Ghost Rider Chronology: Part Three

Entering the 2000s, Ghost Rider was essentially a non-entity in the Marvel Universe. His comic had been cancelled in 1998 and there didn't seem to be much interest in the character.  In 2001, however, Johnny Blaze returned as the host for the Spirit of Vengeance, replacing his brother Danny Ketch, and he had a few adventures before being dragged to Hell, where he remained trapped for a period of time.  This began an era where the Ghost Rider mythos expanded both historically and laterally, as Marvel began introducing numerous variations on the character from all over the world.  

This is when it was revealed that the Spirits of Vengeance (yes, plural) were actually creations of Heaven to serve as agents on Earth, as directed by the rogue angel Zadkiel. Danny Ketch made his return as a Ghost Rider and Marvel set up this status quo as THE origin of the Ghost Rider going forward.  You know, until they decided that he actually was a demon after all.  Comics everybody! Blaze and Ketch both appear as Ghost Riders during this period and others are introduced, including Shoba Mizra, Baron Skullfire, the Blood Drinker, and several other Spirits of Vengeance from around the world, all of whom are killed following their brief appearances.

Marvel Comics Presents (1988) # 129

"The Walking Wounded, Part 7: Peak the Pathos"

Cover Date: May 1993; Publication Date: March 1993

Writer: Ann Nocenti; Artist: Steve Lightle; Letterer: Dave Sharpe; Colorist: Steve & Marianne Lightle; Editor: Terry Kavanagh; Editor in Chief: Tom DeFalco; Cover Artist: Jae Lee

Ghost Rider has been lured into the Realm of Insanity, where he relentlessly pursues the Necromancer, becoming more and more obsessed with seeking vengeance.  The realm is ruled by Dusk, who wants Ghost Rider to succumb to insanity and become his warrior to help claim the nearby dimension of Nightmare. Elsewhere in the realm, the pregnant girl Eve is charmed by the dream-like warrior who rescued her from demons.  Typhoid Mary appears and chases off the warrior by pointing out that he is betraying Dusk by courting Eve. Typhoid uses her mental powers to project visions of her past on the walls of the realm surrounding them and tells the story of how she was abused as a child. She suffered until another personality, Typhoid, emerged to protect her and stop the abuse from happening ever again.

Meanwhile, inside the shopping mall that is acting as the gateway to the realm of insanity, the glowing souls of Mary, Eve, and Dan Ketch comfort one another, the last vestiges of their sanity clinging to life. Dusk emerges and confronts Typhoid, telling her that now he knows her secret past and can use it against her to control her.  She runs into Ghost Rider, who has defeated the Necromancer and is now demanding that Typhoid must release her hold on the innocent Mary Walker. Rather than allow herself to be enslaved or punished, Typhoid leaps off a cliff to her death on the spikes below. 

What If...? (1989) # 45

"What If...Barbara Ketch Became Ghost Rider?"

Cover Date: January 1993; On Sale Date: November 1992
Original Price: $1.25

Writer: Ron Marz; Artist: Dale Eaglesham; Inker: Brian Garvey; Letterer: Janice Chiang; Colorist: Tom Vincent; Editor: Craig Anderson; Editor-In-Chief: Tom DeFalco; Cover Artist; Dale Eaglesham

In a junkyard near Cypress Hills Cemetery, Daniel Ketch hides with his wounded sister Barbara from men that are looking to kill them. Dan sees a motorcycle glowing amongst the wrecked cars, but he is discovered by the assassins before he can touch it. Daniel is shot and left for dead, while the gravely injured Barbara reaches out for the motorcycle. The assassins return to their master, Deathwatch, just before the female Ghost Rider arrives carrying the dying Danny. She makes short work of the ninjas, but when she attempts to kill Deathwatch she is struck with intense pain, allowing the villain to escape. The police arrive, but are unable to capture Ghost Rider, who escapes and transforms back into Barbara.

