Ghost Rider (1973) # 9

"The Hell-Bound Hero!"

Cover Date: December 1974

On Sale Date: September 1974

Writer: Tony Isabella
Artist: Jim Mooney
Inker: Sal Trapani
Letterer: Artie Simek
Colorist: Jan Brunner
Editor: Roy Thomas

Cover Artist: Rich Buckler
 

Stuck between Satan's servant Inferno and the fear-controlled populace of San Francisco, the Ghost Rider faces the greatest crisis of his short existence. As he valiantly attempts to escape the panicked horde of innocent bystanders caught in Inferno's power, Blaze is unaware of Roxanne Simpson's situation. Brought to Hell by Satan, Roxanne is shown images of her father, Crash Simpson, trapped in the endless torments of Hell. Satan tells her that if she does not renounce her protection of Blaze, then her father will continue to suffer at his hands. Torn between her father and the man she loves, Roxanne breaks into tears and agrees to the demon's demand, renouncing her protection over the Ghost Rider. Immediately after, Satan reveals that he has tricked the young woman - he has never had a claim on Crash Simpson's soul, the man they have beheld since was nothing more than an illusion - and that her foolishness has delivered Blaze to him on a silver platter.

At that exact moment, back on Earth, Johnny suddenly finds that his Ghost Rider powers are gone, including his hellfire bike. At the mercy of Inferno, Johnny attempts to run, but is cut-off by the giant form of Satan himself, clutching Roxanne in his hand. Inferno approaches from behind, grabbing Blaze in a bear-hug. Johnny manages to free himself, immediately taking the initiative and beating Inferno into unconsciousness. Weakened from the fight, Satan strikes, leaving Blaze powerless before him. Before he can apply the deathblow, however, Satan is stopped by a bearded man that emerges from the crowd. The man's presence forces Satan to back away, as the stranger states that Johnny has earned the right to retain his soul. Satan vanishes, enraged that he no longer has claim to Blaze's soul. Johnny questions the man on his identity, to which the stranger replies "I am..a friend.", before disappearing as well.

Several days later, Johnny and Roxanne exchange words on what has happened between them. Upset that her naiveté almost allowed Satan to claim her lover's soul, Roxanne leaves Johnny in order to grow up a little. Meanwhile, in Hell, Satan forms a new plan to get revenge on the Ghost Rider. He transforms Inferno into a human, telling him that he is to tempt Blaze into committing evil and then kill him immediately. If Johnny dies with evil in his soul, then he shall be owned by Satan forever.

Spirits of Vengeance (2024) # 1

Cover Date: November 2024; On Sale Date: September 2024

Writer: Sabir Pirzada; Artist: Sean Damien Hill; Inker: Craig Yeung & Jay Leisten; Letterer: VC's Travis Lanham; Colorist: Andrew Dalhouse; Editor: Devin Lewis; Editor in Chief: C.B. Cebulski; Cover Artist: Kendrick "Kunkka" Lim

The lifeless inert skeleton of Vengeance stands displayed as a scarecrow in a midwestern cornfield, tended to by a farmer. The skeleton is discovered by a group of teenagers who use it as a prop for dares. When two of the teens are left alone in the field, a misunderstanding turns violent and the boy Tyler attacks his female friend. The act causes Vengeance to come back to life, his skeleton re-igniting with hellfire, and he burns the boy's hand to save the girl. The kids run out of the field and Vengeance collapses, still alive but very weak.

Meanwhile, Johnny Blaze is held in chains by the Sirens of Kronos, three Greek harpies who he had defeated and imprisoned many years before. Though they believe him helpless, Blaze transforms into the Ghost Rider and quickly defeats the Sirens. He demands they turn over a mystical sea shell to him, stating that he can hear screams that are calling him somewhere that only the shell can lead him. Blaze threatens the Sirens with death if they cause any more trouble, then rides away to continue his journey.

