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.
Ghost Rider (2001) # 1-6
Ghost Rider (2001) # 1/2
Thunderbolts (1997) # 57 (cameo appearance only)
Ghost Rider (2006) # 6-7 (flashback sequences only)
Ghost Rider (2005) # 1-6
Ghost Rider (2006) # 1-13
Ghost Rider (2006) Annual # 1
Ghost Rider (2006) # 14-19
Ghost Rider: Danny Ketch (2008) # 1-5
Ghost Rider (2006) # 20-25
Ghost Rider (2006) Annual # 2
X-Force (2008) # 9-10
Wolverine (2003) # 73 (cameo appearance only)
Ghost Rider (2006) # 26-35
Ghost Riders: Heaven's On Fire # 1-6
Surprisingly, the Phantom Rider gets some appearances around this time, with Jamie Slade taking over as a new villainous incarnation of the character and her father, Hamilton, being killed by Crossfire. Carter Slade's spirit is also seen as a specter in the afterlife during an adventure with Dead Girl and Dr. Strange.
X-Statix Presents: Dead Girl # 2-5
Avengers: The Initiative # 2 (cameo appearance only)
Avengers: The Initiative # 19
Ghost Riders: Heaven's On Fire # 6 (cameo appearance only)
Hawkeye and Mockingbird (2010) # 1-5
Danny Ketch makes a few random appearances over the next couple of years, but mainly the focus is on Johnny Blaze and his eventual - yet brief- successor, Alejandra Jones. She doesn't last long as a Ghost Rider and Blaze is soon back in the saddle once again. The "Shadowland" and "Fear Itself" events come and go and appearances for the characters are sporadic. Blaze did join a team during this time, though, briefly becoming a member of Red Hulk's Thunderbolts squad.
Deadpool Team-Up # 897
Doctor Voodoo: Avenger of the Supernatural # 3-5
Strange (2009) # 4 (cameo appearance only)
Deadpool (2008) # 26
Shadowland # 2-3
Shadowland: Moon Knight # 2 (cameo appearance only)
Shadowland: Ghost Rider # 1
Shadowland # 5
Daredevil (1964) # 511 (cameo appearance only)
Wolverine (2010) # 2-6
X-Men: To Serve and Protect # 2
Heroes For Hire (2011) # 2
Amazing Spider-Man/Ghost Rider: Motorstorm # 1
Ghost Rider (2011) # 0.1
Ghost Rider (2011) # 1-5
X-Men (2010) # 15.1
Ghost Rider (2011) # 6-8
Venom (2011) # 13, 13.1-13.4, 14
Ghost Rider (2011) # 9
Wolverine and the X-Men (2011) # 19 (cameo appearance only)
Thunderbolts (2013) # 20-29
Thunderbolts (2013) # 32 (cameo appearance only)
2014 was another milestone in the history of the Spirit of Vengeance. Robbie Reyes was introduced as a new Ghost Rider and had some major differences to make him stand out from his predecessors: not only was he possessed by the spirit of his serial killer uncle he also drove a 1969 Dodge Charger instead of a motorcycle! He got to meet up with Johnny Blaze just before the entirety of the multiverse was destroyed and remade into Battleworld by Doctor Doom. The "Secret Wars" event had the "Ghost Racers" tie-in and a few sporadic Multiversal variant Ghost Riders, but for the purposes of the characters we care about here, the vague reset button used by Marvel following the event's end doesn't really factor in. Robbie Reyes was picked up for an exceptionally short ongoing series and made a few appearances here and there.
All-New Ghost Rider (2014) # 1-12
Secret Wars:
Secret Wars: Secret Love # 1
Inhumans: Attilan Rising # 1
Thors # 1
Ghost Racers # 1-4
Ghost Rider X-Mas Special # 1
Ghost Rider (2016) # 1-5
The Unbelievable Gwenpool # 14-15
Iceman (2017) # 6 (cameo appearance for Robbie Reyes only)
Yet another Spirit of Vengeance introduced following "Secret Wars" was Kushala, the Spirit Rider. Kushala was not only a Ghost Rider but also a Sorcerer Supreme; she was brought to the present day by Doctor Strange and hung out for a little while. She didn't really do much that was notable yet, though she does become more prominent in a few years time.