 

Later, Barbara attends her brother's funeral, wishing that she could have done something to save him. That night, she had a dream where she is confronted by the Spirit of Vengeance. The Spirit tells her that she attempted to use his power to take a life, which goes against his purpose. To the Spirit's surprise, Barbara turns the tables and imposes her will over him, taking his power for herself. She wakes up and goes outside, transforming into the Ghost Rider. She rides into the city, finds a gang of attempted rapists, and murders them. She later seeks revenge on Deathwatch for his role in Danny's death, murdering him and his partner Blackout. Over the next few weeks, Barbara kills the villains she encounters, such as Zodiak, Hag, Troll, Scarecrow, and Mr. Hyde. With each murder, Barbara becomes more and more insane, further dominating the Spirit of Vengeance inside her.

 

She and Spider-Man are fighting the demonic Hobgoblin, and when she attempts to kill the villain Spider-Man intervenes, only to be knocked unconscious. As he passes out, he sees the Ghost Rider whipping Hobgoblin to death with her chain. When he awakens and sees Hobgoblin's body, Spider-Man seeks help in stopping the murderous Ghost Rider. He visits the home of Dr. Strange, where he meets John Blaze, former host of the Ghost Rider that has come to kill the demon. Together, the three men formulate a plan of attack.

 

At a construction site, Deathwatch and Blackout stand waiting for Ghost Rider to arrive, calling out her name until she comes. Though she does not understand how the two villains are alive once again, she immediately attempts to kill them. It is obvious that the villains are not who they say they are, using a shotgun and webbing to attack, and it is revealed that they are actually Spider-Man and Blaze hidden beneath a spell. Dr. Strange arrives and traps the Ghost Rider in a mystic circle, then exorcises the Spirit of Vengeance from Barbara's body. Blaze accidentally breaks the circle when he sees Barbara, allowing the Spirit to be set free to find its next host. Barbara dies, realizing what she had become in her desire for vengeance, and the mystical motorcycle soon finds a new host.

Venom (2011) # 13

"Circle of Four, Part 1"

Cover Date: April 2012; On Sale Date: February 2012

Writer: Rick Remender; Artist: Tony Moore; Letterer: VC's Joe Caramagna; Colorist: Val Staples; Editor: Jeanine Schaeffer; Senior Editor: Stephen Wacker & Mark Paniccia; Editor In Chief: Axel Alonso; Cover Artist: Stefano Caselli

Flash Thompson is currently hiding in a Las Vegas motel after he went AWOL from the army with the Venom symbiote.  He is unaware that the army has sent General Thunderbolt Ross, the Red Hulk, to find and bring both him and the symbiote back.  Elsewhere, at the Devil's Den casino, the owner Mr. Degli is dealing with a gambler unable to pay back his debts.  Degli offers to eliminate the debt and all it will cost is the man's soul, which he eagerly agrees to.

Meanwhile in Vegas, Johnny Blaze attempts to give guidance to the current Ghost Rider, Alejandra, who claims that there's nothing the former host can teach her.  Red Hulk approaches the city, jumping through the desert while thinking about how much he hates deserters.  Finally, X-23 has gone undercover as a waitress at the Devil's Den to find Degli, who she claims stole a vial of her blood for experimentation.  At an empty construction site, Degli and his aide Ms. Oyle prepare to enact their master plan.  Having built a spinning pentagram machine, they introduce their ingredients: 100 human souls signed over willingly, the remains of the Toxin symbiote, and the blood of a mortal who's been to Hell and back.  Now they only have to wait for the final ingredient to come to them, which Degli says "the Devil couldn't keep her away".  At a diner, Blaze and Alejandra are having dinner when she suddenly transforms into the Ghost Rider and says that Zarathos hears the call of hundreds of crying souls.  Blaze tries to talk her into thinking before acting, but Alejandra ignores him and rides into Las Vegas.  Before leaving to follow her, Blaze places a phone call to Daimon Hellstrom for help.

A drunk Flash Thompson is attacked by the Red Hulk at the motel, and a brief fight begins when Venom attempts to run.  X-23, meanwhile, has broken into Degli's office, where she finds clones of herself created from her stolen blood.  Before she can destroy them, the clones break free and reveal that they have also been given alien symbiotes of their own.  Ghost Rider arrives at the construction site and sees the spinning pentagram, which she decides to stop by jumping into it and riding in the opposite direction.  Unfortunately, that was Degli's plan all along, and the Ghost Rider opens up a portal to Hell that spreads all across Las Vegas.  Before leaving, Degli tells the Rider that if she stops the centrifuge then all of Earth will be sucked into Hell.  Venom and Hulk are forced to stop fighting when they see the city overrun with demons, and reluctantly they team up to save the helpless citizens.  When Blaze arrives at the city limits, he places a mystical amulet that blocks magic on the "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign.  The amulet halts the spread of Hell from going past the city's border, and Blaze enters the city to find Alejandra.

Degli and Oyle arrive back at the casino and reveal themselves as Blackheart and his gargoyle companion.  Blackheart contacts his father, Mephisto, and attempts to gloat that he has brought Hell to Earth and will soon depose Mephisto as Hell's ruler.  Mephisto mocks and disregards him, which angers Blackheart even more.  Blaze finds Ghost Rider at the centrifuge and rides his own motorcycle into the machine to power it, telling Alejandra to go stop the person causing this while he keeps the portal open.  The top of Blackheart's casino is where all of the heroes converge; X-23, Venom, Red Hulk, and finally Ghost Rider all confront Blackheart, but only the Hulk shows caution as he's read the Avengers file on the demon.   Using his black mirror cauldron, Blackheart calls forth the dark antitheses of each hero: X-666, Ichor, the Evangelist, and Encephalon.

Inhumans: Attilan Rising (2015) # 1

"Attilan Rising, Part 1: The Voice Unheard"

Cover Date: March 2015, On Sale Date: January 2015

Writer: Charles Soule; Artist: John Timms; Inker: Roberto Poggi; Letterer: VC's Clayton Cowles; Colorist: Frank D'Armata; Editor: Nick Lowe; Editor In Chief: Axel Alonso; Cover Artist: Dave Johnson 

In the Hulk-controlled dominion of Battleworld called Greenland, a quartet of freedom fighters called the Voice Unheard arrive, led by the Undead G-Man, a Ghost Rider from the 1950s.  They're attacked by a mindless Hulk, which they are able to give conscious thought back to with a spray mist developed by their benefactor.  Their actions are noticed by a squad of Thors, the police force of Battleworld, and the Undead G-Man tells his teammates to leave while he draws away the Thors' attention.  He leads them on a chase through the desert in his hellfire-powered car, but is eventually captured by the Thors.

Later, in New Attilan, the G-Man is brought before Medusa, ruler of the domain.  A vision of Doctor Doom appears and tells Medusa that she will interrogate the G-Man to find out information on the rebellion and them destroy him.  Elsewhere, the rest of the Voice Unheard meet with Karnak and discuss what's happened to the G-Man, and how eventually he'll tell Medusa everything he knows.  Back in New Attilan questions the bound G-Man, who spits hellfire at her feet.  She brings in a psychic Inhuman named Sterilon, whose telepathic interrogation kills the Undead G-Man.  Sterilon learned only one thing, the name "The Quiet Room".  Recognizing the name, Medusa sends an Inhuman named Auran to infiltrate the nightclub called The Quiet Room.  While there, Auran is met by Black Bolt, who recognizes that Medusa must have sent her to find him.  

Ghost Rider Chronology: Part Two

When 1990 started the Ghost Rider had laid dormant for a good seven years, with only a meager handful of appearances for various related characters during that time.  Danny Ketch was introduced and started a whole new resurgence of interest in the concept, which led to massive sales success and lots and LOTS of guest appearances.  

This entry will be looking at the entirety of the 1990s as Ghost Rider had multiple spin-offs and special editions released, most of which can be easily slotted into a chronological order. There were also side characters that received the attention, as John Blaze returned to solo success of a lesser degree and Vengeance made his debut. This is a list that likely won't change much over time, as the 1990s are pretty locked-in in regards to continuity, though there are of course flashbacks and the occasional retro story that can be slotted in as needed.