Back at the cornfield, the farmer Billy has placed Vengeance in a wheelchair and is having a campfire conversation with him. Billy explains that he found Vengeance "a couple of years ago", collapsed on the graves of Michael Badilino's parents. Billy was a soldier with Badilino before an injury forced him to retire, and he has seen Vengeance flare to life several times before only for him to burn out and return to his inert state. Vengeance realizes that he has been separated from Badilino and that his former host is in danger. Tyler returns with his uncle Lawrence and a posse to investigate what happened in the cornfield; when Lawrence sees that Vengeance is being cared for by Billy he threatens to hurt the farmer as well. Though still weak, Vengeance stands up and defeats the group of men, only for Tyler to release a cage that he believes holds a polar bear, but instead holds a velociraptor. Vengeance is chased through the field by the dinosaur, but is able to stop it by smashing it with a tractor. Vengeance swears to find and rescue Badilino, but knows that he has to regain his power; to do so, he plans on confronting the imposter Vengeance to take his power for his own. At that moment, Michael Badilino, chained and imprisoned in an unknown location, tells Vengeance not to come because he's being baited into a trap. 

I'm back! Maybe! Ghost Rider by Benjamin Percy Omnibus Available Now! Order it!

So I know it's been a while since I posted anything on the blog, as I took yet another one of my long sabbaticals from working on anything Ghost Rider related. I have a very compulsive personality type, where I obsess over something for several months, and then like a light switch getting flipped I suddenly move on to something else.  For the past several months I've been obsessing over the X-Men, blame the new season of the animated series, but as of last night...I think I might be in a Ghost Rider mood again?

Naturally, there have been a few significant events during the past six months that I should probably mention. Apparently there will be a new Ghost Rider feature film in July 2028, right around my birthday in fact, and Ryan Gosling will be the lead. Huh. I'll probably have more to say about that later, but cool, I'm down for it. No new comic book news, unfortunately, because the only thing that's been released is a Mangaverse mash-up with Psylocke, and I draw the line at reading garbage like that.  I suffered through Ghost Panther and Fantasma, but I just can't with "Ghost Locke". 

Good news on the Omnibus front, though!  A volume containing the entirety of the Benjamin Percy run was released this week, and I'll be placing my order in the next few days.  Then, in a couple of months, Danny Ketch Omnibus Volume 3 looms it's spooky head as another must-buy! I've become a major fan of Omnibus editions this past year (with way too much money spent on that aforementioned X-Men obsession, seriously), and I really hope we get more Ghost Rider releases soon.

Also!  My attempt to create a community page on Facebook may have crashed and burned, but that doesn't mean there isn't a place for you to go and discuss Ghost Rider on that platform!  Friend of the blog Don Johnston has created the Ghost Rider and the Midnight Sons Fans FB Group and you should all go and join! There's a really cool cover bracket contest going on right now and there's lots of cool cats on there to chat with about the Spirit of Vengeance, including yours truly!

New comic reviews?  Yeah, probably, but no idea when they'll start again. Been tossing around thoughts of trying to get the books republished after Amazon gave me the middle finger, so we'll see where that road takes us. As always, leave comments or send me a message!

He belongs to us all, Zarathos, don't be greedy.

Ghost Rider (1973) # 8

"Satan Himself!"

Cover Date: October 1974; On Sale Date: July 1974

Writer: Tony Isabella; Artist: Jim Mooney; Inker: Sal Trapani; Letterer: John Costanza; Colorist: Phil Rache; Editor: Roy Thomas; Cover Artist: Gil Kane

After his defeat of Aquarius, Satan himself appears before Johnny Blaze, declaring that he is tired of the stunt rider constantly defying his power. The Ghost Rider attempts to flee, but Satan blasts him to the ground with hellfire. Though he cannot claim Johnny's soul, the demon states that will make his life so painful that he will give it over of his own free will. Crumbling before the Hell-Lord's onslaught, Johnny calls out Roxanne's name. Satan gets even more angry, as the mere thought of someone pure in heart is painful to him. Satan then turns the tables, saying that while Roxanne protects Johnny, there is nothing to protect her . Blaze attempts to fight the devil, but Satan merely fades away, telling Johnny that everything he is stems from Hell itself. Moments later, dawn breaks, transforming Johnny back into his normal self. He rides away, eventually coming to the hospital that houses the injured Stuntmaster, who offers him a job as a stuntman on his television show. Johnny declines, due to his commitment to the cycle show. At that moment, Roxanne comes into the room, wrapping her arms around Blaze, telling him how worried she was about him. Johnny begins to complain about how the cycle show is on it's last leg, and the Stuntmaster tells him about a cycle race coming up that's got a huge cash prize. Before she can hear anymore, however, Roxanne is given a vision of her father burning in a lake of fire. Nearly fainting at the gruesome sight, Johnny asks her why she screamed, but Roxanne lies and says it was nothing. Meanwhile, in Hell, Satan watches the scene and comments that the vision he gave the girl resulted in more than he hoped, having caused her to tell a "little white lie".

