Marvel held a press conference today to discuss the return of the Spirit of Vengeance’s ongoing to the Marvel Universe from the pens of Rob williams and Matthew Clark. Some interesting bits came out of the chat – specifically that Ghost Rider is going to be a lady for the first time in his flamey history.
Beginning with a Point One issue reintroducing Ghost Rider’s history, the book begins with Johnny Blaze getting put in the midst of Marvel’s big event, Fear Itself. From there he makes a Faustian pact (because, as Williams notes, every Ghost Rider needs a Faustian pact) where he can be rid of the Ghost Rider curse, but only if someone else is saddled with it. Williams added that this will eventually come back to haunt him, and he’ll have to deal with the repercussions of the action, but until then Ghost Rider – who Williams describes as not a hero but a “supernatural weapon of mass destruction” – will become a girl.
Little information is given beyond that other than that this is a character who has trained for the role, and that the style of the book will be “grindhouse horror”, with a lot of people chasing Ghost Rider to use her as a weapon. Calling it a Marvel version of Easy Rider, Ghost Rider #1 will start off wit hthe new female Ghost Rider’s first outing against Sin during Fear Itself, and that she’s going to be using the full potential of Ghost Rider’s fantastic arsenal in all it’s destructive glory. The book will also feature a brand new antagonist, as well as some old-school villains like Blackout and Deathwatch, as well as appearances from The Orb. There are also plans for Danny Ketch, although not immediate ones.
If you pick up Amazing Spider-Man right now, you’ll find a Ghost Rider back-up with Johnny and Spider-Man hanging out and fighting demons written by Williams. If you have any curiousity of what to expect, you should check that. Ghost Rider’s Point One goes on sale in June, with the series beginning in July.