Incredible Hulk (2023) # 6-8

"Spirits of Vengeance"

Cover Date: January 2024; On Sale Date: November 2023

Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson; Artist: Nic Klein; Letterer: VC's Cory Petit; Colorist: Matthew Wilson w/ Nic Klein; Editor: Will Moss; Editor in Chief: C.B. Cebulski; Cover Artist: Nic Klein

A migrant work camp in Texas is attacked by a creature that kills one of the residents, while a young boy named Leo watches as a World War II motorcycle owned his "Uncle Sal" catches on fire. One month later, Bruce Banner and his companion Charlie are hitchhiking across Texas when they are picked up by a passerby who offers them help.  They take Banner and Charlie to the migrant camp and are told that it's not safe to sleep outside the camp at night.  Banner excuses himself from the camp anyway to keep the people safe. While Leo tells Charlie about his Uncle Sal, who he describes as an angel that rides the antique motorcycle to fight the monsters, Banner transforms into the Hulk.  Sal's motorcycle flames to life and the Hulk is attacked by a Ghost Rider wearing World War II combat fatigues and carrying a hellfire machine gun. 

While the Hulk and Ghost Rider fight, the residents of the camp explain to Charlie that Leo's Uncle Sal has been his guardian angel protecting him danger since he was little. The fight stops when the camp is attacked again by the War Devil creature, who is stopped from killing Charlie by the Ghost Rider.  Hulk recognizes the creature as working for the Eldest, who is raising monsters across the country. Hulk kills the War Devil and the Ghost Rider fades away, leaving the empty motorcycle. The night night, the War Devil entity possesses not only a group of retired veterans but also the Hulk himself, who tells everyone to run while the other War Devils arrive on demonic horses.

While Hulk fights the possession, the psyche of Bruce Banner finds itself attacked by the War Devil inside Hulk's mind. Ghost Rider reappears and attacks the Hulk with a hellfire bazooka, which stuns him long enough for him to rescue Banner in the mental plane and regain control of his body.  Ghost Rider and Hulk defeat the creatures in the camp, but their bodies merge and become a giant embodiment of the War Devil entity. Working together, the Hulk is able to use Ghost Rider's hellfire chains to decapitate the War Devil, destroying it.  In the aftermath, Ghost Rider tells Hulk that he's connected to Leo to protect him, and that Hulk needs to watch out for Charlie, as she's his weak point.

Ghost Rider Chronology: Part One

It should come as no surprise that Ghost Rider continuity, chronology, and reading orders can quickly deteriorate into a hot, flaming pile of mess. Multiple characters ranging from the dawn of time to the literal end of universal existence and some bafflingly confusing origin contradictions can make reading the Ghost Rider mythos into a daunting task. 

But don't worry, I'm here to help!

This is an unofficial (but, hey, it's as official as it's gonna get, folks) reading order for every single Ghost Rider. It's essentially a live document that's going to change as new comics are released, but for now here's a starting point and a possible end point with a rapidly expanding middle section for the present day.

Ghost Rider 2099 (1994) # 19

"Hell On Earth"

Cover Date: November 1995; On Sale Date: September 1995

Writer: Len Kaminski; Artist: Ashley Wood; Inker: Jim Daly; Letterer: Richard Starkings and Comicraft; Colorist: Christie Scheele w/ Violent Hues; Editor: Joey Cavalieri; Editor in Chief: Bobbie Chase; Cover Artist: Ashley Wood

L-Cypher has taken control of Thrillsville, a holographic theme park, and has transformed into a literal representation of Hell. While SHIELD watches from a camera feed, Ghost Rider is confronted by the Arch-Fiends, humans corrupted by L-Cypher to be his followers. The five beings - named Reaper, Pyre, Serpentine, Shambler, and Misery - are absolutely devoted to their master and quickly attack the Ghost Rider. L-Cypher watches and muses about how he has used the park's solidigram programs to make himself a solid body, and how the Ghostworks created and then locked him away on the Internet.  While he was imprisoned he came up with the plan he is now implementing, and the transformation of the Arch-Fiends are but the first step.