That evening, on a bridge overlooking San Francisco, Johnny and Roxanne have a long discussion about their lives. As the sun sets, however, Blaze once again falls victim to his curse, transforming into the Ghost Rider. Immediately after, a ghostly image of Crash Simpson appears, causing Roxanne to run toward it despite Johnny's warnings. Realizing too late that it's a trick of Satan's, the vision vanishes in a burst of light, taking Roxanne with it. Not sure what to do, Blaze decides to try and contact Daimon Hellstrom - the Son of Satan - for assistance.

In Hell, Roxanne appears before Satan, who tells her that he has no desire to harm her. He opens a door, revealing Crash Simpson, who is trapped in a never-ending loop of reliving the death of his wife, Mona - his own personal Hell. Roxanne faints after seeing this, forcing Satan to call forth the demon Slifer. Giving him one more chance to defeat the Ghost Rider, Satan transforms him and sends him to Earth, where as the newly-christened Inferno he appears before Blaze. Johnny avoids the demon's mystical bolts, but fails when he tries to turn the battle into a physical one. Inferno bats the Rider away, and then a wave of power begins to emit from the demon - energy of pure fear, driving the onlooking citizens to take up arms and destroy the thing they fear, namely the Ghost Rider. Johnny gets back on his hellfire-cycle and attempts to ride away, but finds himself completely boxed in by the insane crowd.

Back in Hell, Roxanne confronts Satan with the knowledge that the mysterious Messenger took her father to safety from the demon realm. Satan merely laughs at this, revealing that the Messenger was in fact him . Roxanne refuses to believe this, but Satan tells her that there is only one way he will relinquish his hold on Crash's soul. Roxanne must renounce her protection of the Ghost Rider, for while he could still fight his way free of Satan's grasp, her father could not.

Ultimate Avengers 2 (2010) # 5

"Crime & Punishment, Part 5"

On Sale Date: October 2010; Cover Date: December 2010

Writer: Mark Millar; Artist: Leinil Francis Yu; Inker: Gerry Alanguilan; Letterer: VC's Cory Petit; Colorist: Dave McCaig; Assistant Editor: Sana Amanat; Editor: Mark Paniccia; Editor-In-Chief: Joe Quesada; Cover Artist: Leinil Francis Yu

While the Avengers set up a defensive perimeter around the White House to protect the Ghost Rider's last victim, Vice-President Robert Blackthorne, the VP is having a secret meeting inside with his master, Mephisto.  Blackthorne makes another deal with Mephisto, selling his soul for the power to defeat the Ghost Rider.  Atop the White House, Hawkeye and the Punisher have a conversation about whether the Ghost Rider is a mutant or a demon, as they've been told.  When Hawkeye asks Castle about the "message" passed along to him by the Rider, Frank merely replies that it was "something that warmed my heart".  Hawkeye tells Punisher that he used to have a tracking implant inside him until he was trained to submit to SHIELD.  

While Mephisto transforms Blackthorne, Johnny Blaze approaches the White House fence and starts his own transformation.  Outside the White House, Tyrone Cash arrives to join Black Widow and War Machine.  Suddenly, a second Ghost Rider with flaming horns, a transformed Blackthorne, comes crashing out of the building behind them, with Black Widow hitching a ride on the back of his motorcycle as he rides away.  Blackthorne easily defeats Widow, Cash, and War Machine, but is stopped from killing them by the newly-arrived Johnny Blaze.  Punisher and the rest of the SHIELD force arrive to find two Ghost Riders fighting it out.  Blaze gets the upper hand and tells Blackthorne that he's been waiting 20 years for revenge, and he hasn't got a prayer.

Ghost Rider (1973) # 7

“…And Lose His Own Soul!”

