Thunderbolts #21 – Review

by Charles Soule (Writer), Carlo Barberi (Artist), Israel Silva, James Campbell, Thomas Mason (Colorists)

The Story: The team tries to find a way out of hell as the Punisher tags along with Elektra for a job.

The Review: It must be hard, yet ecstatic to be Charles Soule right now. While his workload keeps on getting bigger, his general popularity is on the rise as well, with a creator-owned comic as well as several DC and Marvel titles under his belt. Getting a lot of appreciation from many fans, there seems to be little that the writer cannot do, tackling supernatural, humor, cosmic and many other subgenres rather well. Not all of his titles are equal in terms of quality, but 2013 was a year which made him a well-known quantity as far as many were concerned.

One title which did get better, yet not as much as other titles under his reins, was Thunderbolts, the team of killers with popular characters like Deadpool, Punisher and Red Hulk. While the title did get a lot more focus and got a much needed amount of levity and humor despite its rather grim concept, it never went as well as the handle Soule has on titles like Swamp Thing or Red Lanterns. However, any writer can improve with each issue, even if it is by just a little bit.

This issue, as far as it goes, is an enhancement over the previous one, decidedly going for stark contrasts in term of ideas, going for delightful black humor and a certain amount of nonchalance through what could very well be a horrific story. Much of the comedy here pass in the way the characters interact, with the sense of normalcy of Ghost Rider, through the jokes of Deadpool to the constant curiosity of Venom.

The way this unseemly team bickers and try to adapt to such a harsh environment makes for a rather amusing tale, with Soule earning points for his characterization of Johnny Blaze, a man who has resigned to his fate a long time ago, one who decided not to give a crap anymore and not take more than he needs to. The rest of the team is also certainly entertaining as well, with many traits that are well used, such as the tough attitude of Red Hulk or the always planning Red Leader. Much of every character here, from Mephisto to the team in hell are simply fun to read, with their inability to actually work as a team being one of the better aspect of this book.

The use of the larger events of the Marvel universe is also rather good too, as fans of obscure continuity should definitely be pleased. The pact that Red Hulk made with Mephisto, who the actual ruler of hell is and what Johnny Blaze has been up to is something that is definitely pleasing for fans of the Marvel universe at large.

Ghost Rider #1 – Review

by Rob Williams (writer), Matthew Clark (pencils), Sean Parsons (inks), Robert Schwagner (colors), and Clayton Cowles (letters)

The Story: A new Ghost Rider rides into Dayton, Ohio to confront Sin.

What’s Good:  There are definitely some good ideas, here.   While I’m sure Blaze and Ketch enthusiasts won’t be wild about it, I love the fact that Williams and Marvel and trying to do something completely different in giving us a female Ghost Rider.  It’s a dramatic move and, honestly, who doesn’t love kick-ass female characters?  More than that, though, is the fact that from the little we know of her, this character, “Alejandra,” seems to be a kind of warrior, trained by some underground cult/sect.  It’s a total 180 from the rock star or country badass type we’ve gotten before, and there’s an unexpected proficiency and confidence on Alejandra’s part.  Frankly, this sudden shift is enough to get me to want to check out the next issue.  There’s tons of potential and I’d really like to get to know Alejandra.

Then there’s the cliffhanger, which is a really, really great one and a fantastic development.  Suffice it to say, depowered or not, Blaze will have a big part in this comic and the character who shows up on the final page is one that always brings the fun to any comic, particularly one like this.

Ghost Rider: The Last Stand – Review

By Jason Aaron (writer), Tan Eng Huat (artist), Jose Villarrubia (colorist)

If you’ve already seen the movie adaptation of this comic starring Nicholas Cage, you’ve probably made up your mind a long time ago to never take a chance on this book for as long as you may live.  I can’t blame you; I still have nightmares about Cage’s hair plugs spontaneously combusting.  But when I first read that Jason Aaron would be coming on board to revamp the title, my interest was fiercely piqued.  I was already an avid fan of Aaron’s gritty work on the Native American crime comic Scalped, and admired his command of tough, noir dialogue and uncompromising characterization.  Could Aaron bring that same sensibility to a struggling franchise like this?  The answer, I confirmed after reading this later volume of his run on the title, is a resounding hell yes!

