Johnny Blaze was bonded with the Spirit of Vengeance. Unwilling to be a monster, Johnny used this demon from Hell to do good as the Ghost Rider. But heroism isn’t what the Rider was meant for. So who will be the new Spirit of Vengeance? And what will it mean for the Marvel Universe? Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #1 kicks off the next chapter for the Spirit of Vengeance as it seeks, and finds, a new host.

Written by Benjamin Percy, Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #1 is a prime example of missed opportunity. A new character taking on an old mantle could be a moment of excitement and get a lot of buzz. But, Marvel spoiled who the new host Ghost Rider would be some time ago. With that already out there, the comic’s surprise and draw shifts a bit. How did this happen? Why was he chosen? What would he be like? Those first two questions are answered but that final one is left for another time. The over-sized comic takes its time getting us to what we know is coming and thus creates a comic that leaves us with what we already knew and wanted to know.

Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #1 is interesting in that the Ghost Rider spirit leaves Johnny Blaze at a difficult moment. He’s in the middle of battle and thus powerless to fend for himself. But, that’s put to the side and instead we get to see the entity search for a new host as it goes on about its history. There’s some interesting aspects with quick hits of individuals as the Ghost Rider and damage left as it leaves. Most are very short and there’s little impact but two segments are given some breathing room, each creating potential stories that would have been worth seeing more of. In other words, the comic feels more like a bunch of teasers taking far to long to get to the point and skipping over some excellent ideas. No spoilers here as to all of that. But, there’s interesting aspects to the comic as it hops all over to get us to the new host for Ghost Rider, something we already knew and spoiled a while ago.

With the new host spoiled and already revealed before release, the more interesting aspect of the comic is the situation Johnny Blaze is left in. The moment is silly in some ways but how he escapes has potential and feels like an aspect of the comic that was set up, forgot, we’re given some detours, and then remembered to be resolved. A classic character thrown into danger should get a bit more focus, but instead, the comic spends a lot of time on the Ghost Rider entity waxing poetic and philosophically about what it’s looking for in a new host. One thing goes on too long and the other a bit too short. Then there’s the two hosts for a short time that could have been an issue or two on their own.

The art by Danny Kim is decent. With color by Bryan Valenza and lettering by Travis Lanham, the art, like the story, at times feels like quick hits. It’s amplified by pages and panels which are more focused and look great. Basically, the scenes with a lot of people, the detail drops but when it’s just a few, there’s a solid amount and it looks much better.

Ghost Rider: Final Vengeance #1 is an interesting comic. If it just focused on the new host and got us there, the pacing would have picked up and it’d be far more entertaining to get to what we already knew was happening. The other improvement would have been to not spoil it at all and let readers be surprised. Finally, a better direction would have been to let it play out through the first arc with the reveal coming the fourth or fifth issue and again not spoiling it. That would have allowed Percy to better explore the Ghost Rider entity and its role in the Marvel Universe. As is, we get some cool ideas and an ending we knew was coming. In other words, it’s a comic that doesn’t deliver much beyond what we already knew.

Story: Benjamin Percy Art: Danny Kim
Color: Bryan Valenza Letterer: Travis Lanham
Story: 6.5 Art: 7.0 Overall: 6.5 Recommendation: Pass

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle