Cover Date: October 2021; On Sale Date: October 2021
Writer: Taboo & B. Earl; Artist: Guillermo Sanna & Vanessa Del Rey; Letterer: Joe Sabino; Colorist: Jordie Bellaire; Editor: Sarah Brunstad; Editor in Chief: C.B. Cebulski; Cover Artist: Guillermo Sanna
Olivia Obtera returns home to relieve her parents from babysitting her daughter, Heather Rae. At bedtime, Olivia tells the story of Kushala to Heather Rae, Suddenly, two Doombots appear through a portal and attempt to abduct Heather Rae. Olivia finds herself transformed into the Spirit Rider, possessed by the spirit of Kushala in her time of need to save her daughter. However, even though she disables one of the Doombots, the other escapes with Heather Rae through the rift, closing it behind them.
Kushala explains to Olivia that Doctor Doom seeks to find all of the Wands of Watoomb, which originated from the same dimension as Leviathan, the vengeance spirit that possesses her. Kushala has been attempting to stop Doom from uniting all six Wands, but he is targeting her bloodline to attempt to lock her out of existence. Realizing that they need to start with Jeffrey McKraken, whose journals Olivia has been researching, Kushala transports them back in time to meet with him. They arrive in 1923 Peru, where McKraken is being chased by a group of bandits. McKracken tells Olivia to run.
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| Bedtime stories |
THE ROADMAP
Kushala last appeared in Spirits of Vengeance: Spirit Rider (2021) # 1 where she returned to her original time period of the late 1800s.
It was revealed in Spirits of Vengeance: Spirit Rider (2021) # 1 that the Spirit of Vengeance possessing Kushala was an other dimensional entity called Leviathan.
Kushala’s origin story was told in Doctor Strange & the Sorcerers Supreme (2016) # 3.
CHAIN REACTION
The connection between Kushala and Olivia is revealed in the second installment of the Infinity Comics online series.
After a rather slow start in the first installment, things really pick up the pace here. Even though we get an explanation of what’s going on, that Doom is trying to find all the Wands of Watoomb and is targeting Kushala’s bloodline, things are told in such an obtuse way that the issue demands repeated readings just to follow along with what’s happening. There’s a real dreamy, unfocused tone to the narration and dialogue in this series, like the writers believe it sounds important if they take 20 words to say something that would be more concise with five.
This chapter does deliver with some great action bits and a really interesting origin sequence for Kushala that’s told as a rhyming bedtime story. I like a lot of the choices that Taboo and B. Earl make with this comic, they definitely take the story seriously and want to give it the appropriate amount of gravitas, but you can also tell that they’re not fully comfortable with comic scripting. It is nice, however, to see Kushala proper make her appearance here, with a more “Ghost Rider” modus operandi of possessing a human host, particularly one of her descendants.
The artwork is where this comic really shines. Sanna takes full advantage of the Infinity Comics format, with the panels flowing vertically down like an elevator passing between floors. Flames trail off forever, linking images in the action sequences in such a clever way that the scrolling format seems like the only appropriate choice for showcasing his artwork. He also does a great rendition of Kushala/Olivia in their Ghost Rider form. Vanessa Del Rey shows up to illustrate Kushala's origin story, told as a bedtime story, and her art has an appropriate dreamlike quality to it that makes it stand out.
I’m definitely interested in where this is all going, because even if the story kind of stumbles in places the artwork is more than worth the price of admission.
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| Spirit Rider reborn! |
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