May 14, 2021

Marvel Spotlight (1972) # 7

"Die, Die My Daughter!"

Cover Date:  December 1972; On Sale Date: September 1972

Writer: Gary Friedrich; Artist: Mike Ploog; Inker: Frank Monte; Letterer: Herb Cooper; Editor: Roy Thomas; Cover Artist: Mike Ploog

In the dressing room at Madison Square Garden, Curly (the deceased Crash Simpson reincarnated in a different body) prepares to kill his unconscious daughter with a large knife. Suddenly, Satan appears and tells his servant that Roxanne must be sacrificed in his temple, and only then will Crash regain his rightful body. Curly hides Roxanne in a large barrel and wheels her outside, where he catches a cab.

Elsewhere, the Ghost Rider tears down a deserted highway on his motorcycle, attempting to collect his thoughts. He is quickly spotted by a parked police car, who give chase after Blaze. Johnny weighs his options of either stopping and letting the police see him or running. He decides to try and escape, and speeds off into the night. After a harrowing chase, Blaze realizes that he won't easily lose the officers. He races toward a destroyed bridge, which he jumps on his cycle. The police, unable to pursue, state their disbelief at what they just witnessed. Later, the Ghost Rider seeks refuge in a cemetery, where he decides to stop and rest. Meanwhile, Curly arrives at the temple, where he tells his satanic followers to prepare a black mass. He takes Roxanne into the basement and lays her on a large altar, where she will be sacrificed at midnight.

Having fallen asleep in the cemetery, Blaze is awaken at dawn by his transformation back into his human form. Realizing what time it is, he races back to Madison Square Garden, where he is scheduled to perform another cycle show. An hour before the show, Johnny is told by his road manager, Bart Slade, that Roxanne has been missing since the night before. Blaze flies into a rage, threatening Bart that if he doesn't find Roxanne soon, he'll be fired. An hour later, at the start of the show, Johnny apologizes to Slade, unaware that the manager has plans to steal Roxanne away from him. After the show, Slade tells Blaze that one of the guards saw a curly-haired individual leaving the locker rooms the night before. Johnny realizes that it was Curly who took Roxanne, and decides to go find him as soon as it gets dark.

That night, the Ghost Rider busts into the hangout of Satan's Servants, Curly's cycle gang. The demonic biker traps the hoodlums in a ring of fire and commands that they tell him where to find Curly. They tell him that he hangs out at a strange church a few blocks away. At that moment, Curly and his followers prepare the altar for the black mass. They bring out Roxanne, who is dressed in ceremonial garb, and chain her to the altar. Curly snaps his fingers, and Roxanne awakens from her trance. As Curly begins to bear down on her with a large knife, Johnny rides down the stairs of the church on his motorcycle, melting the knife with a blast of hellfire. The cult members quickly scatter, but Johnny is quickly stopped in tracks by the appearance of Satan, who tells Johnny that only the death of his servant can stop her sacrifice. Both Blaze and Curly agree to a duel, but Satan then reveals his pawn's true form, that of Crash Simpson, and gives him a weapon: the flaming blade of Hell itself. Roxanne screams for Johnny not to hurt her father, but as Blaze says: "Either he dies -- or we do!"


Nap time?

THE ROADMAP
Satan reveals that the Crash Simpson disguised as Curly Samuels is only an illusion in Ghost Rider (1973) # 9.

CHAIN REACTION
To read my review of Marvel Spotlight (1972) # 7 see my book Wheels On Fire: An Unofficial Guide to Marvel Comics' Ghost Rider: 1972-1983!

Surely the only time Roxanne will need to be rescued...

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