Meanwhile, Kabal's group of mercenaries are engaged in a firefight at the Vault of Forbidden Sciences.  They grab what items they can and escape, prompting the guardian of the vault to contact Kellerman at D/Monix to report the break-in.  While Kellerman is pleased that his forced compliance to President Doom does not mandate him to relinquish control of the vault, he is unaware that the battle broke the seals on a chamber that houses a collection of severed heads in cryogenic storage that have come back to awareness.

Back in Thrillsville, the Ghost Rider continues his fight against the Arch-Fiends. Elsewhere in Transverse City, Dr. Neon is contacted by the mysterious hacker that is determined to destroy the Ghost Rider and a partnership is forged between the two. Kabal's mercenaries report back to him about the fiasco at the vault, and he assumes that they were betrayed by Anesthesia Jones. Finally, Synergy is visited in SHIELD custody by Heartbreaker, who kills him out of revenge.  Ghost Rider loses his battle against the Arch-Fiends, and his damaged body is brought to L-Cypher.

Ghost Rider: Robbie Reyes Special (2024) # 1

Cover Date: December 2024; Publication Date: October 2024

Letterer: VC's Ariana Maher; Editors: Lauren Amaro & Sarah Brunstad; Editor-in-Chief: C.B. Cebulski; Cover Artist: Humberto Ramos

"Ofrenda"
Writer: Carlos Hernandez; Artist: Moises Hidalgo; Colorist: Jorge Cortes

Captain America and Captain Marvel respond to a police call for help at the Reyes residence in Los Angeles, only to find that they've been tricked into coming by Gabe Reyes and his girlfriend Charlene.  Gabe has built an "ofrenda", a type of memorial shrine, for his brother Robbie, who disappeared on a mission with the Avengers and is believed to be dead.  Gabe refuses to give up hope that his brother is still alive and places some of his Ninja Wolf toys on the ofrenda.  Meanwhile, at the God Quarry where he is imprisoned, Robbie is about to give up hope on fixing the Hell Charger and escaping back to Earth.  Suddenly the car roars briefly to life and Robbie finds one of the Ninja Wolf figures sitting in the passenger side seat.  Robbie thanks his brother for once again giving him the hope and strength to keep going, and he resumes working on the car.  Back on Earth, Gabe asks Captain America and Captain Marvel if one of them stole his figure from the ofrenda. 

"Of Wolves and Sheep"
Writer: Felipe Smith; Artist: Daniel Bayliss; Colorist: Luis Wences

While chasing a demonic car through Los Angeles, Robbie thinks about how he has not been able to spend as much time with his brother since joining the Avengers and is determined to not be late for dinner.  The demonic car transforms into a being and transports them to another dimension and quickly gets the upper hand, sensing Robbie's fear but being confused by that fear stemming from his feelings for Gabe and not his own well-being. While thinking about his brother Robbie is able to destroy the demon and does indeed make it home in time for dinner, where Gabe tells him that he's the coolest hero. 

"A Fantasmic Roller Derby Adventure"
Writer: Melissa Flores; Artist: Jan Bazaldua; Colorist: Luis Zavala

While attending a roller derby match with Gabe and Charlene, Robbie transforms into Ghost Rider to fight a pack of hellhounds that have emerged from a portal above the event. Inside the derby rink, Gabe is rescued from a hellhound by Fantasma, a skeletal girl with blue-flamed roller skates. Ghost Rider and Fantasma work together to round up the hellhounds, and Fantasma follows them through the poral, closing it behind her.  Afterward, Robbie packs Gabe and Charlene into his car while they gush about the "new girl Ghost Rider". In the roller derby's locker room, Fantasma falls through a portal in her human form and realizes it was her own panic attack that opened the portal for the hellhounds.