the characters since. So, having Zarathos suddenly be the villain of this major crossover event issue is curious, though certainly not unwelcome. Spider-Man had many encounters with the classic Ghost Rider, during which he was decidedly spooked by the character, so having Zarathos be the tormentor of this story feels appropriate. I'm a little disappointed that there's not a single mention of "Ghost Rider" in the issue, but the "Living Spirit of Vengeance" phrase really gets its big push here, four years before Howard Mackie brings the character back with that job description.
As a Spider-Man story this is pretty routine stuff. Peter Parker gets tormented by the failures of his life but still manages to hold on to his sense of responsibility, because great power and all that. Spidey doesn't typically lend himself to the more cosmic or esoteric of plots, but DeFalco's solid handle on all the characters make it a pretty seamless transition. The Beyond is, of course, a cipher with little personality, but that was true of the character in all his appearances, not just this one.
The artwork is pretty rushed throughout, with all the art assists mentioned in the credits I imagine this double-sized issue was hard to get out on time. It all hangs together pretty well, with the real highlights being the pages were Romita Sr. takes over to showcase the greatest hits package of Green Goblin and Gwen Stacy. Zarathos looks appropriately imposing, and I wish they'd have kept this Bob Budiansky design for the character when he came back in the 1990s.
This certainly isn't a "must own" comic for Ghost Rider fans, more of a strange curio, but it's certainly not a disappointing book to read.
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| An interesting look for the Big Z. |
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