Cover Date: August 1974; On Sale Date: May 1974

Writer: Tony Isabella; Artist: Jim Mooney; Inker: Jack Abel; Letterer: A. Kupperberg; Colorist: Phil Rache; Editor: Roy Thomas; Cover Artist: John Romita

As the Zodiac member Taurus roars out of the bank he's just robbed on his motorcycle, he is confronted by the Ghost Rider. Surprisingly, Taurus knows about Johnny, saying the two have much in common. The Zodiac leader roars off down the street, with Blaze in hot pursuit behind him. As Taurus rides off, he thinks to himself about how the documents he stole from the bank will make certain that Cornelius Van Lunt, the original Taurus, will spend the rest of his life in prison.

During his escape, Taurus rides past an autograph signing that's being held by the Stuntmaster, a former villain that had reformed with the help of Daredevil. Now a television star, the Stuntmaster decides that if he helps the Ghost Rider, maybe it will give him an opportunity to repay some of the good that had been done to him in the past by heroes. Still pursuing Taurus, Blaze thinks back to the original Zodiac, who were all defeated and captured by the Avengers weeks prior. Before he can think about the mystery more, the Stuntmaster rides up beside him and offers his assistance. Johnny reluctantly accepts the help, and the two proceed to knock Taurus off his bike. To the two heroes' astonishment, however, Taurus changes before their eyes into yet another member of the Zodiac, Scorpio, who uses his Zodiac Key weapon to knock the two unconscious.

When the two heroes awaken, they are chained to posts in a waterfront warehouse, the Zodiac member named Aquarius standing before them. With Aquarius is the demon Slifer, who served the monster Roulette before the Ghost Rider killed him. Aquarius tells the two heroes his story, about how Cornelius Van Lunt betrayed his fellow Zodiac members by getting himself cleared of his criminal charges and leaving his teammates to a life behind bars. As a result of Van Lunt's betrayal, Aquarius contracted a rare lung condition, giving him one year to live. Swearing vengeance on Van Lunt, Aquarius' shouts were heard by Slifer, who offered him a deal. For one year, Aquarius would possess the powers of the combined Zodiac, in order to gain vengeance, but at the end of that year he would forfeit his soul to Hell. Having already used the powers of five Zodiac members, Aquarius says that his vengeance on Van Lunt is almost finished.

At the end of the story, Blaze uses his hellfire to burn through the Stuntmaster's chains, allowing him to break free. Aquarius transforms into Cancer, who crushes Stuntmaster's ribs with his claws. When the Ghost Rider rushes forward, the Zodiac member transforms into Capricorn, who uses the unconscious Stuntmaster as a projectile. After checking on the injured Stuntmaster, Johnny races out of the warehouse, but doesn't spot Aquarius anywhere. He asks a young woman if she's seen anybody, but the woman tells him to get lost. Blaze jumps on the Stuntmaster's bike, but before he can ride off he realizes that one of the Zodiac members was a woman. Transforming from Virgo, the woman, into Aries, the villain uses his horns to batter the Ghost Rider senseless. When Aries attempts to run, Johnny tackles him off the pier and into the water. Instantly, Aries transforms into Pisces, a fish-man, but Blaze turns the tables on him by super-heating the water into a furnace with his hellfire. The two make their way back onto the dock, with Aquarius again assuming his true form. However, Slifer appears, saying that Aquarius' time has come and that he owes his soul. Aquarius argues he made the deal only a few weeks ago, not a full year, to which Slifer replies that the villain has assumed the form of each Zodiac member once, making a Zodiacal year. Despite Aquarius' protests, Slifer touches him and the two disappear, leaving Johnny to ask "what next?"...the answer to which coming in the form of a towering Satan before him.

Nightstalkers (1992) # 1

"Rise of the Midnight Sons, Part 5"

Cover Date: November 1992; On Sale Date: September 1992

Writer: D.G. Chichester; Artist: Ron Garney; Inker: Tom Palmer; Letterer: John Costanza; Colorist: Tom Palmer; Editor: Bobbie Chase; Editor in Chief: Tom DeFalco; Cover Artist: Ron Garney

Ghost Rider and Blaze interrogate Nakota, one of Lilith’s demonic children with the ability to project visions through her eyes. She shows them an image of Frank Drake, Hannibal King, and Blade, three former vampire hunters that Blaze recognizes. Ghost Rider fears they could have joined with Lilith and the two head toward Boston to find them. 

