GHOST RIDER

By: KURT AMACKER
Review Date: Friday, July 14, 2006

At the end of the recent miniseries, GHOST RIDER: ROAD TO DAMNATION, we saw Johnny Blaze back in Hell and not a whole lot different from where he started. This new ongoing resumes with Blaze still eternally riding towards the gates out of Hell, only to succumb to a hoard of demons all too eager to torture and violate him in unspeakable ways. Imagine doing that night after night. But every time, Blaze rides and hopes that it might be his last. At the start of this issue, Satan himself mocks Blaze at the gates of Hell before returning him to perdition. Daniel Way briefly shows us the regent of Hell overseeing his domain, complete with fawning, ass-kissing demons following him. Way's version of Satan and his minions clearly alludes to Darkness and his goblins from the film LEGEND. The story moves forward when Blaze sees a few of Satan's knights capture a lowly pit demon named Greexix, who looks like Slimer from GHOSTBUSTERS. After rescuing the greasy little creature, Blaze learns that Greexix digs pits to make room for more souls. And, he may have found a way out of hell.

The art grabs you immediately. GHOST RIDER looks phenomenal. Mark Texeira and Javier Saltares's art looks gritty, realistic, and works perfectly with Dan Brown's coloring. The art lends the action scenes an urgency and intensity they might not otherwise have. In fact, the visuals really pillar a story that feels like it would occur in the pilot of a television show, just before the title and credits ran. You know what I mean about a minute of setup before the monsters come out and the hero kicks a few asses, followed by the show's title, the credits, and some commercials. This issue's not bad, but it moves at breakneck speed and feels like it's over in about five minutes.

Despite the hurried pace of the first 20 pages, the last two leave the reader with a rather intriguing cliffhanger. Unfortunately, the summary of the second issue on the last page drops a huge spoiler, although it seems obvious enough, I suppose. Like Way's other recent launch, WOLVERINE: ORIGINS, this series starts out solidly, but not spectacularly. And, like that series, this one could easily take off running. If you like Ghost Rider, give this one a shot.

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