Doctor Strange and the Sorcerers Supreme # 1-12
Johnny Blaze was still making appearances during this time as well, as he and Robbie were vying for the lead position as the main Ghost Rider of the Marvel Universe. Blaze would be involved in the "Damnation" event, which would alter his status quo by having him take over the throne of Hell from Mephisto! The event also had several other characters become transformed into Ghost Riders by Mephisto, namely a good portion of the Avengers (Hawkeye, Falcon, Mighty Thor, Black Panther, and Captain Marvel) and Doctor Strange himself!
Iceman (2017) # 6-7
Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur (2015) # 24
Spirits of Vengeance (2017) # 1-5
Doctor Strange: Damnation # 1-3
Damnation: Johnny Blaze - Ghost Rider # 1
Doctor Strange: Damnation # 4
This period of time also sees the introduction of the Cosmic Ghost Rider, who is a future version of Frank Castle possessed by the Spirit of Vengeance while also wielding the Power Cosmic as a former Herald of Galactus. There's a whole lot of time travel involved with this character, but he does finally settle down in the present day Marvel Universe.
Thanos (2017) # 13-17
Thanos (2017) Annual # 1
Cosmic Ghost Rider (2018) # 1-5
Wolverine: Black, White, & Blood # 3
Thanos Legacy # 1
Cosmic Ghost Rider Destroys Marvel History # 1-6
Guardians of the Galaxy (2019) # 1-6
Robbie Reyes wasn't idle during this time either, as he was recruited to join the Avengers when the team regrouped to face the Final Host of Celestials. Robbie learned about the prehistoric Ghost Rider from 1,000,000 B.C. and discovered that his origins are tied a lot more closely to the Spirits of Vengeance than he originally thought. Robbie also encountered Johnny Blaze in his new role as the King of Hell, which was a precursor for events to come. Robbie will make lots and lots of cameo appearances during his time with the Avengers and I am not going to catalogue them here, just comics where he has a significant presence.
Marvel Legacy # 1
Avengers (2018) # 1-6
Avengers (2018) # 8-10
Dead Man Logan # 3
Avengers (2018) # 11-12
Avengers (2018) # 14-17
War of the Realms Ghost Rider Ultimate Comic
War of the Realms Strikeforce: The Dark Elf Realm # 1
Avengers (2018) # 21
Kushala and the Phantom Rider also pop their heads up for a random appearance during this time.
War of the Realms: Journey Into Mystery # 3-5
All of the various Ghost Riders start to cross paths during Blaze's tenure as the ruler of Hell, but first we have Danny Ketch making a long-awaited come back as the Spirit of Vengeance.
Fantastic Four (2018) # 3-4 (cameo appearances only)
Marvel Comics Presents (2019) # 6
The Punisher (2018) # 14-16
Absolute Carnage: Symbiote of Vengeance # 1
Up next is the "Challenge of the Ghost Riders", which saw Johnny Blaze and Robbie Reyes having a race for the rulership of Hell, with a bit of Cosmic Ghost Rider thrown in for good measure. Robbie then continues to have more adventures with the Avengers though he's really just a background player in most of those stories. Even during the Avengers title itself, Robbie doesn't get much to do and most of those comics can be skipped, though I am including them here since he's an ongoing cast member of the series.
Free Comic Book Day 2019: Avengers # 1
Guardians of the Galaxy (2019) # 6
Avengers (2018) # 22-25
Avengers (2018) # 27-30
Avengers (2018) # 33
Avengers (2018) # 35-38
Avengers (2018) # 40
Avengers (2018) # 42-45
Johnny Blaze and Danny Ketch have their own series of adventures as Danny becomes the Spirit of Corruption and Johnny loses his crown as the King of Hell. And hey look, Vengeance is back too!
Ghost Rider (2019) # 1-4
Spirits of Ghost Rider: Mother of Demons # 1
Ghost Rider (2019) # 5-7
Ghost Rider: Return of Vengeance # 1
King in Black: Ghost Rider # 1
Finally, Cosmic Ghost Rider spins out of "Challenge of the Ghost Riders" into his own solo adventures that are mostly disconnected from anything related to the Earth-bound Spirits of Vengeance.
Revenge of the Cosmic Ghost Rider # 1 (back-up story)
Guardians of the Galaxy (2019) # 12 (cameo appearance only)
Revenge of the Cosmic Ghost Rider # 1-5
Cosmic Ghost Rider (2023) # 1-5
Whew, that's a lot of Ghost Riders in a short amount of time! I think stopping here is a good choice as it leads us just shy of current continuity. Next time will bring lots of events and changes for Johnny, Danny, Robbie, and some new characters, for better or worse.
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