Meanwhile, Frank Drake and his wife Marlene spend time at a Boston aquarium, where Drake sees a horrific vision of Lilith just before his wife falls into a catatonic state. He fails to notice Dr. Strange in the back of the crowd, watching them. Later, at a nearby mental hospital, Dr. Strange is given an update on Blade, whose obsession with vampires has been changed via therapy to a hatred of anything supernatural. Strange facilitates Blade’s release from the hospital and secretly watches the man leave. Finally, at the closed office of Borderline Investigate Services, Dr. Strange examines Hannibal King, whose vampire abilities and thirst for blood have started to resurface years after he was cured. Strange tells King that he is no longer human, but also not a true vampire, then teleports away. Elsewhere, Lilith locates another of her children in Boston, a monstrous creature named Meatmarket, and states her intention to use the vampire hunters against the Ghost Rider. 

The next day, Blade and Drake both reunite with King at the Borderline office, with Drake seeing help with his wife’s mysterious condition. They are interrupted by Lilith, who is posing as a client whose husband has fallen to the same catatonia as Marlene Drake. She tells them that the ailment was caused by “demons” and shows them photos of Ghost Rider and John Blaze. That night, the three members of Borderline decide that even though they originally focused on vampires, there are worse things in the night. They all prepare in their own ways, with Frank Drake acquiring a gun that fires nanotech machines attuned to affect the occult. 

When they arrive at the Borderline offices, Ghost Rider and Blaze find a note waiting for them that reads “Old North Church”. The newly christened Nightstalkers are waiting for them, having led the duo into an ambush, and the fight is being observed in secret by Meatmarket. Ghost Rider and Blaze are quickly overwhelmed by the Nightstalkers, but before killing them they realize that they are being watched. They discover and kill Meatmarket, who carelessly informs them that they were being manipulated by Lilith. Meanwhile, on the deck of the USS Constitution, Lilith is confronted by Dr. Strange, who refuses to do battle with her out of concern for the dimensional walls being weakened. The Lilin Pilgrim opens a teleportation portal and  the severed head of Meatmarket falls through, followed by his body. Later, their battle ended, and Ghost Rider having already departed, Blaze is told by the three men that anyone connected to the supernatural is on their hit list. “The night,” they say, “is no longer safe for your kind”.

Ultimate Avengers 2 (2010) # 4

"Crime & Punishment, Part 4"

On Sale Date: September 2010; Cover Date: November 2010

Writer: Mark Millar; Artist: Leinil Francis Yu; Inker: Gerry Alanguilan; Letterer: VC's Cory Petit; Colorist: Dave McCaig; Assistant Editor: Sana Amanat; Editor: Mark Paniccia; Editor-In-Chief: Joe Quesada; Cover Artist: Leinil Francis Yu

Having halted the Ghost Rider's escape with billionaire Bill Warren from Chicago's O'Hare Airport, Hawkeye sends the Punisher in to finish the job. Using his new Stark Industries suit, Castle quickly catches up to the Rider and attacks, hitting him several times before firing his weapon point blank. The attack does nothing to the Ghost Rider, who incapacitates Punisher with a chain strike that splits open his suit. However, when he sees the cross hanging from Castle's neck, the Ghost Rider throws him to the ground and delivers Castle a message from "the other side". Later, Castle returns badly injured to the rest of the team, having failed to stop the Rider from crucifying Warren on a tree. Castle tells him that while he has no idea who the Ghost Rider is, he doesn't think he's a mutant. Meanwhile, back at the airport a mysterious man with white and red hair finishes a crossword puzzle with the word "crucified".

Much later, at the New York headquarters of the Ultimates, the Triskelion, Nick Fury and Gregory Stark inform Ultimates director Carol Danvers that they will be using the base until the Ghost Rider situation has been resolved. While they're there, they plan on using the Spider (a psychic prisoner dressed in a Spider-Man costume) for information. The Spider's interrogation is being handled by the "Nerd Hulk", a clone of Bruce Banner, and Monica Chang, the newest Black Widow and Nick Fury's ex-wife. In order to gain the Spider's help, Chang tells him about her relationship with Fury and how he slept with every female friend and family she had, and how despite all of that she's still in love with him. Satisfied, the Spider tells Black Widow the story of a biker named Johnny Blaze and his fiance Roxanne Simpson. Twenty years ago, Blaze and Roxanne were murdered by a group of bikers as a sacrifice to Satan, led by a man named Bobby Blackthorne. The rich men that have been the Ghost Rider's victims were these bikers, granted power and wealth by their deal with the Devil. The Spider explains that Satan offered Blaze a deal as well, a chance for revenge, and spent twenty years turning him into the Ghost Rider. In return for Blaze's servitude, Satan resurrected Roxanne, who now lives a normal life in Illinois. Only two of the bikers remain, one of which has just slit his wrists in a bathtub moments before James Rhodes and Tyrone Case could get to him. The last, Robert Blackthorne, is now the Vice-President of the United States, the man who gave the Presidential kill order for the Ghost Rider to the Avengers.