Aaron’s tale shakes up Ghost Rider’s status quo by revealing (in the excellent trade paperback “Hell Bent and Heaven Bound”) that Johnny Blaze was not, in fact, an agent of the devil but rather a tool of the rogue angel, Zadkiel; in his bid to overthrow Heaven.  As “Last Stand” begins, Blaze’s quest for answers and justice puts him in the crosshairs of his own brother Danny Ketch, a former Ghost Rider himself who has been crossing the globe killing foreign Ghost Riders (you didn’t think Blaze was the only one on the planet to bear that mantle, did you?) to fulfill his own mysterious agenda.  Blaze, along with the gun-toting Caretaker, Sister Sara, meets the surviving Spirits of Vengeance deep in the jungles of Africa to plan their final assault against Zadkiel before he and his forces start knock, knock, knocking on Heaven’s door.  Sorry, couldn’t resist.

What makes Aaron’s run on this title, and especially in this volume, so much fun is that he abandons many of the melodramatic, moody trappings that have turned me off this book for so long. Instead, he embraces a tone that is bawdy, rough-edged, and delightfully lewd.  In short, he’s turned Ghost Rider into a grindhouse comic.  Every page is saturated in lurid entertainment, from shotgun-wielding nuns to elephants blazing with hellfire, right on through to Mr. Blaze himself, striding across the panels with a cocky and reckless attitude, as he purses a vicious cycle of overwhelming odds.

Aaron is aided in his efforts by the unique renderings of Huat and dynamic colors of Villarrubia, a creative team whose distorted, unsettling art style would look inappropriate on a more conventional superhero comic, but seems right at home on a dark, supernatural title like this.  When I first looked at their splash page of the Tibetan Ghost Rider, I grinned like a madman with all the fun I was having with this book.

From cover to cover, “The Last Stand” is solid entertainment that hits all the right notes; and more importantly, it succeeds in getting me interested in reading more about Ghost Rider.  If a graphic novel can achieve that, I’d say buying it was money well spent, wouldn’t you?

Grade: B+

-Tony Rakittke

Ghost Rider #29 – Review

By Jason Aaron (story), Tan Eng Huat (art), Jose Villarrubia (colors)

The Story: Having learned that the spirit of vengeance is actually a weapon of heaven bonded to him by the renegade angel, Zadkiel– who in turn is preparing to overthrow Heaven, Johnny Blaze travels to the mountains of Tibet to exact his revenge on the angel. He then discovers that there are many different versions of the Ghost Rider all over the world, and that they are being pursued by Danny Ketch, Blaze’s long lost brother, who is at the center of Zadkiel’s plans.

The Good: Jason Aaron delivers a streamlined revamp of the title that is engaging and fun to read.  In a few well-written pages of recap narration, I understood the plot and what happened in earlier issues, never feeling lost.  The artistic pairing of Tan Eng Huat and Jose Villarrubia is a revelation, and I hope to see more from them soon.  Huat has a gritty style that reminds me of Kevin O’Neill, and is perfectly complimented by Villarrubia’s dynamic colors, which make the the flames on Ghost Rider’s skull literally burn right off the page.

The Not So Good: The idea of multiple versions of the Ghost Rider existing wasn’t terribly original or exciting, since Ed Brubaker and Matt Fraction had already explored the notion with Immortal Iron Fist.  While this doesn’t imply that Aaron can’t use the idea as well and make it his own,  I felt like he was trying to make the concept more exciting than I thought it deserved to be.

Conclusion: Wow, I was not expecting to like this issue as much as I did!  Jason Aaron and Tan Eng Huat have done the impossible and convinced me to actually care about Ghost Rider with a plot that is friendly to new readers and some dynamic, quality art.  My only problem now is tracking down all his back issues!

Grade: B+

-Tony Rakittke