Why doesn’t Ghost Rider work in a solo series?

[LifeIsILL]

His 90s run was pretty wild and awesome.

And he has the best female villains in Marvel too. A shame most of them are forgotten.

[Killerbee911]

My opinion of Ghost Rider, is like Silver Surfer, It is a good concept attach to a bad or average gimmick. Just seeing Ghost Rider currently in the Avengers you could see why the concepts struggles at times. They bring on a silly vehicle or force it be included when you just need to the flaming monster.

Now Ghost Rider works as solo concept because it has been running at Image for 300 plus issues as independent book called Spawn. It has also work at DC called Spectre for a period of time. The concept should work as solo project I know the character is called Ghost Rider but maybe just easy back a tad on vehicle gimmick .

[Midnight_v]

... lot to say here but I'll leave it at this initially.

I disagree with the power level "up" being a bad thing. I think the Penance stare needs to be looked at and refined and redefined as to what it does. I.e. "No sentient being is immune to the penance stare" unless truly innocent you take the actual physical and emotional damage that you've inflicted to sentient beings: This damage cannot be quickly regenerated.


I watched every episode of the '70s hulk Tv show and really... was thinking about that when I saw the avengers scene where Black Widow went to recruit banner initially. The reality of the situation hit me.

That could have easily been the ghost rider getting recruited and there are very few stories that feature the hulk that a properly written GR couldn't fit in because essentially they're telling the same narrative tale. Just like:
The Wolfman
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. hyde
The Specter keeps getting mentioned but I keep thinking Eclipso might be a better reference
and so on...

Seems like some of Hellboy's stories could be told as ghost rider stories to with what him fighting against becoming he ender or whatever.

Man vs his personal demon(s)(literally)

There are very few hulk tales that they couldn't tell with ghost rider with magic instead of scientific dressing. I think until authors get back to the roots of simple things
in stories like types of conflict and understanding they're writing the same archetype there's going to be a lot of unsatisfying situations like this.


That being said the scene:

I got low. I didn't see an end. So, I put a bullet in my mouth...and the other guy spit it out

What's wrong?

Sick like them?

Should've got paid up front, Banner.

Avoiding stress isn't the secret.

You brought me to the edge of the city, smart. I, uh, assume the whole place is surrounded?

And your actress buddy? Is she a spy too, do they start that young?

Who are you?

Are you here to kill me, Miss Romanoff? Because that's not going to work out. For everyone.

How'd they find me?

Why?

What if I say no?

And what if the... other guy says no?

I don't every time get what I want.

Ah, those, I actively try to avoid.

What does Fury want me to do, swallow it?

So Fury isn't after the monster.

And he tells you everything?

He needs me in a cage?

Stop lying to me!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4OlWYAXc6Y

Really this whole scene (except the motivation of we need the scientist not the monster, but then thats why ultimate Ghost Rider was so satisfying in some ways even if not in the best book).

It would take very little to push ghost rider to the forefront and have midnight sons be something like "the avengers" but the roots have to be established way better.

As for the book... :/

Somebody has to love ghost rider like they love captain marvel except for real. . .

I feel the opposite as Riv about GR being an eventual threat to big cosmic things like phoenix and Galactus but the scope of what zarathos is how he works and
how inportant vengence is as a concept need to be explored as welllllll.... as....

picking a person to where the mantle but.

give me a 8 issue tales GR Tales book and we can get it fixed, marvel.

[Agent Z]

The Specter keeps getting mentioned but I keep thinking Eclipso might be a better reference

How so? Isn't Eclipso a villain?

[Midnight_v]

How so? Isn't Eclipso a villain?

Its just a possesion story that resonates with me better.

Buuutt....

Eclipso (/ɪˈklɪpsoʊ/) is a fictional supervillain in the DC Comics Universe.[1] The character is the incarnation of the Wrath of God and the Angel of Vengeance that turned evil and was replaced by the Spectre

In the early 1990s, DC retconned Eclipso in a company-wide crossover built around the miniseries Eclipso: The Darkness Within. Eclipso was revealed not simply to be Bruce Gordon's dark half, but a vengeance demon who had possessed Gordon

Zarathos was an Angel of Justice sent to protect humanity. He was tricked by the Devil to fall into Hell, where he was corrupted and driven insane. His mission of protecting the innocent turned into punishing the guilty; as a result, he became the Devil's Spirit of Vengeance.

Later in the 1990s, the series The Spectre gave key revelations about Eclipso. The Spectre was not the first embodiment of the wrath of God, but was Eclipso's replacement. Series writer John Ostrander chose to portray this as a distinction between the Spectre's pursuit of "vengeance" and Eclipso's pursuit of "revenge". In a Biblical context, Eclipso was responsible for Noah's Flood, while the Spectre was the Angel of Death who slew the first-born Egyptian children

Ultimately, the vengeance demon/angel aspect its kinda nebulous in my eyes as to whats a villan/ anti-hero its a thin line really. Meanwhile, if anyone wanted say they actually held any control over Eclipso persona he'd be right there
on the list. In faaaaact as I'm looking the Alex Montez persona really did just that.

The point is its someone struggling to keep control over a monster inside them is not only a parable but a story older as dirt.

[j9ac9k]

I think GR can work as a solo book, but the challenges as I see them are:
-- He's pretty much at home in the horror genre more than traditional superheroes.
-- Regardless of who GR is, when he's GR, he's pretty much just an unstoppable force with no other characteristics other than being unrelenting in his mission. He really only has personality or drama when he's in human form. Unfortunately, comics more and more have been ditching the "double-lives" aspect to superheroes.
-- Part of the reason the GR mythos has become confusing is because the character is stuck in a cycle (pun intended) of telling essentially the same story. Writers seem to have a difficult time expanding GR's world or taking it into new, different territories that help advance the character or brand.