Marvel Team-Up (1972) # 15

"If An Eye Offend Thee..."

Cover Date: November 1973; On Sale Date: August 1973

Writer: Len Wein; Artist: Ross Andru; Inker: Don Perlin; Letterer: John Costanza; Colorist: Glynis Wein; Editor: Roy Thomas; Cover Artist: Gil Kane

At Madison Square Garden in New York City, Peter Parker (also known as the amazing Spider-Man) and Mary Jane Watson attend a show called "The Ghost Rider's Motorcycle Extravaganza." The show begins just as the couple take their seats, and Johnny Blaze, the flaming skulled Ghost Rider, roars into the open floor on his motorcycle, causing the crowd to go wild with excitement. The cyclist performs an amazing stunt with four other riders, one of which is Roxanne Simpson, Blaze's girlfriend and the daughter of Crash Simpson, former owner of the cycle show. Suddenly, a group of bikers bust into the arena and ride past the security guards. The leader of the group has a helmet shaped like a giant eyeball and calls himself the Orb. The gang rides in circles around the arena, the Orb's eye hypnotizing the crowd. Only Parker evades being mesmerized, his spider-sense warning him to look away at the last moment. Peter shoots his web onto the rafters, where he climbs up and changes into his Spider-Man costume. On the arena floor, the Orb grabs Roxanne by the waist and rides off with her, leaving the Ghost Rider to be dealt with by his men. Spider-Man swings down and assists in defeating a few of the gang, but their pursuit of the Orb is stopped when he commands the hypnotized crowd to form a barrier between him and the heroes. The mesmerized crowd then deliver Blaze a message in one unified voice, saying that the Orb will return Roxanne to him in exchange for ownership of the cycle show.

Meanwhile, the Orb and his gang arrive at his lair, where he awakens the hypnotized Roxanne. he tells her that his name is Drake Shannon, and that he used to be her father's partner in starting the cycle show. Shannon was a reckless person, and when he realized he couldn't get along with Crash, he challenged him to a cross-country race, the winner of which would get sole ownership of the show. During the race, Shannon attempted to run his former partner off the road, but instead caused himself to wreck, his cycle flipping at 95 miles an hour, throwing him into a skid across the tarmac for more than 25 yards...on his face. He's wanted nothing but revenge ever since, and he was approached by an organization called "They", who gave him his hypnotic helmet. He then removes the helmet and shows Roxanne his hideously disfigured face. Blaze then enters the lair with the ownership papers to the cycle show, demanding that he and Roxanne be allowed to leave. The Orb instead commands his men to open fire on the two, but the gang is stopped by the entrance of Spider-Man. The Orb jumps on his cycle and again kidnaps Roxanne, forcing the Ghost Rider and Spider-Man to jump on cycles of their own and give chase. The chase leads them out of the lair, which is the power room to an abandoned subway rail, and into Grand Central Station. Spider-Man shoots a strand of web that grabs hold of Roxanne, freeing the girl from the Orb's grasp. With Spidey making sure the girl is safe, Blaze chases the Orb back onto the subway rails, but the villain fails to see an oncoming train. The subway train crushes the villain, and Blaze narrowly avoids the same fate by grabbing onto a railing attached to the ceiling. He then returns to the platform, the ownership papers in his hand. He sets the papers afire with his hellfire, saying that he's almost glad the Orb didn't live long enough to find that the papers were worthless forgeries. Blaze and Roxanne then part company with Spider-Man, saying that perhaps they will meet again.

Ghost Rider (1973) # 6

“Zodiac II”

Cover Date: June 1974; On Sale Date: March 1974

Writers: Gary Friedrich & Tony Isabella; Artist: Jim Mooney; Inker: Sal Trapani; Letterer: Artie Simek; Colorist: Phil Rache; Editor: Roy Thomas; Cover Artist: John Romita

Late at night in San Francisco, an armored truck drives across a bridge on way to its destination. Inside, the drivers discuss how surprised they were when they learned their boss, Cornelius Van Lunt, was actually the villain Taurus of the Zodiac, unaware that they are being watched by a strange man that's hanging from the bridge's suspension cables. The man, dressed as a lion, drops down onto the top of the truck and proceeds to rip a large hole in the ceiling, the noise enough to force the drivers to pull over. They circle around to the back of the truck, but are attacked by the man, who is actually Leo of the Zodiac. The strangest thing, as the drivers say before they're knocked unconscious, is that the real Leo is still in jail with the rest of his group. Grabbing the money in the back of the truck, Leo signals to the pilot of his helicopter, Slifer, to come pick him up.

Meanwhile, in Las Vegas, Johnny Blaze goes to see Attorney General Barnett, who is waiting for him with both his son, Dave, and Roxanne Simpson. Congratulating him on the excellent job he did against Roulette, Barnett tells him that he has another assignment ready. Blaze refuses to do any more dirty work for him, and a fight nearly breaks out between him and Dave. Before Johnny can walk out, however, Dave pulls a gun on him and forces him to sit and listen. Barnett tells him that they need his help to stop the Zodiac, to which Johnny replies that the villains were put in jail weeks ago. The Attorney General explains that four different Zodiac members, Leo, Libra, Gemini, and Sagittarius, have struck San Francisco in the past 24 hours, each committing crimes directed against their leader, Cornelius Van Lunt. What makes the crimes so bizarre is the fact that none of the Zodiac have escaped and are all still in jail. Blaze again refuses to help, and he and Roxanne leave.

That evening, at sunset, Johnny stands in the center of an outdoor arena. As expected, his nightly curse activates and he transforms into the Ghost Rider. Roxanne emerges and embraces her lover, asking if they'll ever beat Satan's power. Blaze answers that by saying the only thing they can do at the moment is try and get their cycle show back on its feet. Straddling a motorcycle, Johnny takes off in an attempt to try and create some new stunts. He does get far, as a a mysterious gunman takes aim and shoots at his bike, causing him to wreck. Emerging from the crash unharmed, the Ghost Rider finds Dave Barnett, who is pointing a gun at him. Blaze simply points his finger at the gun, and a stream of hellfire melts it out of Barnett's hands. Realizing that Johnny truly does have supernatural powers, Dave grabs Roxanne by the throat in order to force the Ghost Rider to help him defeat the Zodiac. The Attorney General arrives, having followed his son, and implores him to let the girl go. Using Roxanne as a shield, Dave drags her into the shadows. Mr. Barnett tells Johnny that his son has suffered a nervous breakdown due to his being captured by the Zodiac two years prior when he was an FBI agent. They tortured him, and when he broke he told them all about the defenses of New York City, allowing the villains to capture the city for a brief time.

Suddenly, a spotlight at the top of the arena is turned on, shining directly on Blaze and Barnett. Though they can't see him, they hear Dave's voice behind the light, telling them that either Johnny helps against the Zodiac or Roxanne dies. Creating his hellfire cycle, Johnny rides straight up the stands toward the light, but when he gets to the top he finds Dave is gone. A lasso is then thrown over him, trapping his arms. On the other end of the rope, Dave begins to pull him backward, but a burst of hellfire frees the Ghost Rider. A fight between the two men breaks out, and the outmatched Barnett finds himself hoisted into the air by Blaze, who is prepared to throw him down to his death. Roxanne appears in the spotlight below, however, and begs Johnny not to hurt him now that she's safe. Blaze lets the other man down, only to find that his mind has completely snapped. Feeling sympathy for Dave, Johnny finally agrees to hunt down the Zodiac for him.

Back in San Francisco, a bank is attacked by a motorcycle riding Taurus, who demands to be taken to Cornelius Van Lunt's safety deposit box. The bank manager, despite being utterly confused by the fact that Van Lunt and Taurus are supposed to be the same person, tells the villain that the vault is on a time lock and that it won't open until the next morning. Touching a button his bike, Taurus blasts the door with an energy beam, completely disintegrating it. In the vault, Taurus grabs a bunch of documents that contain incriminating evidence, enough to put Van Lunt away for life. As he rides out of the bank, he is confronted by the Ghost Rider.